Tuesdays Tip #49.....Name Plates

We use Vari Kennels to hold our furry friends.

I like them because they are easy to clean, roomy, and have plenty of ventilation.

They are also very durable.

We have had the same kennels since I opened in 1987.

I have had to replace a couple of doors, and door latches.

I have also had to repaint the kennel doors a couple of times. (they are due again this spring)

They have held up to dogs digging and chewing on them.

 The one thing that I have never been crazy about is the name holders that came with the kennels.

We have always used index cards to write the dogs name and grooming information.

When the dogs are done we turn the card upside down.

I should have bought stock in index cards years ago.

I have always been on the look out for some other kind of name card holder, or something.

I think that I found it. :)

  For a long time I have thought that it would be nice to have some kind of dry erase board so that we could use it over and over again, but all of the boards that I would find were always too big to use on a kennel, until last week.

I was in JoAnn Fabrics and found these.

Small, locker size dry erase boards.

They were only $2.99 each.

I bought all that they had.

I still need three more.

I also bought a couple of packs of cheap wire shower curtain hooks.

I drilled two holes, one in each corner of the dry erase board.

Just big enough for the shower curtain hook to go through.

Then I fed a hook through each hole.

I decided to use the dry erase boards sideways.

I still wanted to be able to see into the kennels easily.

I also didn't want the name boards to block the dogs view.

The shower curtain hooks open and close kind of like baby pins.

So they are safe to hang on the kennel doors.

We tried the boards on the top and the bottom of the kennel doors, and settled on the top of the door.

Since the dogs lay down most of the time, it still gives us a nice clear view of the inside if the kennel.

There is more than enough room on these boards to write all the information that we need.

 When a dog is finished, but still in the kennel we put a large X across the name so that everyone knows that that dog is ready to go home at a glance.

We can mark the board with a red C (and the time) to let us know that the owner was called to pick-up.

When the dog goes home we wipe off the board.

So, now with just a quick glance, we can tell who has come in, how many dogs still need to be groomed, who is done, and how many are gone at the end of the day.

AND, I can stop buying index cards!!

I know that not every shop uses name cards on their kennel doors, but if you do, this could be an option for you. :)

✂ Happy Grooming, MFF ✂