Sterling Meadows Kennel

I’ve taken my dogs here for years, thinking that they were trustworthy. My dog got sick from her recent visit & I reported it to them, while they acted concerned, they were not. A friend of mine also had her dog there at the same and he got sick as well. She reported it too — but the employees insisted no one else reported other dogs being sick & I was told that a vet visited and told them how wonderfully clean they were. In one instance, the manager called me to check up on my dog & then immediately called my friend afterwards to check on her dog — and in those phone calls, she was asked if others reported illnesses and she lied and said no. My issue isn’t that my dog was sick, my issue was the blatant lying to me.

I am so thankful for Sterling Meadows. I have a hectic schedule and being able to leave my dog with someone I trust means so much to me. My dog gets excited when he hears the word «kennel» and makes it a point to say hello and goodbye to each staff member when he arrives and leaves. He comes home tired and well cared for each time I board him. Friendly staff and reasonably priced for the quality of care the dogs receive.

We just used sterling meadows for the first time for a week (7÷25÷15−8÷1÷15). It has been a nightmare experience. Our dog needed medicine that is very important and even after spending ample time reviewing meds when we dropped him off and writing out instructions. We found out day after picking him up he was not given his antibiotics at all for 7 days. Upon calling them to go over this mistake so it doesn’t happen to other dogs it went from bad to worse. The customer service from manager down has been horrible. «So we didn’t give your dog meds. Let me tell you how awesome we are about meds with other dogs … «Thanks. Very disappointed in how the mistake was handled and to be honest. Our dog acted very timid and retreated from us for almost two days after coming home. Something is not right. They told us they can have well over 200 animals a day boarding at a time and that mistakes are bound to happen … I guess so.

Asked them NOT to put our dog with other dogs and they did. Competly disregarded our instructions and put our dog and other client dogs at risk.
My boyfriend and I are from out of town. We needed someone to watch our Belgain Malinois for the day. After finding Sterling Meadows online, we decided to check them out. Check in process was easy and the people were nice. They gave us a tour of where he would be staying for the day. Because they offer daycare with other dogs, we told 3 different people that we did NOT want our dog to play with other dogs. Our dog can be hit or miss with other dogs. We explained he can be iffy with other males and mounts females so we just wanted him to play fetch with a caretaker instead. They agreed. We made it very clear he was not to be placed with other dogs. At pickup, there was another lady in front of us waiting for her dog. They brought our dog first. I didn’t think that was right, but that’s neither here nor there. The lady at the desk informed us that they put our dog in with the big dog group. She said he had a good time and ran the fence the whole time. Now, my boyfriend and I are both dog trainers and have both worked in dog care facilities. «Running the fence» means he was either, fence fighting, or looking to jump. (On check in we also explaibed he can and will jump an 8 foot fence) I’m glad there was not any issues with other dogs. It upsets me that they went behind our back and put our dog with other dogs, when we CLEARLY told them NOT to. Also, on drop off, we did not sign waiver or release form. Had he laid in to another dog, or vise versa, that would have fallen on Sterling Meadows shoulders. This is a huge liability hole in their system. Neither one of us expressed our thoughts on them completely disregarding our instructions, as we are out of town and will never return. But, for present and future clients, be warned. Otherwise, the facility was nice. Just wish they would have followed our wishes, as he is OUR dog, and WE know him best.

I’ve never had an issue with Sterling Meadows until last week. After my two dogs were picked up, I realized that I was overcharged for boarding and it appeared my dog did not have her ears cleaned with her medicine daily (which I was also charged for). Upon calling and talking to a very nice woman, I was hopeful that everything would be resolved and I was be reimbursed for the miscalculations and the services not rendered. Unfortunately, I was just told I would get a $ 10 credit and absolutely nothing was mentioned about overcharging me for my puppy being boarded as a Medium sized dog. They actually contradicted me and told me she just had ‘really gunky ears’ and it wasn’t any of their doing. I’m disappointed in their attempt to reconcile and I will NOT be going there again. I urge everyone else to please get a detailed receipt if/​when any services are completed and triple check that everything was taken care of. A $ 10 credit does NOT make up for miscalculations and not tending to my pet’s ears that I was also charged for daily.

Great place. Use them for doggie day care and boarding. Very friendly people who work with all kids of dogs. We have one that does not play well with others and they always take care of him as well. They have a «break in» period for all new dogs to make sure they will all get along. Never had an issue or concern leaving our dogs there. Plenty of space for them inside and out. Definitely worth checking out if you haven’t.

Great kennel and the best rates in VB. Even though I did not add the bath to my service, they made sure my dogs were cleaned up when I picked them up. I appreciated them going the extra mile. Everyone I dealt with was pleasant and professional.

I can’t say enough good things about this place. They take great care of our dogs but also do an AMAZING job grooming them. Our long haired husky came back looking like a new dog. Thank you Sterling Meadows!

This place is okay… I came here with my small dog to board her and the place seemed pretty nice. The staff was very friendly! They even have a store where they sell various Items such as handmade products made out of bees, dog products, cat products, and even door knockers. They have all of their dogs play outside with other dogs which I thought was great! What I didn’t like was that I saw a dog humping another dog. When we went to go pick up our dog she seemed normal but the day after she threw up then another three times. They overfed here because there should have been food left over. So overall she had a pretty ok experience.

My dog bella who is a small morkie stayed here for 5 days while I was visiting Virginia beach. My dog had the deluxe service and she got groomed here. My dog was so happy here and the staff was so friendly. The facilities were so well kept and nice. I would recommend this place

If you can’t fit the dog in your luggage… So I waited to last minute to get kennel booked, down to the wire, need ASAP, desperate. These guys saved my vacation. They called saying they had a cancellation and I could get my fur kid in. FYI she was a stray labeled pit mix, but I don’t really think so. A few other kennels have breed restrictions, ahem… that’s called profiling but whatever.
Showed up, with my girl. They require standard shot record. And a $ 4 per day extra for deluxe stays (this means they get to play outside their kennel). The cost was $ 32 per day for deluxe, peak season, medium dog.
The workers supervise and let only a few out at a time to play to keep control of the mayhem. If there is a problem they’ll put the troublemaker in a new group so they still get to play. Now no worries, if you don’t do deluxe accommodations your dog will stay in the kennel, but it’s HUGE and there are always other dogs there.
Now they DON’T want you to bring your own food, bowls, toys or blankets. You take their collar with you too. They print up a sticky strip with your dogs name going around and that is their «collar.» This is so they have their name easy to read.
They didn’t have a problem with me showing up unscheduled to pick her up, wasn’t sure if I’d extend or come home early, I just showed up, they paged my dog to the front paid her bill and off we went. I loved their impressive stock of reasonable collars and leashes. And the workers were nothing but sweet. The groomers are even happy and did a great business from what I could see.
I tipped one of the girls a twenty to send me photos and updates on her well being. Wished they had web cams but they do have a FB page they put pics on.
They don’t do the take home bath, but no big, she got a stay-​cation and Mama didn’t feel too guilty drinking margaritas on the beach :-)

Absolutely LOVE this place! I have a Shiba Inu and every time I ask her if she wants to go she starts crying and runs for the door.
This place is awesome especially for someone who lives in an apartment and doesn’t have a yard for their pup to run in. She comes home happy and exhausted!
I have used Sterling Meadows and a boarding facility also. When my dog had ulcers in her eyes they were willing to administer medication and take her on walks by herself. After 5 days when I came to pick her up, her eyes had improved!
The grooming also does an excellent job making your pup look and smell clean!
Overall the best place I have found in VA to board my dogs and about the only place I trust with my fur baby.
If you are looking for an overall great place for your dogs, this is it!!!

Very thankful for Sterling Meadows. I take both my fur pups here when they can’t travel with us. The staff is fantastic! Both of my dogs are happy, healthy, and so tired when I pick them up. I have a pomeranian and a large mixed breed (75lbs). They are very accommodating with keeping them together. My big dog gets separation anxiety, but is fine when the little dog is with him.

I travel often and when I do, try to bring my cub (Meeko!) along with me and board him as close to me as possible. On a recent short trip down to Virginia Beach, we chose Sterling Meadows Kennel because they had both the indoor/​outdoor kennel runs as well as normal business hours. I tell ya, I cannot stand when dog kennels have those small, limited hours for pick up and drop off. Puts a cramp in your vacation! (For ex: what if you found a cool place for brunch the next day or wanted to spend extra time with friends and family?)
Our check in date was Friday, June 21 and check out Sunday, June 23. We left Arlington, VA at 1pm and the GPS told us it would be 3.5 hours to get the kennel. Given that it was the first day of summer, as well as the a Friday, 95 was jam packed and we were literally stuck in traffic. The kennel closes at 6pm and we called at about 2pm to see what our options were. The receptionist was very kind and supportive and immediately set us up with an 8:30pm arrival time. No complaints from her, she just did it. We called back at 5pm to let them know there was no way in hell we’d make the closing time of 6pm, so the 8:30pm would stand. She even gave us the owner’s number, Sammy, to call if we had any additional after-​hours problems. By the grace of God, traffic cleared up and we called Sammy to ask if he could meet us at 7:30 instead of 8:30 and he happily met us.
Check in was a breeze. Sammy briefly went over Meeko’s eating habits and health history. I explained he’s part blind and he put up a sign so that the staff the next day saw it to accommodate (when I picked up Meeko on Sunday I saw the sign still there and it was very visible). We also discussed grooming options and he said he would recommend an 8.5 cut versus my original 7 cut. I am happy with his options.
Picking Meeko up was easy, too. The kennel called and gave a 30 minute notice for when he’d be ready for a pick up (versus what Petsmart does and call when he’s ready thus leaving him alone for an extra amount of time). The ladies working that day treated him very well and kept him up front under the desk on some dog bedding. Super cute.
I would say this, to those who experience dog eating issues, etc when they board their dog are being unfair to this, or any kennel, when they say their dog doesn’t eat. Meeko rarely eats a the kennels. In speaking to my vet (Alexandria Animal Hospital) he explained two things: 1) dogs don’t sleep well at the kennel (a lot of excitement) and 2) dogs don’t eat well at the kennel (a lot of excitement). Meeko was extremely exhausted when I picked him up but after he power napped for about 24 hours, he was back to his old self.
I truly felt that the staff here cared about my dog. A lot of other kennels I have been to made it sound like I was an inconvenience to them. I’m happy I found this place and would recommend them.

I have a Great Dane and a Lab. We kept our dogs here for 4 days over Thanksgiving. First of all, it was our first kennel experience. Our dogs were terrified walking down the center aisle, because of the barking and other dogs lunging at them. I called less than a day into the trip, to see how they were doing. I was told that my Dane was «acting funny» and agressive, so they removed him from the lab. We paid extra so that the dogs could go outside (really? extra to let a dog outside to pee and poop?). When I returned, I found out that my Dane was not allowed to play with the other dogs, because they were worried he would be aggressive. I understand that they have a business to look out for and can’t afford for my dog to injure somebody elses dog, but I have never seen my Dane show aggression, so it seemed a little off to me. When I picked him up, he was skin and bones. They said he refused to eat etc… We were scheduled to keep them there over Christmas, but we canceled because I wasn’t thrilled with the place. They said they had a lot of experience with Danes, but that did not seem to be the case. We took our dogs to Cosmo’s Corner for our Christmas trip. They said they saw no signs of aggression and the Dane was wonderful with the other dogs. When I picked him up, he hadn’t lost any weight. It was a completely different experience. One of the girls at Cosmo’s Corner had a friend at Sterling Meadows. When I told them about our experience there, so she asked her friend about my Dane. Her friend said that our Dane was never let out of his kennel. I am glad I paid extra for nothing. Needless to say, we will not be giving our business to SM in the future.

Last Christmas, we got a beagle and since that time, we have traveled a couple of times and needed a place to board her. After asking around a bit, we decided that Sterling Meadows fit the bill for what we needed. She is a high energy dog and we didn’t want her in a little pen. When I took the tour of the facility, the one thing I liked was that the pet area had space indoors and outdoors. Plus, it was a pretty large area for her to move around. So, we went with it and have been back a couple of times. We like the people and the facility is pretty close to the house. Overall, we would recommend it to others who need a place to board their pet.