I cannot say enough good things about this outstanding facility and its staff! If you are looking for a high quality, safe, loving, and stimulating environment then look no further! The friendly, knowledgeable staff is amazing at what they do and make the dogs as well as the owners feel safe. My sweet Kalani has been attending since she was 4 months old, and it is her favorite place in the world! She adores her teachers, and I can feel relaxed knowing she is loved by this amazing staff! They are experts in dog knowledge and assisted me when I had a dramatic life change and Kalani became depressed. They knew exactly what she needed and provided it! They offer special activities, holiday pictures, FB and insta posts, daycare as well as overnight boarding, weekend play dates, impeccable grooming services, and a darling shop where you can purchase all the latest doggo toys, gadgets, treats, food and more! The staff is always friendly and you can tell they love their jobs! They greet each dog by name and as soon as we pull into the parking lot Kalani jumps up in the care and starts her excited "school" dance! This place is a lifesaver, and this staff is absolutely incredible! 6 out 5 stars every day of the week! read more

Central Bark Doggy Day Care - Kalani at Central Bark Madison Southwest - Pet Sitting Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

My dogs absolutely LOVE their daycare day! Staff is always so excited when we drop them off and they tell us how well our dogs are upon pickup. I have a husky-- he definitely voices that he had a great time EVERY day! The boys always come out so happy and they are nice and relaxed for the rest of the night! Very grateful for the team at Central Bark Madison! read more

Central Bark Doggy Day Care - Bear after Central Bark - Pet Sitting Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

See all

My dog Cooper loves going to 'school' at Central Bark!! We got him very young (6wks) and my boyfriend & I both work full time. We felt horrible leaving him home alone! Even though we would come home on our lunch break, it just still made us feel like a bad parents. Cooper has been going to Central Bark for approximately 4 months now & he loves it, & they love him too! When it's time to go, he never wants to leave! I love that they offer grooming services, & overnights! (Both of which we use) I was very hesitant the first time we left him for an overnight, but I knew he was in good hands! I think they laughed a bit when I brought his favorite 20 toys, but he's my baby! Each day they post pictures on Facebook and a few days a week you get report cards which is so cute! Everyone is very nice & knowledgeable! Having a puppy (first time dog owner, & to a puppy!!) they answer all my questions and offer suggestions, which I appreciate. Cooper especially loves Ms. Jaye & Ms. Michaela! Since he is a baby, he can't remember everyone's name, but he loves all the staff! Even the crew that allow him to get dropped off early in the morning, for a very small charge. Well worth it!! Cooper wants to mention his special dog friends that he loves to play with everyday!! He is already planning his birthday party at Central Bark in April! They are very good about making sure Cooper is in the right group of play friends! Even though he is a puppy, he does better in a group of bigger dogs, & the staff recognize that & rotate him accordingly. We also have taken advantage of Saturday play group to run a few errands, which again is AMAZING!! If you are looking for a daycare, grooming services, overnights, I would HIGHLY recommend Central Bark! Be assured your 'baby' will be given high class treatment!! read more

Central Bark Doggy Day Care - Pet Sitting Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

See all

Every time I take my dog here, she comes back with an insane amount of energy. I don't think they get enough exercise... Also, I let them know she probably needed to go outside when we got there and they let me know she wouldn't have the chance for a bit and that she won't go outside until the afternoon. I don't enjoy paying $30 to have my dog be somewhere for 9 hours because I need her to be exercised that day and come back needing a two mile walk to calm down. read more

I have a four-year-old Great Pyrenees named Gracie. Over the years I have taken her several places for grooming. A couple of weeks ago I got an email from Central Bark seeing that they had a new groomer named Nicole who specialized in double coated dogs. I immediately booked a grooming with her. Gracie's grooming was yesterday and when I picked her up she was happy and didn't seem stressed at all. I was astounded at the job Nicole did. It is the best grooming we've ever had! This is no small thing considering her coat was not in great shape (long story). I was so pleased that I immediately booked recurring grooming's for Gracie with Nicole going forward. Thank you Nicole and Central Bark! read more

My dog absolutely loves this place! She gets very excited when we get close to Central Bark, and pulls me through the door! She comes home nice and tired- great for me! The staff here is really friendly and nice and they practice/reinforce good behaviors- they make the dogs sit before letting them walk through doorways and before greeting you. If the weather is nice, the dogs stay outside and if it's hot, there's a shallow swimming pool for the dogs to wade in. In the winter, they stay inside in a rather large gym and the staff play games with them. The typical schedule is: playtime from 8am to 12pm, snack time/naptime with classical music (!) from 12 to 2pm, and play/personal attention from 2 to 4pm. They get kenneled up around 4:30/5. Central Bark is primarily a doggy day care facility, but they do board if you are a client,. This is great because not only are the dogs comfortable with the staff and the environment, but they do day care during the day and are not left in a kennel. read more

DOGGIE CAME BACK WITH TWO SCARS ON HIS FACE UPDATE: it was confirmed to me by the daycare center (at least thanks for the honesty, I guess...) that my 8-pound beagle was bitten by a 45-pound dog. How does this make sense?? I mean, if you don't KNOW for sure that the 45-pound dog is good with puppies, then how do you not expect that this wouldn't end well?? On his first day, Bobo came home tired, but one big drawback is that they forgot to tell us to bring the food for him, so he was starving. On his second day today, my puppy came home bitten by a bigger dog "because it was a slow day, so after he got bitten, he was alone for the rest of the day." He has two scars on his face (I'll try to post the pictures), and he acts very frightened and skittish. I've worked with him patiently on desensitization for a month (i. e. if I touched his tail and played with it, he didn't mind it at all; now that's all undone; he left this morning a happy puppy, and came back skittish, growling at me and scared.) I let him play with older dogs from the building, and there was never a problem, so the daycare should know which dog is capable of playing with a smaller dog and which dog will show aggression. I feel like I paid for them to undo the work that I did with him. If there are no smaller or gentler dogs for him to play with, then either we should have been warned, or he should have had a human devote some time to him. read more

Central Bark Doggy Day Care - My puppy before the daycare. - Pet Sitting Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

See all

I'm not the one staying overnight here so I can't speak to what that is like, but I can say that our dog is always tired after coming home from a weekend stay here. It's great because it gives us a little break from his high energy! He also loves coming here, which is a good sign. He's anxious and excited to get in the door and greet whoever is sitting at the front desk. The people who work here also seem very nice, and comment on how much they love our dog which is always great to hear. My favorite part about boarding him here is that you don't have to pay extra for play time, even private play time (one on one with a handler). It's 1 flat overnight rate for everything. He's stayed here 3 times now and no complaints yet! read more

I have never used the daycare at Central Bark. My 5 star review is for the GROOMER, Liz! I have a Shih Tzu which requires grooming every 4-8 weeks. Depending how long I can go before he is too fluffy for my liking. (i like puppy cut) what i like about her style is.. Nail grinding. She uses scissors for shaping. She styles his face and beard to extra cuteness She does do safe nontoxic coloring on request. (he gets BLUE MOHAWKS and streaks of color in his tail hair) my dog has hair that grows in his eyes and she even assists with that extra need. cleans the glands if needed provides teeth brushing if needed. She has won awards for grooming and they are on the wall. she has kept her prices competitive and easy for me to budget. I have taken my dog to different big pet store chain and all they did was shave him down and give him no style and charged me the same price . they can keep the stupid bandana, I just want a quality groom for my dog. I will add a picture of my dog to my profile so you can see for yourself! read more

I wish our dog pulled us as hard going into the vet as he does into central bark! The lobby is bright and clean, and they have a great selection of pet toys and other great eye candy as you enter the store. The selection of dog collars and leashes goes on and on. They carry some of the best brands when it comes to your dog! Now onto the daycare! Our dog is really tired at the end of the night, and anytime we even mention central bark he gets real excited and spins all around. The staff are all great and know us by name, and care for our dog as if he was thier own. They have every service i need, Lis the groomer is great and makes our dog look better than any other has. Its really nice to have found such a great service, and family. Thanks for everything you all do! Update: 5/12/12 We had a family issue come up and needed our dog to stay this weekend at last minute. Like really last minute. They sell the same food that our little one eats and added a bag to our invoice and are keeping him for the weekend. I dont know what we would have done this weekend if we could not have boarded our dog with such short notice. Thank you all so much agian for being so wonderful. Jim just loves it so much! read more

We have taken our dog there a handful of times and kept saying we wouldn't go back but then did. The groomer, shorter with brown hair, has insinuated we don't take good care of our dog and started lecturing me. Today i finally asked to speak to the manager and she was nice but didn't say anything like "i'm sorry". She just spoke nicer to me and asked what I'd like done. I've had issues with this groomers lack of appropriate interactions with us twice now and won't be going back. I also came for a scheduled appt one day and the groomer had already left and the guy at the counter just said "sorry she must have left." I was like, are you serious?! Yep, totally serious and didn't offer to call her or give me a discount to have to reschedule or anything. We also had issues with the daycare with our dog coming home with cuts or scrapes but no one told us why or our dog was ridiculously dirty. This place has terrible customer service. I wouldn't recommend to anyone. read more

This place watches for demand barking and dominance issues. They are well aware that dogs bark and allow it, just not the demanding kind. Their groomers are fantastic! Lastly, they play WITH the dogs. Very involved. There is down time for lunch and wind down for the day. Pack a lunch if your pup eats during those times (in a plastic bin) read more

I started taking my dog here shortly after it opened. I have since moved to Chicago where I am struggling to find a day care that is as clean and friendly and reinforces good behavior like Central Bark in Madison. read more

They charged me a fee of $75 to hold my reservation. I've never been charged by a kennel to hold my reservation. I had to cancel due to family and work issues that came up at the last minute. So, I ended up paying $75 for no services rendered. It was very frustrating. read more

LOVE LOVE LOVE This place! Our Lanie literally shoves me out of the car (part black lab, so she's big) when I pull into the parking lot so she can get in. It's adorable. The people are the best!! read more

Central Bark, as we all know, is a chain. I have heard great things about the Central Bark locations in Milwaukee, so I decided to take my dog to the Madison location, as I just moved to the area. Unfortunately, after my first dog day care experience at this location, I will not be bringing my dog there again. With mixed feedback about my dog's interactions from the employee (to avoid confrontation) I am disappointed. My dog didn't receive her treat at lunch and was not brought out with her collar or leash, which showed disorganization. The feedback from the employee included "I know I should not have done this to your dog but..." which immediately was a red flag for me. Based on the feedback given, my dog showed behaviors there that I have not seen at home. I write this review to make others aware of my experience, and hope it doesn't occur to anyone else. As I did pay for this first day of daycare, which is a trial, I expected professional feedback and organization, which didn't happen. I will be seeking a new doggy day care, and have hopes for a better experience. read more

We have been bringing our pups to Central Bark over the last 2.5 years. Pricing is competitive, facilities are clean and updated and staff is attentive. I am briefed of any issues and how the dogs did for the day when I pick them up. No issues getting them in for the day on short notice/rotating schedule. That could always change if their enrollment reaches capacity but it works great for us in the mean time. Our dogs are so excited each morning when I drop them off. They are under new ownership now and have just completed several different updates. They also post pictures of playtime on facebook almost daily which is so cute. This day care is a wonderful option especially considering many of the doggy daycare facilities on the east side of Madison have wait lists. read more

My Great Pyre just had his first day there today, and it was fantastic! Between his indoc and his first day, I'm really impressed at the professionalism, the knowledge base, and great energy of the staff there. Huge shout out to Jaclyn who gave me a lot of her time answering my questions as a new fur dad. Also a shoutout to the team that took care of him today; he's all smiles, and definitely tuckered out. read more

Their daycare service is five stars for me! My shy puppy has grown a lot since coming. I am glad to have this option for her once a week. I'd bring her more if I could afford it! The employees who play with the dogs are amazing. So friendly, always happy to see my puppy, and she LOVES them! The pricing and options they show on their website is the same as you'd be able to purchase in store. I have yet to see any specials be run beyond their puppy package. My only comment here is that when I purchased the puppy package, it didn't come with everything mentioned online. I received daycare and haircut, but that's it. They almost didn't give me the free haircut that is mentioned! My three star review is due to their grooming services. I started with their new groomer, Leena. She was very friendly, and I was glad to speak with her the first time my puppy got cut (she was almost 4 mon. old). The first cut I did with her was free with the puppy package, after mentioning that it was supposed to be included. After that, I discussed with Leena over the phone what the pricing would be. She told me it would be $20 every time I brought her, and we agreed on that pricing. However, Leena only works there part time and has NEVER been there when I go to pick up my dog. Further, I've only been charged the $20 agreed upon price once. First time, I told the person checking me out that it was supposed to be $20. He checked the notes and said, OK. I was pleased with the cut, but her nails were like daggers! Worse than they were before they were cut. The second time I brought her (about 5 mon), I asked them to spend more time on her nails and make sure they weren't so sharp. I go to pay and the guy checking me out says it'll be $30. I said the agreed price was $20. He said it was $5 extra for her nails, even though no one ever mentioned this to me before and Leena never said that it cost more for her nails. I assumed the $20 price we agreed to was all-inclusive for her services. The guy checking me out ended up charging me just $25, but I was still a little upset. Third (and last) time I brought her for grooming (about 6 mon.), I picked her up and her nails were incredibly sharp, even though I asked them to pay extra attention to them. Same guy checked me out. This time I was charged $32 for the cut. Again, I mentioned the prior agreed upon price. He said he could probably give me $5 off, but he never did. When he ran my card, he confirmed the higher price. I cannot recommend grooming with Central Bark. At least not their puppy cuts. They may do better with adult dogs. Leena does a good job, but she's never there to discuss my puppy with me and I am charged an increasing amount for my dog. Also, they do the very minimum for grooming. I don't feel like it's as full-service as other grooming facilities. A+++ daycare. C grooming. read more

Finally a groomer that didn't complain about my cockapoo. Great cut and nice job on nails even though I know my dog doesn't enjoying having her paws touched. Price reasonable compared to competition. The last two places I went to they weren't willing to take time to work with my dog to make it a pleasant experience. read more

Groupon voucher is a scam! I took my dog to Central Bark today for a grooming. I dropped her off with the Groupon voucher ($20 for $45 worth of grooming services) and was told to come back in 3 hours (really?). I got a call an hour and 15 minutes in saying she'd be ready at 10. When I got there to pick her up, I was informed that unfortunately the Groupon is for new clients only. I feel that this is poor business to not tell me up front that I would be unable to use the Groupon. Even more upsetting to me was the groomer insinuating that I don't take good care of my dog by asking when her last grooming was and saying how long her nails were. Being a 4th year veterinary student about to graduate in May, I am extremely invested in the health and mental well-being of animals. The fact that she would insinuate I don't take good care of my dog just adds to the poor bedside manner at Central Bark. Needless to say, I will be taking my business elsewhere. read more

I'm so happy with the service at Central Bark. I brought my Chihuahua puppy here after we get a free day in her obedience class. She did so well, we have been coming for three years! The staff are always happy to see us, and give me a little update on her day. Elsie was a very skittish, anxious dog when I adopted her. This has really improved since she started attending day regularly. We took a break for a while, and she regressed. Elsie gets her nails done every month, and they always look great (not sharp, since they use a grinder). I used to bring my old dog here for a good blow-out, and he always looked (and smelled) delightful. We've also been pleased with their kennel. I highly recommend them! read more

Was very upset when picking up my dog yesterday from daycare. First thing I was waiting for over 5 minutes for a worker to finally help me and second when the girl with redish brown curly hair went to retrieve my dog she started screaming and yelling at all the dogs. When she braught my dog she stated she was sorry some of the dogs are pretty naughty today! seriously? How unprofessional. When I a customer am standing right outside the door. I will not be going back if my dog is going to be yelled at all day. read more

Great staff, great facility, they took wonderful care of my buddy Socks while we were away. Highly recommended!

I am so glad that I contacted Central Bark. This facility is awesome as are the people who work there. I was very anxious when I brought my Dog there because he was previously released from another Doggy Day Care due to some issues that he had. The Central Bark staff had a few issues with him when he started but they worked with him and had patience with him and now he is doing great. I highly recommend Central Bark. They have done wonders with my dog and he comes home a tired but happy boy! Thank you so much :) read more

I have a crazy dog & Central Bark has been terrific for her! She is more obedient. She has less separation anxiety. She stopped destroying things around the house. She is better with other people. It is like she is a new dog. She's still happy & crazy but in a positive way! read more

I tried the new groomer Leena and she was fabulous! She's is very knowledgeable and friendly. I will be defenately going back to her!!! :)