# Does my dog hate daycare?



## Milo114 (Jul 2, 2013)

Hello there,
I was hoping someone may have some insight into this. Lately my dog has been acting like he doesn't want to go into day care. Like last time he was refusing to get out of the car and whimpered a little when we got there. I asked the daycare about it and they said he always has a great time and plays a ton which I believe because he is always tired later and I know he loves to play with other dogs. they said sometimes the dogs just know their owners are going to leave and that's why they get stressed out but once they are there it's ok. My instincts tell me to listen to what my dog is trying to say to me which is 'I don't want to go there anymore'. But I don't want him to miss out on the socialization opportunity if I'm over reacting. Thanks! 
P.s. The daycare takes place at my vet which is a very reputable place so I don't think there would be anything shady going on. And he's been there many more times for daycare than shots so I doubt it's that aspect. Thanks!!


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

You never know...

Would it be possible for you to stay for a bit one day to see if any other dogs pick on him?

I'd also ask about how they break up fights if they occur, just because it's a vet office doesn't mean they have extensive knowledge on behaviour. They might be doing something -they- think is okay but is actually very aversive for your dog.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

ireth0 said:


> Would it be possible for you to stay for a bit one day to see if any other dogs pick on him?
> 
> I'd also ask about how they break up fights if they occur, just because it's a vet office doesn't mean they have extensive knowledge on behaviour. They might be doing something -they- think is okay but is actually very aversive for your dog.


Agreed with this. I have seen video of dogs where people are saying "Oh, Fluffy just loves daycare! Look at her!" when actually Fluffy is stressed out and anxious. It's not always a super obvious thing and not everybody is good at reading dog body language.

Why not take a break for a week or two, then try again and see what his reaction is? It's possible for dogs to like daycare, but to get burnt out when they go too often. It's a stimulating and tiring environment.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

How often does your dog go to daycare? If it's every day, try scaling back to just a couple days a week. If I went to a giant party or backyard BBQ with lots of other people all day, every day I'd be pretty burned out on it before too long and I'd need some down time.


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## Milo114 (Jul 2, 2013)

My dog only goes to daycare about once a week. It's not a big deal if I don't bring him anymore I just want him to have the socialization opportunity. I don't want him to be stressed though


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

As someone who's worked in several daycare's, it's definitely possible that they're just saying he's having a good day but instead really isn't. Places I've worked at we weren't allowed to tell the owner if their dog had a bad day, or if they just didn't do well in daycare - as long as they weren't full on aggressive. The one I work at now, I tell the owners the truth. We have two doodles who are house mates, the older one gangs up on his brother aggressively and it's gotten worse. I told their owner what's happening and we came to the agreement that when they come - they will always be in separate groups. She was very understanding. I prefer being honest with clients, but a lot of places don't want to lose the business by telling the truth.


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## Paviche (Aug 26, 2011)

SydTheSpaniel said:


> As someone who's worked in several daycare's, it's definitely possible that they're just saying he's having a good day but instead really isn't. Places I've worked at we weren't allowed to tell the owner if their dog had a bad day, or if they just didn't do well in daycare - as long as they weren't full on aggressive. The one I work at now, I tell the owners the truth. We have two doodles who are house mates, the older one gangs up on his brother aggressively and it's gotten worse. I told their owner what's happening and we came to the agreement that when they come - they will always be in separate groups. She was very understanding. I prefer being honest with clients, but a lot of places don't want to lose the business by telling the truth.


I agree with this, but I've also seen the flip side: dogs that act weird/stressed when they come in, but as soon as their owner is gone, they're fine and enjoy themselves. I never saw a dog actually whimper though; the ones who were iffy with their owners there were just panting, sometimes trying to get back to the owner after we took the leash. Then literally as soon as the owner walked out the door, the dog was happy and ready to go back to the play area. That's a hard situation to be in as the owner, because it honestly could go either way. I agree with Elrohwen, maybe take a few weeks off and see how he acts then?


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## Miss Bugs (Jul 4, 2011)

it could go either way honestly... we have several dogs that freak out about coming to daycare, refusing to leave there owners, crying and trying to leap back over the gate, and literally the SECOND the owner is out of their view their tails are wagging and they are bolting for their play area as fast as they possibly can and race in and start having a friggen ball! going by your dogs reaction to the separation is honestly a really tough call, the staff could be lying..but they could just as easily be telling you the truth.

what you could do is ask the staff if they could take some video of him for you, we have done this for people who had similar concerns! for example Thai, a rescue mix who usually refuses to come in, and has jumped the gate trying to get out upon arrival, once that dog cant see her mom and dad any more, her tail pops up, she runs into the playroom, doesn't even bother waiting at the gate, she just jumps over it and starts playing, she probably has more fun then 99% of the dogs that come lol


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## Milo114 (Jul 2, 2013)

A video is a good idea! I wonder if they would do that for me. Are there any other ways I can tell if he's having fun?


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## SydTheSpaniel (Feb 12, 2011)

At my daycare, I take pictures every day of the group and we make report cards to send home with them, we also post pictures on our Facebook page daily so owners can see what their dogs are up to during the day. Sometimes I take videos if it's really funny or something - I don't see why they wouldn't on request?


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## Greater Swiss (Jun 7, 2011)

SydTheSpaniel said:


> At my daycare, I take pictures every day of the group and we make report cards to send home with them,


That is awesome!!! I'm hoping to start taking Caeda to daycare occasionally and I'll have to check out a little further to see if the one I am considering does anything like that (or if any others in town do). I would LOVE to get something like that!!

As for the issue of the dog whimpering when it is time to get out of the car....just an odd thought. Could you try parking in a different spot, even next door and walking from there, just to see if there is any difference. Maybe there is something about where you are parking that the dog is seeing or smelling from the door of the car that is making him uncomfortable, approaching the daycare in a different way might give some insight. Just a thought....


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## Milo114 (Jul 2, 2013)

Wow everyone has been so helpful thank you so much. I will try parking in a different area next time I never thought of that. I think I might look into to changing daycare places as well and see if it makes a difference.


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