Does boarding include daycare service?

Hi, Marijo.

Boarding includes all of the care for the 24-hour time period that you are booked. That includes all of feedings, potty breaks, etc that a dog might need during that day.

Most sitters don't have a special setup for daycare (play pens, etc) specifically for daycare like many boarding facilities. Many kennels keep the dogs in their kennels all day unless clients pay the daycare fee to have their pets in the play areas. Because most boarding and daycare setups are housed in the sitter's home, this differentiation isn't likely to occur. In my home, all of the daycare and boarding dogs run and play together all day, the difference is that the daycare dogs go home each evening. However, some sitters work full time at other jobs and may not be home much during the day, while others may leave for a few hours to take care of other clients. It is important that you discuss with sitters what their availability is during the day and what your expectations are for the stay.

That being said, some sitters will add a daycare charge to the last day of the booking if you are not able to pick up your pup until much later when you dropped them off. This ensures the insurance covers your pup past the 24-hour mark and also makes sure the sitter is compensated for the extra time the dog is in your care. Each sitter's cut off for that is a little different, so that will need to be something discussed ahead of the booking being confirmed.

Ex: I have an AM/PM system. If a dog is dropped off before 12pm, they will need to be picked up before 12pm. If the dog is dropped of at 11:00am, but the owner cannot pickup the dog until 6pm on the last day, I charge a daycare rate for that last day's extra hours.