Doggy Daycare. It's a thing.

Who spends money on taking their dogs to “daycare” so they can play and “have friends?”

The answer: many people. Growing up on a farm and having farm dogs I had never even heard of a doggy daycare. Even when I just had Trooper and Bean, they stayed home while I was gone. If I was gone for an extended period of time I would take them boarding. It wasn’t until I was at a loss for solutions with Shadow’s separation anxiety. Kenneling her was not working. She was so desperate to get out; the kennel was beginning to rust from her frantically drooling. If we left her out, she was destroying our carpet, kitchen table, anything she could get her grimy little paws on. I had to do something.

I am not even sure how it all came about. I just remember bringing her home from daycare the first day and it was magical. She was actually laying on the floor, sleeping. This was something I hadn’t seen from her. I started taking her when Brock and I’s work schedules were the same (about 3 times a week). Because she was wearing her energy off on a daily basis, she was able to become more comfortable in our home. She became way less anxious. Her destructive behavior was becoming less and less. Also, her demeanor changed. She was more calm and actually likeable.

She had been attending daycare while I was going through my unsuccessful fertility treatments. There was one day where I was finally fed up with the emotional roller coaster I was on with a dream of having a family. It had then clicked with me. I was focusing so hard on the idea of a family when right in front of me WAS my family. We were devoting our time and money into Shadow’s well being. We were doing everything we could to make her feel at home. This was my family. And these were my children.

After seeing all of the dogs that attended daycare, I realized there are other people who love their dogs like children too. I always enjoyed human children, maybe it would be fun to take care of other people’s fur babies? It was kind of a crazy life change but why not? So I quit my full time management job (which I did enjoy most of the time) to work part time at a doggy daycare. I started working at the daycare Shadow had been attending. Because that specific place was literally life changing for me, I wanted to be a part of it. I wasn’t just going to work anywhere. I was determined to work THERE. Now, I bring her with me once a week. She enjoys seeing her friends, but she is always ready to go home when her “shift” is done. Ya, my day mostly consists of petting puppies. Well, I admit, most of the time I am carrying around the little ones on my hip like a stage 5 clingy toddler. I joke that I need a baby carrier, but really, I need one.

And this is how my “Ruff Life” started. Don’t worry, I have plenty of ridiculous stories to back up why I truly live a “ruff life.”

But for now,

Xoxo