Going on vacation without your bully?

[hnhammond]

I am going on a family vacation out of the country in December for about 10 days and I AM TERRIFIED of leaving my bully baby behind

I don't know what the best option for her is... I am just so worried about being apart from her - and out of the country, too!

She will be about six months old by the time my vacation comes around, and here are my options I've gathered so far:

1) I can leave her with my parent's doggy nanny. My parent's dog will be there as well (she is an older maltese and doesn't really like my puppy), and the woman is so sweet. They've used her to watch their dog for years. The only thing that really worries me is that she isn't experienced with bulldogs and we all know how high maintenance they are! But if I explain to her the dangers of overheating and give her a list of Tilly's supplements, it seems like my best (although expensive!) option. Especially because it will be 24 hour care.
2) Matilda's vet, (Dr. Kraemer in California from our list of approved EB specialists), does boarding at his office. It is also expensive, but I do feel safe knowing that her vet is around should anything happen! My biggest worries though are that they do NOT have 24 hour supervision. Also, I feel like they will crate Tilly most of the day, while the doggy nanny will spend every moment with her. However, again, I do feel better knowing that her vet is around checking on her..
3) Camp Bow Wow. I have never used this (has anyone?) but one of my good friends left her pit bull (which she treats like her child) there while she traveled and RAVES about it. Apparently her pit loved it there so much, she had to basically drag her home! They get play time ALL DAY LONG, so this would be a great opportunity for Matilda to socialize. They also have webcams in the play areas so I could even go online and watch her. My concerns are again, that she will be left alone at night (not sure if they have ANYONE there at night - I doubt it, but I'm looking into it), and that they aren't familiar with bulldog needs.

I don't want to leave her with a friend because my closest friend (who isn't joining us on the trip) is going out of town as well, and my other friends who have dogs, well, their dogs are older and can't stand Matilda's crazy puppyness. And I really just don't trust any of my friends that don't have pets with her.

What do you guys think? All three options are around the same pricing. I would really love some advice, I'm getting so much anxiety about leaving her that I may not even go

 

[SunDog]

Oh man. I hate those decisions. I have tried all three versions and I would caution against boarding at a vet unless it's an emergency b/c vets will have sick animals and you just don't want to risk that with any age bulldog, especially a pup.

Technically, your dog will be safe in the other two situations, unless the dog nanny is irresponsible. If she has good common sense and wannts to keep her business, she should be ok. I use an experienced dog sitter who is also a certified trainer. But we always try to take Lupe with us, or cancel. Good luck!

 

[bulldogs4me]

Wow that's a tough one! if it where me, I think I would go with the Doggie Nanny just because you have someone that will give night and day care but I would first make a very extensive list of how to take care of Matilda and would take the time to go over ahead of time and show her exactly what Matilda's daily routine is so she gets to see what you do and still has a list to fall back on plus I would go by my vets office and explain to the staff you will be away and what dates you would be gone to make sure they know Matilda will be being taken care of by a nanny make sure they have all her info and let them know she has permission to bring her in for care just in case, they may ask to have a credit card on file in the event something (heaven forbid) happens. I know it will be hard to leave her but on the day you drop her off try very hard not to be emotional because if she senses fear in you she will be afraid to be there also so go in like nothing is different and leave without making a big deal out of it (you can cry in the car as you drive away). Have a safe trip and I hope all goes well!!

 

[elearn]

If I had to chose think I'd go with option 1 as it seems like the doggie nanny will take time with your pup. Just give her explicit instructions and the number to your vet - maybe do a test run for a couple of days before you go?

I definitely, personally, would not go with option 3 for the first time that long if I wasn't familiar with it and Matilda had never been there.

 

[LoveMyBully82]

I would choose the doggy nanny as well. She is experienced with caring for dogs and will have her eyes on him 24/7. Write her a list of Matilda's daily needs (grooming, what/how to feed, medication, etc...) and also put your vet's contact information on the list (and even an emergency vet if you have one in the area). This is what I do whenever we go out of town and leave Jackson with our friends (who also have either bulldogs, or just any dog). I also drop him off w/ his crate and bed so he can feel at home.

 

[Baconator]

We are in this situation right now with Bacon because we are going to a wedding out of town this weekend and can't bring him. We could have asked friends or parents but didn't want to burden them with Bacon being that we know what a handful he can be. After doing a fair amount of research and asking our friends with pets we found a kennel that has bulldog experience to keep him at. They have webcams, we had an option for group play with other dogs or one on one three times a day and went that route. We've noticed that he isn't really understood very well by other dogs because he plays like a puppy and doesn't realize he is a small tank. Plus he's too big to hang out with nippy dogs who tend to snap at him and he's too little to play with the big boys. When Jen went to check the place out they had a bully there and he seemed really happy. If you haven't gotten it already most kennels require that they have their kennel cough vaccination. If you are doing it as a shot, not aspirated it is two shots that need to be given over a week apart so plan ahead.

 

[maggies mom]

I think if it was me I'd leave her with your parents dog sitter. I wouldnt like the vet because no one is there at night and the camp I think she is so young to be around alot of other dogs all day. We had to leave Maggie with my in laws when we went on vacation a few weeks ago, they have a Yorkshire terrier that doesnt like her but they did fine, good luck!

 

[mdn525]

We're in the same situation - going on a cruise in December and Tuni will be 6 months then. She is going to stay with my parents, she's always over there and loves them just as much as she loves us. They have a yorkie (who isn't very fond of Tuni) and a Pomeranian who is just old and doesn't want to be bothered by a puppy. I think it will be fine though!

 

[allyxo]

I'd check to see if anyone is around at all during the night for #3 it would be nice to check in on her through the webcam & help ease your worries! If no one is there at all during the night I'd for sure do #1.

 

[hnhammond]

Thank you guys all so much!

Matilda is updated on her kennel cough vaccines, and I checked with Camp Bow Wow - they don't have anyone there past 7PM, but arrive early the next morning. They also have full air-conditioning, leave a stuffed kong, and leave classical music on when they leave.They also are experienced with bulldogs. The main reason I even like this option is because Matilda never gets to play with other dogs and she'll have so much fun. They also do doggie daycare, so I could take her there a few times before December just so she can play and get used to it.

As for the nanny, I am just worried about how my parents' dog, Angel, hates Matilda. She refuses to play with her. And also, I don't know if this woman knows ANYTHING about bulldogs, all we're going off of is that my parents dog adores her and always returns home safely. I also don't know how much she's really playing with or even watching her, but I guess Angel wouldn't like her so much if she was just crated all day... However, Angel also requires almost no care. She's very independent and calm - which is so different than needy, crazypants Matilda.

The vet feels like my worst and at the same time, safest choice. I think Matilda would be miserable but at least nothing would happen. So I'm conflicted.

 

[bulldogs4me]

Thank you guys all so much!

Matilda is updated on her kennel cough vaccines, and I checked with Camp Bow Wow - they don't have anyone there past 7PM, but arrive early the next morning. They also have full air-conditioning, leave a stuffed kong, and leave classical music on when they leave.They also are experienced with bulldogs. The main reason I even like this option is because Matilda never gets to play with other dogs and she'll have so much fun. They also do doggie daycare, so I could take her there a few times before December just so she can play and get used to it.

As for the nanny, I am just worried about how my parents' dog, Angel, hates Matilda. She refuses to play with her. And also, I don't know if this woman knows ANYTHING about bulldogs, all we're going off of is that my parents dog adores her and always returns home safely. I also don't know how much she's really playing with or even watching her, but I guess Angel wouldn't like her so much if she was just crated all day... However, Angel also requires almost no care. She's very independent and calm - which is so different than needy, crazypants Matilda.

The vet feels like my worst and at the same time, safest choice. I think Matilda would be miserable but at least nothing would happen. So I'm conflicted.

have you done a surprise visit at the Camp Bow Wow facility and walk through?? sounds like you like that option the most and after all Matilda is your baby and you would know what she would like more then anyone else ... sounds like you have a good plan of enrolling her in the doggie daycare a few times before she does an extended stay, you will know her reaction and could make a better decision from that. Good Luck