Having just spent the last almost three months running a friend's kennels, I cannot for the life of me understand why people are so reluctant to leave their dogs. They have company, they are regularly exercised, they are well fed and the people who run kennels do so because they love dogs - it doesn't matter if they bark, or chew their beds up they have a whale of a time. Its the owners who suffer, when they really have no need to in 999 out of 1000 cases. I have probably only every encountered 1 dog who really did not like being kenneled in over 30 years of doing kennel work. They are safe, secure, with people who know about dogs and most importantly know if something is wrong and they need a vet - can you guarantee that visiting relatives would? What if they escaped when the relatives opened the door? Would they be able to catch them if they took off? I know I would far rather know mine were safe and secure. Yes, I hate leaving mine too, but I know they are fine!