Hands down, INDIGO IS THE BEST place that you can board your dog in the Portland area! My dog is a big ball of energy, and was initially rejected from Three Dogs boarding in NE Portland basically because a small indoor space with 50 other dogs and very little outdoor space (and no grass) was not going to be a good fit for him. They suggested Indigo to me, and I am SO glad they did...
I wanted a place where I didn't have to worry about Sunny (a Black German Shepherd/Great Dane-ish mix) being crated or kenneled, and where he had lots of room to run. He has a lot of energy to burn and he loves being with other dogs. They only crate them during feeding times if need be due to potential food aggression, but they will honor your requests if you don't even want them to do that. They have a nice grass area right next to the dorms and then 3 big dog runs, one of which is pebbled and the other two of which are grass.
They let the dogs out constantly throughout the day, and even late at night sometimes. They have three separate 'dorms' where the dogs stay - they're pretty big and have a ton of couches with linens on them, and they do laundry often. Two of the dorms have garage-type doors that they keep open and are covered with chicken wire (or something like that) so that the dogs can sit on the couches and look outside and get a nice cross breeze. What I appreciate the most is that they put a lot of thought into observing which dogs get along best and then board them together accordingly.
I honestly cannot say enough nice things about Indigo. Laura, who works there, is super nice and you can tell that they really do care about your animals and the animals that they rescue. And where else can you say that ALL of your money goes to their non-profit rescue shelter??
I've read the negative reviews, and regarding "misrepresentation" - this place is the most up-front and honest place I have checked out, and I believe that there are varying degrees of misrepresentation for most (if not all) dog boarding places. And about the crating and snarkiness - my dog can be "snarky" when he is tired, or being reactive, or just being a dog, or whatever, and if Indigo has the space (which they generally always do) they will put the 'snarky' dog in a dorm by themselves until they have simmered down. Also, it's nice to know that Indigo will take your dog regardless of slight temperment issues, because they understand that dogs are dogs. Sunny was rejected from the other place because he "overcorrected" a younger dog for biting him in the face - twice - which last time I checked, older dogs are supposed to keep younger puppies in check when they'e acting too crazy or aggresive.
The drive to Vernonia is a bit of a ways, but it is beautiful and the taxi is affordable considering how far out they are and that gas is probably pretty pricey for the bus they have. They are very open to letting you come and check out the place anytime, and this assures me that they don't have anything to hide - unlike other places where I was only allowed to come check out the property during certain windows of time, or where I had to see the facilities behind a glass window and through pictures on their computer (which was the case with Three Dogs boarding).
SO TAKE YOUR DOG TO INDIGO!! Your dog will be happy and well taken care of, and you'll be donating to a great cause :) read more