Riverbark Pet Retreat - Spring Lake, North Carolina

Julie G.

Enjoyed doggie day care and a weekend stay there when we first rescued our puppy out of the blue and had a trip already planned.
They have a schedule for the dogs, play time swimming etc. You can pay extra for the cameras and see your pet at all times.
They are there 7 days a week with them which a lot of places don’t have.

Brandy N.

I trust them with my pups! They let them go swimming and I got to watch when I dropped them off. I received my dogs freshly bathed and nails trimmed. Don’t get me wrong I can’t look at the camera coverage while on vacation bc it is depressing. This time I don’t purchase camera access bc the trust is built and I didn’t want to see them waiting at the kennel door. They were happy to come home! I do use Riverbark on Ramsey. New veterinarian named Elizabeth is awesome and took time to really explain allergies and skin disorders.

Megan M.

*Awful; will not return*

I am not one to post negative reviews, but this was enough to warrant writing this review. We recently moved here and have 2 neutered male goldendoodles. Riverbark (RB) was recommended by our neighbors.

I called the pet resort yesterday to find out more about daycare. The receptionist informed me of the prices ($20/dog/day for your first full-day; $25 after that), schedule (the dogs are let out in rotation after the boarding dogs) and practices (group playtime is included for social dogs; a list of vaccinations required). I told her I wanted to get some of their energy out, because I had a long day ahead. She said no problem to group playtime. I also asked if water would be provided throughout the day; she said yes. She informed me that she would call our vet clinic to get our vaccination records and that RB requires the canine influenza vaccine in addition to the kennel cough vaccine. While not standard practice, I viewed it as being cautious. She said that the vet techs there can administer the vaccine upon arrival (again calling into question efficacy--it usually takes about 2 weeks for vaccines to take effect-- but alas). She said she would double check with our vet just to make sure they didn't have it and call me back.

She did not call me back. This morning, I showed up and she recognized me. She said that she meant to call me back and let me know RB was prepared to give the boys their vaccine. I agreed. I asked if I should wait around for the vaccine to be administered. I was told no, so I left.

After a long day, I arrived right around 5:45 P.M. for pickup. New staff was there. I asked the receptionist how it went; she said great and checked me out. $84 in total for the day. That is a lot, to me. But I was prepared to pay that for a place that I entrusted with my babies.

The kennel assistant came out with my dogs, and I noticed they were HYPER. This did not seem like the behavior of dogs that have played with others during the day and gotten their energy out--the exact reason why I brought them to RB. I asked her, "How did they do in group playtime?" She responded that they did not get group playtime. I asked why. She said that she came in at 1 P.M. and didn't know if they were social with other dogs. However, on my invoice that I had just received at checkout, it states that they each received "Day care, initial evaluation" for $20. So I was confused. But again, I tried to give RB the benefit of the doubt and chalked it up to a mistake. However, when I was leaving, I noticed blood on one of my dogs' right hip. I immediately brought this to the attention of the staff. At first, the kennel attendant said, "Oh, no, we thought he came in like that." After informing her that no, my dog did not come in with about 4 inches of noticeable blood on his back hip area, she then said, "Oh! I know! It must've been from the vaccine. Sometimes they administer it and dogs bleed, or sometimes the dogs are irritated by the vaccine and bite at it." I asked why he wasn't supervised after the vaccine administration. I trusted RB to do it properly while I was not present. The kennel attendant said that maybe it wasn't the vaccine, and that they couldn't be quite sure how he got it but that nothing else made sense because he was isolated. Upon arriving home, both dogs drank almost an entire bowl of water. I also gave my injured dog a bath. The bath removed the blood and showed that he had a nickel-sized area of skin that had been punctured, along with a scratch right next to it. Additionally, I discovered about a 3 inch long scratch on his front right "elbow", if you will, that was also irritated and bleeding. (See pictures). I gave my other dog a bath to check him. Now, it not only has been a long day, but I am now bathing both dogs unexpectedly. I paid $84 for negligent vaccine administration, a lack of water, an eval that did nothing, dogs let out twice and isolated from group playtime. I will not be back. I urge Riverbark to reevaluate their communication practices and vaccination procedures.

Alexandria P.

My dogs went here for the first time, and they seemed happy the minute they walked in! They seemed happy when they came home and exhausted! They board here for the first time in a few days, and I hope they have just as much fun!

Chelsea W.

My little rottweiler girl had a blast here for doggie daycare! I will definitely be bringing her back on a regular basis! Photo attached of my happy and exhausted girl after I picked her up.

adrinp

New groomer Dec 20, 2023 failed to let me know she has never groomed a Chow and she shaved my girl even when I showed her a photo of how the last groomer took care of her for 4 years. Really do not want to ever shave a Chow.

Shaving can change the texture of the fur when it grows back in, and it can also cause your dog to overheat more easily in warmer climates. Chow Chows have thick double coats that help regulate their body temperature.

Jordan V.

The pet retreat is just not the same anymore after recent changes we were not aware of until we came to drop the pups off. We have been boarding here for years and loved riverbark, but sadly we will not continue to board here. Now you are not allowed to bring kennels, but thankfully they allowed this one time - our dogs sleep on their beds in their kennels because they have learned this is their safe space and can go in and out as they please. The cameras are now a charge, there’s no more yappy hour or turn down service before bed. The worst of all is that the staff leaves at 6pm and doesn’t return until 7am the next morning - that’s too long for the dogs to be kept in without a poty break or any kind of supervision! And the cost is even more expensive than before. For the money we are just going to hire someone to stay at our house. They also must not just go out as much anymore in general while there because they were always inside when we checked the cameras, and their beds smelled so bad that we just had to throw them away when we got home. ☹️ They also no longer offer Sunday pick up from 4-5pm so you have to pay for an extra night for boarding.

Ashley T.

Very unprofessional and you don’t get what you pay for. We have had a large credit in our account for a long time for picking our pets up from boarding early. We go to pay today and all of a sudden there is absolutely no credit on the account, and the lady wants to argue us down and say she doesn’t even see where the credit would be from. Just clueless. After they claim there is no credit on the account after we paid they finally say oh it was applied, but the pricing doesn’t add up. They literally asked my mom who boarded her dogs at the same time if her dogs wanted to swim. Then when we pick up our dogs we asked if the dogs got to swim and they claim the pools have been closed due to a heating issue. Dogs were supposed to have a bath before pickup and they do not smell fresh and my mini schnauzer has caked on eye boogers. When we called a couple of weeks to get our dog groomed they said they are not doing grooming right now, but today they just gave my mom’s dog a haircut. First stay with the dogs the cameras didn’t work so we didn’t even bother this time.