A few weeks ago, I visited WDW and used Best Friends Pet Care. The following is my review of our experience.
I signed my dog up for an indoor only suite months ahead of time with bottled water each day. Since there are no pictures on the website of the "suites," only dimensions of the "room", I was imagining a small long hallway type of room with a glass door similar to what is shown in the pictures on the website. At check-in, there was quite a long wait even though there were only two guests in the lobby and 4 employees standing around in the front.
They asked for instructions about when my dog needs to eat, what he eats and sign a waiver that if he is injured or killed the kennel is not responsible. Then I had to either write in an amount of money I would like to spend to save him if he is dying or check off "at all costs." They also asked me if he had any aggressive behaviors and if he needed to keep his harness on all the time or just for walks.
He was allowed two toys, food, and his pee pad. No water bowls or bedding were allowed. An employee was trying to get a paper collar on my dog and he was a little afraid of her. There was no attempt to make him comfortable. They simply grabbed his leash and coldly led him down the concrete hallway. No goodbyes, no cheerful demeanor, no getting to know him etc.
I visited my dog a few hours later. We went out along the small walkway. I was expecting a longer trail, this was probably less than 1/10 of a mile on gravel. It was fenced in which was good, and there was a water fountain for dogs to drink out of halfway down. The dog park area was double gated for entry and exit. There was a fountain with several areas of rocks that were covered in algae and mold. There were two water dishes which were both empty. There were two very small wading pools which were also empty and 3 benches. There was an area of real grass, a fake grass area and a gravel area. There were many brushy bushes along the inside edge of the dog park. The bushes immediately made me nervous since it provided an ideal habitat for snakes. I am someone who likes snakes and I have no fear of them, however this was clearly an IDEAL snake habitat, and since Florida is full of venomous snakes, I feel like they should have been wiser in choosing the landscaping/bushes. After a little while, we headed in through the right entrance past the "villas." The villas are the small hallways with the glass doors.
I went in and up to the desk. I asked to see where my dog was staying. They hesitated to show me but reluctantly did. I was quite surprised by where he was being kept. It did not meet my expectations, and it was definitely not a "room" as described on the website. He was in a very small, low cage which was mainly wire and stainless steel. It held his pee pad, a small cot with a small area of stainless steel left over for the floor. The area of the "suites" was deafening, which can be expected. There were cages/kennels everywhere stacked on top of each other. It reminded me of a veterinary cage. Nervous dogs would have nowhere in their accommodations to hide as the cage was primarily open/wire on the front and back. There were rows of wire/steel cages everywhere. Next to my dog, two large spaniels were sharing the same size small cage.
I did not like the area at all. It was clean, it didn't smell, but I find that they mislead you on the website to think that you are getting a room, something better than a cage. If I wanted a cage, I could have boarded him at a vet's office. I attempted to upgrade him to a villa but they were all booked, so I looked at the indoor outdoor which was much smaller and only opened certain times of the day. I kept the indoor-only.
I visited my dog 2-3 times per day for 30-60 minutes. Only one time did I see an employee who actually appeared to like dogs and make an effort to be cheerful. Pretty much every time I went, there was nobody in line and it still took 20 minutes for them to bring my dog out. One day on the walking trail, we saw a water moccasin (venomous) inside the gate near the water fountain. I went in and informed the employees and they did not seem at all concerned. I feel like they should have went out and removed it before a dog was bitten.
Over the week, my dog became increasingly stressed out. He didn't want to go back with the employees and they made no effort to bond with him or make him comfortable. Nearly every time I went in, there were 4-5 girls standing around at the front desk discussing their hair and clothes. I even saw a manager calling to them and asking for some help in the back. She was also annoyed at their lack of work ethic.
Throughout the trip, each time I went to see my dog he was soaked on his underside. On his last morning he began to yelp as if something was hurting him when you touched his side. I assume that they were leaving the harness on him against my wishes because he was not in any playgroups where he could have been injured. I am trying not to think of other explanations for his sudden yelping in pain.
One last thing I would like to mention are the two included "walks." When I think of a walk, I think of a dog getting some time to move around and actually walk. However, the walks that the suite dogs were getting were stepping outside a door on a small patch of fake grass for 2-3 minutes to pee and go back in the cage. They were not walking on the trail or in the dog park. They were literally stepping out onto a tiny patch of fake grass and going back in. There was absolutely no actual walking involved on any of the occasions I observed. Keep in mind, this is during slow season. I can't imagine during peak.
On a positive note, the dog park was clean of poop and did not smell. The cage area and walking trail seemed clean and did not smell either.
I know a lot of people like Best Friends at WDW, but I was not impressed. I am writing this review to inform others of the experience we had this September of 2011.
I signed my dog up for an indoor only suite months ahead of time with bottled water each day. Since there are no pictures on the website of the "suites," only dimensions of the "room", I was imagining a small long hallway type of room with a glass door similar to what is shown in the pictures on the website. At check-in, there was quite a long wait even though there were only two guests in the lobby and 4 employees standing around in the front.
They asked for instructions about when my dog needs to eat, what he eats and sign a waiver that if he is injured or killed the kennel is not responsible. Then I had to either write in an amount of money I would like to spend to save him if he is dying or check off "at all costs." They also asked me if he had any aggressive behaviors and if he needed to keep his harness on all the time or just for walks.
He was allowed two toys, food, and his pee pad. No water bowls or bedding were allowed. An employee was trying to get a paper collar on my dog and he was a little afraid of her. There was no attempt to make him comfortable. They simply grabbed his leash and coldly led him down the concrete hallway. No goodbyes, no cheerful demeanor, no getting to know him etc.
I visited my dog a few hours later. We went out along the small walkway. I was expecting a longer trail, this was probably less than 1/10 of a mile on gravel. It was fenced in which was good, and there was a water fountain for dogs to drink out of halfway down. The dog park area was double gated for entry and exit. There was a fountain with several areas of rocks that were covered in algae and mold. There were two water dishes which were both empty. There were two very small wading pools which were also empty and 3 benches. There was an area of real grass, a fake grass area and a gravel area. There were many brushy bushes along the inside edge of the dog park. The bushes immediately made me nervous since it provided an ideal habitat for snakes. I am someone who likes snakes and I have no fear of them, however this was clearly an IDEAL snake habitat, and since Florida is full of venomous snakes, I feel like they should have been wiser in choosing the landscaping/bushes. After a little while, we headed in through the right entrance past the "villas." The villas are the small hallways with the glass doors.
I went in and up to the desk. I asked to see where my dog was staying. They hesitated to show me but reluctantly did. I was quite surprised by where he was being kept. It did not meet my expectations, and it was definitely not a "room" as described on the website. He was in a very small, low cage which was mainly wire and stainless steel. It held his pee pad, a small cot with a small area of stainless steel left over for the floor. The area of the "suites" was deafening, which can be expected. There were cages/kennels everywhere stacked on top of each other. It reminded me of a veterinary cage. Nervous dogs would have nowhere in their accommodations to hide as the cage was primarily open/wire on the front and back. There were rows of wire/steel cages everywhere. Next to my dog, two large spaniels were sharing the same size small cage.
I did not like the area at all. It was clean, it didn't smell, but I find that they mislead you on the website to think that you are getting a room, something better than a cage. If I wanted a cage, I could have boarded him at a vet's office. I attempted to upgrade him to a villa but they were all booked, so I looked at the indoor outdoor which was much smaller and only opened certain times of the day. I kept the indoor-only.
I visited my dog 2-3 times per day for 30-60 minutes. Only one time did I see an employee who actually appeared to like dogs and make an effort to be cheerful. Pretty much every time I went, there was nobody in line and it still took 20 minutes for them to bring my dog out. One day on the walking trail, we saw a water moccasin (venomous) inside the gate near the water fountain. I went in and informed the employees and they did not seem at all concerned. I feel like they should have went out and removed it before a dog was bitten.
Over the week, my dog became increasingly stressed out. He didn't want to go back with the employees and they made no effort to bond with him or make him comfortable. Nearly every time I went in, there were 4-5 girls standing around at the front desk discussing their hair and clothes. I even saw a manager calling to them and asking for some help in the back. She was also annoyed at their lack of work ethic.
Throughout the trip, each time I went to see my dog he was soaked on his underside. On his last morning he began to yelp as if something was hurting him when you touched his side. I assume that they were leaving the harness on him against my wishes because he was not in any playgroups where he could have been injured. I am trying not to think of other explanations for his sudden yelping in pain.
One last thing I would like to mention are the two included "walks." When I think of a walk, I think of a dog getting some time to move around and actually walk. However, the walks that the suite dogs were getting were stepping outside a door on a small patch of fake grass for 2-3 minutes to pee and go back in the cage. They were not walking on the trail or in the dog park. They were literally stepping out onto a tiny patch of fake grass and going back in. There was absolutely no actual walking involved on any of the occasions I observed. Keep in mind, this is during slow season. I can't imagine during peak.
On a positive note, the dog park was clean of poop and did not smell. The cage area and walking trail seemed clean and did not smell either.
I know a lot of people like Best Friends at WDW, but I was not impressed. I am writing this review to inform others of the experience we had this September of 2011.
I do understand that there are certain circumstances beyond their control but if something like this should happen someone is to be held responsible. Your pet is in their care.
