The Social Dog Daycare

12/03/2022

Big News! Extraordinary Canines is moving in 2023!

Don't worry though, we'll be in Langley City only 5 minutes from our current location!

We're sad to announce that this means that The Social Dog Daycare will be closing, but along with this change we are excited that our schedule opens up to offer more training!

Look forward to new group classes and the return of personal training services in 2023!

If you're interested in K9 Nose Work classes and/or NEW! Rally Obedience classes then please provide some feedback on this form to help us shape the new year's schedule: https://forms.gle/NiUnsM3gD1xXRf8k6!

11/07/2022

Hi everyone!

10/31/2022

Happy Halloween 🎃

❤️ Cleo, Rumble, Lexi, Trinket, & Brophy

10/05/2022

It was a quiet party for Lexi today, but she had a great time wrestling with Trinket and Rumble all day!

Someone forgot to do birthday photos before Rumble went home for the day (oops), so our birthday photo for her only features Brophy, Trinket, and of course, Lexi the birthday girl!

08/19/2022

Tug Time with Trinket & Winnie

06/04/2022

Whether your dog is anxious or "annoyed" by being crated (like FOMO) it is not conducive to your dog's well-being to allow them the "cry it out".

When dogs visit The Social Dog one of the things that's assessed is their comfort being crated for rest times and if they vocalize excessively then it's advised that they would be a better fit for care that does not require them to be crated.

It is important that dogs here enjoy their visits, not just for play, but for the very important rest periods too. If dogs are stressed during their visit, whether they are overwhelmed by the other dogs or they are unhappy being crated then we'd rather them find a place to be where they are not stressed.

As a trainer, I know all too well the fallout of continually subjecting a dog to stressful situations and I never want to be complicit in a dog's behaviour degrading due to their time at daycare.

When I have to excuse a dog from attedance it breaks my heart when families accuse me of not wanting to listen to their dogs whine, scream, or bark as if it is because it's "annoying" to me and not recognize that it is because I care so deeply about every single dog that I do not want them to be stressed.

Dogs don't throw tantrums just to challenge humans. Dogs vocalize to express that they are unhappy and if I can do something to ensure that dog is happy, or at least not be complicit in their unhappiness, then I will absolutely do that.

Even if your dog is experiencing FOMO rather than panic the best way to address the issue is NOT to just continue to lock them in a crate. We need to work on changing their emotional response to being crated and it's not something I can do during daycare.

The Social Dog is a different kind of daycare. It's not somewhere that every dog is accepted just so their attendance fees can be collected. Well-being is important here.

Unfortunately, I have had to accept the fact that some families believe my care is too much or that if they don't care that I shouldn't either. That is not who I am, though, and I will continue to strive for being a different kind of daycare anyway.

If your dog is experiencing any level of separation or confinement anxiety these are some of the starting steps . . .

It is a simple process, but not an easy one.

It requires you to stop leaving your dog alone for longer than they can handle.

It requires you to break absences down into increments that your dog can be totally cool with.

It requires you to be open to asking for help: help to sit with your dog, help to be your cheerleader when you're disappointed with progress, help to know what "totally cool" looks like on your dog.

And it requires you to treat the root cause of the anxiety, not the symptoms.

Need help? My Separation Anxiety Training Foundations course is a great way to get the right information at an affordable cost. Check it out here: https://rescuedbytraining.com/separation-anxiety-course/

05/11/2022

Some playtime photos of this week so far!

03/25/2022

It's very important here that all dogs are happy and relaxed during break time.

After a few visits the dogs are happy to go in the crates and they enjoy a nice nap before they get to be crazy and play with each other again. The hardest part of crating the dogs is only getting one per crate because they are so eager to jump in!

Part of our assessment visit is to evaluate how your dog does when crated. It's important that they are not showing any signs of stress or anxiety when they are crated. They don't have to be perfect their very first time here, but dogs that vocalize excessively or stress pant, pace, paw at the door or otherwise are showing they are not comfortable being crated are not invited back.

It's so important to me that the dogs here are not just happy during free play, but also break time.

03/21/2022

What happens when you sit down at daycare?

You become VERY popular!!

01/28/2022

Friday Crew: Levee, Brodie, Brophy, Stella, & Winnie!

I'm so elated that I actually managed to get all 5 of them sitting and looking at the camera! Look at this lovely crew!

12/20/2021

11/19/2021

Friday crew! Brodie, Levee, Brophy, & Reuben!

11/05/2021

Some daycare days are slow days with just Brophy here as a friend. That doesn't mean there's not still fun to be had!

Levee had a great Assessment Visit!

09/16/2021

This is important.

Dogs should not need to "correct" other dogs.

If a dog is uncomfortable with an interaction they will show subtle signs of stress and discomfort and often attempts at avoidance. Any doggie daycare group facilitator should be well versed in what this looks like and should step in to help the dogs out.

A dog who is politely saying "no thank you" should not need to scream "STOP" at the other dog. If a dog feels like their "no thank you" body language doesn't work but screaming "STOP" does work then they will be a lot quicker to escalate to screaming and less likely to use polite body language to show their discomfort. This is how poorly run daycares can actually create problem behaviours in dogs.

You do not want your dog put into situations where they need to "handle" another rude dog. And if you have a "rude" dog that doesn't recognize subtle language from other dogs? You'll want your dog to be gently guided by a human to make better choices, you do not want them getting "told off" by another dog as this can risk fostering feelings of fear and/or aggression toward other dogs.

An occasional disagreement between dogs is unlikely to cause long lasting problems, but if it's happening regularly you can almost guarantee there will be unwanted consequences.

Note that in large playgroups where there are more than a dozen dogs per human that it becomes impossible for that human to keep a close eye on all the interactions and it can be easy for them to miss breaking up interactions before they become a problem. Daycares should always have a low ratio of dogs:humans.

Think about the last time that you had to defend yourself. Not to the extent where you needed to get physical maybe but just to the point where you had to tell someone that you were uncomfortable. Think about your own individual threshold in that scenario. Some people wouldn't tolerate much and others could have someone pressing them and pressing them before they decided to speak up.

Maybe the next time you see that person you're not going to have the best feeling about their presence.

Every negative encounter your dog has with another dog creates an association that dogs can bring unpredictability and discomfort. The individual dog and the degree of severity within that negative encounter predicts your dog's future feelings and behaviour.

Some more resilient dogs would shake off a negative encounter and it might then take many for that dog to start to feel uncomfortable. For other dogs it may take a single negative encounter to cause weariness or reactivity.

When your dog reacts to another dog step in and remove your dog calmly and positively from that situation. Equally if your dog is one causing distress to another dog step in and remove your dog calmly and positively from that situation. Understand that there is discomfort on either side of the equation. When dogs are left to handle situations how they best feel appropriate this may not be in line with your dog going on to feel comfortable around other dogs.

When dogs "correct" one another this is something to address rather than brush off. Even the most tolerant of dogs will lose their cool, don't let it get to that point. For puppies, this is even more important as they are always making associations to the world around them.

Remember that it is your job to help your dog feel safe in this world.

09/10/2021

I cannot agree with Stefania enough! Daycare is not for every dog. If your dog isn't a good fit for daycare it's not because they are a "bad dog" they just don't thrive in that particular environment.

A good dog daycare WILL turn away the prospect of taking your money to do what's right for your dog and all the dogs in their care.

Mindful Mutts came about because I had worked in dog daycares and couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

Everything from tightly putting grooming muzzles on all day when dogs were barking constantly, to dogs playing with their prong collars and shock collars ON in their pens, and dogs hiding under risers for 10 hrs… soiling themselves in fear. After I left the last one, I participated in one SPCA cruelty investigation.

With the realization that dog daycare is only growing in popularity… I decided to hold off on my preferred career in dog training to educate myself the best way I knew how- with literally no guidance aside from Google- and facilitate a Low Stress daycare based on the teachings of the late Dr. Sophia Yin. “Be the change you want to see in the world” and all that- complaining was getting us all nowhere so I put my money where my mouth is and invested everything I had to get things started.

Year after year I learned more about what works and what doesn’t- how to do better. I tightened our screening process regularly. Upgraded my own education as often as financially possible. Placed every penny we made back into educating both myself and our team… yet everyday there’s more to learn and I’m okay with that.

I realize it upsets people when we have to decline your request for daycare, especially when your dog has plenty of dog friends, I want to remind everyone why we are here 💛

Most dogs don’t want to be in, let alone *need* daycare. Whether this makes us unpopular or not- that’s the truth. It doesn’t mean there’s anything WRONG with your dog, in fact it usually means they’re perfectly normal. More on this topic over the next few weeks ☮️

✨Stefania✨

#✌️❤️🐶

08/25/2021

Today Doug came for an Assessment Visit. Doug is a Little, so it's very important that's lots of extra caution is taken when Bigs & Littles play together.

Brodie was stellar with ensuring he didn't overwhelm Doug or risk hurting him and did a lot of self handicapping. Lucky needed some help to keep Doug safe so he was kept in his harness and attached to a leash until he started learning to be careful with a smaller dog.

The important bit is that I'm pretty confident everyone had a good time!

08/11/2021

Lucky had his first day here today! He's a great puppy and we look forward to seeing him again!

07/30/2021

Echo was in for an Assessment today! We hope just the taste of many more visits!

07/26/2021

Kona's First Day Video!

07/21/2021

Jaxx had his first day today and he sure did love to run about!

07/16/2021

Titan had a great time playing this morning at his Assessment Visit! He and Brophy enjoyed wrestling with each other.

Titan won't be back soon as he isn't relaxed in a crate during our rest and potty break time. We want all dogs here to be happy both at play AND at rest. We're all very disappointed, but hope to maybe see him again in the future when maybe he's more comfortable being crated.

07/16/2021

07/15/2021

This floofy marshmallow is the latest dog we can now call a Friend! Welcome Saphira!

07/08/2021

This adorable guy is Leroy! He joined us for his Assessment Visit yesterday and we're excited to have invited him back to play again!

07/05/2021

Today is Brodie's Birthday! Happy Birthday Brodie!

07/02/2021

Didn't even bother crating these fellas for their afternoon rest today since clearly they've decided that it's rest time on their own.

07/02/2021

Brophy & Brodie playing this morning! 😍

06/26/2021

An Instagram post from Langley Animal Protection Society (LAPS) reminded me that today is Take Your Dog to Work Day!

A perk to running daycare is definitely that Brophy comes to work too! Any day can be 🙂

06/25/2021

Koa came in for an Assessment Visit today!

Did you know that I do a mini photoshoot with every dog at their Assessment Visit? I'm no pro, but enjoy dabbling with photography and love to give the fun little perk of a couple nice photos to families that bring in their dogs!

06/25/2021

Koa was a little unsure about Brophy's big bouncey energy at first, but he warmed up quickly!

06/25/2021

Koa and Brophy made fast friends. Play bows all around (that I couldn't manage to capture in photos) and lots of sniffs. The even played a bit of chase!

All new dogs start off being introduced with a barrier between them and a potential friend to ensure they are interested in meeting. Best to recognize any obvious incompatibility with a barrier between.

06/08/2021

Brodie had his first full day today! He's a really great guy and I can't wait to get to know him better. We played, we snuggled, we had a great walk and more!

Brophy also approves of this new friend!

06/04/2021

Brophy and Brodie hanging out together while Brodie was here for his assessment!

Brodie is a great fit and we can't wait to see more of him!

Only thing I can think of as a downside is that Brophy & Brodie's names are so similar that both dogs check in when you call for just one 😂

06/03/2021

Join us for Puppy Classes starting this month!

Schedule your appointment online Extraordinary Canines & The Social Dog Daycare

05/31/2021

One benefit of an indoor style doggie daycare like The Social Dog Daycare is protection from the heat as we move into some hot days ahead.

If you have a brachycephalic dog you'll feel good knowing your dog is not overheating out in the sun.

A reminder as the weather heats up! I often see Frenchies, Bulldogs and Pugs out in the hot sun. They are panting but that doesn’t mean they are getting enough oxygen, heatstroke happens in an instance!

⚡️ Keep them cool at home during the hottest hours
⚡️ Exercise early morning and late evening
⚡️ Have a “what if” plan. Where is the nearest emergency vet? Get to the vet ASAP!

05/25/2021

We're working to add even more information, but you can learn a lot about The Social Dog Daycare on the website: http://thesocialdog.ca