What all things should be considered for starting a dog boarding kennel?

Question

I have plenty of land outside any city, with no zoning regulations. Seeking advice on what kind of facility to build to house the dogs, what kind of runs should they require, waterers, insurance, etc? Any advice will be very helpful, thanks

Answer 1

This is such a massive question. My best advice for you to not build a dog boarding kennel without at least a few months of really hard research. A business plan is a really good idea even if you do not need to go somewhere for funding like a bank, the format of a business plan makes you think of all aspects of your business, so that when it does become a reality, for example:



1. What type of dog boarding service are you offering, i.e. cagefree, or enclosure based or both? doggy daycare too or just dog boarding?



2. Research your Market! Who is your competition in the area? What services do they offer, their strengths and weaknesses, if you can determine approximately how much money they make, that would be good. What do they charge? How many dog owners and dogs are near your planned business, demographics. Find the trends for this market in your area, is it growing? All this will help you determine the size of your kennel, if zoning restrictions do not already dictate this.



3. Marketing and Sales, what are your strategies for market launch, marketing, sales promotion, and distribution. The 4 P's: product, price, place and promotion strategies.



4. Management Team, who do you need to run the kennel, what are your key players strengths, what will be their tasks and responsibilities.



5. Manufacturing / Operations, This will describe the system and activities necessary to prepare and deliver a final service to a customer. How you plan to maintain your edge. This is where you will describe what facilities you require.



6. Implementation Schedule, develop a realistic 5-year plan, concentrating on the major milestones and the most important interdependent events.



7. Opportunities and Risks, you must determine identify a margin of error for departures from your assumptions. Draw up both best-case and worst-case scenarios involving key operational milestones. VERY IMPORTANT to anticipate bumps in the road, so you have a plan to deal with it.



8. Financials, this might be the most important section, because if you don;t make money you will not be around very long. Include a pro-forma income statement, pro-forma balance sheet, pro-forma cash flow analysis, and break-even chart. Cost control measures should also be included.



If you do not have a realistic business plan you are destined to fail. Put in the effort before a shovel goes in the ground or you could very well loose a lot of money. Good Luck!!!!

Answer 2

I agree with Basset. Work at a few kennels first to learn exactly what goes into the running and care of such a business. You should also take a few business courses at a local college. You NEED to gain real life experience.



There is very little chance that you will be successful at this business without serious experience prior to branching off on your own. I don't know of a single dog owner that will board at a place that is brand new with no references or viable experience caring for large quantities of dogs.



Add - you WILL need insurance, you WILL need a business license. You SHOULD take canine behavioral and first aid courses or mentor under someone who knows what they're doing.



And even though you don't have to worry about zoning, you WILL have to worry about your buildings meeting certain codes and laws. You WILL need running water, heat, air, and electricity.

Answer 3

You have gotten good advise. I would just add a couple of thoughts. Almost all land, even out in the boonies, has some zoning restrictions. Check with the county where you live. Also, it you are that far out of the city, where will your clientele come from? People leaving their dogs tend not to want to drive for a long distance to drop them off. Are you near a highway to the nearest airport or a highway that is heavily traveled so people would pass near you on their way out of town? Not having these things could affect the amount of business you get.

Answer 4

Try getting a task running in a kennel first, for a minimum of a couple of years to ensure you relatively wish to try this. This isn't a five days per week activity, its day-to-day of the yr. Then see approximately ordinances to your discipline concerning boarding kennels--no longer each and every the city will permit a facility with a any quantity of barking puppies to be in trade, notably you probably have acquaintances. Personally, I would not deliver my puppy to a position that stored them in a twine crate in a shed. Good boarding amenities have concrete-walled runs with chain-hyperlink doorways and fenced places, commercial sanitation apparatus, plumbing and drainage-- none of that is affordable. Insurance and makes it possible for are a massive rate too.

Answer 5

Go work at a boarding kennel first, preferably at a few different ones, then you will have an idea of what you need to know.