JUST  THE  FAQs

Although we can ‘t eliminate all odors, we are very insistent that City Dogs not smell like a boarding kennel! Come visit us any time during business hours to check out Roanoke’s cleanest facility.

Our priority at City Dogs is to ensure your pup(s) are having fun and are well cared for in as safe and healthy an environment as we can provide.  In order to do that, we require your pup(s) to be current on their vaccinations. This helps ensure their health and safety as well as that of our other canine clients. 

It is the owner’s responsibility to provide those records to us (or have your vet email them to us at info@citydogsroanoke.com) and to keep them up-to-date. 

PLEASE NOTE – despite our vigilance on our canine guest’s vaccines, unfortunately some illnesses are airborne and can be transmitted through saliva, sneezes and sharing water bowls. Many of the cough / cold type diseases have strains of virus or bacteria that aren’t covered by vaccines. The same is true for humans – consider the annual flu vaccines. Regardless of being up-to-date on the required vaccinations, there is always a risk when dogs are around other dogs. We encourage you to discuss this with your vet in advance of any daycare or boarding for your pup(s).

We maintain a very high sanitation standard at City Dogs and do everything in our power to prevent the spread of disease. In the rare event that we do notice a dog is not well, (lethargic, sneezing, coughing, diarrhea) we immediately isolate them and call the owner.

We are a ‘play naked’ facility for the safety of your pet (if you are not familiar with this, please read up on the Naked Dog Project). Playing with collars on can be dangerous. A tooth or jaw can get stuck under any collar resulting in injury or strangulation. You may notice us removing your dog’s collar upon entry. We will store the collar and return it upon checkout. We also have a leash rack in our reception area and you may leave your collar and leash there.

YES! Being intact does not prevent any dog from joining our playgroups, provided they are well behaved. Some un-neutered dogs exhibit behaviors that are not acceptable in a group setting. If we find that your dog plays too rough, tends to “hump” other dogs or picks fights , he is probably not a good fit for our program. We will alert you to any of these issues immediately.

We always have staff at City Dogs who are certified in pet first aid and CPR through PetTech International Training Center. If your dog becomes sick or hurt while visiting with us, we are educated in how to handle those situations. In this circumstance, we will make every effort to contact you as soon as possible for instructions on how you would like us to proceed. If the illness or injury requires more urgent care than we can provide and you cannot be reached, we will contact the veterinarian on file for your pet or take him/her to the emergency vet clinic.

We do have cameras that our management can review at any time but no public access.  You may see your dog in our daily Facebook or Instagram posts! So please follow us as we often post photographs and video of our playful charges.

YES to both. We suggest you to bring your dog’s regular food, maintaining their diet prevents tummy upset and diarrhea. This is especially important if your dog is on a special diet or has food allergies. We have a refrigerator to store wet food.

If you forget, don’t worry! We have high quality Diamond Naturals food on hand for $1/cup (paid at pick up).

You can bring your food in any container or bag that is convenient for you. There is no requirement to individually bag their meals. 

YES. Dogs that are with us just for the day are not fed unless you direct us to feed them, in which case you should bring your dog’s lunch in a ziplock bag or other sealed container labeled with their name. We’ll remove your dog from the play group for about 1 ½ hours around lunchtime in order to give them some time to eat and digest before going back to play.

Not all dogs will like or interact well with every other dog. We are quick to pay attention for those personality clashes and keep dogs who do not play well together in different playgroups. City Dogs always monitors the dogs’ behavior to avoid incidents and we are always conservative in dealing with them. If we have cause to believe that a dog may start a fight, we will promptly remove them from the group as a precautionary measure. We are equipped with air horns and spray water bottles to spot-correct dogs. One quick squirt to the feet usually diverts their attention. 

Once home after a day a City Dogs, your dog will generally eat and then sleep through the night. They may also drink a lot of water. This is not because they have not had access to water, but because of their increased activity during the day. If you notice they are drinking excessively, limiting their water intake to a few ounces every 30 minutes or so will prevent vomiting. Please be aware – dogs do play rough sometimes and they love to “box” and chase and tussle. Just like children who play on playgrounds in daycare or at school can get hurt from time to time, dogs playing with each other on our playgrounds can get hurt too. Dogs play with their mouths / teeth and paws / toenails and like to wrestle around on the ground with each other. Serious injuries are rare but scratches, scabs, and sore muscles/feet are not uncommon, especially if they are not accustomed to the increase in activity. Once they begin to enjoy playcare regularly, like we humans who begin an exercise routine… those aches and pains will disappear!