I have taken my dogs here for a few years, both for boarding and daycare. The staff has always been…read morenice, and I fully trusted them to care for my dogs. Recently I took them in, and when the webcams came on, I saw that one of my my dogs had an extra collar on. I called to make sure it wasn't a shock collar, and was assured multiple times that the collar was not capable if shocking, it only beeps or vibrates. I was also told the collar would only be on her for short periods of time.
I was watching the cam extra, to make sure my dog was not reacting badly to the collar, and saw the video attached. My dog (white/red on right hand side) was just standing there, no bark or anything, and obviously the collar either shocked or vibrated. My dog goes spinning out of view, and is still losing it a bit when she comes back in view. The employee takes the collar off and puts it back on a few seconds later.
I called immediately and this time the owner answered. I let her know I was on my way to get my dogs and told her to have the collar taken off immediately. She asked what kind of collar my dog had on, and I told her it looks like a shock collar and asked if they use them. AGAIN I was told, this time by the owner, they don't use shock collars, they only vibrate.
When I got there to pick up my dogs, she stated that what I saw online was just the first time the collar had vibrated (this was at 1:00, and she had been wearing it since at least 10 am when the cameras turn on) and that's why she had a strong reaction. When I asked to see one of the collars, they finally admitted the collars do have the capability to shock, they just "don't use that function" the lead trainer came down and tried to explain that they had taken the collar off multiple times, but had to put it back on again. Unfortunately, I know this not to be true. The only time they took that collar off was to adjust it. He admitted the collar was put on shortly after they got there, which was somewhere around 8 am.
Whether the collar shocked my dog, or just vibrated, I know that the owner, lead trainer, and the lady that is usually at the front desk, all lied to me, and they used an e-collar without letting me know, didn't remove it when my dog had a strong reaction to it, and they used it in a manner that is outside their own policy, as the owner herself told me they should only be on for short periods.
This situation would have been easily solved with a little honesty during my first call. Unfortunately, my dogs won't be returning, and I would never again reccomend this business for anyone who needs trustworthy care for their dogs.