How we Keep your Pets Safe and Happy

Posted on 10th March 2015 by Green Lane Farm Team

Here at Green Lane Farm, we work very hard to ensure the safety, security and well being of all the animals in our care, so our customers feel happy and confident when leaving their pets with us.

A big part of what makes our customers so confident in our ability to care for their pets is our dedicated team. We have a rigorous recruitment process which makes sure we only ever hire the best people, most committed to animal care and welfare standards, to join our team.

Our Recruitment Process

The first part of our recruitment process includes lengthy interviews and discussions about previous positions so we can discover their suitability for the role they have applied for.

If the applicant is successful, they will be invited back for stage 2 – a full day working with our team and the animals at the kennels. We carefully supervise all interactions with the animals, monitor their attitude towards them and and the way the treat and care for the animals they interact with.

We also check their skills with a mop and broom – this is a huge part of our job and dedication to keeping the kennels and cattery clean and comfy is essential. Anyone who lacks this understanding of how hygiene can affect the health and happiness of the animals in our care just won’t make the cut.

If they pass this stage, and we offer them a job, it is on a 2 week trial basis. We don’t guarantee any jobs to people until we are absolutely sure they will uphold our high standards of care and meet the expectations of our customers and their pets – we need to be 100% certain that they are the person for us.

During these 2 weeks, we will expect them to meet and greet our clients as well as their pets as we need to make sure that they are capable of setting our more nervous clients at ease. Usually we can tell in the first few days if they are suited to the job, but they must pass the 2 week trial to be in with a chance of being offered a permanent position.

During the busy holiday periods, our team expands with seasonal staff – but they don’t escape lightly during recruitment. We put everyone through the same process! If they are successful, we will employ them for that season, and thanks to our recruitment process, we usually have no hesitation in inviting them back season after season.

A big majority of our team are people that have been with us, either seasonally or permanently, for many years. Many of them are students who come back to us during their breaks from college or university, and sometimes join us permanently at the end of their education. This is preferred method of employment, and has allowed us to build an experienced, reliable and trustworthy team.

We have hundreds and hundreds of loyal customers, who rely on us to love and care for their pets when they are not around to do so. That’s why we put so much effort into ensuring that when we employ, we choose the right person to join our team.

“I couldn’t be happier with the team we have. We value them so much!”  – Kelly

Our continued commitment to you and your pets…

Of course having such a committed team is only part of our success – the comfortable home from home we provide for our clients’ pets in another reason we have so many repeat stays.

As part of this we are currently investing in giving our premises a makeover!

This is a long process with our team working 7 days a week on making our facilities even better, but we believe it will be well worth it! The first step is to expand our kennels even more – so the dogs get more space to run about and explore, and we’re adding more grass-run areas, summer houses and planting trees to keep things interesting. We also plan to have low light LEDs throughout the blocks for overnight lighting, just to make things a little more cosy and less scary for first-time boarders.

Unfortunately this does mean that we will have to downsize a bit. As we expand the kennels, we’ll have less space so will be able to accommodate fewer dogs – but we believe it’s more important to provide a stimulating space where we can care for your pets in a happy, safe and comfortable environment, rather than squeeze in more paying guests!

To find out more about the handpicked team here at Green Lane or the fantastic accommodation and care we can provide for your beloved pets – simply pop in to see us! We’re always excited to meet new pets and people, and our existing customers will know they are always welcome to come for a look around!