FIELDSTONE KENNELS

unknown

I have used Fieldstone many times to board my dog for between 2 and 10 days.  Whilst the care seems fine, and I've never had an issue with my dog or the service, I feel that the facility needs to be updated and (at least the office) kept cleaner.  Most of their business appears to be day care, and they appear to have a fair amount of regular customers. 

 This facility has a lot of trouble keeping the staff. The facility is often not clean and many of the dog runs have gravel. There often are fostered dogs that are lodged that are aggressive. hours for the daycare are good, but the facility is not worth it. Will not use this provider any longer.
Owner ran specials but was reluctant to honor them.

unknown

I like the people that work there and the treatment of the animals. My dog likes it and he's eager to go each day.

Overall, we had no concerns with how our dog was treated. They have ample outdoor space and the dogs are outside most of the day. Our dog got in what they described as a and quot;little spatand quot; her first day, but no harm was done (and we saw no injuries, either). They put her with a different group of dogs and she did not have further issues.
We stopped using Fieldstone because the gravel they use to cover the outdoor space was severely irritating our dog's paws. Part of the new client paperwork is a waiver that Fieldstone is not liable for injuries or issues due to the gravel. Thus, they know that gravel can cause problems for some dogs. Her paws bothered her after each visit. We took her a few times, thinking that perhaps she just needed to build up some callouses (since she's an indoor dog). However, after her fifth time there, it was apparent that her paws were not adjusting well. She would lick them constantly for several days and we had to apply a topical spray from the vet to reduce the pain. The skin between her toes and around her pads was quite red.
The gravel was our only issue, but it was enough for us to stop using them even though we still had 7 days remaining on a 10 day pass. I'm sure gravel is lower maintenance than mulch. However, if they require a waiver due to the gravel, then they obviously know it has potential to hurt dogs' paws. This may be particularly true for very active dogs like ours that spend most of the day running and chasing. If they switched to another ground cover, I would definitely consider bringing our dog back to them.