Bark City Doggy Daycare

Last November, I was introduced to essential oils and started doing research on using essential oils for  pets . Unfortunately, there is so little research on the subject and so much misinformation, it can get quite overwhelming. One of my favorite websites for learning how to safely use essential oils on humans is Learning About EO's . I have learned so much, but feel as if I have only scratched the tip of the iceberg. As a result of this newly found knowledge, I have also developed a new pet peeve-- people posting natural essential oil recipes for pets on Pinterest without really taking into regard the power of these oils.... and they can be SUPER POWERFUL. There are a lot of oils out there that are NOT safe for pets and can be quite deadly. Therefore, I have compiled a list of oils that I have read can be toxic to pets. I always encourage you to do your own research as well, because I am obviously not a licensed aromatherapist nor am I a chemist or a holistic Veterina...

 For the last few weeks, I have been highlighting different dog treats that can be found in our candy store.The next company (and last for a while!) is Polkadog Bakery . Polkadog is a small canine bakery in South Boston. All of their treats are handmade from scratch every morning. Their ingredients are locally source from neighborhood suppliers. Large dog treat manufacturers often have raw materials shipped to them from all over the country or world. This causes a decline in quality and increases the risk of food contamination. Because Polkdog gets all of their ingredients "right around the corner" they have optimum control over what goes into their treats and what stays out. In fact, they control every aspect of their bakery from resources, to mixing and baking the ingredients to even hand-packing the finished products and shipping! Their treats are superb and dogs absolutely love them!

The candy store treat company I am going to highlight this week is Bosco and Roxy's . We first learned about them at a dog convention in Las Vegas this past summer. They are based out of London, Ontario Canada and founded by fellow dog boarding facility owners, Michelle and Jamie Crook. Michelle and Jamie wanted to give the dogs special treats while they were boarding, so they started baking from scratch. Word slowly spread about their treat's awesomeness and soon people were asking if they could take them home. The treats have quickly spread across North America, yet they still retain that homemade touch. This image was found on their Facebook page. Click here to "like" them. All of their cookies are hand cut, baked and decorated. Their ingredients are human-grade and they carry wheat-free options for those sensitive stomached pups. We also like that they have many different themed cookies to choose from, so we can pick our treats according to what...

We launched our Dog Candy Store in December. It took us quite a while to decide what treats to carry. After all, we only want the best treats available to our clients! I would like to take these next few weeks to highlight the companies we decided to use. Today, is Bubba Rose Biscuit Company . Bubba Rose was started in 2006 by Jessica and Eric Talley. They started making dog treats for their two rescue dogs, Bubba and Rose. From there, it kind of took off! Now they have been featured on NBC's Today Show, People Magazine, NY Times Style Magazine, Modern Dog...and MANY more... trust me, the list is really long. I didn't feel like typing them all out. They also have a cook book you can buy. (See picture to immediate right.) What I like about Bubba Rose is that every treat is wheat, corn, soy, gluten free AND baked in small batches in their bakery in NJ. All the meats are locally sourced, free-range, grass fed and hormone and antibiotic free. They not only care about dogs,...

A while back, I wrote a blog post about a non-profit organization called Dogs On Deployment . I have been thinking about this organization lately and it gave me the idea to spotlight organizations that are doing exceptional work. Today, I would like to draw attention to Fences For Fido . This 501(c)(3) non-profit is base in Portland, OR and their mission is to create safer improved conditions for chained dogs by providing shelter, a fenced yard instead of a chain, veterinary care, and spay/ neutering services when necessary. This organization was first started in May of 2009 and since then, they have unchained over 800 dogs!! They do not have any paid staff and rely completely on donations of money, material and labor. Fences For Fido also does not pass judgement on their clients. There are a lot of reasons dogs end up on chains. FFF simply wants to remedy the situation, strengthen the bond between humans and dogs and educate. They even visit families after the initial fence and sh...

 Bark City has been planning and plotting some super secret ways to make our facility an exciting experience for both you and your dog. We will be announcing different additions throughout the next year (We like to keep our customers on edge and guessing with anticipation!) Our first announcement happened this Howl-ween: Yep, that's right. We will be opening a candy store for your canine family members. We figured there is enough candy around for humans, but our little pups get left in the dust. We want to change the phrase, "Like a kid in a candy store." to "Like a puppy in a candy store." (I am coining that phrase as of now...) If you happened to stop by our facility during Howl-ween for the costume contest, you probably saw a glimpse of what some of the treats will look like: Aren't they great?! Aside from the candy, we had some great costumed pooches come in for our contest. You can see all of the costumes on our Facebook page . Here are...

Owners are often relieved when their dog(s) pass the temperament screening test and are allowed to participate at a doggy daycare. But, the question that most owners do not ask the daycare is whether or not their staff is trained to handle a large group play structure. At Bark City, our staff is trained through "The Dog Gurus" program . Today, I would like to share with you a bit of their promotional material! This is the staff training program that we make all of our staff study. You could say they are enrolled at Bark City University... These are the two founders of "The Dog Gurus" and their credentials: Robin Bennett is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer who founded one of the largest dog training companies in Virginia. Her first book,  All About Dog Daycare  is the number one reference on opening a dog daycare.   Susan Briggs owned a large pet care center in Houston, TX for  12 years and was an early pioneer of dog daycare se...