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All dogs must be current on rabies and distemper. We suggest puppies receive at least one Bordetella vaccination because of their young immune systems. These vaccinations must be administered and documented by a licensed veterinarian. Discuss with your vet which vaccinations would be best for your pet and your lifestyle. Please do not over vaccinate.  We absolutely accept titers for distemper to help prevent over vaccinating.

The cost of the bath and removal of fleas or ticks could be up to $80.00 depending on the severity of the issue and the size of the dog.

Yes, we require dogs to be neutered or spayed by 2 years of age. Female dogs cannot be in season (in heat) while at Happy Pets Palace. All dogs must be appropriate and suitable for co-ed group play.

Yes! We LOVE to give tours. Stop by anytime that we’re open for business and we’ll show you around. In fact, we suggest you tour any facility before leaving your dogs in someone else’s care.

Here’s what to look for:

• You should be able to tour every aspect of the facility without advance notice, anytime during business hours.
• The facility should be odor free and look and feel clean.
• Staff members should be capable of answering your daycare or boarding questions.
• Ask for a reference lists of current or past customers to check on their satisfaction or search online for reviews on Google or Facebook.
• Staff members should appear kind and friendly toward the dogs.
• The boarding kennel should require vaccinations from a licensed veterinarian prior to allowing a dog to be boarded.
• Kennel suites or runs should be spacious and clean, with no areas for dogs to see the other dogs to their left or to their right, and absolutely no area within their overnight kennel which would allow fence fighting, such as chain link fencing.

You should have a pretty good idea already if your dog will do well with other dogs in group play. After our initial in-person or phone conversation, we have a 5-step evaluation process.

Initial Conversation

If you are not sure how your dog will do in group play, then we will ask you a few questions over the phone to get an idea, such as:

• How old is your dog?
• Do you take your dog to the dog park and how do they do at the dog park around other dogs?
• How much experience your dog has with dogs they do not know (family dogs don’t count)
• What breed is your dog?

If everything sounds good and you’re comfortable, then we proceed to a meet and greet.

STEP 1

We want to see how your dog is with us, the staff, and how they are with us moving them using their collar. We watch for how your dog enters our facility. We want to see a happy dog, loose, wiggly, good balance on all four legs. We can work with shy/timid dogs even if they are tail tucked coming in the door. Sometimes the dog’s radar is up and they think they are in for an unpleasant appointment. More time is better so the dogs can relax and see that we are about fun and playtime. What we don’t want to see in our lobby is intense stare and body posture strongly leaning forward, or a height-seeking body position. When we feel your dog is comfortable with us, we move to the backhouse.

STEP 2

Your dog is introduced, on leash, to two other dogs, one at a time, one of the same sex and one of the opposite sex. If we see happy appropriate body signals from your dog, then your dog will proceed to step 3. If we aren’t sure about your dog’s body language or signals, then we will introduce a couple more dogs individually, still on leash, so we can get a more detailed read on your dog’s acceptance and tolerance of being in a group of new dogs.

STEP 3

Your dog is now in our play group with the couple dogs your dog already met during the leash introductions in part 2. We take your dog outside immediately so he/she can sniff around and potty if necessary. We monitor all new dogs and gradually build up the group adding a couple more dogs at a time until our staff is comfortable with your dog. Once our staff gets a good read that your dog is comfortable then the group can be expanded.

STEP 4

We make sure all dogs are a good fit for both the humans and the other dogs. Therefore we do let the other dogs in the group give their feedback about all new dogs who come to Happy Pets Palace & Playground. Working with dogs every day we learn how to recognize if the dogs sense bad vibes from a new dog. Imagine you’re walking up to a human to ask a question, and you get a vibe, so you quickly know not to approach that person. Dogs do the same thing. So when we see our group of dogs that we know well all change their mind about approaching the new dog, there’s a reason. And we respect our pack’s choice for the safety of all the dogs.

STEP 5

Before a new dog is signed off on, at least two staff members working with the dogs have to give approval that the new dog is a good fit for our environment. Once the new dog has been approved, he/she is welcome to come to daycare and/or boarding as long as they maintain good behavior.

The pre-screening process is done on your first day of daycare. It does take us 3-4 hours. You can choose if you want a half day daycare (up to 5-hours) or a full day daycare (over 5 hours). Regular daycare rates apply. Boarding dogs must also go through our meet and greet evaluation because at Happy Pets Palace all boarding dogs receive doggy daycare included in their stay. We do pre-screening appointments on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. We do require advance notice, so please call us at 480-207-1852 and schedule a time to come in.

We do require PLASTIC QUICK RELEASE DOG COLLAR that is a snap and go which can be easily removed by pinching together the black plastic ends. These collars can be purchased at a pet store or online. Although very popular, buckle collars are dangerous in dog play groups because of the buckle’s pointy edges. We do not keep harnesses on during group play nor when boarding. Sweaters are allowed in group play. It does get chilly during our winters and we like everyone to stay cozy warm.

If your dog is healthy, well-adjusted, has a good immune system and eats high quality dog food, then the risk is quite low. But yes, your dog can be exposed to disease when playing with other dogs. We do require advance vaccination, from licensed veterinarians, to ensure a healthy population of dogs who come to Happy Pets Palace. We have high sanitation standards. In addition we have quality air scrubbers, and clean living conditions which are vitally important to ensuring the absence of disease. Our air flow system, required vaccinations, solid wall villa construction, and staff training programs all help to create a healthy, safe and secure environment for your dogs when they are in our care.

Our indoor facility is cleaned and sanitized every day. Our outside playgrounds where dogs do their potty business is cleaned twice daily.

Dogs with separation anxiety, already weakened immune systems, or dogs who do not eat healthy dog food have a higher risk and are more susceptible to getting sick. Please request extra rest when boarding if you feel your dog’s immune system would benefit from extra rest and nap time.

We love our dogs and want to be sure we are feeding them the best foods possible. Please click here to visit DogFoodAdvisor to see how the food you’re feeding your dog is rated. Read the “Bottom Line” under each brand. See how many STARS your dog food is rated by this unbiased product analysis. Learn about former recalls. Your dog’s daily diet does impact their health and immune system.

A Client Profile, Pet Profile and a Waiver and Release of Liability form are required for dog boarding and doggy daycare.