When we have to travel somewhere where we can't take our dog (an Australian Shepherd named Rhody), we always take him to Citizen Canine. It's more like a hotel or a doggie spa than a kennel. The staff are all friendly dog-lovers who lavish individual attention on the guests, each of whom gets to stay in their own glass-walled apartment with a raised cot. There's are large indoor and outdoor play areas and special services such as massage, agility training, and "love sessions" (i.e. extra attention, which Rhody soaks up like a sponge). Rhody is always excited when we tell him he's going to Citizen Canine. The staff also know how to handle emergencies -- once, when we were far away, Rhody had to be taken to a nearby veterinary hospital for a digestive-tract problem. He got the proper scans and IVs and everything worked out fine.
My personal blog entry endorsing Citizen Canine and Fog City Dogs, Rhody's favorite day care establishment, is highly ranked on Google and is the most-viewed item on my blog. See http://waderoush.typepad.com/twr/2004/04/the_best_san_fr.html.
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