Boarding
A. All animals entering the River Road Animal Hospital boarding facility must be current on all required vaccinations and testing. If these are not current, they will be updated at the time of admission.
For dogs: Rabies, Distemper/Parvo, 6-month Bordatella, intestinal parasite exam
For cats: Rabies, FVRCP, Bordatella, intestinal parasite exam.
B. If your pet is vaccinated at another facility, you must provide written verification. If you cannot provide verification, the necessary vaccines and testing will be provided. If your pet has not been examined by a doctor at River Road Animal Hospital within the past year, an exam is required prior to boarding.
C. All pets will receive a wellness assessment at admission.
D. All pets must be free of external parasites upon admission. Any observed fleas, ticks or mites must be treated at admission.
E. Owner is aware that there is no staff on the premises overnight.
F. Although we allow personal items to be brought with your pet, we are not responsible for items lost or damaged while boarding. All personal items must be marked with owner’s last name in a permanent manner.
G. We encourage you to provide your pet’s diet from home. If you prefer, we will provide our sensitive stomach/gastro enteric diet (Purina EN) at no additional cost. Please be aware that variations in diet and any changes in normal home feeding habits can cause GI disturbances. At the discretion of the veterinarian, fecal exams will be performed and treatment for diarrhea administered to ensure the health and safety of all of our boarders.
H. Although we encourage a low-stress environment, some pets will bark much more than normal while boarding. This may cause sore throats, bronchitis, or temporary changes in your pet’s bark (hoarseness). Cats are also susceptible to upper respiratory infection; cats will not be given “playtime” in the cat room with other cats, but there is still a risk of airborne transmission. At the discretion of the veterinarian, isolation and treatment for pets suspected of upper respiratory infections will be administered for the health and safety of all of our boarders.
I. Although your pet may appear healthy at drop off and we examine them upon admission, it is impossible to detect many problems until a pet starts to show clinical signs. Changes in your pet’s lifestyle (such as boarding) can results in stress and weaken the immune system, resulting in these clinical signs.
J. We will use all reasonable precautions against injury, escape or death of your pet. The clinic and staff will not be held liable for any problems that develop provided reasonable care and precautions are followed.
K. Kennel sanitation is of the utmost priority for us, but some pets still soil their cages and step in or lay in the soiled area. This can take only a minute. This can cause a kennel odor; we strongly recommend a bath before checkout.
L. We allow pets from the same family to be boarded together at the owner’s request, but cannot be held responsible if any injury occurs due to playing or squabbling that may occur in a restricted environment.
M. Owner is responsible for all boarding fees, veterinary services and any other expenses incurred while their pet is boarded.
Boarding Medical and Emergency Care Policy
We are a full service veterinary hospital that also provides boarding facilities. As such, we provide the same high standards of medical care for our boarding pets that we do for our hospital patients. In our experience, a few animals are not good candidates for boarding and may become ill, or chronic conditions may worsen during their stay. Please be advised that any observed, untreated, or worsening pre-existing chronic health conditions that are causing your pet pain and discomfort during a boarding stay will be treated by our doctor at our standard rate.
Any health condition observed with your pet deemed a non-emergency will be noted and we will attempt to contact you regarding treatment options. If we cannot reach you, you will be advised upon your return of any additional medical, dental, or surgical procedures recommended.
In the rare event that a life-threatening emergency arises with your pet and we are unable to reach you, we will proceed with every necessary life support measure including surgery, in order to save your pet’s life. We will continue to attempt to contact you unless you indicate in writing otherwise. (ie. DNR or Do Not Recesitate) Every attempt will be made to contact you or your emergency contact that you provided for us. Payment for all services rendered will be due upon your return.
You may download our Boarding Policy form here.