Dog Respiratory Illness
Due to normal dog respiratory illness’s we are asking all dogs to self-quarantine from community dog areas before coming to Mystic for 10 days. This includes dog parks and day cares…not friends or neighborhood dogs. We have decided that it gives us less stress to know that all guests have NOT been around large numbers of dogs just before coming to camp as we care for many long-term dogs and older dogs. Please read the full notice and if you have any questions please contact us. http://www.mysticmountainretreat.com/new-dog-illness-notice/
BOARDING RATES
All your dogs needs are covered in the daily price. There are no hidden charges. Each guest gets pampered treatment including about 8 daily outings, treats, medications, special diets, play and lots of love. If you are thinking of a trip let us know, even a year in advance.
Dogs under 35lbs and can be mixed easily with other dogs for play and potty sessions
• $60 for one dog each night
• $90 for two dogs sharing a room each night*
• $120 for three dogs sharing a room each night*
• $25 for each additional dog sharing a room*
Dogs Over 35lbs and for all dogs who require private play or are hard to mix with other guests
• $65 for one dog each night
• $100 for two dogs sharing a room each night*
• $130 for three dogs sharing a room each night*
• $30 for each additional dog sharing a room*
We are hoping not to increase rates again for a while, it will on depend inflation and staffing costs. If you are making reservations into the future, rates will be the rate at time of stay and not when you make your reservation.
*All animals that share *must* live in the same household and like each other. If we have to separate then additional charges will be applied.
SHORT TRIPS
• For trips 4 nights or less, pickup after 1:00 incurs a day rate of $35/50/70 for dogs and $20/25/30 for cats
LATE HOURS
• Pick-up/drop-off after 4:00 may be charged a fee of $50. All times must be scheduled and if not our gates may be closed.
Rates & Policy Details
Drop-off, Pick-up and Tour Times
• Our regular hours are 9:00 – 4:00, but due to staffing our hours are varied and ALL visits to the ranch must be scheduled within 15 minutes of your requested time. If you are going to be late or early please contact us right away.
• If your schedule allows, we prefer arrivals between 10:00 – 1:00 to allow for more time for play. Around Noon is best for traffic if you are coming from the Seattle area or Eastside.
• We are practicing a no touch policy and no humans are allowed in the dog and cat areas (except tours) so please stay on the other side of the closed gate near the barn and wait for us to meet you. Yes you can get out of your car and keep all dogs on leash.
• Please drive 10 miles an hour in River King Estates, especially once you get to the top of the hill, we have new neighbors building a home and they have kids and dogs running around.
• Yes we do live here at the ranch; but we may be running errands, going for hikes or just going out to dinner.
• Please call your caregiver of the day when you turn onto the Ben Howard Road, this will give us 15 minutes to get our dogs inside for their safety and to keep everyone from barking. If we don’t answer just leave a message and come on up (we will provide you the name and phone number of the care giver of the day when you schedule).
• During winter snows or ice we will do our best to meet you at the bottom of the hill (daylight hrs only) and while we work hard on getting the road plowed and salted, if the road is unsafe, we can’t guarantee shuttles.
• If you need a time outside our regular hours please contact us for availability as we know traffic and some work schedules require time-frames outside of our normal hours. This is very limited.
Mystic Mountain Retreat Hours
Our regular hours are 9:00 – 4:00 (please see notice above)
If your schedule allows we prefer
Monday – Friday 10:00 – 1:00
Saturday – Sunday 10:00 – 3:00
Please arrive before 1:00 if you want more time for play before dinner, if you come after 2:00, please make sure your dog has had a good walk.
Pick-up/drop-off after 4:00 there may be an additional charge of $50 (by approval only)
For new dogs please try to come mid-day (prefer before Noon) so your pup will have some fun and get used to the ranch before dinner and the evening quiet time.
If you live in Seattle or the Eastside, Noon is the best time for traffic.
Special Needs Animals
– Most special care is included in the daily price; for “extra” special needs care additional charges may be required; these will be assessed prior to your pets stay.
– For some high energy dominate dogs we may need to charge extra.
– While we can care for dogs who don’t do well with other dogs, we are very hands on with our guests so all dogs must be safe with our caregivers…we are unable to care for reactive dogs that my be aggressive with humans. If your dog is deemed unsafe you will need to pickup your dog as we don’t have any kennels that are safe for aggressive dogs.
– For the safety of the dogs we are unable to care for dogs that have severe separation anxiety, please contact us if you feel your dog may have issues with staying away from humans in their room overnight and between play sessions.
– Trial overnights are recommended or required if you are unsure if your dog will do well at camp for separation anxiety, possible aggression or other reasons. This allows everyone to determine if we are the right fit while the owners are available to pickup the pup.
– Due to staffing we only have a few rooms available to care for dogs who need extra care or can’t be mixed with other dogs easily.
• If your pet requires medical care outside of our ability please check out Eastside Vet.com – Medical Boarding – Boarding at Eastside Veterinary Associates. For patients of other veterinary hospitals, they require a physical exam within the past 12 months with the veterinarians at Eastside Veterinary Associates.
Boarding Discounts
• Stays 15+ nights receive 10% discount
• Discounts do not apply over any holiday periods and school breaks (i.e. summer, winter, mid-winter and spring break (summer = June 1 – Labor Day).
• Discounts do not apply for high energy, dominate dogs or special needs animals.
• Discounts for multi species from the same family (example, $5 off the care for a kitty each night if we are caring for your dog).
• Additional longer term discounts may apply for well mannered dogs depending on size, health, temperament, training, time of year and other factors.
Mystic Mountain Retreat Tours
• By appointment only
• Times are dependent per yours and our schedule, please let us know what works for you and we will try to support it.
• Even if you have a scheduled appointment you may need to wait for caregivers to finish a play session or if there is another tour, check-in or check out at the same time.
• Yes bring your dog on the tours, just wait for a caregiver before letting them out of the car and watch for our dogs and chickens.
Payment
• Cash, checks or money order. Sorry, no credit cards or bank transfers at this time
• For stays longer then 14 nights, we require a 50% deposit at time of check-in
Shuttle Service
• No shuttle service available at this time, let us know if you know of a service we can recommend.
Health and Vaccinations
• Mystic Mountain Retreat is dedicated to providing a safe and healthy place for your animals friends and believes in a holistic approach; including vaccinations, worming, and flea control.
• As each animal has different health and lifestyle risks we support individualized vaccination, flea, tick and worming schedules as long as you are working with a veterinarian (either holistic or allopathic).
• As health risks and vaccination information changes on a daily basis, we feel it is up to the pet parents working with their professional veterinarians to determine the best schedule for pets and do not require yearly vaccinations if they have been determined to have long-term immunity or if there are health risks.
• For the vaccination plan that Cindy follows for her own animals see: http://mercyvet.com/vaccines-revisited/ ).
• Check out this post from Dr Karen Beckler https://www.barkandwhiskers.com/2024-06-24-vaccine-adverse-effects-in-dogs
• To limit the spread of parasites all dog guests must provide a negative fecal test within the last 6 months as they share our play field (cats are not required as they use personal litter boxes). Please check at least a few weeks ahead as medicine to remove parasites may take up to 10 days.
• Canine cough and flu vaccinations are up to the owner and their veterinarian as dogs can get infected with the virus even if they have had the vaccination.
• Signs of a dog with canine cough or the flu may take days – weeks after a dog has come in contact with a virus so there is no way to fully ensure other guests won’t come in contact with a virus at dog camp, at the dog park or even walking down the street; this is similar to kids getting a cold or the flu at school or while playing with other kids or going shopping.
• To keep Mystic as clean as possible we spray our fields every week with a cleaner, fully clean all rooms and bedding between guests, wash bowls every day and provide good air flow to reduce the spread of colds between the guests. But as the dogs play with each other and share the same play field there is no way to keep your dog away from other dog germs.
• If your dog goes to dog parks or does not follow an holistic feeding program we suggest staying current with yearly vaccinations.
• All vaccinations should be given 14 days before their stay at camp or any stressful change in their live. This is important if there is a reaction the owners will be able to identify it easier at home.
Paperwork
• To fully support guests, a history form, agreement/contract and pet medical directive will need to be filled out and signed before your animals stay or during check-in.
• Additional visits an “every trip” form will need to be filled out, either during check-in or email for the current form. Included we will need an emergency contact who is not on your trip to help with medical decisions if we are not able to get hold of you.
• The forms are available upon request by email or at the ranch, it is preferred that you print them out at home and bring filled forms with you at check-in.
What we provide:
We have bowls, towels, blankets, toys, chicken/rice & lamb/rice based canned food for enhancement and healthy USA sourced treats. (If your pup is a shredder please provide your own bedding, additional charges may apply if our bedding is torn beyond normal use.) We also have extra large and giant crates.
You will need to bring:
• All food, supplements, bones, and medications (we have room to store raw food and veggies; if your stay is long please discuss with Cindy storage needs)
• Any special treats (we provide healthy USA sourced treats)
• Something with home smells on it (toys, un-washed bedding or towels/t-shirts from mom or dad)
• Any behavior tools you use at home such as gentle leaders/halters, prong collars, or barking control collars
• Anything that will help your fur-kids have a happy stay including toys, crates, beds, blankets etc. (soiled bedding may be washed and can be miss-placed so please don’t bring any favorites )
• Please no bowls as they get washed 2x a day and can be miss-placed (special feed restriction bowls ok)
• Leashes may also get misplaced so either take them home or leave favorites at home
• NO favorites as items may get lost, destroyed or another dog may take it home
Tours & Visits
Please email for an appointment and driving directions (Mystic Mt Directions). Please no unscheduled visits as we may be busy with the guests, out on hikes with the dogs or running errands. Please make sure to have your dog is on a leash as we have friendly chickens around the house and pond area who are not afraid of dogs.
Dog Training Methods
Mystic Mountain Retreat, Loving Dog Training; utilizes a combination of positive feedback, natural training, balanced training, communication, and energy balancing for our training processes. While dogs are very special individuals who understand many levels of being, they are also canine’s with their own behaviors that are separate from us humans. Thus during your pups stay we will work with them to understand the rules which will ensure the safety for other guests, the caretakers and your pup. If you would like to discuss our processes please contact Cindy. This is a great blog describing balanced training ( https://longhaultrekkers.com/balanced-dog-training/ ).
Barking
• Mystic Mountain Retreat is a commercial kennel so we must adhere to county regulations regarding noise. Specifically, we cannot have a “repetitive barker”. The county defines a repetitive barker as a dog who barks continuously for 10 minutes of any 30 minute time frame. Repetitive barking not only bothers the human neighbors but also other guest dogs and even themselves as it may cause stress to their digestive system.
• If your dog is a repetitive barker, we will use consistent and fair methods to quiet them.
• First we have lots of fun and interaction to hopefully tire out your dog. We use communication to determine if anything is wrong and to let them know the rules and why barking is inappropriate behavior.
• If the barking continues we utilize various techniques and tools to help with their training depending on the pups individual needs:
– Water spray bottles are our first tool after communication for quick corrections
– Time outs when barking and treats when they are quiet
– Vibration/Stimulation/bark collars that starts with a vibration and move to small level of stimulation then slowly increases. When the pup stop barking the collar automatically is reset to the lowest level. If for some reason the barking continues the collar is deactivated to ensure the stimulation is only for training. We only use the highest quality training collars to ensure all corrections are fair and accurate.
• If we use any training tools once the pup has figured out barking is not appropriate we step backwards in the process so most pups are trained not to bark without any aids. The dogs we have had to use these aids with have not been stressed out and have continued to have a great time while at Mystic Mountain Retreat, Loving Dog Boarding
We are hoping not to increase rates again for a while, it will on depend inflation and staffing costs. If you are making reservations into the future, rates will be the rate at time of stay and not when you make your reservation.
We reserve the right to refuse service for any animal, per Mystic Mountain Retreat’s discretion.
