Welcome

A little about me. I have run Almost Home NM a local rescue for about 20 years or so and I worked in law enforcement my entire career. I have a degree in Psychology with a focus on criminal and deviant behavior. I'm also a "certified" dog trainer through one of those online courses however I really don't take that serious as there was never any hands on stuff which I thought was strange- but I do have a certificate showing I am certified. I do not offer training though. I am good with dogs but not so much people when I am trying to explain things (if that makes sense). 

I have always loved, loved, loved animals since I was a child. I have always loved rescuing them and building up their confidence, playing with them, and watching them blossom so they could find their happily-ever-afters. Over the years we started boarding dogs for our adopters. This gave the owners peace of mind knowing their dogs were with people who loved them, it gave us happiness seeing our dogs again, it gave the dogs comfort and made them happy as they already knew us, and it brought in a little money for the rescue. 

Fast forward to the present and why we opened the boarding to everyone. After all the horror stories of animals being abused, lost, injured, coming out of boarding with UTI's, etc some of our adopters started telling their friends about us. We realized there was a need for boarding where dogs could have fun, be loved, be safe, and have indoor/outdoor runs to go out to potty. So, here we are. We are starting off very small with only 6 runs but hopefully in time we will build up if the need is there and as I get more comfortable with running it.  

Pictures and videos of your dog can and will be sent to you throughout their stay with us so you can enjoy your time away without worrying about them.  You will also have my number so you are always welcome to check on them as we know it can be stressful entrusting someone else to keep your baby safe and happy. 

You will be charged at drop off for your scheduled stay. Currently, we charge $30 per day for the first dog and $25 for each additional dog staying with us from the same family. If you pick up before 10 am you will not be charged for the day of pick up. Boarding is cash only. If we are booked solid and something happens and you leave them longer than what you are booked for there will be an additional $15 a day charge, a total of $45 per day your pet is here after their scheduled stay with us. You will pay the balance at pickup - up to 5 days. If it is longer than 5 days you will need to pay electronically every 5th day until pickup.

The price includes an indoor/outdoor run with heating and cooling, playtimes loose on the property daily, cots or perla bed and blankets, bowls, etc.  The dogs can bring some of their belongings from home and it is encouraged. We feel if they can bring a few comforts from home they will be calmer and happier. They can bring their own blanket/bed, bowls, and favorite toy/s. However if they don't bring anything with them we will provide them as well it is no big deal we have plenty for everyone. 

We do not provide the food for your dog. We were when we first started however too many people were claiming their dog would be fine with the food change and they weren't. This meant a miserable dog as they had an upset tummy and therefore diarrhea. 

You must bring your dogs food from home with clear instructions as to how much they get especially if you are doing a combination of dry and wet food and how you feed it.

I do everything by appointment because I want to give as much time and attention as possible with every dog in my care. 

I like to have dogs out loose on the property all the time playing and having fun. If someone tells me they will be here at 2 pm that means all the dogs are locked up at 1:45 then if the people don't show up until 3 pm the dogs are locked up that entire time because we are waiting. Whereas if I knew they were coming at 3 then dogs could have been out playing until 2:45 - so the dogs in my care just lost an hour of playtime which means shortened playtimes for everyone to make up for it and that's just not OK to me since they all love playtime.

There are also times when I do leave for an hour or two during the day if I need to go to the store or run errands and when I do I have the gates locked and usually a rescue dog or two out loose on the property and they aren't always friendly as many dogs come into the rescue for some sort of behavior modification. So if someone shows up unannounced/not by appointment then there could be a wait time depending on the situation. 

So yes I do require appointments but it is just to try and keep some order here (law enforcement background) and to make sure the dogs all have plenty of attention and time out to stretch their legs, cuddle, and play without any interruptions. I believe every one of us who loves our dogs wants them to be given that undivided attention with plenty of one on one time to play and be cuddled without being interrupted when we aren't with them while they are in a boarding facility. My number one job is to give every dog in my care the love, attention, and playtime or cuddles their loved ones do and I do that by keeping a pretty strict schedule. People would laugh at how many alarms are set on my phone strictly for the dogs in my care.    

Please let us know ahead of time so we can make arrangements to keep your pet safe.  The last thing we want is to lose your pet or have them get hurt. If they are climbers or jumpers then they will stay in a covered run or crate and only let out with us on a long line. We will still have playtimes and everything we will just manage them a little differently than other dogs to ensure their safety.  

If we are told your pet is aggressive we have small special doors that swing open for us to safely place their food and water in. We will not go in to interact with your pet if they are aggressive. We will talk to them through the kennel and hang out with them throughout the day so they aren't lonely. We will clean the indoor/outdoor areas by locking them in or out during cleaning so as not to stress them out. They will not be allowed to run loose on the property if they might bite or show aggression/dominance towards people. They will still be welcome to stay and get treats and everything I just won't exactly be hands on petting and loving them. 

We will do everything we can to make them comfortable. If they need us to just sit in their run with them quietly and hold them or comfort them we will do that instead of outdoor playtime. Basically we follow your pets lead however most will be able to coaxed out to walk the property with us and sit with us but we do not believe in pushing them or stressing them out.    

Currently the insides are 4 x 5 or 4 x 6 and the outsides are I believe 6 X 8 however we will be expanding some of the outside runs. We also have the ability to open runs up for dogs staying together if the owner feels confident they can stay in the same run together without fighting. Our panels can be move to the side to open the space up. So for instance if we have 2 who love each other and prefer being in the same run then the panel between their runs will be opened up and pushed along the wall so their run is actually 2 runs. (I think that makes sense.)         

 You bring a cage and give us directions to care for them and we can house them in the house in a spare room.  It will be $10 per day for caged pets.