Riverdog Melrose fka Dogwood Cottage

Low staff-to-dog ratio in large dog room (2 staff for 25 dogs)

“On average, only 2 employees are assigned to the 'large dog room' which is continuously booked to full capacity of 25 large dogs. That is one person to 12.5 large dogs.”

Staff not trained as professional dog care professionals

“The employees of Dogwood Cottage are not trained dog care professionals.”

Policy of not informing owners about behavioral issues until dog is kicked out

“Per the owner, 'We try to manage and train the dogs here, so we don't tell the owners.'”

No visibility into back play areas / no cameras

“There is zero visibility into the back play yards and no cameras.”

High employee turnover rate

“There was a really high employee turnover rate the past couple of years.”

Communication about dog behavioral issues

“Why weren't we told this earlier? Why have we been misled and essentially lied to for the past several weeks when telling us that our dog has been great?”

Staff training and supervision ratios

“We have consulted with multiple professional dog trainers since this incident and they have all agreed that is too many dogs to one person.”