Pet boarding
Your dog sleeps in a real house, with a family, instead of in a kennel block on a yard timetable.
€20 – €40
per night
Guide price
How it actually works
The difference between this and a boarding kennel is not price, it is format. A kennel has facilities, boxes, shifts, and a number of animals that forces everything into time slots. Home boarding has a living room, a sofa that may or may not be allowed, and a person who shares their life with your dog around the clock for as long as the stay lasts.
For many dogs that is simply better. An animal used to living indoors, to having people around and to sleeping near someone suffers in an institutional environment, however clean and professional it is. And for others it is not: a fiercely territorial dog, or one that does not tolerate other animals, may be calmer in a neutral, controlled space. It pays to be honest about which of the two yours is.
What to ask before booking is concrete. How many animals will be in the house on those dates, because being the only guest and being one of four are not the same stay. Whether there are children. Whether there is a terrace or garden and how it is fenced. Where the dog will sleep. Whether the sitter works away from home and how many hours the dog will be alone — the question most people forget to ask and the one that prevents the most grief.
Adaptation matters too. A dog that arrives on Friday at an unknown house and leaves on Sunday barely has time to relax. That is why a prior visit — or even a trial afternoon before a long stay — changes the experience entirely: the dog arrives somewhere it already knows, with a person who is no longer a stranger.
And one thing must be settled from the start: what happens if the dog falls ill or escapes. A named vet, written authorisation and a phone that answers. That is not distrust — it is what makes a ten-day stay calm for everyone involved.
What the service covers
- 01Living in a home, not a box
- Your dog lives inside the sitter’s house for the whole stay, on that household’s routines, not on the yard timetable of a facility.
- 02Small groups
- How many animals will be there on those dates is agreed beforehand. Being the only guest or one of four is not the same stay.
- 03Daily walks included
- At least two outings a day, at the pace and length your dog needs, not whatever a rota happens to allow.
- 04A daily report with photos
- Every day you hear how it has eaten, how it slept, how it gets on with the others, plus a photo or two to see it with your own eyes.
- 05An agreed veterinary plan
- Before the stay you put in writing the named vet and what to do if an emergency comes up and you cannot be reached.
From search to booking
1.Visit the house first
You see where it will sleep, how the terrace is fenced and who else lives there. Asking how many hours it will be alone prevents most of the grief.
2.Do a short trial
Before a long stay, a loose afternoon or single night means the dog arrives at a known place instead of a new one.
3.Bring its things and its food
Its bed, its blanket and its usual kibble. Changing house is change enough; changing diet too usually ends in an upset stomach.
What it costs
Every sitter sets their own rate. This range is what the market typically looks like — it's here to give you a sense of it, not a price we impose.
The nightly rate moves within the band according to the dog’s size, the city, how many animals will be in the house and whether the dates are peak ones. Christmas, Easter and August book up months ahead and sit at the top of the range.
Sitters set their own rates. These ranges are indicative and are here to give you a sense of the market.
When this makes sense
Holidays and long absences
A week or two away is too much to solve with visits, above all if the dog copes badly with being alone at night.
Dogs that live indoors
Animals used to people around them and to sleeping near someone, who suffer in an institutional setting however clean it is.
Puppies and sociable dogs
A few days living alongside another balanced dog and another family adds a great deal, provided the introductions are done properly.
Frequent questions
How is this different from a boarding kennel?
How many hours will it be left alone?
Can it live alongside other dogs?
Do I bring its food?
What happens if it falls ill?
How far ahead should I book?
Cities with the most activity
These are the largest cities we operate in. Each has its own page with parks, by-laws and walking hours.
Start by meeting somebody
The first meeting is free and commits you to nothing. If it doesn't click, you look at another profile.