The most successful boarding businesses don’t just manage animals — they master the details. From the sound of your floors to the structure of your kennel layout, every element influences how pets feel during their stay — and how confident their humans feel about leaving them behind.
One of the biggest opportunities to improve satisfaction across the board? Your kennels. Not just where pets rest, but where their comfort, security, and well-being take shape.
Let’s look at five impactful ways to use kennels to create a safer, calmer, and more rewarding experience for both pets and the people who care about them.
1. Prioritize Comfort and Personal Space
Pets, especially dogs, need a space that feels secure and calming. According to Gingr, comfort in boarding begins with providing appropriate bedding, adequate space, and maintaining a climate-controlled environment. The right animal shelter kennels can create a den-like feel that helps reduce stress, ease anxiety, and support better sleep, all of which play a role in how pets behave and feel throughout their stay.
Direct Animal’s stainless steel kennels are built with smooth, seamless edges and optional privacy panels. Features that create a clean, quiet, and stress-free enclosure for every guest.
2. Invest in Cleanability and Hygiene
No matter how cozy a space is, if it doesn’t stay clean, pet satisfaction will plummet. High-quality animal cages made from non-porous stainless steel are much easier to sanitize between guests than traditional materials. That means less odor, fewer germs, and a healthier environment for both animals and staff.
In fact, Revelation Pets stresses that clean, odor-free surroundings are a top contributor to client satisfaction and repeat business in boarding settings.
3. Support Safe Socialization and Visual Stimulation
While private time is important, many dogs thrive when they can see and hear what’s going on around them — even if they’re not in direct contact with others. Kennels with open-top designs or partial-view panels can offer just enough visual stimulation to keep boredom at bay, without causing overstimulation.
For more social dogs, facilities can use modular kennel designs to create safe, supervised group spaces for brief interactions, giving pets the best of both worlds.
4. Design for Easy Rest and Recovery
Even the most playful dogs need downtime. Having a dedicated kennel space for rest allows pets to decompress after socializing or outdoor activity. This isn’t just important for their physical health — it also supports emotional balance, which contributes to overall satisfaction with the boarding experience.
Kennels with features like quiet-closing doors, anti-slip floors, and insulated panels help pets truly relax.
5. Empower Your Staff
A well-rested, less stressed pet is easier to care for. But kennels don’t just benefit the animals — they benefit your staff, too. Ergonomic kennel designs with removable trays, built-in drainage, and smooth-rolling doors reduce the physical burden on your team, helping them stay focused and upbeat. And that positive energy translates to happier pets and customers alike.
Raise the Standard. Raise Satisfaction.
At the end of the day, a boarding facility that’s clean, quiet, and comfortable makes a lasting impression on clients. And since kennels are central to daily care, they’re a natural place to invest if you want to elevate satisfaction from the ground up.
Whether you’re running a luxury pet resort or a high-volume animal shelter, upgrading your kennel design is a smart, scalable move that leads to better pet care — and stronger customer loyalty.
Ready to Upgrade Your Facility?
At Direct Animal, our pet care experts design and manufacture durable and easy-to-clean dog kennels, cat condos, and other state-of-the-art equipment made to last the life of your business, whether you’re a vet, luxury boarding facility, animal shelter, or doggy daycare. Rely on us for animal care equipment that is ergonomic, hygienic, and affordable.
Explore our full line of animal cages and animal shelter kennels today.
