If there’s one thing we know the people of Wandsworth love it’s their dogs. We caught up with Charlotte at Dog Squad London to find out about their special doggy day care service.
Tell us who you are and what you do.
We are Dog Squad London, a boutique dog day care for small to medium breeds. We’re in the Wandsworth Riverside quarter, just a couple of minutes’ walk from Wandsworth Park.
Our day care ensures pawrents can go to the office guilt-free, knowing their doggo is having a fabulous day at “school”, and they’ll come home happy, tired and content.
Clients can drop off their dogs to our centre at SW18 1NL, between 08:00am – 09:30am and collect between 4:30pm – 6:30pm. We offer a convenient collection and drop-off service for those working extra long hours.
How did Dog Squad London come about?
Having grown up on the Isle of Wight with my family of business owners on our farm, I knew two things for sure; firstly that one day I would work with animals in some capacity and secondly, that I too would inevitably be self-employed. I just needed to figure out how.
My biology grades proved that sadly the veterinary route wasn’t for me and so I studied Business Management at university to focus on my entrepreneurship skills.
I started my career in technology sales and operations and after a couple of years began looking after people’s dogs on the side to get my animal-fill in London! This is when I realised the lack of home-environment style day cares for dogs, and that I much preferred hanging out with the dogs than being in the office.
The majority of dog day cares are large fields with 50+ dogs, where dogs are transported to/from by vans that collect around 10 dogs before driving out 30+ minutes to a field. Now, don’t get me wrong, this really suits some dogs – my Hungarian Vizsla for one – but there’s also a lot of smaller home-loving dogs that style doesn’t suit… which is where we come in!
We’re the total opposite; we aim to recreate a homely environment and are local so the dogs are either dropped off by their pawrents or collected by us in cars – and that’s how Dog Squad London was born!
What makes Dog Squad special?
- We collect in cars (not vans) with a maximum of 6 dogs per collection (standard vans have 10-12) so our vehicle journeys are significantly shorter than average
- We have a maximum capacity of 20 dogs per day meaning that the team can create close bonds with the dogs and give them lots of 1:1 attention (Many day cares are upwards of 50+ dogs)
- We’re a small tight-knit team and our clients really know us (see our Google Reviews!)
- We are focused on small to medium breeds
- We operate on a structured day schedule and it involves two walks around Wandsworth Park, enrichment time and calm/nap time to make sure the dogs are happy and fulfilled
Watch our stories on Instagram (@dogsquadldn) and you can see the magic for yourself!
How many doggy carers make up your team?
We are a fabulous all-female team of five, with three of us full-time and two part-time! We also have some cuddle volunteers to give the dogs extra attention!
What other services do you offer?
As well as offering a full doggy day care, we are launching our grooming service and you can follow our opening on Instagram – @dogsquadldn_groom
How do we book?
For day care, you’ll need to complete our full application form. To receive this please complete our initial enquiry form.
We operate on a set days basis, so if you booked your dog in for Mondays, they’d always come Mondays. This ensures that our dogs get to know their fur friends and build long lasting relationships with their carers.
Please check your Spam/Junk for our response as sadly our emails sometimes go there.
What’s your favourite thing about Wandsworth Town?
I love sneaking off to collect a pastry from Lockdown Bakehouse, often a lucky pup gets to accompany me, or at the weekends having pancakes (or pupcakes!) at Little Frenchies.
