Client Agreement & Cancellation Policies
Client Agreement
(This agreement is required to be signed when making a reservation online or at reservation check-in. By signing the client agreement, you are also agreeing to our “Holiday & Peak Season Cancellation Policy” which is outlined further below.)
Big River Boarding seeks to provide the best care for your pet. To help us reach this goal, it is important to read this agreement carefully and fully. If you have any questions or concerns, please let us know prior to signing and dropping off your pet. This agreement is between Big River Boarding, LLC (hereinafter referred to as “Big River Boarding” or “Kennel”) and pet(s) Owner (hereinafter referred to as “Owner”).
Owner agrees to pay the current rates in effect at the time of their pet’s boarding, daycare or bathing appointment. All costs for services must be paid in full at checkout.
Owner agrees to abide by the Kennel’s cancellation and early boarding departure policies, including the “Holiday & Peak Season Cancellation Policy” which can be found further below on this page.
Owner agrees that they will only bring in their pet(s) for boarding if they are in good health and have not been ill with any contagious condition within the last two weeks.
Should your pet(s) arrive appearing ill or with open wounds, Kennel staff may refuse entry. If your pet has been recently spayed, neutered, or had other surgeries requiring sutures, we ask that you do not board them until their sutures are completely healed. Please call us prior to boarding if your pet has an open wound or sutures.
Owner agrees to provide current vaccination records for their pet(s) before their pet(s) may be admitted into our facility. This includes Rabies, Distemper, Parvo, and Bordetella (Kennel Cough) for dogs; and Feline Distemper and Rabies for cats. All vaccines must be administered by a licensed veterinarian and records must be from a veterinarian’s office (no breeder records).
Owner understands that the Bordetella vaccine provides limited protection against Kennel Cough which is highly contagious. Similar to the flu vaccine, it lessens the chances of contracting the virus and may reduce its effects.
Big River Boarding recommends all dogs and cats be on flea, tick, and heartworm protection. If we detect fleas, we will administer a flea treatment at the Owner’s expense which will be added to your invoice and due at checkout.
Owner understands that all dogs handle boarding facilities differently. Boarding or daycare can be stressful for some dogs, and as a result, they may develop diarrhea or other symptoms brought on by stress. If your dog has a history of anxiety or stress in a kennel environment, we recommend discussing with your veterinarian prior to boarding as some dogs do well with anxiety-reducing medications or probiotics to help with loose stools.
Owner understands that during boarding it is normal for some dogs and cats to eat less than they do in a familiar home environment. Kennel staff may add “toppers” such as wet food or chicken broth if necessary to help entice pets to eat.
Owner understands that there is a risk of injuries during dog boarding and/or daycare. Cuts, scrapes, bites, broken nails, muscle strains and occasional puncture wounds are a possibility. Big River Boarding is not responsible for injuries your pet(s) may sustain while playing, “rough housing” or engaging in destructive behavior.
Some dogs engage in destructive behavior such as biting and chewing items in their kennel including the walls, dog doors, kennel fencing, dog beds, etc. If your pet engages in destructive behavior and causes significant damage to kennel property, Big River Boarding staff may refuse future boarding.
Should the state of your pet’s health require professional attention during boarding or daycare, Big River Boarding, in its sole discretion, may engage the services of a veterinarian, emergency clinic, or give other essential attention to the pet. The Owner is responsible for all veterinary and/or emergency clinic costs and the Owner will pay those expenses directly to the veterinarian and/or emergency clinic.
Big River Boarding strives to provide a safe and nurturing environment; however, unfortunate incidents can still occur. You alone must decide if boarding your pet(s) is worth the risk of possible injury or illness. If, as a pet Owner, this makes you uncomfortable, then kenneling your pet(s) for any amount of time may not be the best option for you. Big River Boarding is not liable for any injury, symptoms or illness your pet(s) may develop during or after their stay. The Owner further agrees to be solely responsible for all acts or behavior of said pet(s) while in the care of the Kennel.
Owner must notify Big River Boarding in advance if their pet(s) require medication during their stay. The Kennel staff will make every reasonable effort to provide pet(s) their medication; however, Owner understands that if a dog or cat refuses medication, there is a chance they will not get medication for the duration of their stay. The Owner is responsible for bringing any necessary treats such as cheese, meat, pill pockets, etc. If your pet is stubborn about taking meds, we recommend bringing a “pill launcher”. Big River Boarding does not administer shots, nor accept pets with life-threatening conditions that are only treated with medicine.
Owner agrees that family pets sharing the same kennel must not have a history of aggressive fighting, food aggression, or other feeding issues. The Kennel staff cannot separate dogs for feeding. If you want your pets to be together, but separated for feeding time, you must reserve and pay for two kennels so they can be separated at feeding time.
Owner agrees to notify us prior to booking reservations if their pet(s) have harmed or shown aggression or threatening behavior towards any person or dog.
Owner agrees to pay a fee of $10 per day, per kennel, for pets who require excessive cleaning. Your dog will have a minimum of 4 opportunities per day to relieve themselves in one of our play yards. Dogs who poop in their kennels and make “messes” above and beyond what is normal or expected (i.e. continuously pooping and tracking through it, smearing on walls, etc.), whether due to lack of training or otherwise - will be charged an additional $10 per day to cover the staff’s time to keep the pet’s kennel sanitary.
Big River Boarding is not responsible for lost, damaged, soiled, or destroyed items brought into our facility including but not limited to: blankets, bedding, toys, chews, leashes, harnesses, and other personal items. The Owner is responsible for ensuring all items brought with them go home with them. Big River Boarding will attempt to return lost and found items, however, items may be disposed of at our sole discretion.
Owner agrees to allow pictures or videos of their pet(s) to be used by Big River Boarding for marketing purposes on the Kennel’s social media and web pages.
If a pet or pets have not been picked up within 5 calendar days after they were scheduled to leave, and the Kennel staff has not been able to contact the Owner, the pet(s) shall be deemed abandoned and the Kennel staff will have sole discretion in removing the pet(s) from our facility, including surrendering the pet(s) to a local animal shelter or rescue organization.
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Holidays & Peak Season Cancellation Policy
(By signing Big River Boarding’s “Client Agreement”, you also agree to abide by our cancellation policy as outlined below.)
Our boarding facility is often full during peak season and holidays and as a result, we sometimes must turn potential guests away. No-shows or last-minute cancellations not only take away spots needed by other guests, but it costs our business if we are not able to fill the opening. To better serve our guests, and to help curb last-minute cancellations and no-shows, we have a cancellation policy in place as follows:
Holiday & Peak Season Times:
Spring Break (based on Muscatine School District calendar – includes the weekends before and after Spring Break week)
Easter weekend
Summer Season (Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend)
Holiday Season (Thanksgiving Day through January 3rd)
Holiday & Peak Season Cancellation Policy
During Holiday & Peak Season, reservations must be cancelled 5 days (120 hours) or more before the first day of your reservation.
If you cancel 5 days (120 hours) or more before the first day of your reservation, no penalty will apply.
If you cancel less than 5 days before the start of your reservation, your credit card will be charged for the number of nights we are unable to fill from our waiting list.
A credit card is required to be on file for all reservations. If a credit card is not on file, the reservation may be denied. If you prefer, you may alternatively put down a deposit for your entire stay, which may be forfeited if your reservation is cancelled inside of the 5-day cancellation window.
If we do not have a waiting list over the time period you cancel, then no penalty will apply.
Note 1: If you already have a holiday or peak season reservation in the system, please log in to your Paw Partner account to add a credit card or you may call us with the information.
Note 2: Before we charge your credit card, we will offer you the option to pay by cash, check or cash app. If we don’t hear from you within 24 hours, the card on file will be charged the applicable fees including any credit card processing fees.
Cancellation Policy Example 1:
o Your reservation is set to begin on a Friday and you cancel on the Monday prior (this is a 4-day notice).
o Your reservation was originally for 7 nights.
o By the start date of your original reservation, we are only able to fill 3 of those nights from our waiting list.
o In this example, you would be charged for the 4 nights we were unable to fill.
Cancellation Policy Example 2:
o Your reservation is set to begin on a Friday and you cancel on the Sunday prior.
o You have cancelled 5 days before the start of your reservation and will not incur a penalty.
Non-Holiday & Non-Peak Season Cancellation Policy
For non-holiday and non-peak season, the same policy applies as above, except reservations must be cancelled 2 days (48 hours) or more before the first day of your reservation.
Early Boarding Departure Policy
Early departures will be treated the same as last-minute cancellations. If you decide to pick up early, you agree to pay the applicable nightly rate based on the number of nights originally booked – unless advanced notice is provided prior to the NEW scheduled pick-up date (per the above policy). Failure to provide notice of an early boarding departure will require full payment of the original reservation (unless we can fill any nights from our waiting list).
For example, if your reservation was booked for December 15-30 (holiday season), and you decide to pick up early on December 26th, that will leave us with 4 nights to fill from our waiting list. You will be required to pay for any/all nights originally booked that we are unable to fill from our waiting list.