Be critical when finding dog sitter – and listen to your gut feeling
I'll start by admitting that I'm very sensitive towards my dog, but hey, who isn't! It's not just a dog - it's a family member.
But even though she's part of the family, she's not supposed to go on vacation.
I started trying to find a good place to have her looked after – when she was a few years old.
I was recommended a couple of places – which were about 20km from us in radius. I drove up there and was shown the nicest outbuilding to the house. It was apparently an old stable. There were bars/walls between them – the floor was concrete (apparently with heating) – and there was a private “garden” – that is, a flap was opened and the dog could go out onto its own small grassy area.
There was a radio playing in the background, and I was told that they would get a walk a day, that was included in the price. I then asked if there were other dogs we needed to look after her – and they couldn’t promise that since it was out of season. That meant that my little “rolled sausage” (her nickname) would most likely have to live alone in a box for 1 week – while we had the coolest holiday down south!!!!
NO WAY – I was sobbing on the way home, and said out loud to myself in the car that this was never going to be a place where she would be looked after. Emma is an only dog, and is used to being with us in the house – she has a basket in the living room and one in the bedroom, and is wherever we are and wherever there are people.
(Picture taken in the dog kindergarten of Happy Dog)
We ended up in a fantastic place in Hørsholm, namely Stine and Casper at "Lykkelig Hund". It is far away with fields around, and horses neighing in the background. She goes there once a week to doggie daycare and they are the chosen ones and look after her when we travel. Of course, you have to go to the doggie daycare to be able to get the holiday pass, as the dog is already known in the place, is used to the house/surroundings/.
I came across the name when I was searching online. Contacted them for a visit, and came one weekday after the kindergarten was closed and Stine showed me around (without the dog) and we clarified a lot. Then Emma came for a trial visit to the kindergarten – which she "passed" fortunately😊
They have the most beautiful different meadows/areas that the dogs can be divided into depending on energy/size 😊 (Emma is in the quiet part, in case anyone is in doubt) 😊. This is where they go out to live/have fun in the morning. They come in and have a midday nap on the sofas/floor/baskets, depending on what they want, and then they come out again in the afternoon.
She started kindergarten, and not long after that she had to be looked after. It went beyond all expectations. She lives in the house with her family and their dogs. I got some lovely pictures sent to me – Emma on the couch – Emma in the kitchen (surprise) 😊 – and I could see she was having a blast <3
What makes it possible for me to hand her over to daycare (almost) without tears is that she jumps out of the car and almost tears my arm apart – howling and wagging, she throws herself at Casper when he opens the door <3 Then she's happy and I'm happy, and we go on vacation with a clear conscience.
I highly recommend giving your dog 1 day a week in a kindergarten or 1 day every 2 weeks, it does so much for it socially - it becomes part of a pack and learns the very important dog language so that it understands what another dog "says" when it meets it on the road/walk. And if that is not an option - then you can instead subscribe to have it walked. Picked up at the address - walk/fun and return to the address again - smart huh 😊 No wonder we love this place <3
Disclaimer: This is my personal experience and my personal requirements, which does not mean that others should feel and require the same! <3
A little about the blogger.
Her name is Lotte, she is in her early 50s. She works as a customer advisor and spends most of her free time training with her dog Emma, who is a 9-year-old beagle. They have trained and competed in Schweiss tracks for several years. Agility without much success (you can't lure them with treats) and now they train Nose Work 3-4 times a week if they can get to it. They compete at NW3 level, and they have a party together when they apply <3 – because the most important thing for this dog handler is that the DOG has fun, and that you learn the most from the mistakes you make. So instead of being angry/disappointed about a test that didn't go as planned, learn from it! - in most cases it's not the dog that makes the mistake <3
Find the right dog sitter - even if it takes time
Be critical when finding dog sitter – and listen to your gut feeling
I started trying to find a good place to have her looked after – when she was a few years old.
I was recommended a couple of places – which were about 20km from us in radius. I drove up there and was shown the nicest outbuilding to the house. It was apparently an old stable. There were bars/walls between them – the floor was concrete (apparently with heating) – and there was a private “garden” – that is, a flap was opened and the dog could go out onto its own small grassy area.
There was a radio playing in the background, and I was told that they would get a walk a day, that was included in the price. I then asked if there were other dogs we needed to look after her – and they couldn’t promise that since it was out of season. That meant that my little “rolled sausage” (her nickname) would most likely have to live alone in a box for 1 week – while we had the coolest holiday down south!!!!
NO WAY – I was sobbing on the way home, and said out loud to myself in the car that this was never going to be a place where she would be looked after. Emma is an only dog, and is used to being with us in the house – she has a basket in the living room and one in the bedroom, and is wherever we are and wherever there are people.
(Picture taken in the dog kindergarten of Happy Dog)
We ended up in a fantastic place in Hørsholm, namely Stine and Casper at "Lykkelig Hund". It is far away with fields around, and horses neighing in the background. She goes there once a week to doggie daycare and they are the chosen ones and look after her when we travel. Of course, you have to go to the doggie daycare to be able to get the holiday pass, as the dog is already known in the place, is used to the house/surroundings/.
I came across the name when I was searching online. Contacted them for a visit, and came one weekday after the kindergarten was closed and Stine showed me around (without the dog) and we clarified a lot. Then Emma came for a trial visit to the kindergarten – which she "passed" fortunately😊
They have the most beautiful different meadows/areas that the dogs can be divided into depending on energy/size 😊 (Emma is in the quiet part, in case anyone is in doubt) 😊. This is where they go out to live/have fun in the morning. They come in and have a midday nap on the sofas/floor/baskets, depending on what they want, and then they come out again in the afternoon.
She started kindergarten, and not long after that she had to be looked after. It went beyond all expectations. She lives in the house with her family and their dogs. I got some lovely pictures sent to me – Emma on the couch – Emma in the kitchen (surprise) 😊 – and I could see she was having a blast <3
What makes it possible for me to hand her over to daycare (almost) without tears is that she jumps out of the car and almost tears my arm apart – howling and wagging, she throws herself at Casper when he opens the door <3 Then she's happy and I'm happy, and we go on vacation with a clear conscience.
I highly recommend giving your dog 1 day a week in a kindergarten or 1 day every 2 weeks, it does so much for it socially - it becomes part of a pack and learns the very important dog language so that it understands what another dog "says" when it meets it on the road/walk. And if that is not an option - then you can instead subscribe to have it walked. Picked up at the address - walk/fun and return to the address again - smart huh 😊 No wonder we love this place <3
Disclaimer: This is my personal experience and my personal requirements, which does not mean that others should feel and require the same! <3
A little about the blogger.
Her name is Lotte, she is in her early 50s. She works as a customer advisor and spends most of her free time training with her dog Emma, who is a 9-year-old beagle. They have trained and competed in Schweiss tracks for several years. Agility without much success (you can't lure them with treats) and now they train Nose Work 3-4 times a week if they can get to it. They compete at NW3 level, and they have a party together when they apply <3 – because the most important thing for this dog handler is that the DOG has fun, and that you learn the most from the mistakes you make. So instead of being angry/disappointed about a test that didn't go as planned, learn from it! - in most cases it's not the dog that makes the mistake <3