Mike Abrams began his quest to build a boarding kennel from scratch when he started visiting prospective facilities to care for his dog Gilbert. He spent many years volunteering at local animal shelters which helped to make him familiar with the good and the bad things about pet care facilities.
Kuranda: I understand you began your adult life on a different career path. What did you start out doing?
Dog Rock Resorts: Before I opened up Dog Rock I had been working in film and TV and I was working long hours and I really needed a place where I could trust them to watch (my dog) Gilbert. Like many dogs, (Gilbert) can be overwhelming for someone who isn’t a “dog person.” He’s a Bull (like Spuds Mackenz Terrier or Bullseye, the Target dog) and let me tell you, they’re named Bull Terriers for a reason! At times he can be enough of a handful that I knew I couldn’t leave him with just any friend or family member. And I was uncomfortable leaving him in a kennel where he would receive little (or no) attention from the staff. How could I be sure I was leaving him in a place where he would be happy, safe and loved?
Kuranda: Tell us about your evaluation process
Dog Rock Resorts: We take our evaluation process seriously. We have to meet every dog that plays or stays with us and our evaluation process takes about 1 hour. We set up dogs for success, not failure. We do not push dogs into programs we feel they are not ready for and we respect what dogs are trying to communicate with us. We want your dog to enjoy his or her stay with us and we want to see your smiling faces when you pick up your happy, healthy best friends.
Kuranda: Your focus is on making the dogs comfortable. To feel at home?
At Dog Rock Resorts, our mission is to provide dedicated, loving, dog owners with a sustainable home away from home for their furry, loyal companions. We are a family-owned small business, with a trained, dedicated staff on-premises 24 hours.
Every decision we made when designing our custom, state-of-the-art facility was with dog safety, happiness, and quality of life in mind. What separates us from our competitors is our commitment to a sensitive approach, transparency, and always maintaining a clean, positive environment.”
Kuranda: What separates your facility from other boarding & day care facilities?
Dog Rock Resorts: We were lucky because we built this place pretty much from the ground up. You have to think about the correct building materials, sophisticated air condition systems that kills airborne bacteria, centralized vacuum systems, certain flooring. A lot goes into building these kinds of places.
Kuranda: How do you care for your overnight guests?
We don’t have any crates or cages in the entire resort and all of our overnight suites are designed to feel like a space in somebody’s home. Everybody has raised (Kuranda) beds, rugs, blankets, pillows.
Kuranda: What are nights like for your boarding dogs?
We have staff members here 24 hours in the day. As soon as the night staff comes in they take out every suite, suite by suite for a last potty break, off leash and they let everyone go potty. And at night, when that first bulldog starts snoring, everybody goes to bed. There’s music playing overnight and it really is a fun, calm environment for the evening.
Kuranda: What are some of the things that make your facility ‘state of the art’?
Dog Rock Resorts: A lot is involved when building these kinds of places. You have to think about the right building materials, sophisticated air filtration systems that kill airborne bacteria, centralized vacuum systems, certain flooring. A lot goes into building this place. We were lucky because we built this place from the ground up. We had flushing floor drain systems in all of our overnight suites. We were able to do this because we started from scratch. We actually designed this place like it was an animal hospital but for a happy healthy dog.
Michael invested a lot of time and money into creating a showcase boarding & Daycare center. Central vacuum systems, air filtration systems, flushing drains in every suite, carpeting in the dog walking areas are all amenities that are not often found. The interesting thing he learned from all of this was that with the amount of care and attention he paid to the comfort of the dogs, nightly walks before bedtime, soft music played through nights of uninterrupted sleep, assured privacy for each overnight guest to prevent any opportunity for conflict or stress. Because the dogs are not stressed they behave as they would at home. They go potty while on a walk rather than having an accident and fouling an overnight suite. It’s the attention the dogs get, not the amenities that seem to lead to a more successful stay for your pet.
Kuranda: How did you decide to choose Kuranda Dog Beds for your facility?
Dog Rock Resorts: I spoke to several operators who were performing at a level facility I wanted about which materials worked and which didn’t and the ones who spent the money on the Kuranda Beds were spending more money initially but they didn’t have to replace them. They’ve held up through the years. I like the esthetic of them. I like that they’re raised, I liked that they have headboards (as an option). I love the headboards and most of my beds are set up with them.
Kuranda: What Kuranda beds do your customers most ask about for home use?
Dog Rock Resorts: When they see the bed pads along with the decorative colors it looks like a fully dressed bed with the headboard, they always comment Oh my God that looks like a real bed!
References:
- Centralized vacuum system: Clean Wise
- Outdoor dog walking surface (Astroturf like): K9 Grass
- Flooring in Play Yards: Abacus Sport Flooring
- UV AIR DISINFECTOR HVAC system: Pet Airapy.
- Epoxy Resin over Concrete for inside Flooring.