Sunglasses, bathing suit, and sunscreen, all you need for summer vacation right? That may be right for all the pet parents out there, but your furry friend may need a few different items for their summer vacation in sunny San Diego. While you and your loved ones enjoy a “staycation” here in San Diego or travel to other sunny destinations in California or Arizona, ensure your pup is ready for their summer stay by following these simple steps.
Step 1: Vaccines
Any boarding facility within San Diego County and Arizona will require your pets to be updated on core vaccines including: Rabies and DAPP (distemper Parvo). They also will require your furry babies to be up to date on their 6 month Bordetella. Ensure your vet gives the Bordetella at 6 month intervals not annually if you plan on boarding.
Step 2: Flea Medications
Summer brings warmer weather, great for enjoying a day at the beach, but it also marks the beginning of flea season in San Diego. Fleas thrive in warm weather. This is why it is so important for your pets to be on flea prevention. Flea prevention helps keep those pesky fleas from making your pet uncomfortably itchy and helps avoid flea infestations in your home. Most luxury boarding in areas such as San Diego, Bay Park, Encinitas, and Hillcrest will require your pets to be flea free for their summer stay within their facilities. This is to ensure that other pet patrons enjoying their summer stay are not exposed to fleas, as well as maintain a building free from fleas. There are several flea options available: Trifexis, Bravecto, and Comfortis. We encourage you to speak with your local veterinarian to choose the best flea prevention that is right for both you and your pet. Paw Commons works with both West Coast Animal Hospital in Bay Park and Drake Center for Veterinary Care in Encinitas, two great veterinarian centers that can also provide any additional information you may need regarding flea prevention.
Step 3: Temperament Evaluation
Depending on where your pup stays this summer, they may offer doggie daycare. Most doggie daycares in San Diego and Arizona will require your pup to pass a temperament evaluation before being allowed to play during their stay. This is for the safety of both your pup and all the other doggie friends in the daycare room. If your dog has any special circumstance (i.e. fearful of big dogs or does not like small dogs) make sure to alert staff members so they can properly evaluate your pup for the temperament evaluation. For Paw Commons the evaluation lasts a minimum of 30 minutes. Our locations in Bay Park, Encinitas, Hillcrest and Gilbert also offer separate playrooms for large and small breed dogs.
Step 4: Doggie Daycare
We encourage pet parents regardless of where their pup stays to sign up for doggie daycare. Day Play allows for them to get plenty of exercise, socialization as well as well as interaction with the staff. Our own doggie daycares offer fun activities such as bubble time or pool fun (pool fun is currently only available at our Hillcrest location). While most of our San Diego and Arizona locations are indoor, in a climate-controlled environment, our location in Hillcrest offers outdoor fun where pups can feel the sunshine on their face. Paw Commons in Encinitas, Bay Park and Gilbert (AZ), also offer private play for those pups whom are not spayed/neutered or just prefer one-on-one playing and cuddling with staff members.
Step 5: Proper Food
While some boarding facilities offer their own food to feed your pet, it is usually better for your pet to stay on their same diet to ensure they don’t get upset tummies during their stay. Our own boarding facilities offer Taste of the Wild. Our trained staff can also discuss such brands as Professional Choice, Rawz, and Taste of the Wild. We encourage pet parents to try and/or switch pets over to these foods due to their high quality ingredients and benefits that come with feeding them proper food. We also encourage pet parents to talk with their veterinarian or speak with The Drake Center for Veterinary Care or West Coast Animal Hospital about food choices if your pet needs specialty care food (i.e. gastrointestinal, low or high calorie food, ect.).
For more information on boarding, daycare, proper food, grooming or training visit our website at www.pawcommons.com or call us today and reserve your pups room for there summer vacation!