I am so sad to see all the negative reviews of Camp Bow Wow in Bridgewater because I and my dog, Saul, have had nothing but a great experience with Randy, Sherry and the entire staff.
It needs to be prefaced that Saul began going to CBW in April 2015 and goes, on average, 3 days per week. He is dropped off between 7-8am and picked up when they close, at 7pm. I have taken advantage of the grooming services, but have not had the need to have him stay overnight, yet.
I started bringing Saul to CBW when I found out that their daycamp packages ended up being more cost effective than having a dog walker! And there are 2 bonuses: first, you don't have a stranger coming into your house and second, your dog gets to play an entire DAY...not a measly half hour to go on a brief walk and do their business.
Daycamp been good for me (so I don't have to leave him crated all day while work crazy hours) and great for him! The socialization he gets is unparalleled - his behavior (as compared to before we started going to camp) has changed dramatically. He had fear aggression issues that have mostly disappeared and now he loves people and allows them to pet him. He doesn't have to mark his territory when we go to friends' houses who also have dogs. It's been quite a change!
I work in Bridgewater, so Saul detects when we get off of 287 at our exit and jumps around in the car and vocalizes until I actually let him out! He PULLS on his leash to get into CBW...and he's not the only one! There are always other dog owners dropping their pooches off and I have yet to see a dog who is NOT super-excited to be there. (And, as another reviewer mentioned, I trust my dog's instincts to like/dislike a person or place.)
Whoever on staff greets the guests upon arrival handles each dog 1-by-1 - bringing them from the lobby to the play areas. At this point, we (as owners) have the opportunity to mention any particular needs or concerns to that person. They also receive any food or personal items that are brought, as well.
During the day, there is the opportunity to watch the dogs on their live web-cams. They're a bit slow, but you definitely can watch your dog and see how the staff handle the group of dogs and any situations that arise. I have witnessed the staff take immediate care to clean up poop & pee as it happens. I tend to check in at least once per day. When I logged in, I see some staff members playing with the dogs and others just standing around and watching, but I have never witnessed anyone hurting the dogs in any way.
In the evening, any food containers that were brought have been washed out and are ready to be taken home. While they can't keep track of how many times each dog poops or pees during the day (my goodness, a pen would never leave their hands!), they do record when the dogs eat and if there were any problems during feeding time. With Saul being a regular, they know him, so they can identify any real changes and let me know.
I have used them twice for their grooming...it's really convenient to have them do it while Saul is in camp...no extra trip! I saw one reviewer note that their prices are high, but I have not had that experience - I find them to be comparable or slightly less than places near where I live. The groomer does a very nice job (Note: Saul is a bichon with curly (and sometimes knotted) hair - so those of us humans with curly hair know that finding the right stylist is important and dog grooming is no exception).
The staff is great... each person has their own personality and sense of humor, but you can see that everyone loves the dogs. The staff knows Saul by name (probably because we're regulars) and many have nick names for him, too!
They are really creative and truly try to please their clients! For Halloween, the staff set up an elaborate display, dressed up each dog in a costume and took photos! When I came to pick up my guy, I received a color photo of Saul dressed as a king (King Saul...hahahahaha!)! And earlier in the year (I believe it was for their 10th anniversary), they took photos of each dog, printed them out and put them into a cute box frame that said "live, laugh, bark".
With Saul going to camp 3 times per week, I have been lucky (knock on wood) that he has not come home sick. And if he were to, I wouldn't think twice about it... because it's no different than us humans being in our petrie dishes at the office or on an airplane. I appreciate that the staff is adamant that all dogs have all their shots - including the dog flu vaccine! Helps keep them all healthy!
I think I've written enough for now...but you can see that Saul and I are quite satisfied with our experiences to-date. read more