I'm not one to name and shame when it comes to small business, many small businesses are doing it tough so I have thought long and hard before I leave this review. However, my recent experience with the Adelaide Hills Pet Resort was so terrible that I am sharing this as I would not want my friends or family to be treated the way we have been treated.

We have been loyal customers of theirs since 2009 and in that time we have easily spent in the order of $10,000. We've always supplied our own dog food as our dogs have a special diet, and never once asked for a discount on their fees even though they are not supplying food (which is a part of their fee). Their customer service has never been anything to write home about, but I always felt confident that my dogs were well looked after so I overlooked it.

In January this year we made a booking for our dogs to stay for 25 days across June and July (the last few days fall in school holidays). I rang in May to confirm my booking and to advise that we were going to be home on a Thursday rather than a Saturday. They advised they have a strict no change of booking policy in school holidays so I accepted I'd have to pay for the stay, however I asked during the phone call whether we could make negotiations about the Saturday as they are charging me for a full day but required me to pick up the dogs by 1pm due to their business hours on that day. They advised they'd get back to me.

What followed was an email exchange which still leaves me stunned (I've included parts of it below). The first part I was ok with...

"Yes, Clients certainly can, and do, utilise the full day boarding fee on Saturdays. They pick up on Sunday morning at no charge for Sunday if pets are picked up between 8.30 a.m. and 9.30 a.m".

My first thought was, fair enough, we'll pick them up Sunday morning. But then I kept reading and was genuinely shocked. I've copied part of the response below...

"No business can please or cater to 100% of client requests 100% of the time and we apologise that our open hours, our peak season terms and charging system do not meet your expectations. Please forward your bank account details to me : your bank's BSB number, your account number and the full name of the bank account by email today. We are refunding your deposit and will issue you with a copy of the bank payment by email and you will be able to make a booking with another facility to suit your dates".

They cancelled my booking. No discussion entered into, no phone call, no nothing. After 7 years of custom they decided to terminate our booking because we asked a question (we were not nasty in anyway, just simply asked the question given we had to return early due to unforeseen family circumstances). We never suggested we'd cancel our booking. In fact, we had accepted we'd be paying for the extra two days.

Clearly they don't feel they need the business and I can only guess that they took this stance in hope we'd not find anywhere else and we'd be left without care for our dogs. I can't imagine any other business operating like this. I think it's fair to say we won't be recommending them anytime soon.

The best care for my 2 dogs and 2 cats. They were returned back to me after their two week stay looking healthy happy and looking very spoilt. I have no problems in highly recommending Hilda and co to look after my fur babies every time I need them to be lovingly looked after.

These guys offer a premium service at a very reasonable price! We chose to leave our six month old puppy and our parents 12 year old dog here on a recent overseas trip and we were extremely happy with their care of our beloved pets. The twelve year old came home fitter and more agile than he has been in years.
We were able to inspect the facilities before we made our booking and were very impressed....the place was immaculate and we didnt hear a single dog barking while we were there (they shift them to other areas when you visit so that they don't get upset). There is an excellent range of extra special treats that you can pay for and the pick up and drop off service is a great convenience to make your holiday transitions easier and hassle free. Included in the base price they exercise and socialise (if appropriate) several times a day and provide premium food and treats.
We couldnt have been happier with the whole service and will definately be using them again when the need arises! It was such a relief to know that our boys were being so well looked after while we were away and helped us to relax and enjoy our trip.