Hounds Hideaway — Local services in Conway

I never wrote a review last summer when this happened, but decided after talking to those who still live there and others bad experiences I figured I would share! I agree with other comments that this place is very unorganized and the staff is out numbered by animals. My husband and I/ parents went out of town for the day and were going to a place where had little to no reception. I asked a friend if she could pick the dogs up for me because we were going to get home a couple hours after closing. She wasn’t too familiar with my dogs specific breed and just knew she was a white dog. When she went to pick her up, my other dog, and mom’s dog who mind you are the same breed, they sent her home with the WRONG DOG. I had no phone reception and was in the middle of the buffalo river on a float trip when my friend called me saying that the Zoey they gave her is not acting like she belongs here at all. Her name was Zoey but completely different breed. when I finally get out of my canoe and see the pic she sent me I call and advise her that’s not my dog. She had to contact the other owner as hounds hideaway had closed and wasn’t answering the phone. She had to make arrangements for the other owner to pick up HER DOG from her house and I had to have someone meet me at hounds hideaway when I got back in town so I could get my Zoey who was left there for overnight boarding. I never received any apologies from the owner or the staff. I was freaked out as my dogs are my babies that I’ve had since 8 weeks and worry about their safety. You would think after all of that you would receive good customer service and that they would reach out and say something in regards to the manner and make it right. I have never talked to the owner personally or felt like the place was very personal. In fact everytime I was there I felt the stuff was overwhelmed and stressed. And if they did talk or pet your animal in front of you it was fake. Needless to say we haven’t been back!

*edit to owner

Wow you not finding me in your system or any knowledge of the incident further proves my claim as what I felt before. I’m sorry that in my distress and being out of town that I did not get the other dog owners name or employees name I spoke to. That’s great to hear that significant changes in management have occurred in the past 6 weeks and that if it happened today it would be handled extremely different. Also we visited and used your companies services more than one time (like that matters). It only takes one time to be professional and make a positive impression on someone. If you would like I believe I still have their report cards from other visits if you would like me to provide those to you for proof that my dogs were indeed there. I can just feel the warm customer service all over again just from you replying to me now. All I wanted then was a heartfelt sincere apology or even acknowledgement and empathy. I’m not the type of person to put down others or a company, the exact reason why I put off leaving a review. However, after hearing about other incidents and opinions from others, I felt the need to share. While it may be contradictory to what you want about your company online it is the truth and how I felt. I’m sorry that you can’t dignify the claim of my opinion of how I felt about your staff and their actions towards me. Also I toured the place before evening boarding my dogs/ daycare and at that time I saw the staff overwhelmed and stressed. Which again I took into consideration with it being a new company with lots of clients and trying to juggle multiple things at once. I only added that as a constructive criticism so you yourself would be made aware that was an impression received from a client as to better service in the future. Again not a fake person here. Just a dog owner who considers her pets family and wanted to share my opinions and experiences...

I have held onto the hope for the longest time now that this business would impress me enough to become a routine customer, but unfortunately I can now see that this will not happen. For some reason, I have felt a general sense of unfriendliness from the staff since I started taking my dog for daycare. Each time, I was quick to forgive, writing it off to a busy day or a rough week. However, as the rudeness occurred more frequently, I became less forgiving. I have come to the conclusion that the staff shows favoritism to the tight-knit group of select clientele, and unfortunately I have experienced that if you do fall outside of that group, the quality of care for your dog comes in to question. This weekend was the final chance I will give to this business, unfortunately. I dropped my dog, Cooper, off for a weekend boarding while my husband and I were going out of town. I warned them that he was difficult to get to eat, and requested that they pay close attention to ensure he was eating the correct portions. i called each day and asked how he was eating, to which I got the same reply: "he's eaten about half his food". I was just grateful he was eating, so I took this news as good news and continued on with my weekend. When Sunday came and I picked him up, he seemed weak and not like his usual self. I wrote it off to be that he was exhausted from all the increased activity and took him home to rest. That evening, he was throwing up bile and didn't have the strength to get off the couch. I took him to the vet first thing Monday morning, and after running some blood work they said it seemed doubtful that he had eaten anything in days because his nutrition levels were so low. I do not believe I was intentionally lied to; rather, I believe the staff just simply didn't have the desire to pay attention. It really is disappointing, I had a golden retriever puppy that I was eagerly looking forward to enrolling in obedience training at their facility, but unfortunately that seems too risky given the standard that has currently been set with my oldest. I'm hoping that a new business comes along one day and has the opportunity to spark competition. Maybe then, the staff will make a stronger effort to ensure each customer feels appreciated and welcome.

A response to the owner's response: 1). Your comment about me making no attempts to inform your staff about Cooper's illness reveals the true disorganization I referenced previously, because I DID call up to your facility the Monday immediately following and spoke with a male staff member, informing him that Cooper had gotten sick. Its clear that message was not conveyed, but that isn't a huge surprise. 2). I was seeking advice on training from the closed Pet Parent group members, never from your staff directly. I was simply utilizing a resource I had access to before being inevitably deleted from that group after making this review. While I do admit your staff had sound advice that I appreciated hearing, the intention was to never utilize your services. Although I do believe Sam would have been an excellent trainer for Barrett, we had a bad taste in our mouthes concerning the business he associates himself with, so we have started going to Oh Behave dog school in Little Rock with fabulous results! 3). I'm not sure what 'advice' you are referring to in regards to my previous dog who was euthanized for a genetic disease after months (and several thousands of dollars worth) of treatment. Although he did go to your daycare services sparingly, if that is what you are talking about. As far as 'advice', I'm afraid I am at a loss by what you mean...

Your genuinely UN-apologetic responses are a clear reflection of your business standards, I hope the other google users will notice...

Hounds Hideaway goes above and beyond for every dog that is under their care.

I could go on at length about all of the positive things about this company, but as much of this has been echoed in similar 5-star reviews, I would instead like to make a case against some of the negative things I have read.

"The staff is rude" -I have never experienced this. Even on the busiest days I am greeted warmly and my dog is too! Also, they manage to do all of this AND keep lobby wait times at a minimum for owners.

"My dog got injured in play group" -Speaking from personal experience here. My dog is a rescue and although she is much improved, she can be nervous/fearful which makes her reactive to changing pack energy. Layla was involved in several minor "dog squabbles" while at Hounds Hideaway (over the course of several months) that resulted in a few scrapes. Not only did I receive phone calls immediately from staff with detailed information about each incident, but we also worked with them to find a play group that better fit my dog's personality. They pay close attention to your dog's behavior to make sure that play group is a positive experience and not a cause of stress for your dog. This is the absolute most important thing to me because there are plenty of daycare facilities that DO NOT provide this level of specialized care. My rescue was not socialized as a puppy and I was very worried that any negative dog interactions would solidify some of her bad habits. HH has brought her out of her shell and really helped her to be a more confident dog!

"My dog got sick in playgroup" -Similar to your child catching a cold at school, doggy daycare is not without risk of illness. Same goes for the dog park. HH keeps their facility extremely clean, sanitizes constantly, requires up-to-date vaccinations, and alerts parents to any potential outbreaks (even if they have yet to notice symptoms at their facility). I cannot think of anything else they could do short of putting your dog in a bubble that could eliminate all risk.

"They are constantly full/at capacity" -HH wants their employees to form a relationship with each dog so they can monitor the behavior and health of your dog while in playgroup. They cannot do this if they are vastly outnumbered. Keeping playgroups small also reduces the chance of fights and illness outbreaks, both things that are exacerbated by overcrowding conditions. The fact they they are so busy is a credit to the wonderful service they provide.

Thank you HH...