Pam Gee, the Kennels & Catteries Director of the Pet Care Trust

Pam Gee, the Kennels & Catteries Director of the Pet Care Trust:

Boarding kennels

“Gone are the days of row upon row of small basic wooden pens. Good modern kennels are spacious and bright, with plenty of outdoor space that dogs can freely access during the day and high human-to-dog ratios. Some are even known as pet hotels providing the sense that your dog too is going on holiday. They have furniture for a ‘home-from-home’ feel and have CCTV cameras installed in each kennel, so that you can have images of your pet sent over to your Blackberry while you’re away.

“Today’s boarding kennels are convenient and practical, and provide perhaps the safest and most secure environment for your dog when you are not there. They have insurance cover and a manned presence on site 24 hours a day. As the owner, you can therefore have the reassurance that your dog is in safe hands. If you are choosing a kennel, it is important to be sure that they are of a standard that meets your expectations. Kennels that are members of the British Kennel & Cattery Association, for example, are some of the best in the industry, subscribing to the BKCA Charter to ensure high standards of animal welfare and customer service, and which holds them accountable if problems arise."

Caring options

“If you are going away and are looking at options for your dog, a boarding kennel can be a very suitable choice because they can help replicate the pack mentality that inherently exists within dogs and which can therefore help yours to feel more reassured in your absence. Taking dogs away from their home environment can cause them to feel vulnerable, as they tend to be fairly territorial.

“Furthermore, good kennels are professional and are run by trained and experienced staff who carefully look after your pet, watching for signs of illness and administering any medication that your dog may need to take. They also have links with veterinary practices if they need to phone for veterinary help. Staff are attentive to the needs of your dog and strive to keep him in his familiar routine following his usual food and exercise regimes to ensure that he settles well and enjoys his stay.

“Remember when thinking about your holidays that not all hotels and B&Bs will accept dogs. Many tourist attractions too will not take dogs or are impractical to visit with them and bear in mind also that a long journey can be distressing for them, especially in hot weather.

“Pet passports have revolutionized travelling with your dog to the many countries on the continent but they are expensive and time-consuming to organize, taking around eight months from the start of the process until you actually go away.

“All in all, for a solution to the question of what to do with your dog if you are going away, look no further than a quality boarding kennel: convenient and practical, yet safe and secure, giving you peace of mind that your family dog is being expertly and professionally cared for and is having as much of a holiday as you!”

Take him with you

Karen Bush, writer and dog owner

“I love holidays; it’s great to escape from everyday chores and work and to spend time unwinding and recharging physical, spiritual and emotional batteries — but there’s no way I could relax and enjoy myself if our dogs didn’t come too.

“While I appreciate there may be occasions when a family crisis or illness may make a stay in kennels unavoidable, I don’t personally regard holidays as being one of them. I tried it once when a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take a five-day break in Rome cropped up. Much time was spent checking out various kennels and the one we finally settled on was a lovely place, with terrific staff, and came highly recommended by a friend. I thought I’d be fine but nevertheless, the first three days of my dream holiday were spent worrying about the dogs and the last two counting down the hours until we were able to collect them. The holiday was marvellous but the fretting did rather take the gloss off it.

“And as we’ve always owned rescue dogs, the thought of putting them back into a similar environment is also another very good reason for us not to plonk them in kennels.

“On a second occasion when we took a long weekend break, we tried a different option — that of leaving the dogs with our parents. They were in a familiar home environment and cared for magnificently but nevertheless I still worried about them.

"Supposing they escaped? Or some other disaster? Maybe I’m just soft but in an emergency, you’re a long way from home and no matter how experienced and lovely the carer, we all secretly know that no-one looks after our dogs as well as we do.

Happy memories

“Since then, we’ve always taken holidays in the UK with the dogs. It’s been cheaper, much less stressful for me (and therefore for my partner) and we’ve visited some terrific places we might not otherwise have bothered with. Some of my most cherished memories, not to mention a fair number of photographs of the dogs we’ve shared our lives with, are of the fun we’ve all had on holidays.

“Among other things, we’ve climbed Glastonbury Tor at dawn to watch the sun rise, been mistaken for an exhibit in Cheddar Gorge, discovered dinosaur teeth in Dorset, relived ancient battles in castles and fortresses, reversed into a vintage Rolls Royce owned by a Dalmatian lover, been invited (dogs too) into china shops and retraced the tracks of past Land Speed racers on Pendine Sands, not to mention the cream teas, picnics and pub lunches galore we’ve enjoyed along the way.

“We’ve roughed it in the back of an estate car, camped in all sorts of places, rented static mobile homes, and as each generation of dogs has grown more elderly, have sampled the comforts of B&Bs and hotels. There’s something for all tastes and budgets and, what’s more, the dogs love it all as much as we do. They are often a little puzzled the first day but quickly adapt to the changes in routine and environment. At the end of each day they climb contentedly into their beds to snore the night away and are ready and eager each morning to see what new adventures and experiences the new day will bring. We get to spend extra quality time with them and to deepen existing bonds; everyone has a good time and we all come home happy.”

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