Board your pets at a boarding facility made for boarding, socializing and fun.
In 1995 when I opened my veterinary hospital I made an extremely expensive decision. I decided I was not going to board animals at my hospital. By all estimates that has cost me more than $4.7 million since then.
It’s just because I have worked at veterinary hospitals since I was 16 years old and if avoidable, you don’t put healthy animals in the hospital with sick ones. I want my dog to be handled by people with time to pay attention to the boarding process and not distracted by medicine cases and appointments, and I don’t want some high-school kid with germy hands taking my dog out for a brief walk before racing back in to help the doctor.
Getting walked between cases is like, the WORST. It’s far better for kennel staff to be there JUST to care for the guests. Not ‘fit them in’ between cases morning and night.
As a customer I would also be inclined to take-a-pass on the ‘free exam’ a few Vets might offer all boarding pets; because such exams can lead to frivolous diagnoses and treatments that me and my regular Vet might very well have left alone, or were already being managed more cost-effectively “our way”.
In summary: Next time you’re in Atlanta, stay at the Radisson, not upstairs at Grady. It’s safer and lots more fun.
I don’t board pets and that’s for them, certainly not for me. I believe this almost five million dollars strong. That’s putting your money where your mouth is.
Dr Erik Johnson
