Dogs receive ‘freedom, fun and love’ at Shady Hill Canine Camp

Kathy Liles, owner of Shady Hill Canine Camp, provides dog kennels in a setting so beautiful that her clients have asked if they can stay, too.

Nestled in the shadows of Mt. St. Helens, Liles jokes that the dogs have an amazing view. On her 40 acres, she lives and has been boarding a variety of small and large breed dogs placed in her care for nearly 10 years. She’s also raised and shown Great Pyrenees for 30 years. They reside on her property in their own, separate space.

Shady Hill was originally born out of necessity. All the area kennels were too small to board their large breed dogs that average 120 pounds. Liles is now a regular host to Pyrenees and Great Danes who have ample room in individual kennels that measure a minimum of 10- by 5-feet.

Liles describes Shady Hill as a different concept. The runs are huge. There’s no concrete. Stall mats and gravel are used and the dogs are free to run from their indoor kennel to their larger outdoor kennel, which increases their space to 10- by 20-feet to large fenced yards occupied by like-sized dogs with the owner’s permission. She says they dig holes, get dirty and return home exhausted.

In the evening, all dogs are brought indoors to the smallest enclosure, which is heated in the winter time and air-conditioned in the summer months. The dogs then are given a cookie before bedtime.

Dog owners can bring their own food for Fido or Liles will provide it at no extra cost. She says she feeds good quality kibble twice each day and parmesan is sprinkled on top of every meal to encourage home sick pups to eat well while they’re away from their familiar surroundings. She also does not charge to administer any necessary medication.

If a dog has been crate trained and is more accustomed to that security, crates fit easily in the minimum-sized kennel. Shady Hill also has larger indoor kennels to house families of three dogs so they can all stay together.

Someone’s on site at Shady Hill 24/7 and Liles encourages people to come and visit before boarding a dog for peace of mind. There’s 6-foot fencing around each yard so the dogs are always safe and the sound of cars is nonexistent. For dogs who don’t play well with others, Liles makes sure everyone has time in the yard for some exercise and to lay in the sun so the other dogs are rounded up and secured back in their separate enclosures while less social dogs have their turn in the larger space.

Due to the popularity of Google Maps and other precise search engines, Liles has had clients from Colorado and Montana this summer. These tourists have traveled to the area to hike Mt. St. Helens, seen how close she is to the popular climb and boarded their dogs at Shady Hill for the day while they ascend the mountain.

Her husband Frank, whom she created Shady Hill with, passed away in 2008 but it was their idea together to build a kennel because they shared a love of dogs, had the acreage and thought it’d be a nice supplemental income in retirement.

Liles is accustomed to all kinds of special needs dogs including the three dogs that are completely blind that board with her regularly and two that had carts for their back legs. Many dogs with hip problems fare better at Shady Hill because it’s flat and their home may have stairs to deal with. Recently she boarded a dog that was recovering from leg surgery because the owner had no way to confine it during its healing process.

“They get freedom, fun and love out here and they always go home exhausted and everyone says ’They slept for four days.’ They like to come. They like to go home and sleep and catch up on their rest. It’s like summer camp,” Liles said.

Shady Hill Canine Camp is located at 46302 NE 296th Ave., Amboy. For more information call (360) 247-5000 or go to www.shadyhillcaninecamp.com.