WE NOW HAVE A FACEBOOK PAGE!!!

We are SO excited to announce that Best Friends Wakefield now has a Facebook page! We're looking forward to connecting with our customers and friends through this social network. Please check it out and "like" us so you can follow what's happening here.

Don't forget about our adoption event this Saturday from 10am to 2pm. We hope to see you there.

SUMMER IS ALMOST OVER!!

I just can't believe that summer is almost over!! Where has the time gone? It seems like just yesterday we had a full house for the 4th of July.

It means vacation season is almost over and the kids will be going back to school. Don't forget about your furry friend during this time. After a summer full much company and fun with the family it may be a bit of a shock when every one is back to work and school and he's left on his own. Our Doggy Day Camp is a great way for him to mingle with other dogs and play. He'll come home at the end of the day tired.... a tired dog is a good dog. If you've been to our Day Camp but haven't been in a while, we'd love to see you again. If you've never been and would like to set up an interview, please call us today at 781.245.1237.

Training classes are on going. We'll soon be starting our "Out and About" class. This takes the practical lessons you and your dog have learned in class and takes it out into the real world.

Why not start the school year off with a clean dog? After all that summer swimming a good bath in our grooming salon might be in order. Try a remoisture treatment too to get rid of that dry skin. Shedding season is just around the corner. Don't forget our schedicure - takes out 80% percent of the undercoat.

We hope everyone has had a wonderful summer!!!

BRING YOUR PET FOR A SPA DAY AND HELP THE GULF!

Would you and your pet like to help with the cleanup of the oil spill??

We are still collecting hair and sending it to Matter of Trust . Check out their website. You can find videos demonstrating how the hair is used to pick up the oil. It is truly an amazing thing to see. A Best Friends Pet also made it onto their photo page!!! That cute Boston Terrier in the box owns our Manager in the Avon, CT store.

Please call us today at 781.245.1237 to schedule an appointment. It'll make both you and your pet feel good!!

BEST FRIENDS PET CARE HELPS WITH OIL SPILL CLEAN UP

Best Friends Pet Care is helping with the oil spill in the Gulf. How? By donating dog hair from our grooming salons. We are collecting clipped hair and all that hair from brushing and shedicures and donating it to Matter of Trust.

Hair naturally repells water and attracts oil - that's why we have to wash our hair. Matter of Trust takes the hair and puts it in recycled nylon to make "booms" which can be used to block the oil from spreading, containing it in a certain area. Water is denser than oil so the oil floats on top of the water. These booms can also be used to help "mop up" oil.

Check out this video by Matter of Trust.

This is the time of year many of our furry friends begin to shed, our Shedicure is great for this, or we give them their "summer cuts". Why not schedule an appointment with our gooming salon today and let your pet make his contribution to this great cause.

Call us today at 781.245.1237.

SPRING HAS SPRUNG!!!

Best Friends Wakefield Doggy Day Campers ushered in Spring this past Friday with a Spring Fling. Though the turnout wasn't as large as some of the other events, lots of fun was had by all. The rain didn't dampen spirits as the party goers enjoyed playing in our indoor camp room.

Photos were taken, of course, and this time we made them into 3x4 magnets for mom and dad!! Dogs also bought Cala Lillies to give their parents and got special treat bags themselves.

Check out the photos as well as the slide show of all the Day Campers posted above. These photos are also posted in our lobby entrance for all to see.

If your dog would like to come and join the fun, just give us a call at 781.245.1237 to set up an interview.

SPRING FLING CELEBRATION

Best Friends Wakefield's Doggy Day Camp will celebrate Spring on Friday April 16th.  The fun will start at 8am with games, contests and special treats and of course, pictures!!! 

Let's have another record turn out and for any of you who haven't joined the fun in the past, we'd love for you to come.  If you've never been to our Doggy Day Camp and you're furry friend would like to give it a try and come to the Spring Fling, I'll waive the interview.  He/she just needs to be at least 5 months old, spayed/neutered and like the company of other dogs.

For more information on any of the services we provide, please call us at 781.245.1237.

Agni

Center Manager

Best Friends is Spotlighted at the NJ Super Pet Expo

At the New Jersey Super Pet Expo Danielle, the manager from our Windsor, NJ location was interviewed for the "How Cute is Your Pet" segment of The Cute Pet Gazette. Check out her interview about Best Friends Pet Care.

NO MORE DEBARKING FOR DOGS!!!

I was very happy to hear this morning that the MA House voted 150-1 to ban the surgical debarking of dogs and cats in the State of Massachusetts.

Dogs bark. It is a form of communication, something to do when bored and an attention getter. Think about children you've seen out in public having "tantrums" to get what they want. They scream and cry for candy and mom gives in. If your dog barks at you for attention or for a treat or to go outside and you reward him by giving him what he wants, what does he learn? Like a child he learns that the behavior gets him what he wants.

There's no need to debark a dog. Training, training, training!!! Training is really just a lifestyle and it's a lifetime of consistency and repetition. We need to teach our canine companions what we expect from them. They don't understand our language or our social habits. The best way to do this is by consitently rewarding for behaviors we want. What do you think would happen if you had a dog that was barking at you for a treat or to play ball and you turned your back on him and walked away from him instead of giving him what he wants? He's going to learn that barking doesn't work. You're likely to see him try "throwing" behaviors at you... in other words trying something else... maybe an unwanted behavior like jumping or pawing. Well, ignore these as well. Now he doesn't know what to do and he sits!!! BINGO!!! Praise him and give him his treat/reward... now he'll start to get it. When he's quiet you can start to attach a "cue" to the quiet behavior. So now when he sees the neighbors cat outside the window or some other "intruder" he'll still bark to alert you but now you can tell him "quiet" for him to stop.

Screaming or yelling at your dog to stop barking doesn't work. He thinks your joining in!

If you have a puppy, please start from day one. They are little sponges at this point and it will be so much easier on you if you start from now. Yes, I agree.. it's so cute to have a little puppy jump up on you but what happens when that puppy grows up to be a big dog that will knock you or someone else down? Not so cute any more, huh?

Nuisance barking is completely controllable and preventable. Make sure your dog is happy, well exercised, trained and healthy.

The AKC has a Public Education page on it's website that talks about barking and other areas of concern for dog owners.

Best Friends Wakefield offers training from puppy kindergarten to advanced classes. Both group classes and board and trains are available. Call us today at 781-245-1237 to reserve your spot in class!!

Agni

Center Manager

CUPID'S ARROW HITS ITS MARK!

On Friday, February 12th, Best Friends Wakefield Doggy Day Campers attended a Valentine's Day party. Each guest had a "date", thanks to the wonderful matchmaking of our very own Camp Counselor, Lindsay. No one was left without an escort to this party.

Skye and Max were voted unanimously as the "cutest couple", although Max almost found himself in hot water when he brought Valentine's for the TWO ladies in his life, Lola and Skye. Careful maneuvering on the part of the staff kept his secret safe...... he's such the ladies man! Best kisser went to Lola and Henry walked away with Cupid's Helper.

Keepsake photos were taken and Valentine goodie bags given out.

Plans are in the works for the upcoming St. Patrick's Day bash in March and Spring Fling in April. Can you believe Spring is just around the corner??? Check back for updates.

And, with Spring coming that means PUPPIES!!! Don't forget Best Friends hold training classes so the little youngsters can start out on the right paw. Call us today for more information and enrollment.

Is it time to "Spring clean" your best friend??? Schedule him/her for a day at our grooming salon to take care of all that built up winter muck in his/her coat.

Agni

VALENTINE'S DAY PARTY AT WAKEFIELD DOGGY DAY CAMP!!!!

THE WALL!!!....

Sometimes putting up walls is a good thing. That's what we're experiencing here at Best Friends in Wakefield this week.

A little over a year ago, we introduced our Doggy Day Camp (DDC) program. We had quite a bit of unused, wasted space adjacent to the lobby and decided to clear it out to make room for the doggies to come and play. I remember those days well. Some days we only had one or two dogs!! Those of you who have been bringing your dogs to DDC since the beginning may well remember this.

Slowly, our campers started to increase in numbers. We had more and more friends coming to play with eachother everyday. The camp days got longer and longer. Soon, I had to have a full time DDC Counselor on staff..... wow... we were now averaging about 10 dogs a day in camp.

It seems like over night the number of campers started to shoot up. The weather started getting colder, the snow started falling and we had to bring DDC indoors. Now we began to notice the noise level in the lobby increase. We're averaging 16 to 18 dogs per day. Not only was it difficult to hear customers on the phone, but they, too could hear from the other end of the phone the happy barks and yelps of dogs playing. Needless to say, 16 dogs playing adjacent to the lobby can leave a pretty funky lingering reminder in the air.

So, we are having a wall constructed to separate the DDC playroom from the lobby!!! I am thrilled about this!! We're putting in a large viewing window, so customers can still see how much fun the dogs are having playing together. This will also serve our trainer, Lauren, well. Training classes can be conducted now without the distractions of people coming and going in the lobby.

Stop by to see to us soon and check it out. If your interested in having your dog come to camp to play and release some of that pent up energy, give us a call today at 781-245-1237 for more information or to schedule and interview.

Agni

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

I found this online and thought I'd share with all of you. I'm trying to get Velvet to sign off on it, but no such luck!!!!

Wishing everyone a safe and happy New Year!!!

New Year's Resolutions for Dogs

1. I will not play tug-of-war with Dad's underwear when he's on the toilet.
2. I'll remember that the garbage collector is NOT stealing our stuff.
3. I do not need to suddenly stand straight up when I'm lying under the coffee table.
4. I will not roll my toys behind the fridge.
5. I must shake the rainwater out of my fur BEFORE entering the house.
6. I will not eat the cats' food, before or after they eat it.
7. I will stop trying to find the few remaining pieces of clean carpet in the house when I am about to throw up.
8. I will not throw up in the car.
9. I will not roll on dead seagulls, fish, crabs, etc.
10. I will not lick my human's face after eating animal poop.
11. "Kitty box crunchies" are not food.
12. I will not eat any more socks and then redeposit them in the backyard after processing.
13. The diaper pail is not a cookie jar.
14. I will not wake Mommy up by sticking my cold, wet nose up her bottom end.
15. I will not chew my human's toothbrush and not tell them.
16. I will not chew crayons or pens, especially not the red ones, or my people will think I am hemorrhaging.
17. When in the car, I will not insist on having the window rolled down when it's raining outside.
18. We do not have a doorbell. I will not bark each time I hear one on TV.
19. I will not steal my Mom's underwear and dance all over the back yard with it.
20. The sofa is not a face towel. Neither are Mom and Dad's laps.
21. My head does not belong in the refrigerator.
22. I will not bite the officer's hand when he reaches in for Mom's driver's license and car registration.

HOMEMADE DOGGIE TREATS

I like to bake, but don't often have the opportunity to do so. So, to satisfy this urge, I will bake homemade treats for my dog. It's fun, inexpensive and you know exactly what is in them.

There are SO many books and websites out there these days that finding recipes for dog treats couldn't be easier.

I was looking for something in the spirit of the holiday and found the one listed below on healthyrecipesforpets.com . I used holiday shaped cookie cutters and used food coloring to color some non fat cream cheese as "frosting". I hope your dog likes them as much as mine did!!

**Apple Cinnamon Doggie Biscuits**

NOTE: if you substitute corn meal just subtract about 3/4 cup from flour and add Corn meal

Ingredients:
1 package apple, dried
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Tablespoon parsley, freeze-dried
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
1 cup ice water
1/2 cup Corn Oil
5 cups flour
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 tablespoon corn oil

Preparation & Cooking
Put the apples in a food processor so that pieces are small. Combine in a bowl all of the ingredients -- can add oil or water if dough is too dry. Using a rolling pin roll out dough to about 3/16" thick (can make thinner or thicker). Using a cookie cutter -- cut into shapes -- place on cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for approx 20 -25 minutes (until golden).

Happy Holidays!!!

Don't forget to call if you need boarding for the holidays... we still have some room but are filling up fast. Use our online reservation system and save $5!!!

TURKEY DAY!!!!

I am SO excited about Thanksgiving... I'm looking forward to seeing my family and enjoying a wonderful dinner. I'm sure we're all excited about it. This is one of my favorite times of year.

But... do you know what my FAVORITE part of the day is? It's serving our guests here at Best Friends their Thanksgiving dinner. Each year we prepare turkey, baby carrots, green beans, potatos and a touch of gravy for everyone staying with us. I hope every pet who is here over the holiday gets to enjoy the dinner. It's only $5... what better way to say "thank you" for all the joy and love they give to us.

Leftovers are donated to local shelters so those homeless pets may enjoy a touch of the holiday until their Forever Homes are found.

We are still accepting reservations for boarding so call today!!

All of us here at Best Friends wish you and furry family member a safe, happy and wonderful holiday!!

Agni

Center Manager

Snow's First Birthday Celebration

Happy Birthday Snow!!! Snow, an American Eskimo, celebrated his first birthday with his fellow students in Best Friends' Wednesday night Advanced Attention Training Class. All party goers enjoyed a yummy strawberry cake, wearing party hats and wishing the birthday boy the "bestest" day ever!

Snow loves playing with his fellow students and has also come to our Doggie Day Camp. He is an energenic boy who loves rough and tumble play.

We look forward to celebrating many more birthdays with Snow, his friends and family!

Thanksgiving Boarding Special!

Give us a call at 781-245-1237 to make a reservation!

Free Night of Boarding!!

Give us a call at 781-245-1237 to make a reservation!