FAQs

At Downtown Dog Lounge, dog daycare is a place where your pooch can socialize and play with others and receive constant human supervision.  Many people love our services because it helps socialize their dog, keeps their dog entertained throughout the day as opposed to being crated or destructive at home, and lets them burn energy throughout the day so they are not as wound up when you finish the work day.

For a variety of different reason, dogs are often rotated in and out of the play group throughout the day.  These reasons can include an intact male and female who are not allowed to play together, two dogs who just can’t quite seem to get along with one another, anyone who just looks like they need a break, or breed-related reasons (too many herding dogs herding, too many restricted breeds for insurance purposes, etc.).  We empower our people to manage each unique pack on a daily basis to maximize play time for each dog while keeping the park safe and peaceful.

The bordetella vaccination is administered to prevent kennel cough, which is more easily contracted in social environments. Upon opening, we consulted with veterinarians and decided this was the right thing to do. Our purpose is not to over-vaccinate any pooches, just to do everything we can to keep kennel cough from becoming an issue in our facilities. We offer a non-injectable intra-nasal version of this vaccination in-house.

Quick-release collars are an extra measure of safety when your pooch is playing with the others.  So much of dog play is done with their mouths, and any garments that dogs are wearing can get caught on teeth or tangled.  The reason we require the quick-release collar is so that we can snap the collar open in the rare instance that any pups should get a collar caught on their teeth or tangled with another.  Belt buckle style collars do not give us the ability to quickly separate dogs in a situation like this.  Collars can become chewed if dogs are playing at DDL on a regular basis.  We offer a number of affordable collars and options to store them here if you wish to have a different collar at home.  Harnesses are not to be worn in the parks unless specifically recommended by a vet.

Our cut off point is 5 hours and we also offer hourly daycare.  From 1-2 hours you will be charged the hourly rate.  From 2-5 hours you will be charged a half day.  Beyond 5 hours you will be charged a full day.  We offer packages in both half day increments and full day increments, but these are not interchangeable.  I.e.- you cannot come in for two half days and use one day out of your full day package.  If you have the need for both services from time to time, it is best two carry two separate packages.

Our boarding billing operates on a 24 hour cycle.  The nightly rate covers 24 hours from the time that you drop your pooch off (plus a one hour grace period).  On the last day of your pooch’s stay, any applicable daycare rates beyond this 24 hour period will be charged (full day, half day, or hourly)

An after-hours fee is a fee that results in dropping your dog off or picking your dog up outside of our normal business hours.  We are staffed 24/7/365, so this is always an option; however we are minimally staffed outside of normal business hours.  Clients who purchase monthly, half-year, and full-year unlimited daycare packages are not subject to after-hours fees.  If something comes up and your dog needs to stay late or if you just know you need to drop off early or pick up late, we always appreciate a heads-up by calling, emailing, or telling the front desk staff.  If a dog is here beyond midnight, they will be checked in to boarding and appropriate fees will apply.  The price difference between daycare + late fee and one night of boarding is minimal, so depending on your situation, it may make sense to pick up the next day.

We offer a 30 minute grace period for pick up after Grooming, Bathing, and Boarding.  If your dog is not picked up within the expected time, it will roll into hourly Daycare charges ($16 per hour). Please note for Grooming clients, we are limited on holding space. If your dog is not picked up at the expected time and requires a walk potty break, walking fees will apply as well as daycare charges.

We love puppies!  For their well-being, please do not bring them to us until they are at least 8 weeks old.  We do require that they complete all rounds of their Rabies and DHPP vaccinations before mixing with the other dogs. We also require the Bordetella (kennel cough) vaccination on a 6 month basis.  For pups that are still too young to have received all of these vaccinations, we have pens available in our lobby areas.  In these pens, the pups get lots of love from the staff and other clients throughout the day and are let outside periodically for potty breaks.  After your pup is vaccinated and playing with the others, we require that the dog is spayed or neutered before turning 8 months of age.  For the safety and well-being of all the pooches in-house, intact dogs beyond 8 months of age are not permitted in the facility.  We do not consider vasectomies an acceptable alternative to neutering for this policy.

For pooch parents who have recently adopted, first of all, thank you!  For the overall well-being of recently-adopted dogs, it is our policy that dogs must be in their new home for at least 2 months prior to being evaluated for using daycare and boarding services.  Experience has taught us that dogs have a tendency to handle the group play environment much better after they have had time to acclimate to their new home environment.

Although our facilities are indoor, dogs do not generally view them as an incorrect place to use the bathroom.  There are lots of doggy smells and areas that encourage urination.  All of our play areas are under constant human supervision and messes are cleaned up as quickly as possible.  Although dogs not using the restroom indoors at our facility is extremely rare, we do offer outdoor walks as an addition to any daycare or boarding stay.

Please pick up your dog no more than two hours after we have notified you that he or she is ready.  Dogs that are not picked up within two hours will be charged applicable daycare or walk rates.  Keep in mind that dogs who are here for daycare and grooming may only play with the daycare and boarding dogs if they have passed a new dog evaluation.

The new dog evaluation is $47 (the same price as a full day of daycare) because we like to keep your pup for a full day of daycare to best assess their behavior with the others.