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COPYRIGHT 2005 Australian Consumers' Association
Holiday time, yay! So you've planned your holiday, researched your destination, booked the tickets and hotels, obtained visas, learnt a little local language, arranged airport transfers and car rental, sorted out access to currency, redirected mail, disconnected the car battery, made arrangements with the bank, set up your automatic light switches, put the radio on talkback, asked your neighbours to keep an eye on the house ... and now you really do need that holiday. But for many pet owners, the biggest planning headache is what to do with Fido and Fluffy.
Unless you've a ready supply of willing and able friends and relatives, you're going to have to consider a commercial pet care service. In this article we look at the different kinds of care available, from boarding facilities to care in your own home, or the homes of others. We asked CHOICE readers to tell us their experiences with pet care services and how satisfied they felt overall (see Pet care survey, page 28). Each type of care has its advantages and disadvantages, and there's no clear winner. We received some horror stories, but most pets came home none the worse for their stay, even if not all had the happy experience hoped for or expected.
Ultimately the best type of care for your pet depends on your pet's nature and personality: gregarious, active animals have different needs to sedate loners. But it also depends on how good the care is: a friendly, well-run boarding facility is a better option than an unreliable or neglectful house sitter, even if Fluffy would really rather stay at home.
BOARDING FACILITIES
These include kennels, catteries and care provided by some veterinary practices. Some are better than others in terms of the amount of attention given, individual space and opportunity for exercise. It's important to shop around, but remember price isn't always an indicator of quality.
Our dog owners paid an average of $24 a day, and cat owners $15 a day. However, prices varied enormously depending on extras (administering medication, exercise, bathing), duration (some have relatively high minimum payments for short stays), number of animals (you can sometimes get a discount for more than one pet) and location (city versus country).
In most states, there are no legal requirements regarding standards of pet boarding facilities, although they must be capable of ensuring that obligations under the various Acts concerning animal welfare and prevention of cruelty to animals are met. Some states have codes of practice for pet boarding facilities, which set out minimum requirements for housing, feeding, exercise, health and veterinary care, hygiene and security. However, except in Victoria, these codes aren't mandatory.
Kennels
We received many heartwarming stories of dogs returning from 'their holiday' happy and healthy, having enjoyed romps in the countryside and playing with other dogs.
For other dogs--and their owners--it can be a nightmare. We heard of incidents, ranging from the relatively minor to the more serious. The worst story we received involved a sleeping dog whose leg had inadvertently ventured through the fence, and was mauled by the dog in the next cage. The owners were called back...
Read the full article for free courtesy of your local library.
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