About Us

Homewood Boarding Kennels has been under the care of Rachel Rae and Fatima Avdic since the summer of 2021. Fatima and Rachel have dedicated their lives to dogs. In 2012, Fatima and Rachel founded Nightrave Greyhounds, an agency dedicated to rehoming retired racing greyhounds, which includes looking after all aspects of their medical/health care, training, and behavioral health. Rachel is a highly respected figure in both the dog training and horse training world.

What Makes Us Different

Homewood Kennels is proud to employ a higher standard of care for your pet. This includes:

Large, Grassy Toilet Runs
- We do not concrete our toilet runs: Each run has natural grass/dirt flooring, which is much gentler on canine joints, particularly of those old and young.
Items from Home Allowed
- Unlike many boarding kennels, we allow you to bring your pet's own bedding and personal items such as toys when they board with us, because we know how important it is for pets to have their own familiar things with them. Many owners choose to bring along a personal clothing item (such as a sweater smelling of the owner), a favorite blanket or toy, special treats, etc.
Trained Staff
- Once a week, we hold dog training class for all of our staff with highly respected dog trainer Beverly Thomson. Our staff are taught positive, reward-based dog handling and training methods to ensure all dogs under our care are kept safe, happy, and confident.
Individualized Approach- Behavioral and Medical Accommodations
- We assess each dog upon their first time staying with us to understand their needs. We have the expertise and resources to accommodate dogs and cats with higher needs, such as jumpers, chewers, anxious dogs, people/dog reactive dogs, and animals with health concerns (specialized diet, medication, etc).
Barking and Digging Not Discouraged
- Barking and digging are natural behaviors. We allow dogs to do both and do not employ corrective measures such as bark collars, concreting outside areas, etc.
No Pack Running
- We do not run packs of dogs, which often result in increased stress levels and even dog fights. All dogs at Homewood are run individually or from the same household unless requested otherwise (we are happy to take time to match your dog up with a friend!). All dogs, young and old, dog social and not dog social, are able to exercise, play, and explore in a peaceful, safe, and fun environment.
Private Dog Park
- We have an on-site, private dog park that we use to exercise dogs. Our dog park is a spacious 2 acres with secure, 2-meter-tall deer fencing. We have plenty of mature elm trees that provide ample shade in the summer, and a water trough for the pups who like to splash around!