I am glad that you worked in kennels that had sufficient, trained and well paid staff (at least minimum wage) and CPD to be able to walk all the dogs on this frequency as well as clean the kennels, feed and water the dogs at the required frequency.

That must be great especially if you can charge the fees required to support this level of labour.

I have to say that all the kennel owners I know and have used have been superb proprietors, with the staff warm and caring and all my dogs in the UK (5) have been very happy there as am I.

We all have different expectations.

My expectations are that my dogs are warm, dry, safe, well fed and watered and cared for.

I do not WANT them walked and if they WERE they would spend all their time looking for me (which is what happened when they had to go in for 2 weeks when I had appendicitis).

If you are happy with your arrangements for your dogs and I am happy with mine, surely there is not a problem.

I know a lot of kennels that SAY they walk ALL the dogs x times a day, but a simple maths calculation (when you know the number of kennels and number of staff) means that they cannot be entirely truthful unless they are working at least 16 hour shifts.

If people are happy to pay the extra to get the level of service they want that is up to them, the same as it is for those who choose to pay for 5 star hotels rather than 3 stars.

But you do not get 5 star service at 3 star prices.

I don't kennel my dogs, as they aren't boostered, and I wouldn't trust just anyone with the Estrelas, you have to know what you're dealing with. Rio doesn't seperate well either. Luckily we are able to take our dogs on holiday with us. If we go somewhere they can't come I have very good friends who I trust completely who will dogsit. Hypothetically though, I would pay the extra if it wasn't included, just so they had gotten out of the kennel for a while.

You say your dogs are "large ones" ... yet you think it OK for them to be kennelled for 2 weeks without any exercise??

I am too shocked for words, and that very rarely happens

We don't kennel either, for several reasons, one being we don't vaccinate, both dogs have severe SA, we don't go anywhere where our dogs cannot come too, and they are not the sort of dogs you could palm off on friends. I would hate to go on holiday without them in any case, it would be no holiday for me, they are part of our family - I would leave OH behind like a shot, but not my boys!!

IF I did kennel though, I would most certainly expect them to exercise my dogs on the lead, and also let them run off lead for at least half an hour a day in a secure compound. Neither would go to the loo in a run, they do not foul our garden even, so that would be a big problem were they not taken out for exercise.

I would want him to be in a VERY secure, large area where he was able to have a run and someone interact with him though - NOT just left in a space for 25 mins!

If I could trust that this would be the case then I would like him to have an hour a day.

I would want this on top of his usual on-lead walk though.

At the end of the day though, it's personal choice. Smokeybear feels that her dogs are safest in kennels, that's fine. Sometimes we go places where the dogs can't come. I recently took my bitch to stud 300 miles away, it would have been very unfair to drag the others along, especially a full male and a young puppy. Luckily I have friends who know the dogs. I don't think it's fair to critisise others for their choice of dog care. My mum kennels her dogs, despite the fact she lives next door but one to me. I know I couldn't give Louie what he needs and he would be stressed coming to work with me, so he's better off in kennels.

So in a kennels that can house 50 dogs, and each of them wanted an hour in a secure large area with an individual to work with them, you would need, let me see, at least 5 large secure areas and 5 staff employed JUST to play with them PLUS the other staff who are meanwhile cleaning the kennels, feeding, watering, answering the phone, working out invoices and bills, taking in new clients and taking out the previous ones.

Minimum wage is £5.93 x 8 x 5 per day.............. how much is this kennelling going to cost?

yes it would be impossible. Never thought about that. Never had to though.

No I wouldn't. I don't trust anyone else with my dogs off-lead. I know them the best and only trust myself and my hubby. I've had enough trouble with Danny and wouldn't trust him off-lead with anyone.
My lot are happy with lead walks, so if I was away this would be ok for them.

Well obviously the 50 mins (assuming that takes them an hour by the time they go to paddock) exercise would be £5.00 plus you pay about £10-15 a night here for one large dog in kennels and the lead walks in kennels lasts about 10 mins each twice a day.

one person can walk 15 dogs and clean 15 kennels (while the other alternates), do feeds, meds, 'scoop' runs, hose runs, squeeggee (sp? lol) runs, let dogs out to runs, take in the food bowls (water bowls are swapped and filled at clean), gates open, quick spray/brush dogs going out that morning and wash dishes while waiting on pick ups when gates open around 11am?

Thats if they start around 7am work till say 12pm?
Thats the morning shift done with two people for 5 hours, covering 15 dogs.
5 x 5.93 = £29.65 x 2 = £59.30

gates closed for afternoon - kennel owner has time for supervising off-lead exercise - numbers restricted/limited spaces and cant be booked for this on day they are leaving. Paddock split into two secure areas. 3 hours plus one staff = 5.93 x 3 = 17.79 wages out and £30 in.

next shift with two workers = £59.30

total costs without off-lead exercise = £118.60 on wages for £300. (if £10 for each dog)

136.39 x 2 = wages
330. income

I provide food at the kennels I used last time I had to use them. Thats on the tenner a night and its more like 15 here by now I think.

PS bear in mind many dogs can be recuperating or elderly and do not even manage the 10 min walks!

pps thats if there are two kennel owners doing the pm shift too!