WDW kennels? Traveling with your pet?

[mla973]

I've been searching for information on the WDW Kennels, and there is not a lot out there. It sounds like the price is $13 each night for resort guests. For those who have used the kennels, would you recommend them? Did you have to take your dog for walks, and how did that fit your vacation schedule?

We have never kenneled our dog (who is about a year old). I'm nervous about doing so. What did you think of the WDW kennels?

Also, have you traveled with your pet inthe car for a long distance? We're thinking of driving (from Michigan), which we've done before, but never with our dog. She's a miniature dachshund. Is is just a nutty thought? I suppose we would have to stay overnight at a pet-friendly location. DH just really wants to bring her.

 

[pilferk]

The WDW kennels are nice enough in a pinch. You do need to walk your own fur face, and they expect you to excercise them, too.

Personally, we opted to kennel our fur faces closer to home when driving. I understand those feeling the "pull" of wanting your favorite pet close by, but...really, for a car ride that long...they're probably going to be MUCH happier staying closer to home. We just found them a nice, posh kennel nearby...We go on our vacation and leave the puppy to go on his/hers. They loved it, by all accounts and appearances (they got giddy when we would drop them off and they'd see the kennel owners).

Don't be nervous about kennelling your dogs. We felt the same way the first time....but they really did have a good time, were well cared for, and were much happier there than they would have been with us dragging them on a 20 hour car ride.

 

[mdhkitten]

Here's a link to some info and photos from Allears:

http://www.allearsnet.com/tp/kennels.htm



As far as kenneling her, all dogs react differently. If you want to possibly board her at home and want to see how she would do, I would recommend leaving her for the day at the vet or boarding facility to see how she handles it. Most places offer a "daycare" type of program for people who work. I worked for vets with large boarding facilities for 12+ years, so I've seen it all. Most dogs due fine during boarding. I also had a pet sitting service for those pets who didn't handle boarding well. The vets would refer these families to me, and I would live in their homes while they were out of town. I would let the pets sleep with me if that was what they were used to, and provide security for the home. If you wanted to go and have her stay with you, I know that all of the Universal resorts (owned by Loews), allows the pets to stay with you and really caters to them. I know that a lot of people with pets on these boards actually stay there so that their pet can stay with them. As far as traveling with your dog, only you know how well he/she does riding around in the car. We used to take trips with the last dog that we had and she loved it. Our current dog doesn't even like going for local rides. It will all work out!

 

[Lesley]

We went through this whole decision making process last summer when we adopted an 18mo lab. I think the driving and kenneling your dog option is much more viable with a smaller dog than ours, and also depends on your dog's energy level. If you have a very high energy dog it could make the drive problematic and a daily walk may not be enough. Also consider the amount of time going to the kennel to walk the dog will take out of your vacation.

We ended up using a kennel at home, where our high energy boy could have a larger indoor/outdoor enclosure and twice a day in an exercise run. We do plan to bring him to HHI where we'll take him to a kennel close to the resort and check him out once or twice during the week for a long walk on the beach.

I was uncomfortable with the idea of using a kennel at first, and even balked the second time we needed to use it. But when I dropped him off for a second vacation I saw how happy and comfortable he was at the kennel, so I'm no longer uncomfortable with the situation. As much as I'd prefer to leave him with a friend or have him along if we had pet-friendly accomodations, this is really the only workable solution right now for us.

 

[mdhkitten]

There is some info midway down this page on the Loews hotel pet program:

http://www.loewshotels.com/en/FamilyComfort/Default.aspx

And more:

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art17896.asp