For a single dog boarding on medication, one kit, clearly labelled with your dog's name, your name, and your phone number, should hold everything staff need to give the right medicine at the right time without guessing. Pack medicines only in their original labelled containers, never tipped into unmarked pots or mixed together, and include enough for the whole stay plus at least two spare days in case your return is delayed or a dose is dropped and must be discarded.
The Containers and What Stays on Them
Keep each medicine in the container it was dispensed in, with its pharmacy or veterinary label intact and legible. That label carries the medicine name, the dose exactly as prescribed, the dog it was prescribed for, and expiry information that staff may need if a question arises. If a medicine needs refrigeration, flag that on the outside of the kit and on the chart, and provide it in a sealed inner bag so it can move straight into the kennel fridge on arrival.
Do not pre-sort tablets into a pill organiser for boarding. Organisers separate medicines from their labels and leave staff unable to verify what they are giving, so let the labelled containers travel instead.
The One-Page Administration Chart
The chart is the heart of the kit, and it should fit on one page. For each medicine, list its name, the dose exactly as shown on its label, the times it is given, how it is given, and a tick-box for every scheduled administration across the stay. How it is given needs dog-specific detail: hidden in a small piece of a named food your dog reliably takes, placed in the mouth followed by a drink, applied to a stated ear, or dropped into a stated eye, for example. Note anything staff must watch for after dosing that your veterinarian has asked you to monitor, in plain words.
Date the rows by day, so a missed tick is visible the same day. Ask the kennel to initial each tick-box and return the completed chart at pickup.
Missed, Refused and Spat-Out Doses
Write what staff should do if a dose is missed, refused, or spat out, using the guidance your veterinarian has given you for that medicine. Some medicines should be offered again with food, some should be skipped until the next scheduled time, and some need a same-day phone call; the right action differs by medicine, so do not leave staff to improvise a single rule for all of them. State plainly that staff should phone you the same day about any refusal, not save it for pickup, and give the number you will actually answer while travelling plus a backup contact.
Pack the exact food you use to hide tablets, labelled as dosing food, so staff are not experimenting with unfamiliar treats your dog may reject.
Contacts, Consent and Supporting Papers
Include a contact card inside the kit lid: your mobile number, a backup contact who can reach you or act for you, your veterinarian's name, address, and phone number, and the out-of-hours service your veterinarian directs clients to. Add written consent for kennel staff to transport your dog for veterinary care and for your veterinarian to treat her, with any payment arrangement you have agreed with the practice.
Tell your veterinarian before the stay that your dog will be boarded on medication, and confirm the instructions match the current prescription. If timing or food requirements have changed, ask for updated written instructions rather than hand-correcting a label.
Handover at Drop-Off
Hand the kit to a named member of staff rather than leaving it at reception. Walk through the chart together, confirm fridge storage and who gives morning and evening doses, and agree how refusals will be reported. Shared through KinsLe's Care Pass as time-limited access for the stay, the same kit list, chart, and contact card stay in front of whichever staff member is on duty, so your one dog's medication routine is followed from your written version throughout.