Doggy Daycare vs Dog Boarding Businesses: What’s the Difference?
When researching businesses ideas that allow you to work with dogs, you may encounter doggy daycares and dog boarding businesses. Neither of them involve medical services, so they don’t require the completion of a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) program. You can start a doggy daycare or dog boarding business with relative ease. As long as you have the necessary equipment, staff and licenses, you can launch either of these businesses. While they both involve keeping clients’ dogs at a facility, though, doggy daycare and dog boarding businesses aren’t the same.
What Is a Doggy Daycare?
A doggy daycare is a type of business that offers intraday boarding services for dogs. According to the U.S. Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), over 48 million U.S. households own at least one dog. Many owners, of course, have jobs and other responsibilities to which they must attend during the day. Rather than keeping their dogs cooped up inside of a crate all day long, owners can take them to a doggy daycare.
What Is a Dog Boarding Business?
A dog boarding business, on the other hand, offers overnight and multiday boarding services for dogs. Owners often seek the services of a dog boarding business when traveling for work- or leisure-related purposes. If an owner is going out of town for several days, he or she may use a dog boarding business. The dog boarding business will watch the owner’s dog while providing the necessary food and water until the owner returns.
Differences Between Doggy Daycare and Dog Boarding Businesses
Doggy daycare and dog boarding businesses are similar in the sense that they both keep clients’ dogs at a facility. The main difference between them is that the former involves intraday boarding services, whereas the latter involves overnight and multiday boarding services. Doggy daycare businesses live up to their namesake by offering “day-based” services. They typically don’t keep clients’ dogs for multiple days. Instead, they offer intraday boarding services, which may consist of anywhere from one hour to 10 hours. Dog boarding businesses, conversely, watch clients’ dogs for multiple hours.
Another distinction between doggy daycare and dog boarding businesses is the level of attention given to dogs. Doggy daycare businesses typically give clients’ dogs more attention than dog boarding businesses. Many of them feature large indoor and outdoor play areas where clients’ dogs can play together. Dog boarding businesses often have play areas as well. With that said, they usually keep clients’ dogs in kennels for the majority of their stay.
Benefits of Starting a Doggy Daycare Business
Starting a doggy daycare business is easy. Depending on the state in which you intend to operate, you may need to obtain a license. Most states require all businesses that offer dog boarding services to obtain a license — and doggy daycare businesses are no exception. The good news is that you don’t need any formal education, nor do you have to complete a DVM program.
Client retention rates are often higher with doggy daycare businesses than with dog boarding businesses. This is due to the fact that the doggy daycare businesses give clients’ dogs greater attention. Clients can rest assured knowing that their dogs won’t be kept in a crate or kennel all day long. With a doggy daycare business, you can let their dogs play in a safe indoor or outdoor area.
Benefits of Starting a Dog Boarding Business
There are benefits of starting a dog boarding business as well. Like doggy daycare businesses, dog boarding businesses typically require a license, but you won’t need to complete any formal education or a DVM program.
Because they offer multiday boarding services, dog boarding businesses typically generate more revenue per client than their doggy daycare counterparts. It will typically cost clients more money to board their dogs for multiple days at a dog boarding business than a single day at a doggy daycare business. By starting a dog boarding business, you may generate more revenue per client.
Even if you start a dog boarding business, you can still offer intraday boarding services. Many dog boarding businesses will keep clients’ dogs for less than a day when requested.
Both doggy daycare and dog boarding businesses have startup costs. You’ll need to rent or lease a facility, for instance, when starting either of these boarding businesses. You’ll also need to purchase equipment, such as kennels, food and water dishes, cleaning supplies and dog beds. In some cases, you may need to hire employees to help you run the business. Most dog boarding businesses, though, operate with a larger number of employees than their doggy daycare counterparts.
In Conclusion
The terms “doggy daycare” and “dog boarding” are often used interchangeably to describe businesses that offer dog boarding services. However, there’s a clear distinction between these two types of businesses. Doggy daycare businesses only offer intraday boarding services, whereas dog boarding businesses offer multiday boarding services.
