We try to keep it as simple as possible when you are boarding your dogs, so here is a list of what you need to bring with you for every stay:

• Your dog(s)
• A collar and lead - this is just for getting the dog(s) in and out of the runs. Our kennel hands will give the collar and leash back to you after the dog has been taken into the kennels.
• Your dog(s) food. We have a shop where you can purchase food for your dog, however, stock is limited.
• Your dog(s) vaccine certificates - Our kennel hands will take a picture of the certificate during the check in process and add it to your booking.
• If your dog is on a medical aid plan, please provide all information relating to the medical aid scheme.

We generally advise against providing bedding and / or toys when your dog(s) are in a social environment, as the dogs often turn these items into toys during the stay. If your dog is in an individual environment, this will not be an issue.

We rely entirely on our customers to provide us with accurate and truthful information. The information you submit through the booking process is used to better understand how we need to interact with your dog(s), as well as how your dog(s) interact with other dogs and humans. Furthermore, this information helps us to accurately match your dog(s) with similar dogs.

Should the information you provided be found to be incorrect and / or purposefully altered (to save on cost and / or get a space when we are full), Animal Think Tank reserves the right to charge a risk penalty ranging from R500 - R2500 depending on the type of transgression. Furthermore, should your dishonesty and / or incorrect information result in your or another dog being injured, killed, or require medical assistance, all such costs will be for your account, payable in full before collecting your dog(s).

We offer reduced / discounted rates for families of 4 or more dogs, or if your dog is going to be staying with us for a period exceeding 30 days. When making your dog boarding booking, our website will automatically calculate the correct discount during the initial quoting process.
The discount is subject to seasonal availability, and approval by management of Animal Think Tank cc.

It is important to remember that any booking changes must be sent by email to hello@attgroup.co.za with a full breakdown of all required changes. Please allow up to 24hours for our administrative team to process your change request. Below is a breakdown of the procedures and policies in place for the most common changes;

Cancellations 

• Should you wish to cancel your booking with us, the following guidelines are followed:
• We base the options we provide for cancellations on how long ago the booking was made; how far in the future the booking is for; and how long the booking is for.
  • When looking at when to booking was made;
  • Should you cancel the booking within 24 hours of making the booking, we will return the full amount of the booking to the card that was used to make the booking.
  • After 24 hours we reserve the right to charge an admin fee on all credits and / or refunds made for the booking. 
• Should the booking be made on short notice i.e within 7 days of the starting date of the booking, and you wish to cancel, there will be a 50% cancellation fee.
  • Looking at how far the booking is in the future;
  • If the booking is cancelled within 48 hours of the start date, there will be no refund, or credit applied to the account, as the space has been blocked and allocated to your pet and the space can not be filled on such short notice. 
  • If the cancellation is processed between 2 - 7 days before the start date of the booking, there will be a cancellation fee of 50% for refunds and 30% for credits will be applied across the grand total of the booking.
  • If the cancellation is processed between 7 - 14 days before the start date of the booking, there will be a cancellation fee of 25% for refunds and 15% for credits will be applied across the grand total of the booking.
  • If the cancellation is processed more than 14 days before the start date of the booking, there will be a cancellation fee of 15% for refunds and 10% for credits will be applied across the grand total of the booking.
• Looking at how long the booking is for;
  • The duration of the booking is seldom taken into consideration, however, should the booking total be more than R 6000 we will reduce the cancellation fee for refunds by 10% and credits by 5%. This does however remain at the discretion of Animal Think Tank, and will be confirmed by the consultant dealing with your account.
  • Should a booking of more than R9000 be cancelled within 48 hours, there will be a 65% cancellation fee for refunds and a 55% fee for credits.
• (Coming soon!) If you have opted for the booking insurance; there will only be a 7% cancellation fee, regardless of the timeframe of the cancellation.
• When applying a credit to the account, please keep the following in mind:
  • We will calculate the total credit based on the cancellation fee structure mentioned above;
  • Our credits are valid for 365 days (1 year) from the date the credit is applied;
  • Our system will automatically email you with the final amount as well as the exact expiry date of the credit.

Shortened stay 

As a general rule (much like you would experience at a hotel), we do not issue credits or refunds for a shortened stay with us. Once your pet has been booked in, the cost is applied in full, with exception to the following conditions: 

• if emergency situations such as medical emergencies, or a death in the family has occurred. Valid proof i.e. death certificate will be required before any refunds or credits are applied.
• It remains the sole discretion of our head office to determine if a refund / credit will be provided for a shortened stay. If your refund / credit is approved, the following shall apply:
• The refund / credit is calculated as follows:
  • We take the amount paid, minus the days your pet has already stayed, minus a flat rate admin fee of 15% (situationally dependent).
  • Our credits are valid for 365 days (1 year) from the date the credit is applied;
  • Our system will automatically email you with the final amount as well as the exact expiry date of the credit.

Extended stay 

We always welcome an extended stay, as life's conditions could change at any moment. We accept an extended stay under the following conditions:

• Firstly, all requests for extensions must be submitted by email (hello@attgroup.co.za), at least 12 hours prior to the start of extension. Should the extension request be sent less than 12 hours prior, Animal Think Tank reserves the right to charge a penalty of R250.
• We have to make sure there is space for your pet to stay longer, as festive seasons may result in limited space. 
• If we have determined that we have enough space, you will be required to complete another booking form through our website (https://attgroup.co.za) with the full payment at least 6 hours prior to the start of the extension. 
• Your pet has enough food for the extended stay. Should they not have enough food, we will endeavour to order your preferred food, and send you a receipt accompanied by a payment link. Once the payment has been processed we will place the order for your food. Please note that we only stock vet approved foods (excluding prescription diets). Any supermarket and / or low grade food will not be purchased by Animal Think Tank under any circumstances. You are welcome to order the food through another online retailer and have it delivered to our kennels. 
• If your pet is on any medication, and there is not enough medication to last the extended stay, it will be your responsibility to organise with your vet to pay for and issue the medication. We are (in most cases) able to collect the additional medication from your preferred vet; however, the vet travel fees as per our service menu will be for your account.
• If the above conditions are met, we can continue to board your pet for the requested extended time. 

Moving your booking 

Moving your booking can go in one of two directions based on how your booking is changed and affected by the move, these are as follows:

• If you move the dates, and the total amount of days don't change:
  • And you inform our head office at least 14 days prior to the start of the originally booked dates;
  • And we have enough space available for the new dates;
  • We can accommodate your booking once a new online booking has been made. The payment part of the booking will not be required in this instance.
• If you move the dates, and the total amount of days are not the same:
  • And you inform our head office at least 14 days prior to the start of the originally booked dates;
  • We will refund / credit the total amount in line with the cancellation policy mentioned above;
  • You will then be required to make a full new booking through the website complete with payment / credit before the changes will be confirmed

During the booking process, you are required to upload a picture of your dog for identification purposes. We have updated the system to give you the option to not upload a picture during the initial booking stages, however, as we still need a picture, we will ask that you allocate additional time during the check-in process so that our staff can take a picture of your dog(s) on-site and add it to your booking.

Additionally, during the booking process we ask for your dogs’ microchip numbers, so that if we need to identify your dog(s), we can also do so by means of their microchip. If you are unsure of your dogs’ microchip number, please ask our staff to scan the microchip during the check-in process and add the correct number to your booking.

Because our dogs are kept in a social environment we prefer to remove their collars to prevent any accidents during play. We understand that your dog’s collar is a crucial part of their identity, however, we have put every possible measure in place to ensure that your dog(s) can always be identified.

We believe that our dogs are as social as we are, and thus we prefer to keep all our dogs in a social environment. However, we do understand that this is not always a possibility, therefore we offer 2 boarding options; a social run that has 6 - 20 dogs in a run depending on size and breed, and an individual run which will be just your dog(s) on their own.

What is very important to us is that your dog(s) are comfortable around other humans, and with the situation they will be in. If you are unsure of how your dog(s) will react, please reach out to us so that we can set up a trial day in our Doggy daycare facilities, so that we can assess your dog’s behaviour as well as habituate your dog(s) to the new environment. Please note that this is not included in the cost of the boarding, and additional fees and rates will apply.

Should you book a social run for your dog(s), and they are not sterilised (when over 9 months), we will have to move your dog(s) to an individual run and bill you for the additional individual run costs as well as a penalty of R250.
In contrast to the above, should we see that your dog(s) would be better suited in a social run - when you had opted for an individual run - we will reach out to you to find out if we can move your dog(s) to a social run, and refund you the additional costs of an individual run.

Should you wish for your dogs to be in one of our social environments, we require all dogs (8 month & older) to be sterilised (with proof of sterilisation) before we can allow them to board with us in our social runs.

We accept unsterilised dogs in our individual runs, however, there are some conditions that apply to unsterilised dogs:

• If there is a medical reason why a vet cannot sterilise your dog. Please provide recent proof from your vet before boarding your dog with us.
• If your dog is over 10 years old, and has never been sterilised. (Proof of age is required from your vet).

We will not allow unsterilised dogs for the following reasons:

• If the unsterilised female dog(s) are in season
• If the unsterilised dog(s) are being used for breeding purposes (there are certain conditions where this will be permitted, however this must be discussed with us well in advance)
• If no valid reason can be supplied as reason for unsterilised dogs.

You will be asked during the booking process for the reason that your dog(s) are not sterilised, and should a valid reason not be provided, Animal Think Tank reserves the right to cancel and refund your booking.

Animal Think Tank can cater for a wide range of special needs dogs. During the booking process, you can select special needs for your dog(s), and provide a full breakdown of what your dog's special needs are. Then once received by our head office, we will be in touch to discuss your special needs in detail. There is, however, an additional cost when selecting special needs for your dog(s).

As our beloved pets reach their golden years, there are some extra precautions we need to take to ensure their safety:

• Dogs over 8 years of age require a health checkup from their vet no more than 2 weeks prior to the start of their boarding stay.

Your dog(s) must be up to date with their vaccination, deworming, tick & flea, rabies protocols, and Kennel Cough vaccination. Your dogs’ vaccination certificate must be brought along every time your dog(s) board. Should these reports not be provided, Animal Think Tank cc will not accept your dog.

Vaccination, deworming, tick & flea, rabies protocols, and kennel cough must be followed according to your vet's guidelines. Generally (and by South African Law) rabies inoculations must be completed every year. 

If there is a medical reason why your dog cannot be vaccinated, a veterinary certificate is required.

We try to accommodate your dog(s) diets as closely as possible, however, there are some conditions that are excluded and / or could cause changes in your dog(s) diets.

• We do not cook any food on site. Should your dog be on a cooked food diet, each meal has to be pre-prepared, and frozen, so that our staff will just defrost and serve it to your dog.
• We also stock Doggylish, pre-prepared dog meals, if you would like to buy some for your dog's stay. This can be purchased at the start of your dog’s boarding.
• If we find that the diet your dog(s) are on is not providing enough substance to counter the increase in activity during their stay, our kennel manager may increase the amount of food given to your dog(s) to maintain their weight.

We at Animal Think Tank do our absolute best to keep your dog safe and secure, however, when you drop off your dogs, you do so at your own risk, knowing that any additional fees are for your account. We cannot accept any liability for accidental damage, injuries, damage to property, or death occurred during your dog's stay.

Furthermore Animal Think Tank may not be held accountable for any fees accumulated as a result of an accident or injury obtained during your pets stay.

This liability includes, but is not limited to additional food costs, grooming, veterinary costs, or special medications.

Whilst you are always welcome at any of our branches, you enter the properties at your own risk, and Animal Think Tank may not be held liable for any injury, damage, loss, or stolen or damaged property whilst at our premises.

Should your dog(s) require any veterinary care during their stay, we will do our best to contact you and / or your emergency contact, to inform you of the required care.

When veterinary care is required, the following terms and conditions apply:

• Should you or your emergency contact not be reachable to confirm a visit to your preferred vet, we will take your dog to our pre-approved vets:  Paulshof, Riverclub, Bryanston Veterinary Hospital, or Fourways Veterinary Hospital.
• If we do get hold of you or your emergency contact, we are happy to take your dog(s) to your vet of choice.
• Should the vet of your choice not be available, we reserve the right to use Paulshof, Riverclub, Bryanston Veterinary Hospital, or Fourways Veterinary Hospital.
• If you would prefer to use your own vet, please ensure that they are aware that you are going away, and that your dog is in the care of Animal Think Tank. Animal Think Tank will not be held accountable for settling any vet bills. Arrangements have to be made between you and the vet regarding the bill.
• All vet visits whether it is an emergency or scheduled visit is a paid for service with Animal Think Tank, and the fees involved may be discussed with our head office.
• Please note that Animal Think Tank cc will be in no way held responsible for the costs accumulated by any veterinary visits; including, but not limited to our preferred vets (Paulshof, Riverclub, Bryanston Veterinary Hospital, or Fourways Veterinary Hospital).

For more information on Paulshof Vet; go to: https://paulshofvet.co.za/ 
For more information on Riverclub Vet; go to: https://www.riverclubvet.co.za/ 
For more information on Bryanston Veterinary Hospital; go to: http://www.bryanstonvet.co.za/
For more information on Fourways Veterinary Hospital; go to: http://www.fourwaysvet.co.za/ 

Our booking system is almost completely automated and streamlined as much as possible to make the booking process easy. Once you have completed all the information and boarding customisations, you will be redirected to our payment partner Yoco, where you can make the payment in full. Once this is done, our head office receives a notice that you have booked and paid. We then confirm the information on the booking and approve the booking if all conditions match and are feasible. You will then receive an automated email with the basic information such as the venue address, start and end dates etc.

Our bookings work on a first-come-first-serve basis, and if your booking and payments are not completed, the booking will be considered incomplete and the next paid booking will be given the spot. Regrettably our boarding availability is not preference or loyalty based, so please make sure your booking is completed and paid well in advance.

It is important to note that the decision lies with Animal Think Tank and the outcome of the booking change is final. Animal Think Tank reserves the right to change and / or amend this policy on a case-by-case basis. All services offered by Animal Think Tank are bound by the terms and conditions set out in this document without any exceptions.