Dogtopia of Tysons Corner, VA Blog

*** Voting is now CLOSED. We’ll tally it all up and announce our final two Monday! ***

Our first round was heavily contested, with over 270 votes cast! In the end we have our four-legged Second Rounders.

Vote for your favorite via the comments section by writing in the Match-Up # and the name of your Top Dog!

Match-Up # 1 – Maddie and her Dad versus Samantha
Match-Up #2 – Maya and Apollo versus Loki – Fightin’ Irish fans go paw-to-paw!
Match-Up #3 – Coco versus Arlene
Match-Up #4 – Peyton versus Lambeau – Lambeau sets out to reap Terps revenge on the Blue Devils!

Voting will remain open until Sunday night with our Championship Round beginning Monday!

*** We’re tallying the votes as we speak (bark) and will announce the second round shortly! ***

Round 1 of our annual Mutt Madness competition has begun! Vote for your favorites via the comments section below by writing in the Match-Up number and the dogs you choose. Each row represents a “Match-Up”:

Match-Up #1 is Sophie vs Peyton
Match-Up #2 is Maya and Apollo vs Maddie and her Dad
Match-Up #3 is Loki vs Leo
Match-Up #4 is Coco vs Brenna
Match-Up # 5 is Lambeau vs Sophie S
Match-Up #6 is Arlene vs Bodhi

Be sure to click on the picture to see the FULL SIZE image. It’s worth the click.

Remember, our proud pups are competing for a 5-Day Daycare pass and a basket chalk full of goodies.

Voting remains open until 7pm Wednesday and one vote per email address will be accepted. The winner of each Match-up moves on to the second round, so be sure to pass it along to family, friend, co-workers and anyone else you need to in support of your favorite!

Good Luck to all our great pups !!!

** Mutt Madness update **

Poor Samantha sent in her best Wildcat impression prior to the competition and was accidentally left out when voting began! As voting has already begun and the match-ups are set – we’ll see her in the next round.

Samantha's a Wildcat!

Seeking a good daycare for your dog can be quite similar to a daycare for your child. There are so many questions to be answered! Our founder, Amy Nichols, shared some thoughts on dog daycare to separate fact from fiction:

Outside fun at Dogtopia of Tysons Corner

Day care provides quality, structured care: Dog day care provides a structured schedule for your pooch, complete with activities, nap time, snack time and social play. Each Dogtopia location includes a gymnasium, romper room, and lounge to suit the different sizes and play styles of their diverse clientele. There is plenty of open space, which gives your dog the opportunity to interact with other dogs, while running around and burning off plenty of pent-up energy.

Peace of mind: Dog day care provides all-day service for your pup—that means tons of active play time with plenty of their four-legged friends. There will not be a moment in the day where the owner has to wonder, ‘Is my dog alone?’ The typical Dogtopia location cares for between 50 to 80 dogs per day with a ratio of one caregiver per 10-15 dogs.

Your dog is never out of your sight: To create even more peace of mind for dog owners, Dogtopia employs web cam technology that allows the dogs’ owners to check on their pets at any time.

Entrance Exams: A Great Dane might not make the best company for a Dachshund and Dogtopia understands that. All dogs undergo evaluations that include a health assessment, vaccination verification, and a temperament test to insure that the dog is social and comfortable in large groups. Dogs are placed in play groups that suit their style.

Trained Staff: It’s important that your dog is consistently happy and healthy, so Dogtopia only employs the best. The Dogtopia staff is fully trained to provide the best care for your pup. Store owners attend pet CPR classes and all employees are trained in pack management and dog behavior.

We’re undergoing an extreme makeover!

Ok – not exactly extreme, but we are having some renovations.

In the next few weeks our outdoor space will become 50% larger and our Toy Box (where the little dogs rule) will almost double in size! The same sealed, rubber flooring we use in other playrooms will also be added for the little guys.

At times this renovation may affect our webcam availability. We thank you for your patience in advance – Dogtopia will be bigger and even better!

Izzy and his fav toy!

Izzy is the sweetest, happiest German Shepherd Dog at Dogtopia of Tysons.

He frequents our playrooms for daycare and boarding. He enjoys romping with his friends in the Gym.

All of our four-legged playmates are unique, but Izzy is especially so! When he’s taking a break from playing in the Gym, he enjoys lounging in the Grooming area. He gets tons of love there, has a raised Kuranda bed to keep him comfy and is never without his favorite tire toy.

When he’s not spending time in his Grooming oasis, he enjoys playing in pools in the outside area!

Harry or Harry Doodle as he is affectionately called in daycare, is a beautiful, 5 year old, red-colored Labradoodle. If he were a full Poodle I believe he’d be apricot. But that’s a bit too girly for our Harry.

Harry has been coming for daycare multiple times a week since he was a pup ‘oodle. Upon graduating to our Gym, he became very comfortable right away. It’s as if he knew he belonged there all along.

There is one spot in the Gym, between two crates, near the radio, that has been and will forever be dubbed – “Harry’s Place”.

When he’s had enough chasing and running, he settles into his spot and takes a nap or just observes the room’s goings ons. If someone else has made the mistake of parking in his spot, we will all hear about it!

His funky attitude and sweet nature our both reason we love our Harry Doodle at Dogtopia!

Ranger - Dog of the Week 3/1/09

We could have team meetings and sit around all day debating how we can improve, make customers happier and even attract new ones… but why not just ask?

Visit the link below to fill out our survey and your answers will provide invaluable information on how we can better serve you and your wonderful dogs!

Enter your email address at the end and you’ll be entered in a drawing for a $100 Dogtopia gift certificate.

Dogtopia Survey

Want to know about new postings without having to check the site every few days? Want to know about our contests and specials as they happen? Or be instantly alerted when we do a “Why we love…” about YOUR dog?

Sign up for our RSS Feed by clicking here and you can receive blogs as we post them right on your Google, Yahoo or Bloglines homepages.

Now wasn’t that easy?

Bruno

Emma and Bruno are siblings that visit Dogtopia of Tysons Corner on a regular basis.

Emma is a sweet Yellow Lab who will be 5 this April and she’s been prancing into our lobby for years now. Since she was a cute, cute puppy!

Emma pB (pre-Bruno)

Bruno will be 2 in April and he was actually adopted right from Dogtopia! An employee was caring for him temporarily and his mom just fell in love with the cute fluff ball behind the counter. It was meant to be! We think he’s one lucky pup!

We love these two because they are such active supporters of ours! Not only do they attend daycare for a good time, but we also see them out and about at events regularly! I specifically love seeing them at the Super Pet Expo each year! They even make an effort to support our own events… as the pictures from our Luau (early Dogtopia days) and last year’s Halloween Contest Party show.

How cute is Bruno as a little pig??