Pick up and drop off a huge problem. Make sure you document dates and times and keep a journal - the GM is going to ask you for one- instead of fixing the pervasive problem. read more

Extremely poor communication when we first brought our puppy there. Failed to inform us when we booked weekend boarding about their vaccination and veterinary requirements/policies, only to refuse our dog at drop off the day we were heading out on vacation. THIS HAPPENED TWO SEPARATE TIMES. And yes, they had our dog's birthdate on file, making their mistake inexcusable. If I lived in a smaller community with few options, this place would still be acceptable. But once trust is broken, it is hard to earn back. And I would try plenty of other places around the area before coming back here. read more

Wanted to update my review. I recently had to board the pupper when both my regular sitter and the backup were unavailable. Apparently the boarding now also includes daycare which is great and makes the cost a little more reasonable. I also love that everyone seems to know me/and my dog's name. When I bring her in, it's usually at the crack of dawn right when they open to avoid traffic, a lot of the staff is still out up front and they're always excited to see us. It's a nice feeling. I've also been looking around at different options and, though I hate to admit it, nothing really compares to this chain...specifically because nowhere else has webcams you can watch most of the day. read more

Dogtopia - This was a very welcome surprise for a worried mom. - Pet Sitting Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

We were initially very excited to find a daycare/boarding where our dog was able to play with other dogs for a decent price in Alexandria. We boarded him over a long weekend, and once he came back we immediately noticed that despite him being house-broken for five years, he was now peeing inside the house. This happened several times and when I called Dogtopia to ask if he had been allowed to pee inside was told that the dogs regularly pee inside the room, but that the dogs think of the rooms as giant indoor dog parks vice being indoors. While I am glad that Dogtopia has experience with philosophical intellectual dogs, our French Bulldog is a bit dumber and as a bulldog as soon as he is able to get away with a bad behavior it is incredibly difficult to break him of that. I was also told on the phone that he might have a UTI, which is interesting as this is the same Dogtopia who told me they could not verify that he was neutered because they weren't vets and sent us on a hunt to find his neuter paperwork vice looking at his very obvious tattoo and lack of equipment. So from not being able to see an obvious SCPA tattoo they somehow got smart over a week and were now diagnosing my dog over the phone to avoid admitting fault. We have plenty of experience at home with our pets and UTI's and we are not planning on spending even more money on a vet to confirm that he has a new behavioral issue, unless Dogtopia wants to pay for that. I asked why I was never told that they were allowed to go inside the rooms regularly and was given a half-hearted apology. I was also told all the other daycares in Alexandria allow for the dogs to pee inside based on the lack of space, but this is the first time I have ever heard of a daycare doing this intentionally. The lack of transparency in telling us that they would be going to the bathroom indoors, along with the lack of ownership in now creating a problem we have to train out of our dog means we are not planning on boarding our dog here ever again nor will we be using this daycare. read more

Used to be great. Not anymore. I've had two dogs come out with kennel cough. Both were compliant with vaccines. Now my Mastiff has pneumonia from kennel cough. 2500 dollars worth of treatment and we still aren't sure he'll survive it. Do not take your babies here. Also noticed other things: no more report cards for your pups. Too many dogs to attendants. The smell!! The smell of my babies when I picked them up. Cameras often times do not work. No more Dogtopia for my babies. read more

I will never bring my dog back here. Not only did they not tell me about the ridiculous price increase prior to drop off on Dec 24th (leaving me no option but to pay 25% more per day because they want me to fund their employee Christmas bonus, which I don't mind paying people for working on the holiday but they didn't even take good care of my dog) but they took really poor care of my dog Willoughby. He was a healthy 4 year old Corgi and is now very sick with kennel cough. So glad I paid over $400 for 3 nights of boarding while I was out of town for the holidays and now spending hundreds more on veterinary care for my baby. And yes my dog was properly vaccinated against kennel cough, however they probably didn't check that the dogs he was around wasn't sick. read more

Disappointing customer service! We own that we completely put the date wrong in the calender and missed a grooming appointment. We were fine being charged for it. Our plan was to double tip next appt. to make up for it as well. We were informed, after a year of patronage, that our dogs were not welcome for future grooming. We never missed a boarding appt., however, the next one we had scheduled was cancelled too... without calling me. Of course we have left over day care appointments that we will never use because I will never trust my pets with them moving forward. Thankfully we have found other wonderful options. Beware! read more

I am absolutely furious! My sweet puppy was supposed to be in a room with the other puppies and she was put into the room with the big adult dogs that were biting and hanging from her neck! I was not able to view the cameras for most of the day until I was going to pick her up in the afternoon and I was shocked at what I saw. How completely irresponsible. My dog is traumatized and soaking wet with slobber. We will not be back to this terrible disorganized place that have poor communication, ill working cameras, and overcrowded rooms. read more

I wanted to like this location due to the staff but bottom line they don't have enough people and it's to the detriment of the dog's safety and location cleanliness. There were several events I tried to look past. 1. One of my dogs ended up getting a huge, fleshy gash in his cheek while baording. About half an inch from his eye. They didn't know how it happened because they have one handler for like 20 dogs. 2. Every time I'd pick them up from daycare, they'd smell of urine. This is because they have WAY too many dogs packed in a little room. 3. They are very bad at reading notes. My dogs need to be put in the boarding kennels together due to anxiety, I'd reiterated this several times and even signed paperwork. I found out halfway through a long board, they'd ignored my notes. I only noticed due to my dog completely balling up in the corner for several days and had to bring it to their attention. She ended up losing a ton of weight and it made her anxiety worse. 4. During another board, my other dog got pink eye and coccidia. With this it's obvious they aren't on par with sanitation (and resulted in below). I had a membership and assumed with them stating I couldn't bring them into daycare without negative stool, they'd be pausing my payments... they didn't and they didn't inform me otherwise. I found out a month later they were still charging me membership fees even though I was told I couldn't bring them in and I'd asked to pause my membership. They didn't inform me of any cancellation policy and trying to get in contact was like pulling teeth. I ended up having to dispute the charges as they didn't return my messages. Overall, the staff is nice but I don't recommend. read more

My uber-enthusiastic Maltese mix Rosie has been a delighted Dogtopian for several months. I researched my local doggie daycare options & was most impressed that Dogtopia pre-screens canine candidates for temperament & socialization by watching them interact with a series of pooches with different personalities. In daycare, they're grouped by size & temperament. Rosie joined the other largely Generic Small White Dogs in the "Toy Box" playroom. Full day Care is broken up with doggie nap time around mid-day. Coolest: being able to spy on the play & sniff action via the live cams & access on the Dogtopia app. Kinda hard to explain to anyone nearby if you start laughing at the dog play, but that's Dogtopia! read more

Dogtopia - Playing in the Toy Box - Pet Sitting Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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I was going on vacation for spring break, and most dog boarding places had already been booked. I was leery of boarding my dog here since it was the only location available within miles (if it was good, it'd be booked too, right?). Since it was my only option, I proceeded. The meet and greet went fine - the staff seemed friendly and the place seemed clean (I only saw the front lobby and a side 'spa' room). So, I felt a little more comfortable taking my dog there for the week. After a few days on vacation, I called to check in on my dog. They said 'oh, we've been sending you texts.' I never received a text... turns out they were texting the wrong # (my # was correctly on file). OK, honest mistake... but, they told me my dog was finding quiet spots to hang out with one other dog during the play periods. That is not like him... he's very playful and LOVES other dogs... constantly chasing and being chased when around others. Something seemed off by that text, and I mentioned that, but they never addressed it. When it was time to pick him up, they informed me that during his nail clipping they went too far down and drew blood. I asked if the bleeding was taken care of, and they said yes. When I finally saw him, he looked very skinny. I had just spent a good 8 months getting him to a normal weight (I adopted August '21 and he was very malnourished from living on the streets). When I got him in the car, I noticed blood all over from not only the nail they cut too short but also his tail. He's a strong/hard wagger, and I'm assuming he was in a very tight crate to cause the 'happy tail.' When I finally got him home I weighed him right away. Sure enough, 5 pounds lost in a little less than a week! Not only that, he's seems way more shy and energy levels are very down from his usual. I can only assume they forgot to feed him many times during his stay. Much like many of the recent reviews of this place, I'd steer clear! I have read that some dogs developed kennel cough during their stay here, so I'm hoping he does not get that since I picked him up Monday and it's now only Wednesday. I will cancel my next vacation if this place is the only option again... read more

My wife and I have a 3 year old Golden Retriever that was the runt of her litter. She absolutely loves people, but has no interest in other dogs, and is sometimes nervous/anxious around them, and tries to stay away. In the past when my wife and I have both had to travel, we have been able to have friends watch her. We don't like to kennel her due to her personality, but there have been a few times in the past when we have had to due to friends not being available. She has always been fine; we just know it's not her favorite. We recently moved to Alexandria, and wanted to find a new kennel in case one of these scenarios came up again. We found Dogtopia, and after browsing their website we saw that a meet and greet was needed before she was admitted. We wanted to knock this out, so we scheduled it 7/28/22. I took her there and received a tour of the facility, and despite the smell of urine (lots of dogs, only so much you can do), was satisfied that she would be in good hands - especially when I learned that the rooms were separated by size/personality, and there was a "Lounge" room for calmer dogs. I was then informed that she would need to stay for 3 days of daycare before being accepted for boarding, in order for her to adjust and understand that we were coming back for her. I was also told several things about making sure she doesn't drink a ton of water immediately upon coming home, as it could distend her stomach, and that "we promise they're drinking water, sometimes dogs just act like this when they come home" (paraphrased). These statements/requirements left a good impression for me, as it seemed as though the safety of the dogs was a top priority. I wanted to knock out the 3 days of daycare to get them out of the way so that she would be eligible for boarding if anything popped up, so I scheduled them over the next few days - 7/29/22, 7/31/22, and 8/1/22. She went in with a wagging tail, and when we picked her up each time, she was absolutely covered in spit. After my wife spoke with someone at the front desk, she was informed that it was her own drool. This has never happened before, so after some quick googling it seemed to be a sign of anxiety. I felt bad for her, and decided that we would look into other kennels. Unfortunately, a few weeks later some sudden work travel popped up, and both my wife and I were out of town. Friends couldn't watch her, and other kennels were either booked or had meet/greet requirements. Our only option was Dogtopia. Our dog was dropped off the evening of 8/14/22, and picked up on 8/16/22. When dropping her off, my wife asked them to text her if anything was amiss, highlighting that she often gets stressed. They assured her she would, and the next morning (8/15/22) she received a text: "Good morning! [Dog] has been enjoying her time this morning Snuggled up in a corner catching up on some Zzz's". This was the only communication we received from them, and led us to believe she was in good hands. When my wife went to pick her up the next evening (8/16/22), she was informed by the person at the front desk that "She did not eat this evening." My wife asked if she ate that morning, and she flipped through a log book, and informed her that she did not - and then said "Actually, she didn't eat the entire time she was here." This was incredibly upsetting to say the least - and not typical of our dog - and my wife asked to speak to a manager. The manager apologized, and stated that they have processes in place to make sure that this doesn't happen, and hinted blame at someone who had recently started. They gave us a full refund. My wife later received a call after bringing her home stating "Not that it makes a difference, but she did actually eat the Monday morning" (8/15/22). My questions: - Why was the pattern of not eating not noticed, if it was written down in a log book? What processes failed? - Why were neither of us informed about this, especially as we asked to be notified of any issues? - Did she even drink any water the entire time she was there? How would you know? read more

I took my puppy for boarding for 1 week. I said clairly the specifications on what is the treatment with him.... long story short as soon as I picked him up he was scared, not happy at all and not to mention that he was sick with a an stomach infection. Also, they have a "video camera on line" that you can see with their app. The app was showing prerecorded videos. The place they didn't tell me anything and neither I couldn't see on the cameras, but my 6month old puppy came home with diarrhea. The same day I had to take him to the hospital.. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS PLEACE AT ALL! read more

Dogtopia has the responsibility to notify their customers of any changes to the facility. The outdoor area has been closed for several weeks with no estimated plan of completion. To date Customers are not aware of this information. Some might feel comfortable with their pet having no other choice but to deficate and urinate in the playroom and also stay inside the entire day. I am not! I purchase packages for the benefit of my pet being taken Outside every few hours. I am truly disappointed that I was not informed. read more

For anyone reading this, please read the negative reviews and take them seriously. Do not take your dog to this location.This is the second time we have utilized the services at this location. On our first experience, one of our dogs came home with a severe case of kennel cough. Apparently this is common at this location (read the other reviews), so please keep this in mind. But, I guess it happens so we gave them another shot. With today's experience, we will never consider taking our dogs back to this location. We were watching the webcam and noticed one of the handlers(?) leashing one of our dogs in the middle of a busy room. While on the leash, dogs were still coming up to him and mounting him. Dogs 101 tells us this is a terrible idea and creates fear, anxiety, and aggressive behavior in dogs (a quick google search would confirm), and this explains why he was trying to slip the leash and getting the leash wrapped around his neck. Even with all this happening, the handler was still pulling him forward with the leash. This is a totally unacceptable way to handle a dog and can also be potentially lethal. Bringing this to the attention of the "manager", the only response we get is this is what they are taught by corporate. Based on the manager's story, our dog had bitten the handler, and this is protocol to "calm down" the dog. Let me be clear, it is entirely possible our dog tried to nip at the handler, especially if the handler tried to grab him by his collar to move him into a crate. He can be an anxious dog especially if put in certain fearful situations. One of those situations is if he is being rushed by other dogs, and he is just trying to defend himself to get away, which includes typical dog signaling behavior that appears to us as aggressive. My guess is this is exactly what happened, but with one staff member watching more than 20 dogs at a time, there is no way they can account for these nuances in real time. To the last point, this location is severely understaffed with one person allocated to a room of at least 20 dogs. There is no plausible way, even with the most experienced dog trainer, a single person could control and manage a room with this many dogs. All this aside, the moral of the story is that leashing a dog in this kind of environment is dangerous to the dog, other dogs, and employees. The manager's behavior to simply brush our concerns with a cavalier attitude is simply unprofessional. Also, I should mention we were put on hold for 30 minutes when trying to get to the bottom of what happened. We tried calling back 5 times and leaving messages from the same number, but no answer. Interestingly, we called from a different number, and they picked up immediately. For more, see other reviews about this. The manager will probably respond to this review and say that I was rude to her and the staff when I came to pick up the dogs. Indeed, I was absolutely rude to her, especially given the way they treated my dog and how she dismissed my concerns about this behavior. Let me be clear, I did not involve any of the other staff. Updated this post with a picture taken from our dog after getting him back. He was there for 3 hours, and it appears he has come home with an injury. Totally clear now this place has little to no control over the rooms. When the one staff member is busy cleaning up, how can they watch a room full of 20+ dogs? Nonsense. read more

Liked it fine and the people seem nice, but they have a rediculous 5 day notice requirement which seems reasonable, except that its not 5 days from your daycare date appointment (mine was WED) but FROM SUNDAY so 5 days is really 9 days. So I lose $41 dollars on a plan that saves me $4 a visit. No worries. My advice: Do not get on a plan. read more

I knew there was something off about this particular location (Alexandria), as I expressed this to my husband multiple times...Imagine dropping your dog off at the daycare for the day; only for them to bring you the wrong dog! That tells me several things: you've not taken the time to get to know an amazing dog who is overcoming abandonment issues and battles with separation anxiety...Our boy will be transferring back to the Fullerton Rd. location...this was his 3rd and last day. read more

Please heed my warning. I've taken my dog there for a bit, I've seen how they usually don't care via camera but my dog always smell like urine when I pick him up. Additionally, I'm never advised of if he ate his food or anything, I get the staff is busy but it seems like they're just trying to get us in and out. Lastly, my dog just got an eye infection from here, my dog doesn't hang with any other dogs and the vet said this is something contagious he suspects came from the daycare. Please look elsewhere! Or another Dogtopia. read more

We take Sophie here when we go on trips. Wouldn't have worked with our last doggie who was not too sociable with other dogs. Perfect for Sophie. When she had a medical issue, the staff took her to the vet a block away. They found an alternative when her dog food ran out. Not cheap, but worth it. read more

Dogtopia - Sophie - Pet Sitting Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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We have worked with Dogtopia in Woodbridge for almost 5 years with no concerns. The Alexandria office received an ema with my issue. I received a message in return asking me to call the manager. After 3 attempts with no response back or any show of concern or repair - we will no longer be using their services. read more

I just started taking my dogs here for doggie daycare,and so far so good! I love the webcams they have so that I can stalk my pets. The staff that I have interacted with thus far has been very nice, courteous, and flexible with my needs. I also love that my pets come home worn out from a day of playing. I like that the. Dogs are paired based on size and demeanor. They have three play areas for dogs, and typically mine go between the toy box and the lounge to play. They offer a two-hour nap midday and then can play until close time (7pm). I did not rate this business higher for several reasons. One being that I didn't like having to pay a consult fee for a 5-minute evaluation per dog. Additionally, it's hard for me to see the webcams on my Mac computer, so I had to download an app that costs $4.99 to be able to use the webcam service. I don't like how the play areas are blocked off from owners and how the cameras go down when the pets are fed or have snack time. But other than that, I am happy with this company thus far, read more

I was taking my puppy here to get her acclimated to being boarded. As I was getting ready to go out of town for the weekend and I did not want to bring my puppy along. I took her about three times to daycare (to work her up to boarding) before she got kennel cough. My dog has never had kennel cough and is up to date on shots. This is my first dog and at first I thought she was just having allergies until I YouTubed what kennel cough sounded like. Needless to say I cancelled the boarding and she hasn't been back. They only got two stars from me because the staff seems nice. read more

In the past year, we have left our dog, Echo, with Dogtopia Alexandria about 4 or 5 times. The first three times we left him there we had positive experiences, it was great being able to watch him on the webcam and see the staff engage with him. Every time we picked him up he seemed fine and happy... Our final time leaving him there (August 23rd - 26th) we immediately felt worried before even leaving for the weekend. My husband, Matt, went inside to drop the dog off like he always does and instead of being greeted by the staff who usually knows Echo by name, the staff was extremely rude and had no idea who Echo was even after telling them his name time after time. Matt and Echo stood there in the reception area for 45 minutes as they asked Matt every question about Echo in the world (which they normally have on record). We were shocked and getting very frustrated because our poor high anxiety dog had to stand there for 45 minutes all nervous because of the incompetence of the staff. All times in the past we NEVER had this issue, they would usually pull him up and record his check-in time into their system AND what was pissing us off worse was that the girl who was helping us check-in, her name was Meghan, was not listening to a word we were saying and seemed to be drunk or something, because we kept telling her Echo was a boy and she literally kept referring to him as a girl when we corrected her time after time after time. She kept asking us for his paperwork which should've been in their system, so we had to go out of our way to call around to our vets and have them send everything over - normally this would be a quick call but we moved so we have to call like 3 different vets from the past year when we already went through this process. It was a nightmare. So we finally got everything to them and left to get on our way. We're literally in the car almost out of DC at this point, and we get a call from Meghan - she goes "hi, we can't seem to find Echo's paperwork for his vaccine..." We couldn't believe it. We respond to her and say that we literally just gave them everything and she still couldn't find it. She then proceeds to tell us that if they can't find it they cannot take Echo for the weekend (mind you, we were already an hour away and just moved so legit have no one who could even pick him up at this point)... THEY FINALLY find what they were looking for after I sent them 10 different emails from our vet. SO this experience alone turned us off to Dogtopia and made us question what was going on there based on how unorganized Meghan was! THEN - After the weekend is over, and my husband goes to pick up Echo, he walks in and a guy brings Echo out to the reception area. Echo gets so excited to see my husband and tried to run to him, instead of letting that happen, this JERK pulls Echo's leash back almost breaking his neck in half. Then my husband asks how Echo did, and they said he did fine and ate and that everything was good - they hand us Echo's bag and we leave. Matt is in the car and the poor dog literally throws up all over the place. We get home and I look in Echo's bag and find that 3 of Echo's toys are missing (bone, Ice cream cone toy, and a soft bone). Not only is our dog just beginning to get sick BUT now they legit took his toys? OR weren't organized enough to put them back in his bag! Upon finding that his toys were missing I looked in his bag and almost all of his food was still there, did they not feed him I think?! My husband and I walk upstairs in our home to chat about everything as Echo is downstairs laying down. We walk back downstairs to find complete horror! Our poor dog was literally bleeding from his back end all over the place. Our first floor was covered in dog feces mixed with blood. Matt scoops Echo up and rushes him to the animal hospital - Hayfield Animal Hospital which was literally a GODSEND! After putting Echo on multiple medications throughout the week we find out that he contracted a parasite from Dogtopia! The dog was sick for 3 weeks! I had to have Stanley Steemer come to clean my carpet and rug (because the poor thing was bleeding more than once over the course of 2 weeks) We even heard another man at Hayfield Animal Hospital mention Dogtopia as he brought his dog there. WE ARE NOW PISSED. We call Dogtopia over and over again asking about his eating record for the weekend and THEY DID NOT HAVE IT, they didn't have any records! I asked about his lost toys and it took them days and days to find them. I never went back to get them because I don't know if they're contaminated with whatever the poor dog got from this place. My husband goes back in and says listen, our dog has been sick for 3 weeks now and he 100% got something from this place, what can you do for us and their response was "PROVE IT" - needless to say we will never bring him back here again. AND Echo got another infection after the parisite, he was sick for a month, which all began at DT. read more

Dogtopia - NSFW - my poor dog after staying at Dogtopia Alexandria - Pet Sitting Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

Dogtopia has been so wonderful to my dog, and I can't recommend them enough. My pup loves coming here. The staff are so friendly and attentive. I started bringing Bella here when she was a young puppy and was terrified of other dogs. The staff were so loving to her and really helped her adjust. They alway took time to hold and comfort her. When she was very scared, one staff member even carried her around when he had to pick up after other dogs. It always comforted me to know she was getting such great care and that I could check in on her on the webcams. Now she excitedly greets every staff member and happily plays with other dogs. Bella is a very small dog, but I always feel like she is very safe when she is there. I also love toybox tuesdays when she gets to play with other little dogs. Booking daycare is incredibly convenient with the ability to text what you need. The staff may seem busy during drop off or pick up, but it's very clear that they are just working very hard to keep all the dogs safe. Whenever I have had questions, they have always taken the time to talk to me. All you have to do is speak up and they will take the time to go over anything. read more

I love this place! Safety is number one with them and they treat and love my dogs as their own. My dogs and I have been a part of the Dogtopia of Alexandria family for many years and I feel completely comfortable leaving my fur babies in their care. The staff is loving and friendly and I would never take my kids anywhere else. They always come home happy, healthy, tired (thank you), clean and can't wait to return. I do have to say, an experience I witnessed in their lobby today prompted me to express my undying love and gratitude for all of the hard work and dedication the Dogtopia team puts in. I really don't know how they do it! The experience I'm referring to is the review left by Chris B., and...when he says he was rude, that is quite the understatement. His insane outburst has not left my mind. I was actually in the lobby picking up my pups when he barged in the building. He was threatening and attempting to intimidate the front desk attendant and the manager (yes both of them) as the rest of the team and pet parents watched in horror. He angrily leaned towards the counter in a very aggressive manner, yelling and hurling cuss words to the point he was asked to leave or the police were going to be called. He was a complete nut case. As I listened to him yelling at everyone (his significant other sat on the couch clearly embarrassed by his behavior) he did not care that his dog repeatedly bit the staff, showed no concern for their well-being, at all. Didn't even ask if they were ok. If my dog bit someone for attempting to put a leash on them or guide them around the room, I would feel horrible. He exclaimed that he knew his dog was aggressive and would probably bite if someone tried to guide him by his collar- why would you knowingly put your dog in a situation where they were so fearful that they would attack the people caring for them? Makes no sense. He was a first class a-hole. The Dogtopia team has surely worked with thousands of dogs and know dog behavior well. We love them- thank you team Dogtopia of Alexandria, for all that you do. Your regulars and parents that have been with you for over a decade, know the love you show and the unwavering care that you give. You are essential to our family and we couldn't love or appreciate you more! read more

Do not board your dogs here. We took our two labs to Dogtopia for the 4th of July weekend. I brought them in for their meet and greet a few days before boarding, where I had a weird encounter with one of the staff members. I was interacting with one staff member for at least 30-40 minutes when they brought our dogs into the rooms to do their meet and greet. They both passed and I was brought to the front desk to pay for the visit and to schedule boarding. During the transaction, a different staff member was having me pay - right in the middle of me paying and scheduling, she had to "excuse herself for a minute" and she displayed odd body language and tone of voice. I asked the guy I was dealing with previously, "is everything ok" - thinking there was something off about boarding or our dogs... he followed her into a hall where I overheard her scolding him and saying something along the lines of "well you are going to have to tell them, not me". I couldn't help but think she might have been talking about me or my dogs, as I was the only person interacting with this guy she was scolding for the last 30-40 minutes, and she felt the need to excuse herself mid-transaction. I brushed it off but left Dogtopia with a weird feeling. Boarding day comes, I check them in and they are good to go. While they were there, I was never told that the cameras are shut off random times of the day. I was informed via text that they were "off until 8am and between 12pm-5pm". This was never right, they were on and off at weird times throughout the day. When they were on, I saw them constantly mopping up urine and picking up feces. I even caught a moment where MY dog was drinking out of the MOP BUCKET, with the "coach" just standing there not doing a thing! A few minutes later, I see her filling up the bowls of water and ALL the dogs came rushing to it as if they had not had water all day - including my pup, no wonder she was drinking out of the mop bucket?? I arrive to pick them up, feeling terrible that they were there to begin with, just having bad feelings the whole time. I arrived and just had to ask the gentlemen in the front, "do they ever get let out to go to the bathroom? Like outside? I watched the dogs pee and poop in the room the whole time", he replied "yes we have astro-turf. Did you notice the cameras were off some parts of the day? Well yeah that's where there were". First off - rude. Secondly, he added "if they have to go they have to go". I'm not sure about other dogs but I know that if my dogs are let out an appropriate amount of times, they do NOT go to the bathroom INSIDE. Fast forward a few days and my older dog has to be brought to the vet for an eye infection. Fast forward 8 days, to today, and we wake up and my younger dog is non-stop gagging/coughing. We bring her to the vet to find out she has BORDETLLA/KENNEL COUGH. The incubation period for this is 7-10 DAYS - perfect timing from boarding. Also, she is vaccinated. Since we've been home, we have not gone anywhere, not interacted with any other dogs and have stayed home in our backyard. My vet asked me to call Dogtopia to let them know that she likely contracted this at boarding and that they should expect more calls to come in from other dog moms/dads. Well, the manager was just rude (similar to the front desk employee I interacted with the first day) and got defensive and kept saying she probably didn't get it there. We were just calling to inform you not to blame you but thanks for being rude! Anyway, we won't be back. read more

*Dog Owners Beware.* We have utilized Dogtopia's services a few times now and unfortunately, I wish there was an option for zero stars. Each time our dog has stayed there, he has come home with kennel cough. While we understand that this can be common in environments like Dogtopia (no windows, low ventilation and 30-40 dogs per one attendant), our last experience was simply horrible. Our dog went in for a 4 day, 3 night boarding stay at Dogtopia. We recently had him vetted and he was 95-97lbs, healthy and his normal energetic self. However, when we went to pick him up, he was severely dehydrated, anxious beyond belief and looked incredibly unhealthy. Not to mention, they lost his bed and toys without any type of apology or ownership. The worst part though is right after getting him home, our dog started to collapse and heave, terrifying us. We immediately rushed him to the vet and after several tests, learned he had lost 10 lbs, was severely dehydrated and contracted bacterial pneumonia. We have been trying for days to get in contact with the GM, Marla, who has not returned our calls. Each time I've also called the facility to check on the status of our bed, they tell me they'll check and call back - I've yet to receive an update. I understand fully that when you only have one attendant and 40 dogs, it's hard to keep track but his condition was deplorable upon picking him up and now we incurred $1000 in veterinary bills. We try to check the cameras every hour but they are completely unreliable and are always out. When we inquired about this upon pickup, they let us know the kennel flooded and turned off the cameras. Maybe that's why my dog is so sick and our items are gone. For the price, it is way too high for the lack of attention provided and they are way too short staffed to provide care for dogs that we are entrusting them with. Please heed the negative reviews - they are indeed accurate. You would be better suited taking your pups elsewhere. read more

Went in for our evaluation. Not only was our evaluation not on the calendar, but Marla noticed that someone else did in fact schedule us and failed to apologize when we didn't receive a confirmation email. For the remainder of the hour we spent there, Marla was clearly irritated that she had to do an evaluation. She then charged us $15 and we didn't even get a tour of the facility because it was "pee" time?! She said we needed to come back next weekend for a tour. While we were there, we noticed two other people coming to pick up their dogs - one couple was confused as to why they didn't get a notification text when their dog was ready to be picked up. Another woman was told that her dog didn't get to sleep in his own crate because there weren't any available - the staff didn't apologize for that either! Our dog is slow to warm up, extremely sweet, and has gotten great reviews at Doozy Dog in DC multiple times. After literally a 3 minute meet and greet, she claims our dog needs to come back for a trial day before staying over night because he hesitated when other big dogs came up to greet him. Seems like just a way for them to squeeze more cash out of us. Based on our first interaction there, we will not be returning. If the staff can't show us basic customer service, it's unlikely they will treat our dog well. read more

We've taken out dog to another location for nearly 10 years even after moving several times. However, or dog no longer was happy to go inside...until we arrived at this location! After 2 visits, our dog was back to being excited about going! It's remarkable seeing how our dog returned to her normal self and loved going back Watch the webcams and you'll see a loving, attentive staff. read more

I am extremely disappointed in this facility! My boyfriend and I took our 5 month old puppy here to get her socializing with other dogs. The first two times we took her were positive experiences-- the staff communicated all of the information with us and even gave us a free day for daycare because of a minor mistake on their end. However, our third trip showed this facility their true colors. A little background-- our puppy is fully vaccinated and healthy as healthy can be. We don't have another dog in our home and Dogtopia is the other place where she has any interactions with other dogs (we haven't taken her to a dog park or anything). So on this day, we enrolled our pup for half-day daycare so she could play and have fun with other dogs and we could get some stuff done around our house. I was constantly looking at the web cams to see how she was doing and it seemed pretty chaotic in the room-- dogs getting humped and chased with little prevention from the staff. I was disturbed by what I was seeing so I went in earlier to pick up my puppy. When I went in, the woman at the desk was not friendly and seemed to be in a rush for us to get out. Fast forward to a few days later.....our pup threw up 10 times in one day and has consistent diarrhea. Long story short, we find out that not only does she have parasites but she ALSO has kennel cough. We were horrified and our poor baby was so sick. As a pet owner, I felt like it was my responsibility to report this to Dogtopia since this is the last (and only) place where she had any interaction with other dogs. When I called Dogtopia to report it, the receptionist told me there wasn't a manager in the building and she will pass on my message-- about 15 minutes later I get a call back from a manager. When I told her about Nala's diagnosis and that it could only trace back to her business, she told me that she could've gotten parasites AND kennel cough from just going on a walk or smelling another dog's feces. The manager wouldn't even consider the fact that our dog could have gotten sick from their daycare and just told me she would call me to check-in on Nala in a few days. A few days later they called back to check-in on our girl and she wasn't getting any better. I was getting more and more frustrated with Dogtopia because they were wasting my time by just checking in and not taking (or even considering) the blame. After she asked me how Nala was doing, I asked to make sure that they shut down for a day to clean the whole facility and report a case of kennel cough to the other families. The manager's response was, "we cleaned the rooms every night". That's it. That's all I got. From her response, I told her to take our card off file because we will never be going back again. Dogtopia of Alexandria is irresponsible and unkempt. I will never recommend this facility to a pet owner!! read more

I brought my dog here for an initial evaluation when I moved into the area last month. While I was impressed with the cleanliness of their facility, I was not at all impressed by my interactions with the manager, Marla, or what the evaluation itself entailed. I have been taking my dog to daycare for a year. Throughout that time, he's been to two different daycares and had nothing but glowing reviews from staff. Imagine my surprise when, at the conclusion of my evaluation, Marla informed me that my dog would only be allowed on a contingent basis because he exhibited "extremely frightened and potentially aggressive behavior" during the introduction to other dogs. This didn't sound characteristic of my dog at all, but when Marla divulged further details of their evaluation process, I was flabbergasted. Apparently, during the evaluation, your dog will be introduced to random dogs one-by-one in a small, enclosed, windowless room. Now, I don't claim to be an expert in canine behavior, but something tells me that many, if not most, dogs would be at least a little uncomfortable in this high-stress situation. For comparison, a competitor (who I now use for daycare) introduced my dog to the other dogs in the open daycare space. Unsurprisingly, he warmed up to the other dogs and staff quickly and was invited with open arms. In addition to this bizarre practice, I was really not comfortable with Dogtopia's stance on cages. For two hours each day (I believe between 12 and 2), the dogs go in cages for some "decompression time." I personally don't put my dog in a cage, and I don't really love the idea of paying the same daily price as totally cage-free daycare to have my dog chill in a box for two hours. Knowing that my dog doesn't like cages, I asked what would happen if he seemed uncomfortable or couldn't handle being in the cage. Luckily, the folks at Dogtopia generously offered to "upgrade" him to a glass box for an additional fee. And speaking of fees, if you need to get your dog during the cage hours, there's an extra fee for that too. Dogtopia claims it's to disincentivize disrupting the dogs, but the hours strangely coincide with lunch. Just saying. Last but not least, from the second I met Marla, she was telling me how to take care of my dog properly. Don't feed him for x hours after you pick him up, use this bowl, dogs like this, dogs think like this. I appreciate that she's around dogs a lot, but it came on way too strong. It also made me uncomfortable that she readily explained to me how she reports 1-star reviews on this page because apparently most people leaving bad reviews work for competitors out to get her or aren't even her customers. So let me be clear: I patronized this business when I paid $15 for an evaluation. I do not work for Dogtopia's competitors. And this is my honest opinion. This place may work for some, but it didn't work for me. read more

We decided to board our dog here for vacation. We did the evaluation and it went well although waiting to start for 30 minutes after being told to arrive. They offered a great deal which was 3 play sessions for the price of 1 if we signed up that day. We did and took her to play the next day. We went back 10 days later and when I went to leave, we were charged because the 3 sessions expire 7 days after the eval. They apologized for not informing us and said they would get with the staff to remind them of this so it doesn't happen again. They charged us $33 for the day and we essentially lost the 3rd session. We then did drop off for vacation and things went well. When we went to pick up, the price was $2 more per day because half way through her stay, they raised prices and charged us the higher amount for the entire stay. We got home and noticed that her sleeping blanket had marker on it with her name and the word Gym. Each letter is about 3" so takes up about 20% of the blanket. We washed it and it didnt come off. I called and was told they use permanent marker so they know who it belongs to and apologized for ruining her blanket. Lots of 'Im sorry' out of this place. I strongly recommend any other place. They seem overwhelmed and half the time we called, they didn't answer or would put you on hold for over 5 minutes. This is the 3rd time she has been boarded, the first with Dogtopia and the first time she came home with a cough. This issue probably has nothing to do with the staff at Dogtopia but worth the note. Try somewhere else or regret it like I did. read more

I've boarded my dog at Dogtopia several times and each time I made sure to consult the worker at the front desk about my dogs eating schedule. He has a stomach condition in which he needs to eat a small meal as late in the evening/night as possible so that he doesn't throw up blood in the morning. Each time I dropped him off for boarding, the worker at the front took down notes and said okay great thanks, we will take care of it. The last time I took my dog, the worker at the front said it's not possible to give him a meal at an irregular time. I stated that he's been boarded several times here and each time the team said it was no problem. She then said that wasn't possible because they have a checklist for meals and that there was no way to input an additional night meal. I then asked if that means that he hasn't been getting the evening/night meal each time I've boarded him there, and she said yes and then recommended that we board my dog somewhere else if he has "special needs". So what I learned from this is that my dog has not been getting the proper care for a MEDICAL CONDITION he has, and that instead Dogtopia has been lying to me each time I would board him, putting his health in jeopardy and lying to me. read more

We tried multiple kennels for our high strung pup and Dogtopia is the only way to go. They care about the dogs, make sure they all have a pleasant stay based on their individual characteristics and our god always comes home happy and well fed. The staff is friendly, flexible and alway happy to help. Highly recommended. read more

Now if only my dog would actually play.... The service is friendly and the facility is clean. I just wish they had shown me the actual rooms when I went in for the evaluation. They basically showed me the room through the webcams, but I guess I understand that if people were coming in and out for tours it would get the dogs all rowdy. I took my pug, Raider, a handful of times (bought a package of 5 days $160, $32/day). And did not lift a finger at work any of those days... oh wait yes I did.. to click the "refresh" on the webcam at my computer. It was pretty funny watching my dog just sit there (I knew this before signing him up for daycare) and occasionally move around. He would come home tired from doing what I can't tell you, but did seem to enjoy it. I am a young working professional with student loans and a job that doesn't pay enough, so I decided to leave my lazy dog at home and save the money. But I would recommend Dogtopia to a person that had a high energy social dog. read more

I boarded my dog here this past weekend, great experience! I love being able to check in during the day on the webcams. Staff is friendly and professional. Facilities are clean and organized. I also scheduled my dog to get a bath before I picked her up. She came home happy, healthy, and best of all...tired! read more

We took our German Shepherd pup here for the required evaluation prior to starting daycare. The woman who conducted the eval was short and snippy with us and then told us our puppy has a short attention span. Uh, hello he's 9 weeks old what do you expect? She took him back into a room to meet other dogs but we were not allowed to come or to watch. Our pup returned to us unscathed but it would've been nice to observe his first interaction with other dogs. The woman concluded the eval explaining to us that GSDs are notoriously neurotic. Hmmm...that's a new one. There was a guy working there that told us he like "play rough" with the dogs. No thanks. Check our Your Dog's Best Friend on route 1, much better operation. read more

We have a 10 month old Beabull, Bear, who has spent 3 times at dogtopia. I will never take him back. We were initially drawn to this dog care facility because of the staff and the fact that we could watch the cameras regularly. The most recent time I picked him up he had abrasions on his chest due to the rope harness they kept on him for two days, and his cherry eye came out. This normally wouldn't phase us, however they were instructed to contact us with any cherry eye issues and never did. I highly suggest not taking your baby here. We were extremely disappointed and upset, and have the vet bills to prove everything. read more

For pet owners who really believe in their hearts that their furry ones are just little adopted children, you needn't look any further for a place that will take care of your baby. Let's not even talk about the dog, I - - yes, I get separation anxiety. Maybe because I'm going through a little something in my life, it's hard to have Kit away from me. I was staying with friends close to the holidays and they have 2 brand new baby kittens, so I couldn't bring my dog with me. Dogtopia is a brightly decorated and friendly looking space. It really does look like a daycare. They have all kinds of neat treats and items to make life with fido easier. I found the doggy deserts to be quite novel. Not to mention the flyers they have up front for professional pet photography. So cute! I think the thing that eased my mind the most was the presence of a chill room where the dogs can just sit and watch TV with the humans. When the dogs get too tired, are just too old to play or need some time to relax, they can do what they do best at home and hang out on the couch. It's also really cool to be able to hop on the internet and try to track down your furry one on the web cams. They have a couple of play rooms that separate the larger breeds from the smaller breeds. If you bring your dog in, you'll notice an odd mix of a large dog or two who feel more comfortable with smaller breeds, etc. I loved that when I came by to visit Kit after her first day that they had a little "First Day" card for how she was and what she did during the day. She played with the "pack leaders" aka the people that work there. It's the only place that I have ever brought Kit that she has actually led me back to after I have taken her for a visit to walk. That really surprised me. That's how I know Dogtopia deserves 5 stars in her book. read more

I really like this place, for a few reasons. 1) The webcams are fun. I love to check up on my dog a couple times a day while I'm at work 2) The people are wonderful. They know my dog by name (even though she only comes once every week or two) 3) My dog is excited to go (though she's excited to drive around the block and go to the vet too, so that may not be saying a whole lot!) 4) They have a tiny little area out back that they take the dogs for potty breaks. It made me feel better that they didn't go indoors, so that she wouldn't pick up any bad habits to bring home. The only reason I didn't give the place 5 stars is that they do something called "nap time", where they crate all the dogs for an hour or two each day. This makes no sense to me...when my dog is tired, she'll lie down and rest until she's ready to play again. She doesn't need to be caged. My only thought is that it's so the staff can relax and eat lunch. I'd rather they rotated lunch breaks so the dogs could remain out, like a couple of the other day cares in the area do. read more