The Vaccination Record Every Kennel Starts With
Boarding brings dogs from many households under one roof, breathing shared air and using shared exercise ground, so kennels protect the whole group by checking vaccination proof before they confirm a booking. For a Labrador, expect to show an up-to-date record of his core vaccinations, the routine protection his vet maintains against the serious infectious diseases of dogs, and proof of rabies vaccination where the law or the kennel requires it. The record needs to be the actual document or a clear copy from his vet, showing his name, description, and the dates each vaccination was given and when the next is due, not a verbal assurance that he is covered.
Kennels usually check dates, not just possession of a card, so look at due dates when you book, not when you pack, and book any booster with time to spare.
Kennel Cough and the Timing Rule Owners Miss
The requirement that catches Labrador owners out most often is the kennel cough vaccination, which protects against a major cause of the infectious cough that spreads readily in boarding, training, and grooming settings. Many kennels insist on it even though it is not part of every dog's core schedule, and they commonly require it to have been given a set number of days or weeks before the stay, so immunity has developed and the dog is past any brief post-vaccination sniffles. A vaccination given too close to check-in may not count, however genuine the appointment was.
Ask the specific kennel for its written policy when you book: which vaccinations it requires, what interval it demands after each one, and whether it accepts a vet-stamped record or a digital copy. If your Labrador has never had the kennel cough vaccination and your holiday is close, call his vet promptly to discuss timing, because the calendar, not the appointment itself, is usually the deciding factor.
Identity, Contacts, and Consent Forms
Vaccinations are only half the folder. Kennels typically require his microchip number, and in many places the chip itself must be registered with your current phone number, which is worth checking because a chip still listing an old number fails at the exact moment it is needed. You will usually complete the kennel's own forms covering your contact details, an emergency contact who can act if you are unreachable, his vet's name and address, feeding and exercise instructions, and your signed consent for the kennel to seek emergency veterinary treatment and for how costs are handled.
Some kennels also ask about parasite prevention being up to date, recent illness, and behaviour with other dogs and staff, and an honest answer protects your Labrador: a dog who is mid-treatment for an ear problem or nervous of strange men needs that on his form, with any vet-directed product supplied in its original labelled packaging and its schedule written exactly as the vet set it.
Assemble the Packet Before Booking Day
The calm approach is to build the packet when you choose the kennel, not the night before drop-off. Gather the vaccination record, chip details, vet and emergency contacts, insurance information if you hold it, and the kennel's completed forms in one folder, photograph every page as a backup, and confirm receipt with the kennel in advance so any gap, such as a kennel cough interval falling short, surfaces while you can still fix it. Recheck the whole set before every stay, since boosters fall due and phone numbers change between holidays.
For a sociable, people-loving breed like the Labrador, boarding itself is rarely the hurdle; the paperwork deadline is. KinsLe's Pet Passport keeps his vaccination record, chip details, and vet contacts together in one portable packet, so proving he is ready to board takes minutes instead of a hunt through drawers.