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How to Start a Commercial Kennels Business
Running this type of business is a challenge but it also offers huge rewards for those that love dogs and done properly can be very profitable.
There are significant challenges for anyone to consider when looking at starting up a commercial kennels business but if you are looking to escape the rat race this could be a great way to do it.
Being in charge of your own destiny has appeal for so many people but we hope this article gives you an insight into the decisions you need to make to get a kennel up and running.
Starting up this type of boarding kennel business isn’t cheap and will require large sums of money to do it properly. I’ve spent the last 10 years visiting dog kennels on a daily basis and for the most part the majority of them are quite run down. So the first decision to make would be should you buy an existing kennel or go to try and get a property that you can convert into one?
This is a difficult one to call but there is help available and websites like Kennelsforsale.co.uk which is an agency for current ones that are for sale.
Our advice is to see what is available and whittle these down to some that you like with a view to arranging a viewing. When you have visited a few kennels, you will soon realise that most are in urgent need of a refurbishment which could cost a significant amount of money.
When I started visiting kennels I was genuinely shocked by the poor state of most kennels and I wondered if dog owners really knew the conditions there dog was left in. In fact I haven’t been into a kennels yet where I didn’t think it needed improving in some way.
The question you need to ask yourself is what would it cost to bring the kennel up to the standard, and will this spend on top of the purchase price be more than trying to buy a house with land or outbuildings that can be converted into one. This dilemma is made more complicated because if you decide to start a new kennel then are you sure that you will get a license to operate.
When you visit these kennels up and down the country you will notice that most of the houses that are with the kennels are in a state of disrepair. When we were looking at buying we couldn’t find a kennel with a nice property in the grounds which was my wifes pre-requisite. For this reason alone it very much pushed us into trying to buy a nice house and then apply for a license. Buying a house with enough space that isn’t too close to neighbours and with good access to the highways can also be difficult which is why the average search for a new kennel can take over two years.
Boarding kennels are noisy places there is no getting away from this and in the ideal scenario the house needs to be as far away as possible from the house but in reality this could be a challenge. At the very least you want the kennels main entrance to be separate to the house and away from the dogs to try to minimize the noise caused by your movements to the house.
Last year new guidelines were introduced around the licensing of kennels which are all aimed to improve the quality of kennels and the welfare of the dog. Certainly all new builds will need to meet these guidelines but our advice would be to speak to the licensing officer in the area the kennel is to get their views before deciding to purchase a kennel.
One things for sure is that the regulations to run a kennel will become more onerous with the passage of time, and this should perhaps push you to buy one in the best possible condition or be prepared to spend large sums on upgrading.
At Easy Animal we can help you with upgrading your kennels or with looking to price up a new build, either way just make contact with us to discuss the possibilities and see our range of commercial kennels.
If you are looking to get an ideas on refurbishing a kennel then again we can help you to get a realistic estimate of the work and cost involved, this is a totally free service so please email us on sales@easyanimal.co.uk or call us on 01785 559555.
