Why Choose Central Bark?

Our best friends deserve the best care

There’s no bond like the one we share with our furry best friends. We love our dogs and want to enrich their lives as much as they enrich ours. That’s why families trust Central Bark®, where dogs get the love and care to help them be healthy, happy, and well-rounded. When you bring your dog to Central Bark Slinger, you’ll have peace of mind knowing they’re having a great day with their friends in a safe and loving environment.

Central Bark welcomes all. We’re fully committed to providing an environment where all people and dogs feel safe, valued, respected, accepted, and loved. We will never waiver from this stance and always promote unconditional love and acceptance. We embrace every person and every dog that comes through our door, regardless of race, religion, country of origin, sexual orientation, gender, or breed. We will stand behind our promise to “Forever nurture, enrich, and inspire lives”.

The safety and well-being of our guests are our #1 priority. As dog parents ourselves, we take great pride in treating every dog as our own. And we are committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for everyone that enters our facility. Read more about our dog day care guidelines

*Jackie Jordan and Chris Gaba, Principals and Co-founders of Barkley Ventures Franchising, LLC. and the Central Bark franchise system*

Dog Day Care pioneer and over 20 years of dog care experience

Central Bark, founded by Jackie Jordan and Chris Gaba, pioneered the concept of doggy day care. After more than 20 years as a leader in doggy day care, we continue to evolve. Still, our mission remains the same: To nurture, enrich, and inspire whole health, happiness, and unconditional love for each dog, family, and community we serve. We strive to give every dog and family the Central Bark experience. An experience that mirrors dogs’ unconditional love within our families and communities to create a happier, healthier, and more loving and peaceful world.

As dog parents ourselves, we know you want to give your dog the best life possible. Our whole dog care approach combines our decades of dog experience with the latest dog behavior science, so you can feel confident your dog is getting the very best care.

Whole Dog Care Mission & Philosophy

At Central Bark, we’re dog experts. Doggy day care is our specialty and nobody does it quite like us. Central Bark goes beyond a traditional doggy day care with our unique Whole Dog Care philosophy and enrichment focus. This personalized approach helps enrich your dog’s whole health and well-being throughout their entire life so you can enjoy a healthy, happy, and loving life together.

The heart of our whole dog care approach is our Enrichment Dog Day Care program. We combine Central Bark’s industry-leading doggy day care expertise with the latest dog behavior science and positive training principles. Our mission is to enrich the lives of dogs and families in our communities. We give dogs fun, balanced days of play, exercise, socialization, learning, rest, and love. To help your dog be a healthy, happy, and well-rounded member of your family.

Central Bark offers exclusive options like:

Flexible playgroups allow us to match your dog with the social atmosphere and play schedule they can enjoy and benefit from most. This helps give them a healthy balance of play, rest, and learning and creates a safer social environment with a better quality of play. And our lower dog-to-staff ratios offer more individual attention, education, and love.
Group Play Skills help dogs practice important life skills like name recall, and behaviors like group sit and calmly going in and out of doors and gates. These activities are fun and rewarding for your dog and help improve behavior and impulse control, prevent overstimulation, and creates a safer social environment.
Rest Period Enrichments help dogs relax and recharge in their own private space with calming interactive toys and healthy food pairings tailored to their preferences and diet. It promotes physical and mental relaxation which can help them achieve a healthy balance of play, learning, and rest. It can also help them become more comfortable in crates by building positive associations.
One-on-One Enrichment Sessions give dogs the extra attention they love and the freedom to use their senses and safely explore their instincts through interactive toys, puzzles, and games. It’s fun and rewarding and exercise their bodies and minds and engage their senses. Add complexity with fitness and agility equipment.
Training Tutor give dogs personalized one-on-one training during day care visits help your dog develop important skills and behaviors like name recall, sit, stay, down, wait, leave-it, door and gate control, and loose-leash walking. Excellent for your dog and easy for you! Your dog will come home tired and well-socialized, with the training and skills they need to be a well-behaved member of your family.

Louie M.

My dogs LOVE to go to Central Bark - they are loved and cared for and they come home tired and happy!They love to take the Puppy Shuttle, and can't wait to jump in when it arrives!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a puppy be boarded?

Yes. We offer sleepovers to puppies and dogs enrolled in our Enrichment Day Care. Sleepovers at Central Bark® provide your dog a calm, relaxing sleepover in a place they can feel comfortable and loved. Because they’re in a familiar place, they can feel less stressed about being away from home (and so will you). A full day of Doggy Day Care is complimentary with your sleepover stay.

Learn more about Sleepovers at Central Bark.

What’s a Behavior Assessment and why is it important?

As part of joining the Central Bark® family, our expert staff conducts a thorough behavior assessment at your local Central Bark store. These assessments help ensure that your dog is placed with a playgroup they’re comfortable with so they can play safely every day they’re with us.

This four-day evaluation, while your dog participates in our Enrichment Day Care, assesses your dog’s:

Comfort and social skills with people
Social skills and playstyle with other dogs to help determine the playgroup and play schedule they can benefit from the most
Comfort in both indoor and outdoor play spaces
Comfort in rest areas and a crate
Ability to share resources like water and toys in social settings
Level of comfort taking treats in social settings

This process gives us a chance to get to know you and your dog while your dog gets acquainted with their new favorite place away from home. Through the entire four days, your dog’s comfort and safety is our top priority.

Once your pup passes all the behavior assessment elements, you are welcome to sign up for any of our daycare services or a sleepover!

To schedule a Behavior Assessment for your dog, please contact your local store.

NOTE: Please bring all required signed forms, vaccination proof, and a collar and leash for your behavior assessment.

Why choose doggy day care for your dog?

There’s no bond like the one between our furry best friends and us. We love our dogs and want to give them the best life possible. But it can be challenging to fulfill all their needs to stay healthy and happy for a lifetime. Doggy day care gives pups a place to play and learn in a safe environment, with the socialization, mental stimulation, and physical exercise their minds and bodies need to stay healthy for a lifetime.

Dogs get to socialize. Dogs are social creatures. Positive experiences with new humans, new dogs, and new environments are essential to a well-rounded pup.
Dogs learn social skills. Dogs learn from other dogs – they’re always teaching each other what is (and isn’t) appropriate social behavior. Doggy day care staff can also help support safe play and practice healthy social behaviors.
Dogs get more exercise. Exercise helps your dog maintain a healthy weight and muscle tone while improving their mood and providing a healthy outlet for their physical and mental energy, meaning they can be more relaxed at home.
Dogs get human attention. Your dog will get the care and love they need while you’re at work or school.
Parents get a break. Doggy day care can give you a day off from responsibilities, while your dog gets what they need to be a healthier, more well-adjusted pet.

Learn more about Enrichment Doggy Day Care.

Are the dogs supervised at all times?

ABSOLUTELY

Read all FAQs

Central Bark Whole Dog Care

Our whole dog care approach offers a full range of fun and personalized products and services. To promote your dog’s physical, mental, and emotional health and happiness throughout their entire life.