FAQ | WB Dog Bed and Biscuit DC

Frequently
Asked
Questions

1 / What is structured boarding?

Most doggy daycares are not designed with the average dog in mind. Dogs become quickly overstimulated, and sometimes react fearfully or aggressively when constantly around other dogs in a relatively unmonitored play environment with no boundaries. Structured boarding means we have a daily schedule that involves a rotation of physical exercise (walks and playtime with other dogs, if appropriate), mental enrichment (1-1 basic manners training or tricks training), downtime (crate naps, “place" work around distractions), and socialization (play and engagement with other dogs).

What really sets us apart is our willingness to reinforce the training you are doing at home. Amanda competes in AKC obedience and has worked with several local trainers, taken online coursework with Fenzi Dog Academy, and attends in-person training courses at both Capital Dog Training Club and Mount Vernon Dog Training Club. Jared also attends classes and has experience handling dogs in conformation. We are happy to try a variety of methods to help your dog meet your training goals while they are in our care.

2 / What are your rates?

Please see the Services page for more information on our current rates.

3 / Are you insured?

Yes! We are insured through PetCare Insurance.

4 / How many dogs do you board at a time?

We typically board no more than 2 dogs per night, or 3 dogs on a day when one dog's arrival day overlaps with another dog's departure day.

5 / How do you vet dogs in your care/ensure safety?

We do a meet and greet with all clients and their dogs before accepting them as regular boarders with us.

We do not accept dogs that have a history of aggression. Dogs that begin to demonstrate behavioral issues with other dogs during their stay will be crated and rotated out individually apart from the other boarders to ensure everyone's safety until the end of the stay, and not allowed to return. We also review all requests for boarding that overlap with others to make sure the pairing will be a good match.

In general, because of the low volume of boarders we take at a time, we can ensure a lower stimulus environment which greatly reduces risk. We also use crates for mealtime and when we cannot be at home to minimize resource guarding and maximize safety.

6 / What training methods do you use?

We use positive reinforcement based training with boarding clients (and our own pups, of course) to reinforce desired behaviors, teach new skills, and reward for attention and otherwise good behavior while in our care.

Amanda has trained with trainers who use a variety of balanced methods, and we use balanced methods (depending on the dog and the issue we are trying to address) with our own dogs. We are comfortable training dogs using balanced methods if clients prefer those approaches and are happy to discuss what that looks like . We are familiar with the use of e-collars/prong collars/etc. If you are working with a trainer using balanced methods, we are happy to work with you and your dog about how to incorporate those training methods while they are boarding with us. There's no judgement here!