Playground Pups

Mabel, our chocolate lab really loves it here. After her sister passed away this year she was extremely depressed. We started bringing her for just 1/2 days visits to see if the interactions would help. She came home happy and exhausted. Mabel tends to be more of a people person but at playground pups she happily plays about with both humans and poochies!

Since our initial visits, we have graduated to full play days and boarding.

The staff is also quick to inform you of any issues. Mabel started an UTI when she boarded last (she has an inverted hoohaa since birth and vets are surprised she does not get more UTI’s to be honest) The staff wasted no time contacting us and asking us if we wanted them to quickly run her to the vet. They had her there, tested, back and started medication very quickly. We were so thankful! By the time we picked her up a few days later we could tell she was well loved, and on the mend.

As a dog mom I am always happy when I find a place that makes my poochie happy and when I travel I trust she is getting a good boarding experience also. Mabel gets so excited when we walk towards Playground Pups, and when we make the turn on Amsterdam - she knows it is going to be a good time for her.

Thank you Playground Pups!

I can’t say enough good things about this place. My dog (Oscar) and I just moved here from Minnesota in January. I visited several potential boarding places in Manhattan and researched many more online before taking the anxiety-ridden plunge of leaving Oscar at Playground Pups for eight nights over this past week. It was the longest I’ve ever left him anywhere (which most certainly bothered me more than him … haha), and it was a new place in a new city, etc. Yikes! So here’s the thing — About two days into his stay, Oscar had an unexpected medical issue come up. But instead of that shooting my anxiety through the roof, I was immediately put at ease by how wonderfully they handled the issue and handled him. Normally one doesn’t have (because they shouldn’t need) contact multiple times a day with the place they are boarding their pets. In this case, I got phone calls, emails, and photos constantly that reassured me that he was not only safe and doing just fine, but that also showed just how professional the entire staff is and how much they care about the animals in their care. While it’s never fun for your dog to have a medical issue when you aren’t around, in a way I’m almost glad it happened, because it answered the unspoken fear we all have about whether or not everything is going to be okay if something goes wrong for your pet while you are away. In the case of Playground Pets, the answer is that your dog is absolutely in good hands. Plus, it seemed obvious from the photos they sent that Oscar had a good time while he was there. I have already booked his next stay when I’m gone for a week again in June. These people are great.

If you have a new pup and live in NYC, I cannot recommend Playground Pups enough! Their Saturday play groups helped my dog immensely -- she came in as an unsure, shy puppy and after a few meetings, became the most playful, confident, and happy dog when she meets other pups. She was nervous at first but Lea, who oversaw the playgroup, was incredibly observant and patient with my dog and all the other dogs too. You get the sense that she and the others here just enjoy all types of dogs and working with their respective strengths and weaknesses. As an example, on my pup Josie's first time here, Lea made sure to give my dog one-on-one time after the group play with another dog at her level/size to ease her into things. I also saw other very shy dogs get much more comfortable and social after Lea worked with them. So, lots of personalized attention-- and, at least at the time, it was FREE! And the group varied by size so it was perfect for my large dog. I also loved their grooming -- my dog HATES baths yet she always comes back looking great and the groomers, despite knowing how difficult my dog can be, never gave me attitude about it and always are super positive. And the price was not any more money than equivalent groomers-- I thought it was very fair. If I hadn't moved out of the area, I'd be coming back here all the time -- the people here literally made my dog wonderful!

We love the people...Sam and Michelle.
Kugel on his way to Playground Pups.
He is so happy there and well adjusted. The best care,service, love and prices in the UWS.

So grateful for this place. We had to run from Florida to get away from hurricane Irma. I have a 10yr old min pin who ous also blind. Taking him to or hotel was not an option so we found this place. They were very accommodating to us, we've been gong back to check on him and take him for his walks. He seems very happy there. Great place, very reasonable.