How to prepare your boarding business for summer

Use the quieter weeks before summer pressure arrives

By early October, many boarding businesses are already receiving Christmas and school-holiday enquiries. The diary may not yet be full, but the facility is moving towards the period when high occupancy, warmer weather and frequent arrivals leave less room to fix preventable problems.

A spring review should do more than make the grounds look tidy. It should test the places, equipment, records and decisions the business will rely on when animals, staff and customer communication are all competing for attention.

Inspect the facility from an animal’s level

Walk every accommodation, exercise and transfer area slowly. Check gates, latches, fencing, mesh, flooring, drains, doors, shade, ventilation, lighting and any place where an animal could reach a sharp edge, gap, damaged surface or unsuitable substance.

Record each defect, the interim control, the person responsible and the completion date. A note that something “needs fixing” is not enough once bookings rise. Prioritise work that affects containment, hygiene, temperature control, safe movement or separation.

Repeat the inspection after contractors leave. Repairs can create new gaps, unsecured gates, tools, chemicals or changed access routes. The final check should be completed by someone who understands how animals and staff use the area.

Test heat and power arrangements before a hot day

Identify which areas warm first, how temperatures are monitored and who acts when agreed thresholds are reached. Check shade across the day rather than at one convenient time. Confirm water access, ventilation, cooling equipment and the way staff will recognise and escalate signs of heat stress.

Plan for a power interruption at high occupancy. Decide which systems need backup, how long that backup lasts and what happens if cooling, pumps, communications or access systems cannot operate. Keep emergency contacts and relocation options available away from the main computer system.

The first hot day is a poor time to discover that a backup arrangement was only an assumption.

Set capacity around care, not available enclosures

Physical spaces are only one limit. Review how many animals the team can safely feed, medicate, exercise, clean, observe and hand over during the busiest parts of the day. Allow for animals requiring separation, additional monitoring or more complex routines.

Map arrival and collection peaks. Stagger times where practical and assign responsibility for reception, animal transfer and facility supervision. Keep a controlled margin for delayed collections, unexpected care needs or accommodation that becomes temporarily unavailable.

Review every booking before confirmation

Decide what information must be current before an animal arrives. This may include owner and emergency contacts, authorised collection details, relevant health and behaviour information, medication instructions, feeding requirements and the practice’s vaccination or admission requirements.

Make incomplete bookings visible. Use a clear status for information outstanding, assessment required, payment due and confirmed. Give clients a deadline and explain what happens if required information is not supplied. A full diary should not hide whether the business is actually ready to receive each animal.

Prepare the team for exceptions

Brief seasonal or new staff before peak occupancy. They need to understand animal identification, separation, gates, cleaning, medication records, incident escalation and who can authorise a change. Demonstration and supervised practice are more useful than handing someone a folder on their first busy shift.

Run through realistic exceptions: a late arrival, a medication discrepancy, a dog that cannot remain in its planned area, a failed cooling unit or a staff absence. Decide who communicates with the owner and how the decision is recorded.

Check that insurance information still matches the operation

Peak preparation may involve higher animal numbers, extra employees or contractors, new equipment, changed services, temporary structures or building work. Tell the broker about material changes before the peak period so the information presented to insurers remains current.

Ask what records should be kept, when incidents or damage should be notified and whether declared values and operating details remain accurate. Petcover Business Insurance is the broker rather than the insurer, and cover depends on the terms, conditions, limits and exclusions of the applicable policy.

Prepare your boarding business for summer

Every pet business is different, and the right insurance depends on the services you provide and the risks you face. Contact Petcover Business Insurance to discuss your needs with a broker who specialises in pet businesses.

Seasonal planning reference: business.gov.au guidance on preparing a business for summer, including emergency plans, fire systems, evacuation, power outages and insurance reviews.

Check the current animal-welfare, council and operating requirements that apply in your state or territory.

Before peak bookings: six checks to complete

1. Containment

Inspect gates, latches, fences, doors and transfer points.

2. Environment

Test shade, ventilation, cooling, water and monitoring.

3. Continuity

Plan for power loss, equipment failure and relocation.

4. Capacity

Match bookings to safe care and staffing capacity.

5. Records

Close information gaps before each booking is confirmed.

6. People

Train the team and practise likely peak-period exceptions.

Give every defect four details

Record the issue, immediate control, responsible person and completion date. Reinspect the area after the work is finished.