Choosing a boarding kennel or cattery before you travel
Check registration, vaccination rules, housing, daily routine and vet cover before your dog or cat boards, and agree care in writing.
Leaving a dog or cat in someone else's care is a decision worth making well before a trip. A good boarding establishment is registered where that is required, follows a published code of care, checks vaccinations before admission and can tell you exactly how your pet's day will run. This guide uses Victoria's mandatory code and RSPCA Australia's advice to show what to look for and what to ask before you book.
Decide whether boarding suits your pet
RSPCA Australia's first question is whether a boarding environment is right for the animal at all. A dog or cat that is upset by change, noise or other animals may cope better with a trusted pet sitter who stays in your home, so weigh the options before you compare kennels. If boarding is the right choice, book early: Agriculture Victoria notes that places during school and public holidays can fill many months ahead. Arrange a veterinary health check before the stay so any condition is known and can be managed, and make sure council registration, microchip details and tags are current so you can be contacted if your pet is lost. RSPCA Australia also suggests a short trial stay, if possible, so your pet can get used to the place before a longer booking.
Preparation steps and the questions RSPCA Australia suggests asking before you choose a boarding facility.
RSPCA Australia: finding a good boarding facilityCheck registration and the code the operator follows
In Victoria, every boarding establishment must register as a domestic animal business with its local council, and the Code of Practice for the Operation of Boarding Establishments is mandatory for those businesses. The code sets minimum standards for accommodation, management and care, requires the business to comply with state and local permits, and requires at least $10 million in public liability insurance. It also requires the proprietor to display Part 5 of the Domestic Animals Act, which covers boarding of dogs and cats, in the reception area where prospective clients can read it. Outside Victoria, check with your state or territory animal welfare agency or local council what rules apply to boarding businesses. Wherever you are, ask the operator who they are registered with, which code or standard they work to and when they were last inspected. Most operators can answer these questions readily.
Explains council registration and the mandatory code, with tips for owners boarding a pet.
Agriculture Victoria: boarding establishmentsThe full minimum standards for kennels, catteries and day boarding in Victoria, used as the yardstick throughout this guide.
Victorian Code of Practice for the Operation of Boarding EstablishmentsKnow the vaccination and admission rules
Expect a reputable kennel or cattery to refuse an animal without proof of vaccination, because that protects every animal on the premises. Under the Victorian code, a dog needs a current vaccination certificate covering distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus and kennel cough, given within the preceding 12 months with the next due date not passed, and a cat needs the same for feline infectious enteritis and feline respiratory disease. Dogs and cats must be treated for intestinal worms before admission or be wormed on arrival at the owner's cost, and an animal known or suspected to have an infectious disease cannot be admitted. The code also keeps dogs under four months and cats under three months out of overnight boarding other than in exceptional circumstances. Ask your vet early whether a booster is due, and bring the certificate with you. Any reasonable special requirement you or your vet request, such as medication, a special diet, bathing or grooming, must be complied with under the code, so write it down rather than mentioning it at the counter.
Visit and look at housing, hygiene and security
RSPCA Australia recommends visiting in person, or sending someone you trust, to look at the space, conditions, hygiene, temperature control, airflow and the level of care, and to talk to the staff. The Victorian code gives you a yardstick for what you see. Pens and yards must be cleaned at least once a day and disinfected whenever an animal leaves or every seventh day. Every kennel needs a weatherproof sleeping area with a raised bed. Cat facilities must be physically separated from dog facilities, and cat cages or walk-in modules include a sleeping compartment, a refuge area and an exercise area. Adult dogs are housed one to a pen unless the owner agrees in writing, and up to three compatible dogs from the same household that normally live together may share. The code also requires a perimeter fence at least 1.8 metres high with self-closing, self-locking gates, and at least two gates between an animal and escape. Fully enclosed buildings that rely on forced ventilation must hold the temperature between 15 and 27 degrees and have a back-up and alarm system for power or ventilation failure. The animals already there should look clean and settled, and the staff should be able to show you where your pet would sleep, exercise and eat.
Ask about the daily routine, exercise and emergencies
Ask how a normal day runs: when animals are fed and watered, how often they are exercised, who checks them and how much one-on-one attention, play and enrichment they get, which is the list RSPCA Australia suggests. Under the Victorian code, every animal must have a permanent supply of fresh water, animals boarded overnight must be fed at least once a day, dogs kept in minimum-size pens for more than two weeks must be exercised daily, and attendants must inspect animals daily and report symptoms such as coughing, vomiting, diarrhoea, lameness or loss of appetite. The proprietor must hold a written agreement with veterinarians who are on call, must notify the owner or their contact as soon as possible when an animal is ailing or injured, and must have a plan for emergency situations. Ask which veterinary practice they use, whether your own vet can be contacted, how treatment decisions and costs are handled while you are away, and what happens in a heatwave, flood or bushfire.
Agree the details in writing before you leave
Put everything that matters on paper before drop-off. The code requires every animal to be identified and all reasonable special requirements from you or your vet to be followed, so list medication with doses and times, diet, allergies and behaviour notes, and label anything you bring. If you want dogs or cats from your household to share accommodation, the operator needs your signed agreement, and the same applies if you want your dog walked off the premises or exercised with other dogs in a day-care group. Leave your contact details and an alternative contact who can make decisions, confirm the pick-up date and what happens if you are delayed, and agree what food, bedding and toys you will supply. Familiar items help animals settle, and a copy of the vaccination certificate, the booking confirmation and your written instructions gives both sides a record if anything is unclear later.
Your quick checklist
Tick these off as you go. This checklist resets when you leave.
Useful starting points
General information to help you ask questions. Check requirements for the particular service and your state or territory.