Dogtopia

My dog spent five years only socializing with her sister, who was twice her age. She had socialization issues with larger dogs and most female dogs. After spending time at Dogtopia, she’s now able to spend time with dogs of all shapes and sizes! While Dogtopia isn’t a training facility the attendants take the time and care to help each dog grow in the playroom the best they can and it really goes a long way.

My boyfriend and I were on a road trip from Virginia and stopped at a Charlotte dog park to let our dog run off some of her energy which resulted in a very muddy dog situation. Luckily Dogtopia popped up on an Internet search for places to wash a dog and it was conveniently located off 77. The young man working there was so kind and showed us to the self service dog wash area which was well maintained and had exactly what we needed to rinse our dog off. The icing on the cake was that the employee didn’t charge us to use the wash station since we didn’t give our dog a whole bath. My boyfriend and I were so impressed with the employees kindness and generosity. While I cannot comment personally on their grooming/​boarding services, I have no doubt that they must be exceptional based on my short encounter with this establishment today. I highly recommend Dogtopia to anyone and will definitely remember them next time I am in the Charlotte area!

My puppy is tough to keep still when cutting around the face. They did an excellent job on the entire grooming. I asked for 1 inch off and my puppy had a 1 inch cut. I personally liked how the groomer thinned out the hair on the tail. I felt like my puppy was happier when she left than when she came in. The reception was laid back and welcoming. The groomer was professional and personable. They won over my trust to trim my pup!

While this review is late, I think it’s pertinent Charlotteans be made aware.
I left my pit bull-​mastiff mix there during Labor Day weekend, and when I picked him up on that Monday evening following the holiday, I was told he was involved in a fight with another dog (through no fault of his own). The dog who attacked mine needed staples, and my dog was left with a large cut across his snout.
While accidents happen, and while I know it was not my dog’s fault, and while Dogtopia did not hold me responsible for the attack because of that, I received no call, no information until I picked him up. I have no idea what kind of medical treatment my dog received following the cut.
Even though the attack was not his fault, I was told Dogtopia was «not the right mix» for my dog.
Lack of communication when my dog was injured means you should stay away if you’d like to prevent the same for your dog.

My dog is a regular at Dogtopia for boarding and grooming, and we have been very happy with their services. My dog Murray is always greeted with smiles and love when he arrives, and I know he is in great hands.

This place is amazing. My dog loves it here and everyone is so friendly and welcoming. Great place for active dogs to burn off energy and make doggie friends. Grooming is also good as well my pup always comes home smelling fresh and clean.

I took my dog to get groomed here yesterday. He was there from 1030 til 345 and his hair looks terrible. It is uneven, it looks like he has a Mohawk. You would think after being there for so long, he would have one of the best haircuts ever. Nope.

We love Dogtopia! They do a great job grooming, their prices are completive, and you can tell the staff really loves animals. We recently took our golden doodle in for a grooming, and Stacy did a wonderful job! It was the best cut he’s ever gotten. Highly recommended!

I brought my dog into Dogtopia (Springbrook Rd. location) for the first time recently and unfortunately will most likely not be going back. The staff was friendly and my dog was returned to me happy and healthy, but that was pretty much the only positive experience.
When bringing my dog in for his initial temperament assessment I was told by the staff member that took him back that he went ahead and put my dog in with the wildest dog there just to see how he would do. That is most definitely NOT how to do a behavior assessment. With any new dog it is important to ease him/​her into a new environment and make it feel comfortable. When throwing a new dog in with the «most crazy» dog there, things could go very wrong and become dangerous not only for the dogs, but also for the employees handling them.
The second unpleasant thing that I was told was that there is no real outside area and that the dogs go to the bathroom inside the playrooms — but not to worry, the floor is made of thick rubber and this does not «de-​housebreak» them. Let me just go ahead and repeat this… there is no real outside area and the dogs are encouraged to go to the bathroom INSIDE. Where they play. I find it quite astonishing that the owners would even chose a location that does not have a proper outside area for dogs to play in…
The dogs sleep in small crates inside the play area. While this isn’t necessarily a completely negative thing, ideally the animals should sleep in crates, runs, or suites that are separate from the play area.
When we picked up our dog he was happy and healthy, however he was returned to us smelly and with traces of poop all over his backside. I understand that dogs can get smelly while at daycare, it’s completely normal… although I didn’t expect him to smell like that after only being there for two days/​one night. My dog has a lot of fur (a LOT) so it can happen sometimes that if he has diarrhea or loose stool it can get «stuck» on his fur and needs to be wiped off or hosed down. I was shocked that when this had happened the staff didn’t do anything about it and just left the poop all over his butt. I understand that daycares may not always want to just go ahead and bathe or hose down a dog without asking the owner, but we didn’t even get a call asking us if it was okay or anything; it was just ignored. Of course by the time we picked him up it was dried and extremely hard to get off… spending 20 minutes cleaning your dog’s backside is not something you want to do after picking him up from daycare.
Last but not least is that when picking him up we were told that he sill had some food left, but that it was «spilled» and oops, too bad. We brought him in with enough food for three or four days, just in case. His food was double bagged so I’m not even sure how this spill would have occurred, unless staff just left it opened after feeding him. I would have expected to receive a little of the food used by the center, or at least some form of small compensation, especially given how expensive his food is. At this point though I didn’t want to argue and just wanted to get home.
All in all, I am happy that my dog seemed to enjoy his time there and that the staff was friendly, but in the end, there’s more to a daycare than just a friendly staff…

Very friendly staff, but the services just aren’t there in the grooming department. I had a bath, deshed, and nail trim on my dog, Bessie. The only service they got right was the nail trim. Bath was okay but you could still see dirty areas in the under area (Brown/​black from dirt, not pink). My biggest disappointment was the de-​shed. Bessie shed as much when we got home as before I took her– something’s not right about that. This was my second visit to Dogtopia… like the previous negative review on the grooming department, Bessies behavior was off for a few day when getting her back-​not sure what that’s about… I won’t be returning. Sorry.

Booking a grooming-​only appt was a breeze. It was my dog’s first appt at Dogtopia. I called on a Wednesday and was able to get in the next day. They answered most of my questions well. I wanted to know more of an exact cost of the total charges, but they could only give me a minimum cost estimate because they said the dogs are evaluated case by case. Fortunately, my dog was in good shape so the full charge was not unexpected and it was exactly what I had hoped for.
Finding the place was easy and they have a pretty decent-​sized parking lot. I was probably the first appt of the day since I did not have to wait long to meet the groomer to discuss the type of cut and general issues. The total grooming time only took about 2 ½ hours, which was a pleasant surprise.
I’m pleased with my dog’s fresh cut. The groomer did not trim off too much nor make him look different from my request. I would bring my dog here again for a future grooming appt.

Excellent staff, they are patient & caring, love the webcams & clean facilities.
This is the only place in Charlotte I will leave my baby, if I have to go out of town coz she will be well taken care off & I get to see her on the webcam from any part of the world.
If you want peace of mind & a happy puppy, don’t look elsewhere, this is the place!

They make it so easy to be clients! The staff is so nice and I’m a crazy, over protective pet owner who calls every day to check on my dog. They always give me a great update that is always more than just ‘she’s fine’. They knew her name even on her second day. I love the video, so I can see my dog play.
We tried a nail trimming session, but my pup is too jittery so they didn’t finish. To me that says a lot that they didn’t finish and try to force the issue. I had a coupon, so I wasn’t charged in the first place, but I wouldn’t think I would have been charged to begin with.
My pup loves this place and I see so many happy owners when I pick her up. I would highly recommend this place.

I bring my dog here one to two times a week and he loves it here. The staff is very friendly and the place is so clean! It’s definitely one of the better doggie daycares in Charlotte.

Love the staff, I love having the online cameras to watch my dogs when I can too. They’re always super tired after a day of fun and I highly recommend this place :)

I started coming to this place bc i used to live close. After my last visit, i wouldn’t come back there ever again. The first time i used them they did great. Second was par. But this last visit was terrible.
First of all when i called to schedule a grooming appointment, the person i spoke started arguing with me when i told her my 100 lb husky does not do kennels. He will fight it anyway he can. Instead of being accommodating she tried to shame me because it is not their protocol. I wouldve waited the three hours if they wanted me to. That should’ve been sign enough to not go there. But my dog had been there before and i like for him to be comfortable.
Secondly, when i got there they rushed him to the back, instead of easing him back there, and making him feel comfortable. That should’ve been my second sign but i just wasn’t thinking.
When i went to pick him up he was really ready to go, which is generally not a good sign because he is always so happy go lucky. I put him in my car and drove home, he would not jump down from the car (sedan). So i drove him to my mom’s so she could watch him all day for me. When i got home around 10:30 from work she told me he had only gotten up for 15 minutes at best (to potty once and eat)
That worried me so i stayed at my mom’s house that night, he came and laid down on the couch with me in the bonus room around 11:30. I figured he could use a potty break after about 30 mins. When i touched him to motion to go, he started CRYING. I immediately jerked my hand away and touched him in the same spot gently again. I got the same result, so i got him sitting on the ground and squeezed all him muscles gently, nothing. So we walked down the stairs and he slowly LIMPED down. He is only 5 years old, he should not be having these issues.
I called the next day and no one was able to tell me what happened. It took about 2 ½ days for him to come back to somewhat of his normal self. I am assuming it was a sore muscle since he rested and then it hurt him. Probably somebody wasnt watching and he fell off the table or something.
Very thoughtless and negligent staff. TRY SOMEWHERE ELSE! Its so hard to find good and caring staff for your family member who cant speak. Im outraged, kinda like if you saw a story on the news about a kindergartner going home with a black eye because he or she refused to take a nap. I don’t know how this place has such good reviews unless they are all friends with the owner or something. I have never tried boarding here but i am way pickier about that then grooming.

As a first time puppy mom, I was nervous reading boarding horror stories of places around Charlotte. After reading Unilocal reviews on Dogtopia, I decided to give them a try. The location is convenient to my Southend location, and it’s a little away from the city.
The staff is always incredibly nice, and they’re very flexible. I had to travel for work, and didn’t wan’t my pup to be crated all day. I called Dogtopia in a frenzy, and they told me I could drop her off within the hour. I’m so grateful to have a place that not only can work with my schedule, but that I can trust and know my little Zuzu is taken care of!
Great things about Dogtopia:
–The staff. Thank you guys!
–Everytime I pick her up, she’s absolutely exhausted from playing with other dogs.
–If you ever want to check on your pup, Dogtopia offers video cameras in their playrooms that you can check on through your phone or computer.
–Safety. The dogs must be evaluated by personality and to ensure they are up to date on their shots.
–Flexibility. If you are running late from the office close to 7pm, you can call and they will wait for you. Don’t make a habit of it (they have a life too) but it’s a nice extra service.
–On Staff Groomer. I forgot to clip Zuzu’s nails, and called them while she was being watched for the day. They fit her into their schedule, and it was reasonably priced.
I highly recommed Dogtopia! Thanks guys for taking care of my little one!

I swear, Marley goes to the salon more than I do. True story.
It appears all the reviews here are focused on boarding and doggy daycare. I don’t use either of those things, so I would like to address the grooming portion of Dogtopia.
We moved across town back in May and it’s just too time consuming (and inconvenient) for me to run him to his normal groomer. So, I let Unilocal lead the way in my new hood. What’s this? A highly rated Dogtopia is just five minutes from my house? Sold.
Despite a super busy holiday week, I was able to get an appointment with just a few days notice for a Saturday afternoon. When I arrived, the workers had a thorough talk with me about what I wanted done. I was a little fearful because I had been a bad dog mommy. Marley was a giant, matted furrball mess. Some groomers would just say, well there’s nothing we can do but shave. (Seriously, that happens at some places and it’s awful) That wasn’t the case here.
When I returned to pick him up a couple hours later, he looked like a brand new dog. A fantastic Yorkie haircut complete with an adorable little bandanna. He was ready to get out of there though. A couple of barking dogs in crates were stressing him out big time.
Price was comparable to my regular place. Check in and check out were both a breeze. Dogtopia also had a cute little case of dog cookies on sale. I rewarded Marley for his bravery by purchasing three. He loved them. I almost took a bite of one because they looked that delicious. I refrained. Glad I could have self control to stop myself from trying a dog treat.
Wanna bring your four legged friend here? Just make sure they are up to date on all the shots.

I am usually not a fan of doggy daycare but.
My situation required me to make sure Dexter has a place to go to while I am work for a bit longer than I need to.
The folks will do an assessment on your dog to see if he will be friendly with the other dogs. Happily Dexter passed his assessment.
He had his first day and was totally exhausted. (Which was the outcome I needed)
The place is nicely put together. They work hard at having their place smelling good by keeping it clean as best they can. All the workers are very attentive to the dogs. And they do assess and watch your dog play with other dogs as the day goes on. There is an app for your iPhone/​Android that you can use to check in on your best buddy.
Yes I would recommend that if you were on the south side of town you should use their services.
Thanks folks!

So though I haven’t borded my dog yet, I had good reason to pay Dogtopia a visit this last weekend.
A meetup group for small dogs had a social event there and it seemed like a good way to meet some new folks and let the little teacup rat dog (I love her I really do) have some play time with animals of her ilk.
The folks were nice and help me find my way to the private room where about 20 folks were sitting and standing around with their little dogs.
The dog had a great time, new folks were met and a good time was had by all.
The place is really clean and I noticed they even have a groom area by the front desk.
I’m looking forward to paying these folks a visit in the future and giving them my business.