Scampers Weekly Recap - June 30, 2017
Dear --Valued Customer--
Happy Fourth of July Week! We're heading into the meat of summer, and there are so many activities coming up. We want to make sure you're maximizing your summer, and we're maximizing the ways we can help you to do so.
First off, remember, hot days and errand running can be a troublesome mix - that's what daycare's for!
Also, come and visit us at our booth at the Bellevue Downtown Association's Four on the 4th - there's a pretty good draw!
Scampers will be closed on July 4th
Scampers will be closed for regular daycare on Tuesday, July 4th, but as we will have staff on site, they're caring for lots of boarders, so if you do need daycare for your pooch, we are able to accommodate a few extras - by appointment only. Please make arrangements with our staff in advance.
Please note also that our weekend and holiday daycare hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Once again, Scampers will be hosting a booth at Four on the Fourth on July 4th at Ashwood Park in Downtown Bellevue.
We hope we'll see lots of our customers and all your wonderful furkids. Come and visit our Scampers booth, show off your July 4th spirit, and enter in the draw for a Bark Box Subscription. It's a great time, a great idea, and there are fun people and dogs, and there's a Best Costume Contest!, everywhere - truly a sight to behold!
We hope we'll see lots of our customers and all your wonderful furkids. Come and visit our Scampers booth, show off your July Fourth spirit, and enter in the draw for a Bark Box Subscription.
It's a great time, a great idea, and there are fun people and dogs, and there's a Best Costume Contest!, everywhere - truly a sight to behold!
Willow won the prize for Best Costume.
She wore a star-spangled tutu
and deely bobbers!
She wore a star-spangled tutu
and deely bobbers!
Practice basic summer safety
Never leave your pets in a parked car
Not even for a minute. Not even with the car running and air conditioner on.
On a warm day, temperatures inside a vehicle can rise rapidly to dangerous levels. On an 85-degree day, for example, the temperature inside a car with the windows opened slightly can reach 102 degrees within 10 minutes. After 30 minutes, the temperature will reach 120 degrees.
Your pet may suffer irreversible organ damage or die.
Local law enforcement can follow this handy guide for how to proceed.
It's that time again, folks. We're created an album on our Facebook page with a selection of pictures of your pooches taken by our wranglers over these last couple of weeks. To vote for your favorites, open the photos and click on "Like". The picture with the most "Likes" will grace our lobbies for the month of July.
Abby, June Pooch of the Month - with her winning smile.
Watch for the updates of our framed Friday Funny in our reception area.
We'll also make sure they're posted on our Facebook page so you can share them with your friends.
We'll also make sure they're posted on our Facebook page so you can share them with your friends.
We're a pretty close knit group of pooches - we form strong friendships, and we get to know each other very well.
When new pooches join us, we love to introduce them around and get them started in their Scampering adventures - that's why they call us the "Welcome Waggin".
Our Welcome Waggin team has been busy welcoming lots of newbies at both our locations again this week.
On Monday, our Bellevue Bunch introduced themselves to Kent, a handsome, young Viszla who made himself right at home. Meanwhile, Delphi, a pretty German Shorthaired Pointer found her footing quickly with all her new pals.
Tuesday was a busy day for Bellevue Bunch Littles, as they welcomed the trio of Tyrion, Alhena and Luna, while Dakota M got to meet all the bigger Bellevue crowd.
On Wednesday, we were very happy to welcome Lola to the Bellevue party. She's a lovely Frenchie with a great attitude towards life. We were delighted to have met her and hope we see her lots in the future.
The Kirkland Littles and Puppy Group took turns with newbie Orion on Wednesday. This little guy won't be little for long, so that made a lot of sense. And on Thursday, it was the same story for his brother, Sirius.
Oliver the Little Poodle Mix started his daycare career with us on Thursday. This little guy was such a great addition to the quieter Littles, and Luther doodle was so happy to become his very best play pal.
Today, at Kirkland, we're welcoming pretty yellow lab Sophie - She's finding the whole daycare thing quite a hoot! Meanwhile, in Bellevue, we're showing Loki how things are done, and he's learning how to enjoy the fun, while baby Lab mix Blayze found his groove right away.
Welcome all. We're delighted to share our days with you!
Hey, Peeps, don't forget, if you're curious about how we spend our days and you're not quite sure what those report cards really mean, you can watch the adventures in the photos and videos our wranglers are posting on the Scampers Facebook page.
Milo looks after his napping friends.
We've added Instagram to our assortment of Social Media tools. Tag or search #scampersdogs and join in the fun.
Dexter, Oscar and Sophie C
Ratatouille and Rocky:
Rockin' and Rollin' Terriers!
Every once in a while we receive a photo from one of our customers showing us what their beloveds are doing after their day at Scampers.
We've seen many of our Scampers families expand recently, and we're looking for pics of our campers tending to their new humans. We hope we'll see lots more baby and pooch pictures! Click here to send your pics in via email.
Karsen was introduced to new baby sister, Hayden.
He's doing a great job of being a girl's best friend.
He's doing a great job of being a girl's best friend.
Here's Aussie Ozzie O
looking after his new baby, Tali.
What a beautiful pair!
looking after his new baby, Tali.
What a beautiful pair!
Apparently, young English Setter Leica is getting lots of exercise when she comes to Scampers. Here's what she looks like at home.
Sophie the Bernedoodle must have been
just too tired to pull her tongue all the way back in
after collecting her kisses.
Hank's mom tells us he always has
more energy when he gets home.
Apparently, not this time!
more energy when he gets home.
Apparently, not this time!
George loves his chickens.
They make great pillows.
They make great pillows.
Bliss is a place to rest my head,
a hand to stroke my neck.
a hand to stroke my neck.
This category of owner-contributed pics features dogs enjoying their extracurricular fun.
This is where we'll post the pics we've received of your pooches enjoying summer vacations, beach roaming, ball games, and any other such general exploring.
Amara Shepherd is turning into quite the mariner. Here she is enjoying a paddle with her mom.
Who's that in the middle of all those tulips?
Lucky Buddy got to go to the
Tulip Festival last month.
Buddy's mom's works at a school, and once in a while he gets to go to work with her, and absorb all that kid-love. What a life, huh?
We have also received some great shots documenting "The Real Reason" you bring your furkids to Scampers.
Pretty Abby G is a very helpful pooch indeed. This lovely picture shows her effort at helping to unpack mysterious things at the office.
While our Bellevue shop is nowhere near full - yet - our Kirkland shop is often at capacity. For either shop, whether full or not, it is very important that we know who's coming and when so we can make sure we have enough staff on hand to keep the play safe and fun.
Chris Sugarbaker of Cut-N-Run, mobile groomer extraordinaire has been serving our Kirkland clients every second Tuesday since we opened in 2010.
With July 4th falling on Tuesday this year, our plan for biweekly visits for Chris is disrupted slightly. He will make his next visit to serve our Kirkland clients on Tuesday, July 18th.
For our Bellevue clients, Chris will be visiting our Bellevue shop on Tuesday, July 11th. We plan to have him visit Bellevue every couple of weeks, although the days will vary until we can find a set schedule. Chris has advised us that he will also be at our Bellevue shop on Monday, July 24th.
Keep in mind that Chris' grooming schedule often fills up, so it's important to get your reservations in early.
Our boarding facilities at both locations have been busy this year. For this weekend, we're fully booked at both locations! Remember to get your boarding requests in early, especially over the summer holidays, long weekends, to make sure there's room enough for your pooches.
Your boarding requests can be submitted via GingrApp, or you can give us a call to check and see if there's space available. Remember, if our boarding facility at Kirkland is full, there may be space available at our Bellevue shop. We'll do our very best to accommodate you if we are able to.
Samson is a frequent Scampers boarder. Here he is greeting the morning staff with his great big grin!
Boarding Drop Off Times
We ask that boarders be dropped off before noon, although exceptions can be made in case of an emergency. Arriving at Scampers is very stimulating for your pooches - even after a busy day of adventuring elsewhere - and it takes several hours for the incomers to settle down. And one stimulated pooch means a whole houseful of stimulated pooches. One of the reasons that Scampers boarding facilities works well for most of our guests is that the guests are good and tired after a day of playing, roving and sniffing. Of course, a tired dog is a good dog.
We have been using our web-based kennel management system for just over a year, and many of our customers have signed on to use the system as well. While its name is GingrApp, it's not actually an "app" that can be downloaded; it is a web portal where you can log in, create a password protected door to the customer side of your account, and participate in managing your pooches' care at Scampers.
(One important caveat for Internet Explorer users - please use a different browser for using Gingr. We have been told the site does not work at all (it breaks!) on Internet Explorer. We are not sure if that issue has been resolved, so better safe than frustrated!)
You can access the Gingr URL through the email message you received when you enrolled your dog or through the link at the top of Scampers' website:
Use the email address or cell phone number that you registered with us at the time of enrollment.
The first time you log in to the portal you'll receive a confirmation email which will invite you to create your password.
From here, you can upload files and photos, request reservations for daycare, boarding and grooming, and make changes to those reservations as plans change.
We think the interface is clean and tidy and easy to use, but if you have any difficulties at all, please let us know and we'll do our best to help you. And we welcome your feedback.
You can also very easily set up recurring reservations. And, as your schedule changes, you can easily change your recurring reservation - it's a simple edit.
If you have a reservation for daycare, whether it's set up as recurring or a one-off, if you find you won't need it, please do give us a call, drop us a line, or go online to cancel it.
The Convenience Factor - Credit Card on File
We have learned that processing payment transactions is significantly faster for those of our clients who have set up a credit card on file. The speed of the swiping component slows the process down just a little.
We have also learned that the credit card swiping component is not able to read the data stripe on some branded credit cards, for example REI or Nordstroms branded cards, although we are able to manually enter the card number.
For our clients using those cards, setting up the credit card on file is a perfect solution. (Don't worry - the Gingr people have made sure those card numbers are thoroughly encrypted!)
Your link to Gingr is at the top right of all pages ("My Account"), as well as under the About tab.
You can reach us through the web form on the Contact tab.
Our Gallery is populated by our Instagram activity.
And you'll find the link to our Weekly Recaps under News Nibbles, with any special announcements, and access to all the archived newsletters.
Dogs on Leashes, Pretty Please!
Some dogs jump up on people to greet them, whether the jumpees want to be greeted or not. Others feel the need to protect their owners. Some are just too darned excited to contain themselves and bolt, sometimes in some very surprising directions.
There are so many things that could go awry, and we worry.
For safety's sake, please be sure to have your dogs on leashes and well under control while moving them between your car and our reception area.
If you need to borrow a leash, we always have a loaner leash available in our reception area.
Please Navigate our Parking Lots with Caution!
Remember, there are dogs crossing. And people.
And, in our Bellevue lot, which is shared with a car dealership, we've noticed there are many non-Scampers drivers (some of them have obviously never walked a dog) and, from what we've observed, they're all frustrated Formula 1 drivers.
PLEASE take care when navigating our parking lots, whether you're doing the walking or the driving. We sure don't want any nasty accidents!
Give em a quick stroll first, please!
Remember, arriving at daycare is extra-stimulating. We often have pooches empty out in the lobby because they just can't contain themselves any longer!
If you're bringing you pooch into Scampers after a long car ride, please give them a quick toodle around the bushes or pillars before bringing them inside.
Any poops can be delivered to the green garbage cans - if you need a poop bag, just pop in and ask for one!
We know how much you love your furbabies - that's why you bring them to Scampers, after all. But please remember that very few dogs require more than two meals per day, and for many, one is enough.
We happily provide meal service for very young puppies who really do need a mid-day meal to support their growing bodies, and for dogs whose veterinarians prescribe a mid-day meal, e.g., dogs on certain medications or who have metabolic, gastric, or intestinal conditions; otherwise, however, if your pooch is over 6 months old, please do not bring snacks and meals for them.
Frankly, we're having a tough time staffing for the demand lately, and because so many on our lunch list don't really need a meal, they're reluctant to eat, and our staffers are hand feeding them, coaxing them, singing to them... They really don't need it, honest!
A gentle reminder that Scampers daycare hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday, and our weekend and holiday daycare hours are by appointment only, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Canine Nosework Classes at Scampers
Dogs have an incredible sense of smell and an inborn desire to hunt. The sport of K9 Nose Work is designed to develop the natural scenting abilities of your dog by using their passion for hunting and their love of toys, food and exercise.
It's a great class for your dog to have fun, build confidence, and burn lots of mental and physical energy and you get to find out just how good your dog's nose is.
Vicki Francks, owner of Cascade Canines continues offering K9 Nose Work Classes using Scampers facility. If you'd like some information on the next round of classes, give Vicki a call at 206-849-7643. More information is also available as Scampers front desk.
It's a great class for your dog to have fun, build confidence, and burn lots of mental and physical energy and you get to find out just how good your dog's nose is.
Vicki Francks, owner of Cascade Canines continues offering K9 Nose Work Classes using Scampers facility. If you'd like some information on the next round of classes, give Vicki a call at 206-849-7643. More information is also available as Scampers front desk.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend.
Very best regards,
Linda Olsen and Stina Hughes
Scampers Daycamp for Dogs
Scampers Daycamp for Dogs
Play all day - go home happy.
12532 124th Street NE Kirkland, WA 98034
T 425-821-9100 | F 425-821-4685
T 425-821-9100 | F 425-821-4685
