Pet Services in Austin

Lauded as the Austin area's Best Veterinarian by the Austin Chronicle in 2010, Westlake Animal Hospital helps to better the lives of pawed patients with preventative care fine-tuned over four decades in business and carried out by eight veterinarians. After entering through the dog- or cat-only waiting room, each pooch, feline, gerbil, or animorph sits and stays for a thorough examination of the skin, the ears, the eyes, and the teeth. Vets then peer into pets' inner workings by taking vital signs and assessing the effects of any extra weight on a pet's frame. Each 30- to 40-minute appointment affords time to go over any lingering health concerns, ask nutritional questions, and show off pets' best Buddy Holly impressions with one of Westlake's animal aces.

Workers from Hot Diggity! step out of houses with pups tugging politely at the leash and lolling their tongues in the sunshine. The crew members, who are all licensed, bonded, and insured, give owners a break from taking the dog outside and dealing with all the strange children the dog rescues from farm wells. After consultations allow them to get to know the home and the pet’s routine, staffers can even stop in several times a day or stay overnight to care for their animal charges. They also care for care for critters including cats, gerbils, birds, and reptiles.

Bobbi Colorado and her husband Ken Beggs watched as their sly raccoon protégé crept across the room just as they had taught him. Having reached the whirring treadmill's power source, he yanked the cord out of the wall, sending actor Brendan Fraser flying over the top of the machine mid-sprint. The raccoon—who filmed this scene for 2010's Furry Vengeance —is just one of many animal actors mentored by the husband-and-wife team, who have been training domestic and exotic critters for more than 35 years through their business The Wild Bunch.

Often disappointed by the kennels they visited to find dogs for their projects, the pair decided that they would open a better one themselves. They soon set up Bobbi Colorado's Canine Camp on their 10-acre property, building six spacious tree-shaded play yards and large sleeping quarters. The camp is designed to be "a safe, fun, happy place, so when you go away, it's your dog's vacation too," says Colorado. During stays, canines play together outside or nap in the sun while under 24-hour-a-day supervision. The staff members also post photos and videos of the frolicking pooches online so that their owners can check up on them. In addition to boarding, the camp also offers training classes to teach dogs basic obedience or train them for work in movies, commercials, and print ads.

Besides their pet boarding business, Colorado and Beggs' love for animals drives them to train rescue animals for roles, often saving them from euthanization. For the movie Secondhand Lions, for instance, Colorado recruited pigs from a slaughterhouse, and afterward sent them on to work with autistic children through an animal-therapy program.

For four decades, the family-owned Cactus Pryor's Canine Hilton Boarding Kennel has lodged and pampered pets on a six-acre spread of land. Accredited by the Pet Care Services Association for going above and beyond the role of gracious host, the kennel accommodates its guests with climate-controlled indoor and outdoor suites, blankets, organic food (including homegrown catnip for felines), and continuously monitored water bowls. Classical music piped into the kennels puts cats and dogs at ease, and a 15,000-square-foot play yard permits canines to romp among a selection of toys.

The animal-loving technicians interact with their charges regularly to keep them from growing bored, and can administer grooming services to prevent pets from growing soul patches and starting blues bands. Obedience training and daycare visits also ensure that pups remain active, yet aware of social etiquette.

A parade of customers saunters out of Kit + Kaboodle's Austin and Lockhart locations donning edgy mohawks, neon hair color, and sassy tattoos. This is not a group of teenagers from an ’80s flick, though. It's a pack of leashed corgis and everything about their look, including the hair dye and temporary tattoos, is nontoxic and tear-free. The technicians at Kit + Kaboodle love adorning pooches in such details. They groom dogs with organic and natural products and augment treatments with quirky trim such as handmade pup feathers. Their pet-sitting services include drop-ins and daily dog walks to exercise canines, administer medication, or refill food bowls while owners are at work or visiting their secret dogs.

Andrea Martin founded Jackie's Play & Stay so no dog owner would have to endure the same experience she had after boarding her four-year-old border collie, Jackie. After dropping her off on a Friday, Andrea picked an ill Jackie up on Sunday. Her rapidly declining health suggested some form of poisoning, and she soon passed. Determined not to let Jackie's death be in vain, she founded a daycare and boarding facility where owners could feel secure every time they parted with their best friends.

Today, Andrea and her caretakers earn owners' and dogs' trust by getting to know each four-legged guest individually to ease their transitions in and out of Jackie's Play & Stay. They also keep the 14,000-square-foot facility meticulously clean, using disinfectants that target canine viruses and fungi. Believing that a tired dog is a happy dog, the staff supervises indoor and outdoor play and socializing. They provide small dogs with their own play space, and welcome dogs to relax on their own if that's what they prefer. The facility’s suites for overnighters are climate-controlled, with dog beds and relaxing music that plays through the night. The staff also encourages owners to leave their pets with a familiar item, such as a favorite blanket or the neighborhood fire hydrant. Beyond daycare and boarding, Jackie's Play & Stay extends to grooming and training, where dogs learn everything from basic obedience to how to drive stick. Today, Andrea and her caretakers earn owners' and dogs' trust by getting to know each four-legged guest individually to ease their transitions in and out of Jackie's Play & Stay. They also keep the 14,000-square-foot facility meticulously clean, using disinfectants that target canine viruses and fungi. Believing that a tired dog is a happy dog, the staff supervises indoor and outdoor play and socializing. They provide small dogs with their own play space, and welcome dogs to relax on their own if that's what they prefer. The facility’s suites for overnighters are climate-controlled, with dog beds and relaxing music that plays through the night. The staff also encourages owners to leave their pets with a familiar item, such as a favorite blanket or the neighborhood fire hydrant. Beyond daycare and boarding, Jackie's Play & Stay extends to grooming and training, where dogs learn everything from basic obedience to how to drive stick.