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VTalk Radio Local Business Spotlight
Today's Guest: Kevin Ramoie of Deerfield Dog Lodging in Traverse City, Michigan
Today's Host: John Bentley

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ANNOUNCER: Welcome to VTalk Radio Local Business Spotlight with your host, John Bentley.

John: Today we are in the studio with Kevin Ramoie of Deerfield Dog Lodging of Traverse City, Michigan. Welcome Kevin to VTalk Radio's Local Business Spotlight.

KEVIN: Thank you for having me.

JOHN: Now, you have a lodging facility for dogs here in Traverse City. Tell us a little bit about your business.

KEVIN: Well I opened the kennel about 4 years ago. Built it myself with one other person and designed it myself to be a kennel. It's not just a pole barn that was modified into a kennel. I have 14 pens with outside runs and off those runs are gates that lead to play years with a nice coated floor with apoxy paint with clear coat over it. Most floors are heated and it is air conditioned.

JOHN: Sounds like a nice place to take your dog for a little visit, huh? Do you have animals that come there on a regular basis.

KEVIN: I have 700 regular customers.

JOHN: Wow and you do strictly just dogs, correct?

KEVIN: Just dogs at this time.

JOHN: Now you mentioned something about heated floors. Tell us about the facility flooring and also do you have air conditioning in this place.

KEVIN: It is air conditioned which comes in handy today. And, the floors are heated with a boiler system that is very efficient and keeps the heat even throughout the building. Of course the dogs love to lay on that floor, both summer and winter. In the winter it's nice and warm and in the winter it's nice and cool.

JOHN: Now do you have pens that are large enough for, what kind of dogs?

KEVIN: My pens are large enough for two Newfoundlands to stay together. I've had a pair of Newfoundlands come to me from the very start, Smokey the Bear and Fazi Bear and they love to stay with me.

JOHN: Now, do customers bring their own bedding in to a place like this? Or is that something you provide your clients if you will?

KEVIN: We do either or. Some dogs, in fact, a lot of dogs like to have their own bedding because it smells familiar and some people even bring like the husbands jeans, because apparently the dog sleeps next to the bed and he throws his jeans on the floor and that's where he likes to sleep.

JOHN: Sure, I'm sure anything they can bring from home to keep the dogs connected or happy while they are at the stay is probably very important.

KEVIN: Yeah, just a familiar scent.

JOHN: Yeah, a familiar scent. Certainly. What about the diet? Do the customers bring a diet in for their animal or is that something, is that a service you provide?

KEVIN: I feed Iams at my kennel, and a lot of people feed it. There's so many different brands and they like to keep their dog on their diet, and they're welcome to do that, so many people bring their own food, and some dogs are allergic or what have you, so they have a special diet and they're welcome to bring that.

JOHN: Speaking of allergies. What about dispensing medication? I know some pets have a daily medication they need. Is that something you are qualified to do? Is that something your facility provides?

KEVIN: I do dispense medication and if your dog is diabetic, I can give him or her a shot also. All the way from giving pills to giving them a shot.

JOHN: And what about, believe it or not, something like K-9 CPR? Do you provide that? Are you certified?

KEVIN: I'm certified through a pet Red Cross program. My wife and my daughter are also certified.

JOHN: What kind of problems would you run into with an animal that you might need certification for?

KEVIN: Most likely dogs that tend to choke on things. They eat things they're not supposed to. I try to not allow people to leave rawhides and that type of thing. It's better just to give them treats and forget about things that they want to chew on and can get caught in their throat, but that's most common.

JOHN: It's good to know that you are a qualified person if anything like that should come up. Now what about something fun for the dog to do? Obviously, you have dog runs. Do you take special time out for the animals? How often do you walk the dog? What about something fun for the dogs to do?

KEVIN: We provide walks and/or playtime. I have play yards fenced in on grass and your dog I will play ball or stick or whatever your dog likes in that yard. Your dog is not allowed with strange dogs. We have a pond for swimming, a creek, trails through the woods. Hardwoods, some cedars, and a very clean creek that a lot of labs like to swim in and some dogs just want to go out and lay by the trees or what have ya in the play yard. You know, whatever dogs enjoy.

JOHN: Kevin, would you give our listeners your website and contact information?

KEVIN: My website is www.deerfielddoglodging.com and you can contact me, you can email me at deerfielddogs@aol.com. Our phone number is (231) 392-1864.

JOHN: Today we are in the studio with Kevin Ramoie of Deerfield Dog Lodging of Traverse City, Michigan. You're listening to VTalk Radio's Local Business Spotlight. We're gonna step aside for these important messages. We'll be right back.

ANNOUNCER: Deerfield Dog Lodging offers a clean, safe, comfortable environment for your dog to stay in when you have to be away. Whether it's just for the day or an extended stay, Deerfield Dog Lodging is your dog's home away from home when you can't be at home. Call (231) 392-1864 for more information or visit them on the web at www.deerfielddoglodging.com.

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JOHN: Welcome back to VTalk Radio's Local Business Spotlight, and I'm your host, John Bentley. Today in the studio, we have Kevin Ramoie of Deerfield Dog Lodging of Traverse City, Michigan. Welcome back to the program, Kevin.

KEVIN: Again, thanks for having me on.

JOHN: Tell us why you decided to start a lodging facility for dogs?

KEVIN: Well, my daughter used to show one of our Shelties, and I ran into a lot of dog people and from what I heard there was a need for a nice, clean kennel where someone would give the dogs personal attention and treat the dog the way you treat your dog. So, I treat the dogs the way I treat my two Shelties. And, quite honestly, the two little Shelties sort of changed my life. They were such wonderful dogs and I just wanted to open a business and treat dogs the way I treat those two little girls.

JOHN: How long have you been a dog owner?

KEVIN: Including childhood?

JOHN: Sure. You've had dogs in your life.

KEVIN: 47 years, yes.

JOHN: Good. How old are the Shelties you have currently?

KEVIN: 5 and 3.

JOHN: So you give, basically, you give people a place to take their pet that is gonna give it some personal attention.

KEVIN: Yes, your dog gets personal attention. I mean, it's as simple as I feed your dog and you pet them on the head like you do at home, and say, "There ya go boy." or girl and their wagging their tail and they just enjoy being there. It's a nice place for a dog to be.

JOHN: What kind of advice would you have for a customer that wants to bring their dog to your facility?

KEVIN: Well, if you're keeping your dog on their diet with the food in a nice container and label it with your name. You need to bring your shot records and you need the bordello vaccine which vaccinates your dog against kennel cough which I would say I've never had in my kennel which is a good thing. Your dog must come and go on a leash and other than that, you know if you when you show up if everything is organized it goes a lot smoother and like I said before, you can bring bedding and that type of thing.

JOHN: What about when you first meet a client's pet? What do you do to make that pet comfortable around you. You're a stranger to them.

KEVIN: Let the dog come to you and smell your hand and your pants, cuffs, get used to you a little bit and then when you see that he's comfortable with you, you can pet him and some dogs are so wary and maybe have been rescued, and I've had Catrina dogs and so on. The best thing to do is sit on the floor and let the dog come to you and get used to you and you never want to hover over a scared dog and try to force yourself on them.

JOHN: Sounds like good advice. What's your most important goal when your customer brings they're dog to you? What do they want to walk away, what do you want them to walk away with?

KEVIN: That they have peace of mind whether they're camping in the next county or going to Disneyland or where ever. When they're gone, they want to have peace of mind that their dog is being taken care of good in a clean place and that the dog is getting attention and is happy.

JOHN: Speaking of a clean place, what about utensils, the food process? What are you using utensil wise and do you have equipement to sanitizes things? How do you work that?

KEVIN: I use all stainless steel bowls and I have a dishwasher in the building to sanitize everything.

JOHN: And how often are the dogs walked?

KEVIN: That is entirely up to the owner. If they want one half hour walk a day or you know they can have two or three or a half hour of walk or half hour of playtime or whatever they would like. Walks or playtime is $5 a day.

JOHN: I used to work for an animal client years ago, and we'd walk them in the morning; walk them in the evening. At least get a couple of walks in. Dogs need a lot of exercise during the day, don't they.

KEVIN: They do and I like to exercise them in the morning. Of course, it depends on the weather. When it's hot in the summer you definitely want morning and evening and during the day you can close the place up and dogs at Deerfield get nap time between 1 and 4. That's why we are closed to humans so it settles down and the dog's not quite so surely late in the day because if they do not get naps like they get at home, they can be a little out of control.

JOHN: Sounds like you're speaking from experience?

KEVIN: Well when I first started out, I had a couple things to learn and that was one of them.

JOHN: Yeah, sure. What makes the Deerfield Dog Lodging unique? What separates you from the competition?

KEVIN: Well you can start with location. I am six miles south of Traverse City, but above all it's good personal service and your dog gets taken care of in a nice, clean place. Your dog get's attention and if your dog is supposed to get medicine, he or she gets the medicine. We just give em personal attention and treat the customer fairly and give them a good price for boarding.

JOHN: Kevin, would you kindly give your website and contact information again for our listeners?

KEVIN: Sure. My website is www.deerfielddoglodging.com our email is deerfielddogs@aol.com and our phone number is (231) 392-1864.

JOHN: We have been in the studio with Kevin Ramoie of Deerfield Dog Lodging of Traverse City, Michigan. I want to thank you for taking time out of your day to come in and speak with us today, Kevin.

KEVIN: Well, thanks once again for having me.

JOHN: You are listening to VTalk Radio's Local Business Spotlight. Thanks for joining us this afternoon. Have a great day.

ANNOUNCER: You've been listening to the VTalk Radio Spotlight only on Vtalkradio.com radio for the 21st century.

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