Pup N Iron Canine Fitness & Learning Center

There is a great article online about choosing a dog daycare by Dr. Patricia McConnell. Pup ‘N Iron references it on their website and I found it VERY helpful in analyzing daycare after we started it. I suggest reading it. She reviews daycare based on «four things to consider when asking if your dog is right for a doggy day care. 1) Your Dog, 2) The Staff, 3) The Environment and 4) The Other Dogs». See more at:
YOUR DOG — this is a case by case basis. Our pup was a perfect candidate and the staff really liked having her.
THE STAFF– 2 Stars: I don’t believe there is a high enough ratio of staff to dogs and I don’t think they supervise playtime enough. There are several staff members at the facility at all times, but they aren’t taking care of the dogs. I also don’t believe the staff are educated enough on dog behavior and monitoring stress. The article above explains this point in much more depth and this is the MAIN REASON I think that Pup ‘N Iron falls short of a good daycare.
The author of the article says «I’d advise going to sit and watch for a few hours, without your dog. If you’re not blown away by the professionalism of the staff, I’d take a pass.» First, Pup ‘N Iron doesn’t even allow you to come watch, and second, i have absolutely NOT been blown away by any staff members.
Some of the staff (specifically one gal, Jackie) are very friendly and very knowledgeable. However, others lack social skills and aren’t friendly and quite a few employees don’t seem to know anything about dog behavior, training, etc. They appeared to be hired for their clean-​up skills only.
When you ask a question about daycare policies, practices, etc. you will get a different answer every time you ask a different person. This was concerning to us as new daycare clients. Their website has a lot of information, but there staff is NOT on the same page when it comes to common daycare FAQs. For example, one staff member said, feed your dog before daycare, another said don’t worry about feeding them so early, we can do it here. One staff member says you have to call 24 hours ahead to cancel, another said we could call the night before. I have several more examples but the point became clear quickly that not all staff know the policies or have the same opinion/​training about dog daycare.
THE ENVIRONMENT –3 Stars: Not great and not terrible. I was underwhelmed the first time I visited. It is literally just a warehouse room with a rubber floor that can be peed on. There wasn’t places for the dogs to hide or withdraw themselves from playing (this bothers me as dogs should have this in order to control their stress level.) Not a designated space or time for sleeping/​napping. You have to specifically request this. Nap time should be a given especially for young dogs. Also, i’m not convinced that potty breaks happen at a constant interval. A couple times we have picked up our pup and she has peed as soon as she got outside, as if she had been holding it all day.
THE OTHER DOGS– 5 Stars: This is one thing that Pup ‘N Iron absolutely does correctly. They have a pre-​screening process and they require a veterinarian health certification. I really REALLY appreciate these policies.
ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS/​REVIEW POINTS:
PRICE: We feel that the prices is very expensive and we aren’t 100% convinced it is worth our money. You are definitely paying the HIGH END of doggie daycare coming here. At $ 30 a day, it adds up quickly.
No doggie parent oversight: Having daycare on video is a common practice and NOT hard to set up (especially if you are charging a lot of money for daycare…) BUT they don’t do this. I believe that a good daycare should have nothing to hide and should be open to allowing customers to watch their activities.
Dropping off/​Picking up: You are never allowed into the daycare facility. You are kept outside for drop off and pick up. Someone comes out to pick up your dog from you and someone meets you outside and retrieves your dog at pick up. Hmmmm… I don’t like having this little access and view of the facility.
After significant thought, we have decided to stop Pup ‘N Iron and use an in-​home doggie daycare. It costs us half the price, less stress on our dog, great staff, clean facilities, etc.
If you are thinking that I am a crazy lady who is overprotective of my dog and overly harsh on my judgement/​review of the facility, well that’s okay. I love my dog like people love their children. I don’t believe my expectations are unrealistic and I don’t think my standards for reviewing the daycare are too harsh. I hope my review has helped you and feel free to ask any questions. I would be happy to answer. Like I said, my dogs mean the world to me and I’m happy to help anyone else who feels the same way. Best of luck.

My first issue with Pup N’ Iron was their complete lack of response to my phone calls. I was interested in CGC certification for my dog, but after probably five calls (different days, different times) with no answer, I gave up. Don’t they have a receptionist or any extra staff who can handle incoming calls? I wouldn’t want to drop my dog off here for care, knowing I couldn’t contact the facility in an emergency.
Since I couldn’t contact them via phone, I figured maybe I could drive there. It was extremely difficult to locate even with the address and GPS, and the signs are hard to see until you’re in their parking lot. I wasted a ridiculous amount of time driving around the area, looking at all of the poorly-​marked buildings.
When I finally made it to Pup N’ Iron, I brought my puppy. Normally he’s a pretty good little guy, but he has a lot of energy! He jumped out of the back seat of my car out of excitement and started frolicking around my car. I’m actively trying to catch my pup, who is dragging his leash behind him. By the time I had him in hand, an employee had popped out of the door to yell at me for «letting my dog run off leash». The dog wasn’t loose for more than 30 seconds. She wasn’t concerned with my dog’s safety, which could be understandable, but that there are «other dogs» in the area that he could harm. I was in the parking lot. With no other dogs around that I could see.
I agree, dogs shouldn’t be running off leash, but it was obvious this was an accident. No dog is perfect, and no human is either! I was able to grab hold of the leash again almost immediately. Was I supposed to chase my dog? Anyone who knows anything about dog behavior knows that’s a bad idea!
Thanks, but I think I’ll continue training my own dogs and caring for my multiple wonderful CGC-​certified dogs, without Pup N’ Iron.

I have now used this business for Therapy Dog and Canine Good Citizenship training. The Therapy Dog Education class was informative only. It did not allow any instruction with your dog, which would have been nice. The class did have other «certified» handlers do demonstrations for us with their dogs. I enjoyed that very much. I felt the course material was informative but the delivery of it was dry and monotone boring. The instructor did not appear enthusiastic in my opinion.
As for the Canine Good Citizen Class, it was a HUGE disappointment. The instructor basically went over the specific requirements that we and our dog would be tested on and then we were on our own to figure out how to get our dogs to pass all the required elements of the certification test. There was no lecture or useful training tips offered (other than use treats for training but remember you will not be allowed to use treats during testing). The dog used for the «meeting and walking past a stranger with a dog», was not a «neutral» dog. The dog used was an excitable, high energy, treat trained dog that actually jumped at it’s handler and only performed the handlers commands for food.
I like the people who work here but I do not think the «training» classes that I took there were executed in accordance with AKC guidelines. I will not use their services again.

I am an absolute firm believer that this is the happiest place in the world for a dog! You could say this is the Disney World of Pooches! Laurie, Sam, Jackie, Gina and Steve have done nothing but treat my furry boys with as much love and respect that I could ever ask for… and as for flexibility– well they might as well be doing backbends and flips because they have done everything possible to help accomidate with my ridiculous and unpredictable schedule!
If you are living in the northern VA area… i highly suggest using their resources such as Doggy daycare… and if your just in need of some realy good training– i recommend them as well. My boys are wild pups but through good training at PNI they are wild pups… that listen to you! I’m truly impressed!