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Frequently Asked Questions

Our aim is to make each day a perfect one for your four legged friend, centred on all the routine and creature comforts that they love.

We have a caring passionate team to look after our furry guests with a ratio of one member of staff to 3-4 dogs. They are supervised from 7am until 10pm at night.  Offering very high-quality care,  each day is structured to be the best it can possibly be with walks and exploring, enrichment and brain stimulation exercises, social time, rest time , cuddles and play.

An average day starts at 7am which is our first wake up call (although some late sleepers prefer to stay in bed!) this is when everyone is given access to the communal areas from their individual bedrooms and for the rest of the day they are all given the free rein of the hotel facilities. There are large outdoor secure paddocks, a sheltered but sunny courtyard, lounge spaces each with woodturning stoves for winter time and chilly evenings, our spacious kitchen and open plan office area. Everywhere is dog friendly and has a home from home feel.

At 8am it is breakfast time, all dogs are fed either individually or in family groups. Then the morning is a mix of outdoor play and excursion walks with small packs venturing out for our favourite local routes either in our van or on foot.

All dogs staying with us at Bath Country Pets must be able to mix, socialise and play together.  Our environment is cage-free and thus they will have constant access to all of our facilities.  Dogs which are older, or younger or with any specific health issues will be catered for with appropriate time in their hotel room or our lounge area for rest or sleep.

Our afternoons are spent participating in basic reinforcement training, socialisation and games, enrichment exercises.  Then there are health checks and grooming appointments all fitted into the schedule.

Dinner is served at 5.30 and the evenings are spent napping and resting.

Bedtime is at 10pm when all guests are shown into their private sleeping rooms which are beautifully kitted out with our best beds, toys and bedding.

Our facilities are within the grounds of our family home and staffed 24 hours per day. There is a loving and passionate team directly supervising our guests between 7am and 10pm, who are all qualified or in one or more of the following; Animal Management, Animal Behaviour and Canine Nutrition.  

We offer a ratio of 3-4 dogs to 1 member of staff at all times and a maximum of 2 dogs to 1 member of the team on pack walks.

We ask that clients leave all personal belongings at home, we supply fresh bedding and blankets daily, we have a large and varied toy box on offer, we have safety checked harnesses, leads and halti head collars for walking, so boredom or lack of comfort is never an issue.

Guests are accepted from young to old, but must be fully house trained and have the basics in obedience training before they can attend an assessment.  We do not accept young male dogs until they have either been chemically or fully castrated.  We do not also accept female dogs during their season.  We suggest a 6 week absence around a dogs season is prudent. As behaviour and sensitivity to other dogs can alter during this time. 

We are a cage free environment at Bath Country Pets, and so we have a couple of policies which allow us to create a happy free space for dogs to mingle with their fellow guests and our staff. Dogs must be calm, quiet, obedient with basic commands, and very content and relaxed in the company of other dogs. 

We do not accept whole male dogs over the age of 5 months until they have been neutered.  And for female young dogs we do not accept them around their season unless they have had their first season and are at least 1 month either side of their next season or have been spayed.  Our environment is not suited to overly strong or boisterous dogs.

All new guests need to undergo a behavioural Assessment Day by one of our certified assessors and be given the all clear from our Team Manager prior to acceptance for an overnight visit or staycation.  We cannot offer assessments to any dog who has a history of reactivity to either humans or other dogs.

Our assessment is based on suitability and temperament rather than breed. 

Our ideal guests are sociable, responsive to basic commands, able to walk nicely on a loose lead, in tune with social clues from other dogs, quiet and calm. As this is our family home and we respect our local community and neighbours we do not accept dogs who are very noisy and bark relentlessly.

There are some limitations for very large breeds over 40kg due to handling, lifting and transportation.  In addition we will not accommodate dog who will jump up at our team members or over a 6ft fence for their own safety and security. 

Unfortunately we are also not able to accommodate dogs with any history of aggression or reactivity to either other dogs or humans.

Food provision is entirely up to you, we are more than happy to continue feeding your dogs regular food, to keep things as normal as possible or we will match very closely to their regular diet with our own food.  

We believe in offering a balanced and nutritious diet, all of the products we utilise are of very high quality, hypoallergenic and utilise ‘human grade’ ingredients, we stock a number of healthy dog foods within our shop including raw, cold pressed and dry options, Country Hunter, Go Native, Forthglade and Husse, a Swedish healthy pet food.

This is excellent complete dog food and with our on-site Nutritionist, your dog will have a diet tailored specifically to its requirements. Treats and chews are given in line with their diets and your personal instructions.

If you prefer to supply your dog’s food from home, this is perfectly acceptable and will always be given in accordance with your instructions.

During normal operation we do not invite visitors into our hotel as the process can be disruptive to our routines and we like to focus wholly on the job of caring for our clients dogs. 

However, annually we hold an open day event to allow family’s 15 minute slots to tour.  On our last open day we made a video tour of the facilities, you can find it on our Instagram page as a highlight – marked ‘Virtual Tour’ –https://www.instagram.com/bathcountrypetsinsta/?hl=en

Bookings for new guests require a pre-stay Behavioural Assessment. This assessment can be booked via our Assessment & Settling Day booking calendar and by selecting the assessment premium option which is an additional charge of £10 for your assessment and report.  

Our assessments are for the benefit of both your dog and our team and it allows us to check their suitability for our environment.  

Once you have been given the green light after an assessment we may suggest further settling days or an overnight trial prior to a long stay.  

Once these steps are completed clients are able to book up to 2 years in advance.

Assessment days here are very special as we get to introduce a new guest to our site, learn about their unique personality and establish whether we are a good fit for each other whilst we build a new friendship.

We spend a day introducing a new guest to our hotel and team members, for them to familiarise themselves with our environment and to see how well they integrate into our interactive space. We assess their behaviour in a variety of situations which gives us a good insight into whether we think they will thrive in our unique set up. 

On the day we assess the following; Social Skills, Vocal Behaviour, Food Manners, Behaviour & Discipline, Handling and Welfare Checks, Loose Lead Walking and Excursions.  

At the end of the assessment day you will be given a full report of their progress and recommendations for future stays.

If you have concerns that our places for your future booking are getting limited but your dog has not yet been assessed.  You can book your future stay to secure it.  If Bath Country Pets team, for any reason, conclude on a trial day that our environment is not suitable for your dog and then we will refund in full for any future booking deposits.

Our assessment days usually end up with one of 3 recommendations

A – we come to the conclusion that unfortunately we are not the right fit for you and your dogs care.

B – we feel that additional settling and integration sessions would be needed for your dog.

C – we feel confident that your dog will be happy here mingling with our staff and other guests , and that they are sufficiently relaxed and will get the most out of our staycations

If your dog doesn’t meet the criteria unfortunately we will conclude that we are not the best environment for your dog care needs.

At Bath Country Pets we keep a running behaviour diary which documents all of your dogs visits and builds up a picture of them.  If your dog’s behaviour changes in a negative way over the course of time, we reserve the right to update our assessment and potentially this may be a refusal for future stays.  If BCP refuses future bookings due to behavioural changes – we will, of course, refund the booking deposits in full.

Arrival and Departure Times For Hotel Guests – bookings are allotted in 24 hour slots.

Our Luxury Boutique Dog Hotel is open from 8 am – 10 am for check-in and check-out of guests.  This is to allow our guests to properly settle and be involved in our schedule of daily activities.

Much like a normal human Hotel, guests who are due for departure must also checkout by 10am to allow space for new arrivals. 

Should you need additional day care for your dog on his/her departure day beyond 10 am, you need to book day care with us. This must be arranged or booked in advance of the staycation.

For day care visitors, departure time is between 4pm and 5.30.   As we start our feeding and settling routines at 5.30pm we need all departures to have said goodbye by then.

The Vaccinations we require are as follows or clients should show a current Titre test which demonstrates immunity against:
• Distemper
• Hepatitis
• Leptospirosis
• Canine Parvovirus
• Para Influenza
• Infectious Bronchitis (also known as Kennel Cough)

Your vaccination certificate must be up to date. Vaccinations must be given at least 1 week prior to a dog’s stay.
Please ensure that supply a copy of your dog’s vaccination certificate at least 5 days prior to their arrival or we cannot accept your dog to visit our hotel.

To arrange further care after our main check out time, you need to email Emma at hello@bathcountrypets.co.uk to request additional care.  Day care is prioritised for resident guests however we cannot guarantee it will be available, therefore if possible also book daycare online with your stay you can secure it in advance.

Additional spa treatments can be added at the point of booking or after you have secured your staycation.  We offer a range of services from bath and blow dry, de-shedding, trims, pawdecures, ear and eye treatments.  Our full spa services are described here. We pride ourselves in maintaining a calm environment for all procedures and an unhurried approach.  Our products are all totally natural using essential oils rather than chemicals.

To maintain our calm evening environment and routine for all of our guests, and to respect our local neighbours we regret no collections are available after 6 pm – an additional night’s accommodation will need to be booked if you cannot collect by 6 pm.

If you need to cancel your booking please inform us with as much notice as possible.  Your deposit is non-refundable and non-transferable.  If your booking is cancelled at the last minute (ie within 7 days of arrival) your balance payment will also be due in full.

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