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March 2024 by Bethany Halbreich
If you love your dog dearly and want he or she to continue feeling loved while you’re away, do not leave your dog here. If I could leave 0 stars, I would.We have the sweetest senior dog in the universe and our usual kennel (Joyful dog - highly recommend) had no room, so we decided to try this place out. We had high hopes, but there were red flags from the get go.First off, if you’d like your dog to board during the day so he or she is not stuck in a room all alone while you’re away, you need to bring your dog in for an evaluation.A note about these evals: They are by appointment-only and only happen during certain windows. We were never informed of these exact details, so we called ahead (after we reserved for our dog’s stay) to ask if we could come for a tour and bring our dog in. They said sure. We got there and were greeted (in a very cold way) by a woman at the desk who insisted that they couldn’t do the eval at that time because it wasn’t during a scheduled window (even though no one told us this when we called). The man who usually does the evals was standing there and told her he could do it then / no problem. She refused to allow it.Anyway, our dog eventually did the eval and apparently failed twice because “he was staring at the door the entire time and showed no interest in other dogs”. However, there were several problems here: 1) There was zero interaction with our dog before so coldly grabbing his leash and taking him in for the test (dogs have feelings and know when to feel uncomfortable), 2) they left him on his leash the entire time in the room while the other dogs were free, 3) he had no time to warm up prior and caused no harm. Our dog has stayed at Joyful dog for many days (as well as other kennels) extremely successfully. He loves playing with other dogs and knows when he should feel comfortable.We were set to be gone for 10 days, and 10 days is a LONG time for a dog to go without real interaction.The dogs have their own rooms but, in the end, if your dog isn’t getting any play time or interaction, it’s just a jail cell.Each room has a video camera, but our room’s didn’t work for the first few days. Once we were finally able to get someone to fix it (which was very hard.. there’s a young girl who works the desk who’s a complete bimbo, very rude too), we watched our dog frequently. He was in the same position curled up in a corner for hours on end. It was pretty sad, and clearly solitary confinement.We called incredibly concerned, and the rude woman at the desk blamed it on our dog and the fact that he failed the temperament test. If your dog isn’t boarding during the day, and you still want your dog to have some interaction with other humans, this place charges for every minute. However, because our dog was clearly depressed (this was the longest he’s gone with no love), we opted to try this out twice even though it was something like $20 for 15 minutes of human time.We ultimately contacted Joyful Dog, and they said they now had room to take our dog. The story upset them as they know our dog well and couldn’t imagine he would “fail” a test that would allow him to spend time with other dogs (he is THE easiest, kindest, good-natured dog). They had heard similar stories about the coldness and ambivalence of some of the staff at this place. Joyful Dog went above and beyond, and immediately rescued our dog while we were away.Even though our dog only stayed here for around 4 days, creature comforts insisted on charging us the full amount - for all 10 days - which, mind you, is not cheap (especially as this is a “luxury” pet resort).Afterwards, we received a personal email that said something like “We hope your dog enjoyed his experience! It was such a pleasure having him!” Once the owner (who, although absent from this experience, I’ve heard good things about) heard, I’m sure they took every step they could to cover themselves.Although we won’t be taking this case to small claims court because it’s not worth the effort, we are certainly reporting the experience to the BBB.
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March 2024 by Anthony Cangianiello
Truly a great place. I know my dog is in dog hands every time I leave her with Creature Comforts.
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January 2024 by Matt Maniord
Great place and super clean. Great staff
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December 2023 by Christy West
Our fur babies love it here!!
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December 2023 by Cheryl Greene
We use them for both daycare and boarding. Our dog, Libby, loves going here and has always been well taken care of. The staff is friendly and loves animals.
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December 2023 by jenine warner
Went to see about boarding my cat here a few months ago and I didn't like what I seen. The dogs and cats are in the same back room just different parts however they can hear one another, they only feed cats at 6am and again at 5pm. They don't leave food or water down all day, they only have kitty condos with no ventilation as it's glass doors or small tiny cages like they use for pet adoptions. On top of they don't play with the kitties or brush them. I'd never trust creature comforts with my cat as long as I and my cat live. This is directed at the town of tonawanda creature comforts pet resort. Trust me owners take your cats elsewhere. I will stick by my word as it's the truth. I urge everyone to check out their cat boarding rooms and see how small the regular cages are(they look like cages for animals that are up for adoption) and the suites are glass doors with just a bed and water bowl. They only give food at 6am and 5pm. They only feed your cat the food you pack to your feeding schedule if advised and socializing costs extra. To board 10 days is over $600. So because they tend to try to dismiss the truth. I urge everyone else who owns cats to check out this location and see for yourself (town of tonawanda location). My advice is for everyone to look and board your cats elsewhere. My opinion is final and I'll never board here. I will never reconsider my opinion on this facility.
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November 2023 by Amber D.
Abusive and dirty. This place isn't a good choice. Many other options that are nicer and also more affordable this place is greedy.
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November 2023 by Karen M.
We have boarded our dogs here twice in the past couple years and while we had a few issues the first time, obviously we decided to try again. It was a disaster. We sent over the vet paperwork weeks ahead of time (at booking) but they never reviewed them and when my husband talked to the check in person they raised no flags. Hours after we dropped them off they called to say there was an issue. We cleared it up after a call to the vet but it was very stressful to have already left town and have a totally preventable issue pop up. During the stay we noticed on camera our one dog's slow feeder was not consistently used but we were willing to let that go. At pick up they cashed us out and we left and then I realized the amount didn't seem right. We called to clarify and they decided they found a billing error from our stay in 2021 and added it to this stay. It was nowhere on the receipt, not mentioned at booking or drop off, and honestly seemed very inaccurate and well outside standard accounting practices. At no point were we billed or made aware they just added it on - and didn't account for it in the receipt. When we spoke to their customer service manager she was so rude. To lose a customer who spends $1000 per visit over a $15 accounting error seems ridiculous but that's what happened. Between the failure to review our paperwork and ruining the beginning of our vacation and the billing error we realized they are too disorganized to be trusted and rude when questioned about such instances that we decided we're never bringing our dogs back.
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October 2023 by Angela Willmeno
We drove from Missouri heading to Maine, and we visited New York and left our dog there for seven days. They took really good care of her, She had a nice room, and the staff were personable when I called or any dealings with them. I like that they have 24/7 staffing because I won't leave my dog anywhere that doesn't.
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September 2023 by Tonya M.
There is a reason this place has so low ratings. I am not one to post negative reviews but the business practices of this place are so ridiculous I felt compelled. First let me start by saying I have boarded my dogs here numerous times, so they have gotten plenty of money from me. Last year during the blizzard I was forced to change my travel plans by 2 days due to the driving ban. They kept my 50 dollar deposit, even though I shifted my reservations by 2 days. I was supposed to travel this weekend but ended up at the emergency vet last night, and was told my dog has pneumonia. I cannot board my dog as this is a communicable disease. They will not refund my $50. I had planned my booking 3 weeks of boarding with them over the upcoming year but will no longer do so. If you choose to keep 50 over 2500 plus bad reviews, you need to rethink your customer service.
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September 2023 by Elaine Donnelly
Our dog recently stayed at Creature Comforts on Ensminger for the first time while we were away for ten days and he did very well (slightly anxious dog). He was happy to see us, and was clearly well looked after. The facilities are clean, the staff are great and we will be using Creature Comforts again without hesitation.
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September 2023 by cristi morotchie
If I could zero stars I would. I have 2 golden retrievers that we boarded here due to our typical spot being full. I was told they could do daycare during their stay. They waited to evaluate the puppy who’s 1 year old and has done daycare and boarding with no issues before until after drop off. Unclear why but they did not pass him. They then locked him and my 10 year old golden in the suite we paid extra for and rarely took them out. I called to question and they said they would re-evaluate him but didn’t and no one called me back. Then they removed the bed from the suite, I called to ask why and they said he was biting i, likely from not getting enough exercise/play. We ended up shortening our trip and picking them up early due to neglect. The then charged me for the day we didn’t stay. I paid it so I could get my dogs back but what horrible customer service. Never board here!
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September 2023 by Cristi M.
If I could zero stars I would. I have 2 golden retrievers that we boarded here due to our typical spot being full. I was told they could do daycare during their stay. They waited to evaluate the puppy who's 1 year old and has done daycare and boarding with no issues before until after drop off. Unclear why but they did not pass him. They then locked him and my 10 year old golden in the suite we paid extra for and rarely took them out. I called to question and they said they would re-evaluate him but didn't and no one called me back. Then they removed the bed from the suite, I called to ask why and they said he was biting i, likely from not getting enough exercise/play. We ended up shortening our trip and picking them up early due to neglect. The then charged me for the day we didn't stay. I paid it so I could get my dogs back but what horrible customer service. Never board here!
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August 2023 by Janine T.
My dog recently did a short 4 day stay at Creature Comforts in Tonawanda. I'll start with the positive. My dog seemed happy and well cared for, which is most important to me. The staff that took care of her told me how good she was and how much they enjoyed watching her. They even told me they spent extra time with her (I paid for 3 one on one sessions of 20 minutes of an activity like a longer walk).. The place is also very clean. I choose the Luxury Suite because my dog is a 16week old puppy. It was our first boarding experience. The rate for the luxury suite is $72? (Approx) a night. Not cheap. I really wanted to like this place. Unfortunately, my experience with management and their customer service ruined that. There was some confusion regarding the forms (vaccines, contracts) that I emailed over. I needed to change the format of the forms and resend. To actually reserve my puppy's Suite took over a week due to my emails not being responded to. When I was finally able to reserve my puppy's Luxury Suite, I was told that scheduled drop off and pick up times were very important. The day I was set to drop off my dog, I called early and asked if I could push back my scheduled drop-off time. I was allowed to move it back 45 minutes, 2:45pm rather than 2pm. I arrived on time for the drop-off and was buzzed in by an employee when I arrived. Whoever buzzed me in (one of the two individuals I saw working the desks) was fully aware a customer had entered the building. One other customer was in the building talking to the employee at the desk, so I waited. After about 5-7 minutes of standing directly in back of the first customer(give or take) the employee finally asked me if I was waiting there to check in. I said yes. She told me I was in the wrong part of the building and pointed at another set of doors I was supposed to have known to walk through. When I finally made it to the right spot, Jackie greeted me. I told them what happened and their response was "That side of the building does not deal with the boarding". I'm not exaggerating, but as soon as they finished their sentence, the same employee that did not acknowledge me walked behind the boarding desk and sat down. Obviously, both workers deal with the boarding and I was cashed out at the original desk, FOR boarding. Jackie took my dog to her suite and after I asked if I could see Lola's suite because I was curious where she would be staying. Only then was I told Lola would be put in a Classic Run because the Luxury Suite was not ready due to another dog not getting picked up at the scheduled pick up time. Jackie showed me Lola in the Classic Run and I left. I called an hour later, all was the same and was told there was no idea as to when the other dog would be picked up. Around 5:30pm we received a call that my dog was put into the luxury suite. I picked up my dog at 11:30am and was charged for the following day. My dog stayed 4 days and I was charged for 5. Why am I the customer who's dog has to be put into the wrong suite? Wouldn't the fair thing to do would be to put the dog of the customer who did not pick up their dog at the scheduled time in a lesser Run. And who paid for the time the other dog was in the Luxury Suite? I know I did. Did the owner of the other dog also pay? If I book again, how would I be confident that my dog would be placed into the room I am booking. I discussed these issues with Amy (I think that was her name) as she tallied my bill. Her response was the business is understaffed and very busy. My immediate rebuttal to this is that if this business is that understaffed it should not be reserving or booking appointments for new dogs/clients. I was also told I should have said hi to the employee who buzzed me and let her know I was waiting to check in. I was also Creature Comforts reserved the right to move dogs from the original booked suite/run. I signed the contract. I can understand this having to be done in some sort of emergency or situation, but I don't understand why it is done for the
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July 2023 by Christopher Ratka
My dogs survived. However several things of note:-you need to be an engineer to work their camera system which even after speaking with someone there it didn’t work.-the dogs upon coming home drank water like they’ve never seen it before.-the upselling, while appreciated to remind us, is a bit too persistent. That’s when I knew I was in trouble.-and the final most frustrating thing with this place is the pickup and extra charge. We booked one night. Drop off at 1030am and they told us the only available pickup was 1. Ok sounds fair if that works for them. But they neglect to tell you that’s going to cost you a whole extra night. So charged for 2 nights despite picking them up within 27 hours and them saying it was their only pickup. Learn to pro-rate at the very least. Total cost was over $220.14 for one night for two dogs in the premier suite.
