Featured Pups Week of 5/9/16

5/9/16:

For today's featured pup it's the dynamic duo! Spud & Gritz have been doggy daycare regulars since they first got adopted. Gritz is constantly ordering Spud around, she claims she’s the older sibling. Gritz even tries to walk Spud. Spud doesn’t understand why, especially when she can’t even walk herself. Spud though is a good sport about it. When they’re not playing with their friends they can be found getting dirty having a blast at the South Mountain Reservation.

5/10/16: Today's featured dog of the day is none other then Danko! On Danko’s first day of daycare he actually didn’t pass his trial day. He was nervous and shy. After a couple of introductions he realized Preferred Pet Care Inc. is awesome! Since then he’s been loving coming to doggie daycare. When he’s not here for daycare he’s having a slumber party with all his friends here. Danko demands a big hello when he arrives and has trouble leaving, he just wants to play play play with all his friends.

5/11/16: 

Who is today's pup of the day you ask? Well it's Magic! Magic is one of our “time share pups”, he’s another regular like Rufus. When he’s not here for daycare he’s here for boarding, and sometimes when he’s not here he’s going for walks around Millburn with his other family. Unfortunately Magic can be a little wary of new people, but once he gets to know you he’s a sweetheart.

5/12/16:

It's almost our anniversary! Who is our featured pup of the day today? It's LUCY W! We have a handful of pups who can “smile”, Lucy is one of them. Lucy is one spunky pup! She loves to play ball with the staff, she went crazy over our ball day! Lucy also loves to play with the hose. She is one silly girl. When Lucy isn’t playing with her friends at Preferred Pet Care she’s going on walks with her dad.

55 people reached

Featured Pups of the Week 5/2-5/6

Our first featured pup is Rufus C.! Rufus has been coming to Preferred Pet Care Inc. for what seems like forever! May 14th 2012 was Rufus’ first day of daycare at Preferred Pet Care, since then he’s become a regular for not just daycare but boarding. Rufus is a border terrier. When Rufus isn’t hanging out with his puppy friends he enjoys playing fetch in the pool

Guess who is our featured pup of the day? Faraday! What can we say about Faraday? He’s a big goofball! When Faraday isn’t playing with all his friends at daycare he enjoys working on his tan.

Who could possible be our featured pup for the day? It's Cody Rainbow! Cody also known as Cody Rainbow is basically a pint sized Golden Retriever, he looks like a Golden Retriever except he’s short like a basset hound. Cody Rainbow has a killer smile, he likes to keep his teeth nice and bright as he hopes to one day follow in his mom’s footsteps in be in commercials.

Our Featured Pup of the day is... Dexter T! Dexter dreams of becoming architect. He will sporadically decide that the playhouses will look better without a door or without a window shutter. Dexter and Jake M. have discussed starting their own architect and interior design company, they’re still currently arguing about the business name. Jake thinks it should be called “Barkable designs”, whereas Dexter likes the name “Bull designs”. When Dexter isn’t pursing his aspirations of being an architect he spends his time as a fashion model (don’t tell him though that it’s just for his parents, shhh).

Finishing for the week is Jake M as our featured pup! Jake M. has dreams of becoming an interior designer. He often spends his days checking out the different playhouses we have for the yards. Despite that dogs are color blind Jake has an eye for detail. Jake’s good pal Dexter and him plan to one day go into business together. Jake has been coming to Preferred Pet Care Inc. since he was a puppy, it’s been great watching him grow up and mature.

Goodbye Paw Pad (Route 22)

We recently learned that The Paw Pad daycare and training facility located on Route 22 is closing.

 

We’re sad to hear that a fellow doggie daycare facility is closing.  You may be shocked to hear that coming from another facility in the business, but competition is a good thing.  It promotes growth, it challenges you to continue to excel.  If you have a friend who is a good tennis player and you’re just an okay tennis player, the friendly competition with them challenges you to improve upon yourself.  On the same note it forces you to become more creative.  What new ideas or concepts can we bring to the facility?  If we want to be number one what can we do to one up the competition.  It makes you stop and think, perhaps reevaluate how certain things are done to make them more efficient or perhaps try new ideas.  Competition teaches you.  Even though we’re in the same industry no two facilities are exactly alike-unless of course it’s a chain or a franchise, and even there I’m sure there are differences.  Just this past summer we went to a trade show.  It was great to speak with other individuals in the business to find out what works for one area and what doesn’t work. 

We wish all the employees and the owner the best of luck on all of their future endeavors.  Additionally for all those pups that may be looking for another facility we extend a welcome to come check out our facility.  We know it’s not your home yet, but we hope once you get to know us it can be.  

What's a "snow day"?

“What’s a snow day?  Who has one of those?”

Our staff is often shocked when we’re asked by people (customers, friends, family, etc.), “Well, what do you guys do when you have a blizzard or a hurricane?  Do you still have to work?”.  Many of our employees are surprised when people ask us that question.  Well, what do you think?  We have live animals here.  If we’re not there to feed them or take them outside who is going to? 

In the 20 years since we have opened our doors we have never missed a day due to bad weather.  We’re thinking about adopting the U.S. post office’s slogan of “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds”.  I guess we would have to change that just a little.  I think our motto of, “Dog’s come first” is pretty good on its own; what do you think?

During Hurricane Sandy many of our staff lost power.  We ourselves at Preferred Pet Care Inc. lost power.  Did we close our doors?  No, we did just the opposite.  Many of our customers were in the same predicament of us with losing power.  Some customers left their homes to stay at friends or relatives or to stay in a hotel.  Unfortunately some of them couldn’t bring along their furry friends.  So even with no power we had our doors opened for both boarding and daycare.  We had overnight boarding guests and we had pups for daycare too.  We operated on a slightly altered schedule, however overall it was business as usual.

Every winter when it snows we still have staff members here taking care of the pups.  Not only are we here feeding, cleaning, and playing with the pups but we’re also here shoveling to make sure the pups have a lush green yard to play in. 

The dedication our employees show is outstanding.  This past weekend with winter storm Jonas both our Saturday & Sunday weekend crew were here providing the same fantastic care that we always do.  What’s a little snow?  (Alright maybe a lot of snow depending on who you ask).  The snow would not deter our employees from coming in and taking care of our overnight guests.  Many people had a “snow day” today due to the aftermath of the storm, but here at Preferred Pet Care Inc. we wonder, “What’s a snow day?.”  Just another day at Preferred Pet Care Inc., business as usual, and that’s all thanks to our outstanding employees (Thanks everyone!).  

Are you just like your dog?

Are you just like your dog?

Pet Products News International December 2015 Issue:

Study Finds People Choose Dogs That Act Like Them

We’ve all heard the old cliché that people look like their dogs, but would you be surprised to find out that people and their dogs tend to socialize, eat and learn new skills in very similar ways, too?

            According to the Natural Balance Canine Personality Study—a survey of 1,015 U.S. dog owners conducted by Burbank, Calif-based Natural Balance Pet Foods in conjunction with Learndipity Data Insights—Americans love dogs who often are just like them.

            Sixty-six percent of extroverted people have extroverted dogs—and there’s a 65 percent chance that an introverted dog will have an introverted human owner.  If you’re a choosy eater, your dog is three times more likely to be one as well.  If you identify as a lifelong learner, then there’s a 72 percent chance your dog will be good at learning new tricks. 

            Dogs display complex emotions, just like we do.

            Dogs’ personalities are highly nuanced, and they experience many emotions that are all too familiar to us humans.  If you’re hurt or late coming home, 90 percent of dog owners believe your dog is worried about you.  Seventy-nine percent say dogs can feel embarrassment, while 93 percent are certain they’ve seen their dog smile. 

            Dogs strongly influence the emotions of their human owners.

            According to 79 percent of dog owners, their dogs consciously and actively attempt to comfort them.  Fifty-five percent report that their dog looks at them with loving eyes that communicate deep emotion; 52 percent say their dog is able to accurately sense when they are sad.  

Holidays-Boarding Stays

Even though the holidays just came to a close it is never too early to book your dog’s boarding stay with us.  A good rule of thumb is that anytime schools are out that we are busy and may potentially be booked.  Some holidays/times to keep in mind are as follows: New Years, Martin Luther King Jr Day, Presidents Day (*may schools have winter break over this time), Spring Break/Easter, Memorial Day, 4^th of July, the months of July & August, Labor Day, Teacher’s convention (typically the first weekend in November), Thanksgiving, and Christmas season (typically from December 22^nd thru to January 2^nd).  Our best suggestion is to reserve your pup’s boarding reservation at least 4-6 weeks before your planned vacation.  If you’re unsure if you may need to cancel or change the boarding dates we highly recommend purchasing boarding insurance.  The boarding insurance is an additional fee, however it does allow you to cancel up until 6pm the day before the scheduled arrival date. 

This past year 2015 we booked up for the Christmas season before the end of November.  If you call and we are booked for the time frame you are looking for always ask about a waiting list.  We did have some people cancel their plans and therefore allowed for some of our customers on the waiting list to have a spot open up for them.  However please keep in mind we do only have a so many rooms that we can book.  Unfortunately once we are full we can’t just make new rooms to accommodate everyone.  We hate turning of customers away, and we wish we could accommodate everyone.  But unfortunately it’s not always possible. 

Additionally we do have a limit for how many individual dogs we can take, so that means if your dog is not with the other dogs (if they are not in our playgroup: if they don’t get along with the other dogs, or if you would prefer them not to be introduced) they are considered to be an individual dog.  Each “individual” dog receives at least ten minutes every hour of individual staff attention.  We will NOT compromise on the quality of care therefore we have a limit for how many individual dogs we can accommodate.  

Preferred Pet Care Inc takes care of our overnight guests 365 days a year (366 this year thank you Leap Year).  We are only closed six days out of the year: New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, 4^th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.  Even though our front office is CLOSED on those holidays there is still staff who is away from their family and friends working taking care of all our pups here.  

Fromm Promotion

What dog food are you feeding your dog?  Do you know what’s in your dog food?  Does it contain by-product meal, corn gluten meal, corn, wheat, or meat & bone meal?  Do you know how much fat or protein your dog should be getting?  Or even know what that information translates into? 

If you don’t know these questions I encourage you to check out your dog food bag today.  You just might be surprised at what you find is lurking in your pup’s food. 

Does your dog board with us?  While they stay do they have our “House” food here?  Can you name what our “House” food is?  Our “House” food is Fromm Adult Gold dry kibble.  What was that?  You said you’ve never heard of Fromm before?!  No way!  Well let me tell you about Fromm.  Fromm Family Foods is a fifth-generation family owned and operated artisan pet food company that is based in Wisconsin.  The Fromm Family has been maintaining a tradition of quiet innovation dedicated to the health and nutrition of animals since 1904.  They actually helped developed the first canine distemper vaccine in the 1930’s.  In 1949 they even introduced the concept of premium pet food by pioneering the process of cooking meat and grain together to create the dry kibble food that is so popular today.  Because of their tradition of quite innovation that’s why you won’t find Fromm products at big name super stores.  Fromm’s belief is that, as a family owned and operated business themselves they understand the kind of commitment pet specialty store owners have to their customers, employees, and communities.  Their retail partners are exclusively independent businesses and family owned businesses. 

Now of course I’m sure you want to know a little more about the dog food.  You wouldn’t want to eat Italian food every day, would you?  So why should your dog have to eat the same thing?  With Fromm’s line of artisan dog food you can interchange the flavors so if your dog is feeling “Chicken a la veg” one day they can have that and change to “Whitefish & Potato”  the next day without doing a transition from one to another. 

So here is Fromm’s proposition to you…

• ·         1 FREE 4lb or 5lb bag or Fromm when you buy any size one bag (1 per customer)-also for existing Fromm customers! (This also means you already have 2 UPC codes already towards the Frequent Buyers program! 
• ·         Or bring us your empty bag of food (that’s right we want the empty bag of dog food that you’re currently feeding) and we will give you one free 4lb or 5lb bag of Fromm (1 per customer). –Unfortunately NOT for existing Fromm customers. 
• ·         Lastly price match- You’re interested in changing your pup’s dog food to Fromm, but are you worried about the cost?  Fromm is sure that you will see the quality in their food that we will match the price.  Bring us the receipt for what you’re currently paying for your pup’s food and we’ll match it. 

*Additional Fromm Promotions:  Frequent Buyer Program buy 12 bags of Fromm and we will you give your 13^th bag free.  Just cut out and save the proof of purchase from each bag and place them in our frequent buyer envelope.  Return the completed envelope and 12 Proof of Purchased UPCs to us and we’ll give you your 13^th bag free! 

Not sure which Fromm flavor or line to try or to switch your dog to?  Ask us!  But make sure to give us the whole picture of your dog’s eating habits.  What food is your dog currently eating?  If you have the bag bring it in that will assist us with what food we should direct you to try.  Does your dog have any “allergies”?  Do they have any medical issues?  Do they have a “sensitive stomach”?  Does your dog tend to not like certain flavors?  We would be delighted to explain to you more about the different Fromm lines.