Inside Happy Tails: Why We Do Things the Way We Do
At Happy Tails, we’ve spent decades creating an experience that offers something no pet sitter or traditional kennel can match. We don’t just provide a place for dogs to stay - we provide a cage-free, off-leash, joy-filled adventure where they can be dogs, the way they were meant to be.
Since 1996, we have invested 3 decades into building 27 fully fenced dog parks, with fences 11 feet high to keep jumpers safe and lined with patio stone to stop even the most determined diggers. We’ve designed six aerated ponds, where dogs can splash, swim, and chase frogs to their heart’s content.
Inside, we’ve considered every detail of their comfort. Our rooms have heated floors and perforated rubber tiles that let dirt and water drain away, so dogs can roll in the mud and snow but never have to sleep in it. Each room also has a fireplace, Kuranda beds, memory foam mattresses, and automatic waterers, ensuring a cozy and refreshing stay.
And because freedom is at the heart of what we do, we’ve installed custom dog doors in every room, giving dogs 24/7 access to the outdoors, whenever they choose. No crates. No cages. No confinement. Just complete independence in a safe, well-managed environment designed just for them.
Dogs need so much more exercise and freedom than most of us allow them, and that’s just not fair. Conventional caged kennels are a human solution, where convenience comes at the expense of a dog’s happiness. Dogs aren’t meant to spend their days waiting behind bars, watching the world through metal slats, confined to someone else’s schedule. They are living, thinking, feeling beings who crave movement, choice, and independence.
Here, dogs don’t spend their days waiting for familiar routines that no longer make sense in your absence. We ask owners to take their dog’s leash and collar home, replacing them with fresh stimulus, blankets, and spaces free of familiar scents. This helps dogs settle into a new environment without constantly being reminded of who they’re missing. It might seem like a small detail, but it makes all the difference. Instead of longing for something they can’t have, they fully embrace the present, adapting with ease to the freedom and adventure around them.
Rather than watching the world pass by from a window, they wake with excitement, eager to step outside and explore. They spend their days chasing chipmunks, making new friends, rolling in the grass, and soaking up the simple joys of being a dog. And when you return, they don’t greet you with relief from loneliness - they greet you with pure joy, having just had a vacation of their own.
We must give them the chance to be a dog. Think about it this way: If your “furbaby” were actually a child, wouldn’t you want them to run, play, and form friendships without an adult hovering over their every move? The way we supervise and restrict dogs can deeply affect their confidence, their ability to make decisions, and their overall development, just like it does for kids. We must trust them. We must give them the space to make their own decisions, to test their instincts, to grow into balanced, fulfilled beings.
At Happy Tails Pet Resort, dogs have the freedom to run, rest, play, and indulge in their most joyful, instinctual behaviours in a world designed just for them, 24/7.
Whether they’re local Muskoka pups or city dogs arriving on our shuttle, they get to experience the cottage dog lifestyle, a return to the freedom that generations of Muskoka dogs before them have enjoyed!
Happy Tails is truly a vacation for pets. And just like us, when dogs get a real vacation, the only thing they have to think about is when they want to play and when they want to relax. No schedules. No restrictions. Just joy and freedom. We send them home dog-tired, satisfied, and completely fulfilled - what we call the Happy Tails Hangover.
And when they return? The excitement is undeniable. Many pups smell the resort before they even arrive, start bouncing in the car, and sprint toward Lisa the moment they’re set free, ready to play, ready to just be.
We know that dogs need so much more than just a place to sleep and be fed. They need freedom, movement, independence, and a pack to belong to. That’s why we do things differently, because we know that when dogs are given the space to run, to play, to live on their own terms, they thrive.
The Happy Tails Team