Mixed households
Cats and dogs at home: the grooming and daycare rhythm that keeps the peace
Most Cape Ann households with a dog also have a cat who did not vote for it. The dog is loud, brings the woods home on its coat and takes the best spot. Here is the routine our front desk describes to those families.
The house
What the cat's coat is doing in a house with a dog
A cat living with a dog grooms more, not less. Dog smell on the sofa, a wet nose in the ruff and being chased off the windowsill all send a cat to wash itself, and a cat that washes for comfort swallows more hair and licks patches thin. It also hides more, and under the bed is where a long coat picks up dust and mats.
From April to November a dog walking Dogtown Common or Ravenswood Park carries ticks and fleas home on its coat, and the cat inherits them without ever going outside. In the heating season the dog adds its own shed to the static in the cat's coat. A Maine Coon in a house with a Labrador in February is carrying two coats' worth of trouble.
- More stress grooming, more swallowed hair, sometimes a thin patch
- Fleas and ticks that arrive on the dog between April and November
- Dog hair and static in the cat's coat all winter
The rhythm
The weekly rhythm: the dog's day out is the cat's day off
Dogtown does not board or daycare cats. A cat does not want a day out with other animals, and a cat left alone in a quiet house with the dog gone has exactly what it wanted. On daycare days the dog is at 210 Eastern Ave from the morning drop-off window, and the cat has the sofa, the windowsill and the silence.
A full daycare day is $42 and a half day $33, and the Pup Van collects and returns the dog for $10 each way in Rockport, Gloucester, Essex and Manchester-by-the-Sea. The dog's free evaluation runs on a weekday morning between 6:30 and 9:30 AM. Two or three daycare days a week gives a cat two or three quiet days, usually enough to stop the stress grooming.
| Day | The dog | The cat |
|---|---|---|
| Daycare day | Full day $42 or half day $33 at Dogtown; Pup Van $10 each way | The quiet house; a five-minute comb once the dog has gone |
| Home day | A long walk, then a settle; a tick check in season | A high perch and a closed door to one dog-free room |
| Grooming day, every 6 to 12 weeks | A groom booked into a daycare day, home clean | Its own appointment in the cat studio, away from the dog floors |
| Flea and tick season, April to November | Checked after every walk; product chosen by the vet | Flea-combed weekly; a different product, also chosen by the vet |
At home
Six habits that keep the peace between grooms
The routines below take a few minutes each and stop most of the friction before it turns into a vet bill. They are ordered by how much difference our groomers see them make, and the first two matter more than all the rest together. None of them needs a bigger house; they need a door, a shelf and a comb.
Comb the cat on the days the dog is at daycare. It is the one time each week the cat is relaxed enough to be turned over, and it is when you find the armpit mat or the flea dirt early. Brush the dog too, ideally outside; a combed dog sheds less onto the play floors and onto your cat.
- 01
Give the cat one dog-free room behind a door or tall baby gate, with litter box and water
- 02
Feed the cat up high or behind that door, never beside the dog's bowl
- 03
Comb the cat for five minutes on each daycare day, when the house is quiet
- 04
Tick-check the dog after every walk from April to November, and flea-comb the cat weekly
- 05
Brush the dog outside twice a week, and book Shed Release at its spring and fall grooms
- 06
Vacuum the cat's hiding places under beds and behind furniture, where dust turns into mats
At the studio
Two species, two rooms, one address
Both animals can be groomed at Dogtown, but never in the same room. The cat studio is a separate, quiet space away from the dog floors, run by cat behavior specialists, and the cat travels in a carrier straight to it. Cat services are nail clipping at $20, Minimal Trims at $45, the Full Bath at $95 and the Full Service at $120. Grooming needs no evaluation, dog or cat.
The dog's groom can be booked into a daycare day, and Shed Release at $10 takes the spring coat off before it reaches your sofa. Many families book the cat's groom for the same morning: one drive to Gloucester, the dog to the play floors and the cat to the studio. A cat who cannot be groomed safely is referred to the vet.
- Cat studio: separate and quiet, away from the dog floors
- The dog's groom can run during a daycare day; Shed Release is $10
- No cat daycare or overnight stays at Dogtown; grooming only
The vet
When the friction is more than a grooming problem
A cat that stops eating, stops using the litter box, hides for days or grooms one patch bald is not being dramatic about the dog. Those are health questions, and stress in a cat can become illness a vet needs to see. Our groomers will tell you about a thin patch or a scab they found; they will not tell you what caused it.
On the dog's side, a dog that will not leave the cat alone is a training question, and our trainers can talk it through at the evaluation. Fleas found on either animal go to the vet, who chooses one product for the dog and a different one for the cat, since some dog treatments are dangerous to cats. Never share a product between them.
- A cat that stops eating or changes litter box habits: vet, soon
- A dog that will not leave the cat alone: a training conversation
- Fleas on either: the vet picks a product for each species; never share
At Dogtown
Grooming for the cat, daycare for the dog
Cat grooming in a quiet studio from $20; dog daycare from $33 a half day with the Pup Van at $10 each way.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this
Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.
Can my cat come to Dogtown for the day with my dog?
Can I drop the dog for daycare and the cat for grooming in one trip?
My dog came home from Ravenswood with a tick. Should I check the cat?
Will the dog's daycare day really calm the cat?
More questions? Read the full FAQ
Sources
Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.
Keep reading
Next step
The dog goes out, the cat gets the house.
Book the dog's free evaluation for a weekday morning and the cat's groom online or at 978 491-5922; one address, two rooms, both home clean.
- 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
- 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
- 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
