We had to fly down south earlier this week for family matters, and that left us with no choice but to put Beanie in kennels for a couple of days. There are a lots of kennels close to us, but we choose quality over convenience every time where Beanie’s concerned. Fortunately one came recommended by friends and even our vet, so earlier in the month we took Beanie along to check it out.
The kennels was in a farm building – a good thing for a Beagle with a very active nose. Another thing in its favor was that it only had places for ten dogs – I think small has to be better for something like this. Half of the cages had both an indoor and outdoor area, giving the occupants just that bit more freedom and stimulation, and one such cage was available for Beanie over the dates we needed. Everything looked modern, clean and secure. Unfortunately though Beanie’s first reaction to the cages and their current residents was not good – her tail went right between her legs and she was looking overwhelmed. Still, the owner assured us that the dogs always settled in after their first walk, and we really didn’t have any other option, so we made the booking.
When the day of Beanie’s incarceration came I took her out for a long, vigorous walk and runabout to tire her out while Susan packed up her crate, some long lasting chews and dug out her vaccination records (a kennel cough vac is always recommended – and sometimes required by kennels, at least 10 days prior to entry). We then drove over to the kennels – doing our best to act as if nothing unusual was happening – and took Beanie over to see her cage. Happily, her reaction this time was completely different. She had some nice, gentle looking neighbors and her tail kept wagging while I set up her crate in the indoor section. She entered her cage quite happily, and watched us while we did all the paperwork and handed over tubs of food and treats. I tried to keep a smile on my face, but I felt terrible seeing my little pup behind bars. When it was time to leave, I saw her clawing at the cage in an attempt to follow. The chances are she wasn’t the least bit concerned about us leaving her though. Given that it was after five o’clock I suspect the only thing on her mind was “Hey, you do know it’s teatime, right?”
On Wednesday morning we were back to collect her, and though she was happy enough to see us, she wasn’t able to give us her full attention because there was a stick of tripe that needed eating. It seems that while posh hotels put a little chocolate on your pillow, posh kennels give you a tripe stick.
We packed her up and took her home, where she spent the first 20 minutes performing a thorough nasal inspection of all rooms and the garden, to make sure nothing had changed. Once satisfied, she got straight down to her usual naughtiness – in this case a bit of unscheduled pruning.
Anticipation…
…makes the chewing even more enjoyable