animal care by animal people

<h3>Does my bird need dietary supplements?</h3> <p>If your bird is eating a good quality, complete diet, including fresh fruit and vegetables, there is usually no need for extra dietary supplements. Yay!  <img alt="" src="/graphics/ic_smiley3.png" height="15" width="15"></p>

<h3>What are your enclosures like? What size are they?</h3> <div class="faq_ans_img"><img loading="lazy" src="https://d12fifzdy7ujh4.cloudfront.net/images/faqs/faq_34.jpg"></div> <div class="faq_ans_text"><p>The very best way to answer that question is for you to come meet us and take a look for yourself. In fact, that's what we always really strongly recommend.</p> <p>But that's not always easy to schedule, is it. We know. So you should definitely look at the images <a href="/what-we-do/boarding-daycare/the-kennels-the-catteries-the-kennatteries" target="_blank">here</a> and elsewhere around our site, as well as our video tour <a href="/video-tour" target="_blank">here</a>, because there are lots for you see, and this should help a great deal in understanding what your pet will experience.</p> <p>In short, though, our enclosures are like this:</p> <ul> <li>All our dog enclosures have an indoor and an outdoor run, and almost all our cat enclosures do too, and your pet decides where he or she wants to be. Those few cat enclosures which don't have an outdoor run, we try to reserve for cats which need or like to be inside most of the time anyway.</li> <li>All indoor runs are air-conditioned.</li> <li>Cat enclosures are multi-storied, with shelves and trapdoors and bedding and toys and all.</li> <li>All dog enclosures have various types of comfortable, snuggly bedding.</li> <li>Cat enclosures range in size. The smallest space we have is an indoor portion of a run which is L:0.8m x W:0.8m x H:1m. The largest space we have is an outdoor portion of a run which is L:4.2m x W:1.1m x H:2.2m.</li> <li>Dog enclosures also range in size. Our smallest enclosures are 1.5m x 1.5m both indoor and outdoor. Our largest are 2.2m x 1.8m indoor and 3m x 2.5m outdoor. And there are a couple of sizes in between.</li> </ul></div>

<h3>Do I get a discount if I bring my own food?</h3> <p>Sorry about this, but no. Food for your pets is, of course, a cost for us but another very significant cost factor is the actual time, effort and resource to do the feeding itself. With all the pets we have in our care, special feeding, even if it's your own food, requires that much more involvement.</p> <p>We hope you understand.</p>

<h3>Do I have to provide my own pet food? What type of food do you provide?</h3> <div class="faq_ans_img"><img loading="lazy" src="https://d12fifzdy7ujh4.cloudfront.net/images/faqs/faq_pet_photo_43.jpg"></div> <div class="faq_ans_text"><p>No you don't. We provide everything.</p> <p>We rely primarily on dry Royal Canin and Pedigree wet... and also chicken, tuna and rice when needed or specifically wanted.</p> <p>Of course, if you have a special diet (your own concoction or a veterinary prescription) we can do that too... although for these there <em>might</em> be additional charges.</p> <p>To learn more, take a look here: <span class="span_link cursorpointer" data-href="/what-we-do/boarding-daycare/love-and-other-stuff-too#Special-Diets">Love... and other stuff too/Special Diets</span>.</p></div>

<h3>I'm a new dog/cat owner! Help! </h3> <div class="faq_ans_img"><img loading="lazy" src="https://d12fifzdy7ujh4.cloudfront.net/images/faqs/faq_pet_photo_0.jpg"></div> <div class="faq_ans_text"><p>Help indeed!</p> <p>Download <a href="/docs/New_Dog_and_Cat_Owners_-_The_Beginnings_of_WISDOM!.pdf" target="_blank">this document</a> ~ it might help you get started.</p></div>

<h3>Is someone looking after my pet during weekends, holidays and at night?</h3> <p>Simply, yes. Even when we are closed to our two-legged customers, we have staff on-site every single day of the year. Full stop.</p> <p>Furthermore, we have staff on-site even at night. And because of our relocations work, which takes place mostly at night, every night, we have at least a couple of hours spread throughout the night when things are going on at DKC. Now, in fairness, we're not actually working with all the animals during the night as we do during the day, but after all folks, your pets need to sleep too! <img alt="" src="/graphics/ic_smiley3.png"></p>

<h3>Should I be worried if my dog or cat has lost or gained weight during their boarding stay?</h3> <p>No and yes, depending.</p> <p>A little bit of weight gain or loss is very common. It doesn't happen to all pets during every stay in a boarding facility, but it does happen. Pet owners, understandably, often immediately feel that this must mean their pet has not been taken care of properly, but in fact it is more important to look at the entire context and the extent of the loss or gain.</p> <p>Commonly, pets staying in a boarding facility are not eating exactly as they do at home. They may or may not be eating exactly the same food (depending on the arrangements you've made with the kennel or cattery), and even if they are, they may not be eating exactly the same amounts because, despite every effort to get it just right, human beings differ and the precise amounts they provide may be a little different than you do when your pet is at home. So, all this small change can lead to weight gain or loss, in and of itself.</p> <p>More important and relevant than this, however, is that pets are generally much more active in a boarding facility than they are at home. Now <em>wait</em>! We're <em>not</em> saying that you aren't taking good care of your pet by not giving him or her lots of activity. No, not at all. It's just that in a boarding facility, especially one that has a good number of staff and lots of other animals around, the whole environment is very stimulating and there is a lot of exercise for dogs and lots of other general interest for both dogs and cats. And this keeps them more active and generally more stimulated, even if they're in their enclosures. And this, in turn, often leads to a bit of weight loss.</p> <p>And one more thing: In many cases, a little bit of weight loss for dogs and cats is a good thing and although we have many customers who do worry about this, we also have a great many who are pleased to see that their pet has lost a little weght in our care because, in fact, they came in to us a little overweight.</p> <p>But of course, everyone has a different perception of this, and if the weight of your pet is not medically bad, one way or the other, then we do try to maintain the weight your pet comes in with.</p> <p>This all said, too much weight gain or loss IS a problem and if you feel there has been too much either way, we truly hope you'll talk to us about this. We monitor this aspect of your pet's health very closely, with a weight check when they first arrive for boarding and then regular checking every week, or more often if we perceive a potential problem. And if there is a problem, we always let you know about it while you're away and take action when required by adjusting feeding or even consulting your vet.</p> <p>If you're interested in more insight about this important subject, take a look at our page, "<a href="/what-we-do/boarding-daycare/weight-loss-or-gain-while-boarding" target="_blank">Weight Loss or Gain While Boarding</a>".</p>

<h3>My pet is taking medications ~ can DKC Boarding manage this?</h3> <p>As Barack Obama said... YES WE CAN!</p> <p>Just talk to us about it and we'll organise the rest.</p> <p>(Don't like Barack Obama quotes? Oops!)</p>

<h3>What's DKC's Collection & Delivery schedule?</h3> <div class="faq_ans_img"><img loading="lazy" src="https://d12fifzdy7ujh4.cloudfront.net/images/faqs/faq_pet_photo_51.jpg"></div> <div class="faq_ans_text"><p>Sunday-Thursday and Saturday. We don't offer this service on Friday. (See our <a href="/about-dkc/two-legged-timings" target="_blank">Two-Legged Timings</a>.)</p> <p>We have a lot of customers asking for very specific appointments but this is often not possible, although we <em>do</em> try if we can, because each day presents its own unpredictable schedules, number of home-visits, number of pets and... traffic!</p> <p>However, we <em><strong>always call</strong></em> approximately 30 minutes before we get to you while we're doin' the rounds, so <em>do</em> feel free to go about your day as you need to and then, when you hear from us, you can return to your home to meet us.</p></div>

<h3>Birds get bored??!</h3> <div class="faq_ans_img"><img loading="lazy" src="https://d12fifzdy7ujh4.cloudfront.net/images/faqs/faq_pet_photo_124.jpg"></div> <div class="faq_ans_text"><p>Yes! Birds get bored!</p> <p>In fact, it's <em>very possible</em> that your bird is getting bored. You see, birds are highly intelligent, especially parrots of all sizes and types, and they truly do thrive with stimulation and interaction. If they don't have enough stimulation, they can become destructive and agitated, including self-destructive in the worst cases, such as plucking their own feathers and going through unwanted and unhealthy personality changes.</p> <p>So please DO take this seriously and make sure that your lovely birdie-bird has an interesting environment to live in, is connected to and engaged with the humanoids in your home, and even has a birdie-partner to live with, if at all possible.</p> <p>Who wants to be alone and bored, right?  <img alt="" src="/graphics/ic_wink.png" height="15" width="15"></p></div>

<h3>Will my cat stay with other cats?</h3> <div class="faq_ans_img"><img loading="lazy" src="https://d12fifzdy7ujh4.cloudfront.net/images/faqs/faq_pet_photo_37.jpg"></div> <div class="faq_ans_text"><p>Well, yes and no.</p> <p>Your cat will stay in a separate and secure enclosure, so there won't be any other cats in there with him. But because it's a cattery, we obviously have a lot of cats staying in a lot of enclosures, all of which are next to each other. So, although your cat <em>will</em> be in his own enclosure, there will indeed still be lots of other cats around.</p> <p>This said, if you have more than one cat and want them to be in the same enclosure together, then perfect! (Did you know that there's a <a href="/what-we-do/boarding-daycare/prices-admission-requirements" target="_blank">20% discount for buddy-boarding</a>?) Aaaaaannnnd... if you'd like to explore the possibility of socialising your cat with other cats from a different family (yes, you read that right!), then just talk to us about this ~ we have a <a href="/what-we-do/boarding-daycare/the-kennels-the-catteries-the-kennatteries" target="_blank">cat jungle</a> and we <a href="/docs/A_Fair_Share.pdf" target="_blank">Buddy-Board cats</a> too, in the right circumstance and with your permission/request.</p></div>