Summer Pet Care in Lincoln, NE – 2018

During the summertime, especially if you’re a dog owner, there are some important things to keep in mind.

With the front and backyard areas of our homes seeing a lot more action – kids playing outside while they’re home on summer break, ongoing yard work and property upkeep, entertaining, etc. – keeping them free and clear of “land mines” is a must. Not to mention there’s a City ordinance that requires dog owners to keep their yards sanitary and remove pet waste every 5 days. It’s toxic to your lawn, causing unsightly discoloring and dead patches. Even more disgusting than it already is, if your pet finds his/her waste to be a delicacy and ingests it, there are somewhere around 23 million fecal coliform bacteria unleashed that can wreak havoc, causing mild to serious intestinal and kidney problems. According to the CDC, pet droppings can also contribute to diseases animals pass to humans, called zoonoses. Your lawn could potentially harbor parasites for years!

If you’d rather not have to bust out your pooper scooper on a regular basis to dispose of it properly to avoid all of that nastiness, a local pet waste removal company like Call of Doodie would be happy to come out each week do it for you.

Speaking of enjoying the great outdoors, we’re definitely looking at some scorchers ahead. While it’s become common knowledge that leaving your dog in the car in hot weather, even for just a few minutes, is dangerous, cruel and a big no-no, as is leaving him/her outside for long periods of time, even if there is adequate shade and water, there are other things to keep in mind that are just as critical to your dog’s safety and wellbeing. “The impact of heat and humidity is not to be underestimated,” advises Garrett Brehm with WOOF! Dog Care Center. “It’s very important to monitor water consumption. All dogs, regardless of coat or breed, can suffer from heat exhaustion and dehydration.”

Being stuck inside all day isn’t too much fun either, for humans or dogs. Instead of keeping their dogs pent up inside for long periods of time during the day, many owners opt to take them to daycare instead. Brehm notes, “At WOOF! Dog Care Center, our facility is equipped with multiple indoor and outdoor play yards, and we offer enrichment with toys and agility equipment to ensure all of the pups in our care for the day have a fun, exciting, and comfortable visit. During inclement weather, whether it’s a heat wave or a blizzard, we have Doggie Daycare playtimes inside to avoid exposure to the extreme elements. When we play outside during the summer months, we use pools, sprinklers, and water toys to keep active and stay cool.”

With pool and lake time being a summer staple for most, Brehm adds, “Dog fur can become matted and tangled when wet and dirty, so it’s important to maintain your pup’s coat with regular grooming and bathing.”

Then there are summer weekend trips and vacations to think about – will your pet(s) be coming along, will you have a pet sitter come to your home, or will you be boarding them?

Both boarding and grooming services book up very quickly, particularly in the summer months as well as around the holidays. Brehm recommends, “When making your vacation reservations for hotel, airfare, etc., make your boarding reservation at the same time. For holidays, such as the 4th of July, we book up approximately one month in advance.

Also, one of the biggest recommendations I’d offer to those seeking dog care is to tour and inspect the facility prior to your dog’s stay. Ask to see the specific space your dog will be occupying during their visit. Then ask yourself ‘Would I want to stay here overnight?’ I also encourage owners to ask questions about sanitation, employee training, and accreditation. WOOF! Dog Care Center is entirely suite-style, unlike other facilities that use kennels or cages, and our ventilation system is triple purified to remove allergens and pathogens as well as to reduce the spread of respiratory ailments. We live by our motto, ‘When you take your family vacation, we make sure your dog takes one too!’”

Finding the right fit for care is incredibly important to pet owners. Similar to the human variety of children, entrusting the care of their beloved furbabies to someone else can sometimes be tough, but when you find the perfect match it takes all the stress and worry away, which makes life way more easy and enjoyable.

Weighing in on the topic of finding the right fit for pet care, Dian Quist with Kenl Inn provides the following insight:

“Experience always makes a big difference. Then, of course, you can’t beat a friendly, knowledgeable staff who love nothing more than to be around pets all day, because you know yours will be treated with the same love, care, compassion, and respect. Before you leave your pet there, it helps to stop by beforehand to tour the facility, observe operations, check out the amenities, see how your pet responds, and ask questions.

At Kenl Inn, we’ve been caring for pets since 1988. Three decades’ worth of experience and providing personalized care has allowed us to grow and establish ourselves as a leader in the pet care industry.

For some, caring for their pets means simply meeting their basic needs for food, water, and shelter. For others, going to exceptional lengths such as homemade meals, purified water, and luxurious accommodations is not uncommon. Most fall somewhere in between, but all are a generally a matter of means and/or preference. During our 30 years of service, we’ve been dedicated to following the wishes of owners for the care of their pets while they are staying with us, and there’s no request we won’t do our best to honor.

During the summer, while many families go on vacation their pets come to stay with us. Think of it like a trip to summer camp. It’s a little scary at first being in a new place and there’s always a little homesickness, but then you find out there’s all of this fun and adventure, with plenty of new friends to meet and play with, and pretty soon you’re having such a great time that it’s not really so bad to be away from your parents for a little while. The majority of our guests are canine and we offer a variety of activities while staying overnight. For exercise, we offer Play Times, Group Play, and Nature Hikes. For enrichment, we offer Busy Bones, Pizza Party, Bagel Brunch, and Sunday Sundaes. Our executive suites are roomy, and we think the dogs feel more at home with the amenities offered in the suites.

As previously mentioned, grooming your pet is another important part of pet care and it’s not uncommon for owners to be particular about their pet’s groomer. Our Pet Salon also offers a variety of services, all designed to care for your pet in a respectful and calming manner. For some pets, the grooming experience can be stressful. Our stylists take the time to assure your pet is comfortable and accepting of the bathing, brushing, and styling process. And dogs, like people, can develop skin allergies. We use the Thera-Clean Microbubble bathing system, which uses simple tap water to uniformly generate microbubbles that range from 3 to 20 micrometers. This allows the microbubbles to penetrate hair follicles and pores – but not pass through the epidermis, or skin surface – to deep clean. Pets love this bathing procedure as it is relaxing and calming.”

One thing we have yet to cover is the importance of training. Quist explains, “Training is another component of caring for your pet. Whether you know it or not, you are always teaching your pet something! Training is the number one activity that all dogs should experience. There are training classes for puppies, adolescent dogs, competition dogs, trick dogs, and therapy dogs. By working with your dog, you can train him/her to accept handling, petting, and grooming, as well as appropriate behaviors in a social setting, which will make for much more positive experiences outside of the home. Then there’s targeted training for using their nose in a productive manner or teaching your dog self-control so they are not jumping up or barking needlessly. You literally can train your dog to do anything you want him or her to do. The time and effort you put into training your dog will be reflected in his or her behavior and demeanor. The goal is to take responsibility for creating a family pet that you can be proud to take anywhere.”

There’s a lot of summer fun yet to be had for the whole family, furry members included! Stay safe out there and enjoy!