HAPPY DOG SPOT

Horrible! If you have a larger dog, even if well behaved, you may be asked to never return. Our dog didn’t do anything wrong, was not aggressive in any way but because of his size was asked not to return.

They are really good. They have a really nice open place for the dogs. They are very good at separating the highly active dogs from the more relaxed sleepy type of dogs. They know an awful lot of dog behavior so they are very good at spotting when they might be some sort of altercation and preventing it before it starts.

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Use day care twice/week. Use boarding at least 6 times/year. Tracy and her team do a great job with my dog. He loves to go there and comes home quite tired, which provides for a quiet evening at home.

Tracy and her staff re wonderful with the animals. Our dog loves going to HDS. We feel good about leaving him in their care for boarding or a day of play.

Great! He loves it!!! So do I!

HDS is a great place for dogs and owners who want a safe, engaged environment for their dogs. Lucy is tired at the end of her visits, the employees interact with the dogs and proved them with a safe, fun environment. Grooming service prices are a steal, plus it's great that Lucy knows the people who are grooming her, so that decreases her anxiety.

Our experience with HDS was super! All staff communicated with us very clearly, which was a challenge we had with other daycare/boarding places we had previously used. Our puppy got to play all day at daycare while boarding. We felt like the staff took good care of her and really cared about working with dogs! When we picked her up she was exhausted from all the fun! Plus she got to play with Jake the black lab and they became fast friends! It was nice to get a report card on her stay. We would recommend HDS to anyone looking for boarding or daycare.

Tracy and her crew are fabulous! I have been taking my dog there once a week for about a year now and he gets so excited for "daycare day" I just cant get him there fast enough! The staff is very caring and it is apparent that they love the dogs as every dog I have seen there seems to be having a great time at Happy Dog Spot. I have also boarded my dog and really appreciate that he is not "caged" all day like at most facilities. They are only in pens at night when they eat and sleep. Otherwise they are playing together under supervision of the staff. I cant say enough about HDS except take your dog there and he will love it!

Similar experience to other kennels we have used to board our dog. expected.

They are always nice and easy to deal with. They take great care of our dogs. I like that the dogs have a freedom to play while there.

The staff at HDS is knowledgeable, they care about dogs, and there's a huge space for the dogs to run around (as well as outside space).
I can't say enough good things about HDS.

We took our two dogs to Happy Dog Spot for over a year and they loved it. Happy Dog Spot gave them three huge areas to play and our boys were always exhausted when we got them home (daycare hangover we called it). We dropped off the dogs early in the morning, usually before 8am, and picked them up around 6pm. They could run around inside on the concrete or go outside to use the bathroom or play in a pool if it was a hot day. Both of our dogs started to whine as soon as we turned down Rock Hill Industrial Court - they always knew when it was d-a-y-c-a-r-e day!!!

We have been taking our dog Genny to HDS for well over a year now. We are out of town almost every weekend in the summer, and I was anxious about leaving her. No worries there anymore! Genny gets so excited when we pull into the parking lot that she literally drags me up the steps and runs into the back with hardly a backward glance at me. She was so beside herself when we arrived for the last visit that she actually peed in the middle of the waiting room because she was wagging so intensely. I was mortified, but they didn't bat an eye and just pulled out the mop to clean it up. She loves to play with the other dogs, although she is not a rough and tumble girl. She mainly just strolls around with a grin and a wagging, waving tail. I love to see this! She has stayed at HDS probably a couple of dozen times, and I continue to be very pleased. Tracy, Copper, Diane, and all the staff genuinely love our girl, and you can tell! I wrote an initial positive review about a year ago after we had been a few times. I just wanted to write a follow-up and add that I'm even more pleased, if that's possible! Thanks, HDS, for easing my mind and my guilt when we go out of town!

A great place to bring your dog to play and get tired

I selected Happy Dog Spot as a doggy daycare mainly for the fact there were so many positive Angie's List reviews . I can understand why it's a great place for people to bring their pet. The location is clean and the facility has ample space for dogs to play and have fun. When I dropped my dog off the first time I was reassured by my decision when I saw other excited dogs happy to be dropped off.

I made the mistake of not reading the entire policy and liability waiver in full before signing it.

"Owner understands that pet may be placed in a crate for “time outs”, rest periods, overnight care, or if injured. Owner understands that water squirt bottles and citronella bark collars may be used for correction. Owner understands that pet may be muzzled for its protection or the protection of the HDS staff. Owner understands that diapers may be used on dogs that exhibit chronic marking behaviors."

Unfortunately, Happy Dog Spot was not a good match for us. The first visit was the evaluation day. Tracy and I discussed the answers to the questions from the application I had filled out prior to his first day. She mentioned I would get a call around lunch time with an update on how my dog was doing. She did call to tell me he was doing okay. He was experiencing a bit of separation anxiety. Some dogs experience it and his was nothing she was concerned with. When I picked him she reassured me that his separation anxiety was not a big deal. She suggested over time he would grow out of it.

When I dropped off the following week I asked Tracy to call with another status report midday. I offered to pick him up early if necessary. She did call to say he still had a little anxiety but again reassured me that it was nothing to be concerned with. He even found a few buddies to play with. When I picked him up she said his anxiety was improving but may take a few more visits to overcome.

The 3rd visit was 2 weeks later. I decided to purchase a package when I dropped him off. A relative picked him up after work and called me after she picked him up. She was upset by a few things that happened. When she entered the facility my dog immediately saw her. Excited, he ran over to the viewing window to greet her. He jumped up and put his front paws on the window. One of the employees did not see her enter the lobby and the employee began squirting water in my dogs face to get him to jump off the window. She knocked on the window to grab the attention of the employee and asked him to stop spraying my dog in the face. She explained to him she was the one who got him excited when she walked in. She asked him to stop spraying him in the face for jumping up and being excited to see her.

Secondly, when they brought him into the lobby she noticed an additional collar on his neck that she didn't recognize. The employee explained they put an anti bark collar on him that sprays a "citronella like chemical" in his face to deter him from barking. She asked him if my dog had a barking problem during his stay that required the collar. He said my dog was fine that the collar was there to prevent any issues. When my dog got home his entire face reeked of citronella. The odor was strong and lingered on his face for a few days before I could take him to the groomer to have him bathed.

I was very upset and shocked about this occurrence. I wanted to hear the other side of the story to ensure accuracy. I called and spoke to Tracy to ask her to recap his last visit. She immediately reminded me that my dog had separation anxiety issues and that he had grown an attachment to her. Whenever she left the play area he would bark continuously for her. Therefore he needed antibark collar.

I told her I realize by signing the waiver I consented to their terms. I expressed my disappointment that it was not communicated to me at any time during any of his visits that my dogs anxiety included so much barking that warranted the collar and spray bottle for him to spend the day there. Especially when the employee was asked at the time of pick up of any issues and he said there were no issues.

I would not have purchased a package for additional visits if I been made aware what was going on. I was offered a refund of the unused visits. Which I appreciated and accepted. She apologized for the miscommunication and said she thought she told me. She also mentioned they purposely don't highlight that section in the liability waiver. I can understand why. I would never use the reinforcement tools HDS uses on my dog even he did have a barking problem that was necessary to correct.

As I previously stated it is a nice facility. Other dog owners and their pets appear to have a great experience. Unfortunately we did not. I do not discourage anyone to take their dog there. I hope this review reminds anyone considering taking their dog to Happy Dog Spot to full read and understand their policy and clarify any issues that may arise as they may not be disclosed upfront.

I like them very much. They have day care and boarding. They do training of the dogs. Compared to other places, they care more about the dogs. Other places, they just try to sell me stuffs. My dog loves them.

I called and visited with Tracy, the owner, about how they run things and told her a little bit about my dog. After an online application I brought my dog in for a "trial" day. I appreciate that all the dogs have a day like this to make sure there are no problems with aggression, etc. My dog was a little shy the first day, but seemed fine so we brought her the next weekend to board. The dogs are all uncrated during the day in a huge room with access to the outdoors as well. They kind of roam round in an amiable loose pack, stopping to play, rest or just sit and watch as they choose. There are no aggressive dogs and they all get along amazingly well. I like the fact that that HDS is very well-staffed. There are always at least two or three people working and they monitor the dogs all the time. I have watched messes being cleaned up right away, they are strict about health and shot records, and the facility is very clean. Most importantly, my dog LOVES to go! We travel almost every weekend during the summer, and we have used HDS every single time. Everybody knows my dog and is happy to see her every time we come. There are cheaper boarding kennels, but I feel that you get what you pay for. The traditional kennel has the dogs crated or in runs all of the time, only let out to use the bathroom a few times a day. HDS is NOTHING like this. My dog is only put into her run for naptime and at night. And she is exhausted from playing and roaming all day and sleeps soundly! My family is very happy with HDS- we live in St. Charles and make the trip to Rock Hill every time we leave town to drop off our dog simply because we love it there so much. I would highly recommend this place and we are very grateful to Tracy and the rest of the staff for providing such a safe haven for our girl while we're gone.

Our dog cannot wait to go to The Happy Dog Spot.
She doesn't even say goodbye.
She is excited to get in and play with the other dogs.
Tiayo and employees love dogs.
It is all they do, and it shows.

Excellent! Everyone is wonderful and the dogs are so well cared for. They feed them science diet at no additional cost and on the hot days, they ration the time the dogs are out in the hot sun and have a pool for the dogs. I can't say enough!

This will be my dog's third visit to Happy Dog Spot. He loves it.I travel a lot and I prefer to board my 12 pound Shih Tzu. I took my dog to another boarding facility and it was way too chaotic for my taste. I know...I know...He is a dog. But he is very precious to me. :)I took him to Happy Dog Spot and was very pleased with the state of "calm". I was a bit concerned because the dogs are all integrated together (the big dogs and the small dogs). My concern was short-lived when I saw that the staff had the dogs under control. They were firm, but it was clear that they are the Alphas in that pack. Also, the dogs were all of the same temperament. One more thing is that there are no secrets. They have a large window where you can observe the dogs, the cleanliness of the environment, and the handler's treatment of the dogs.I received a phone call from Tracy. She said that my dog was doing great. He felt comfortable and met a friend. His experience wiped him out. He came home and crashed.

See above.

Tracy, Patty, Diane, Copper and all of the other staff at HDS are amazing! Our dogs are so excited when the alarm goes off in the morning, because they know it's a weekday and it might be their "turn" to go to daycare! The staff genuinely care about the dogs in their care and they always alert us to any issues or concerns they have about our puppers behavior and/or health. It is so nice to be able to leave them in someone else's care with complete confidence that they will be well-cared for. I can't sing their praises highly enough. We are thrilled to have found them and recommend them to all of our friends!