Lucky Pawz Iowa City LLC — Local services in Iowa City

My sister-in-law resides in Iowa City and advised me against using Lucky Pawz due to several bad experiences she has had with them. However, the staff was friendly and one of the few in the area able to accomodate my last-minute situation by allowing my dog to be boarded overnight despite not having been there for a half-day daycare evaluation (which they require in most cases). So, I decided to give them a try.

I made ONE request in regards to feeding/care, and it was blatantly not honored. Because we were traveling, my dog didn't get a chance to eat the morning I dropped him off (he is usually fed in the morning when I get up). I provided two days worth of food in a plastic bag and requested that he be fed half the bag right then after dropping him off, and also included written instructions on the intake form to feed half a bag during the morning feeding time the following day. This would imply that the bag would be empty upon my return. When I picked him up 36 hours later, almost the entire bag of food was intact. I asked if he'd been fed, and the girls didn't seem to know why there was still so much food in the bag, but insisted he had been fed his own food, both times, as requested. When we left, I filled his bowl with food and put it in the backseat of my car; unsurprisingly, he wolfed it down as if he'd not eaten for several days (he is usually a nibbler and doesn't eat all his food in one sitting).

I also didn't get much feedback when I asked how he did (I don't think either of the girls working really had a clue when I picked him up) because this was his first time being boarded overnight and he tends to be shy and nervous in new situations.

Two stars because they were friendly and willing to accomodate me; however, I was very disappointed by the (lack of) care and attention from the staff, and won't be returning or...

Our mini goldendoodle, Roger, has been going to Lucky Pawz since he was 12 weeks old. That was over three years ago! Lucky Pawz is like a second home to him. Roger has started to learn his "schedule" (he goes to LP two days each week). On the mornings that he knows he is going, he starts to closely watch us as we're getting ready for work and keeps his ears open for his favorite words "Do you want to go to daycare today?" (You can't say this until you are actually ready to leave the house, because he simply won't let you do anything else - he is THAT excited). When we get nearer to Lucky Pawz, he starts getting a little impatient and tells us to "drive faster" by pawing at our dashboard. He sprints in, says hi to all of the staff, and is off to play for the day! It's so nice to come home from work to a tired dog that you knew had fun playing all day. We like to dream up stories of what he did with his friends while we were at work... the daily pictures you post proves he is having a good time and our money is well spent.

THANK YOU to Lucky Pawz for providing a safe, FUN, home away from home for our sweet dog Roger. I wish we could translate just how much he loves Lucky Pawz for him, because I'm sure his review would be...

I have been lead to review our Lucky Pawz experience not out of disdain, but out of concern for any new clients. After 2 months, management led me to believe my dog was aggressive, that he would try to "bite" staff who attempted to bring him inside. Management then corrected themselves, saying that he didn't actually "try to bite." Then double-backed moments later with he was trying to "bite." Just that morning, my dog was hesitant to enter the facility, so my radar was already on high-alert. If my dog truly was aggressive with staff, I wanted a reliable answer so the issue could be addressed with a trainer. Luckily, we switched day cares. I was upfront with the new business about Lucky Pawz's allegations. His first day, they repeatedly grabbed his collar to see if he was, in fact, aggressive. He was not. Which leads me to believe that Lucky Pawz staff is neither versed in canine language, nor capable of implementing safe, respectful commands. Our new day care has been a dream. This review is a mere warning for new clients who may be disheartened by misleading comments about their dogs. I would rather kennel my dogs throughout the work day then expose them to Lucky Pawz and...