The Escape Risk Audit
If a dog got out today, would your team know exactly what to do?
The Escape Risk Audit for dog groomers, daycares and boarding businesses. An expert check of your premises, your routines and your written escape procedure, from the founder of Eye In The Sky lost dog search and rescue.
Book your Escape Risk AuditOne open door. One second. One dog gone.
Most escapes don't happen because a business is careless. They happen in ordinary moments: a busy drop-off, a gate left on the latch, a lead handed over a second too early, a nervous dog that bolts at a noise.
When it happens, the first few minutes decide a lot. A dog in a place it doesn't know, already stressed, with people it doesn't trust, can be miles away within the hour. Businesses with a clear, practised plan respond fast. Businesses without one lose time to panic.
Is your escape procedure written down?
If you run a licensed dog daycare or boarding business in England, the statutory licensing guidance requires you to have written procedures covering the escape of an animal, along with a written emergency plan your staff know and can access. Your inspector can ask to see them.
For groomers it isn't a licence requirement, but it is part of your duty of care, and it's one of the clearest ways to show clients, and your insurer if ever needed, that you take their dogs' safety seriously.
A procedure that sits in a drawer isn't enough. It has to fit your premises, match how your team actually works, and be something every member of staff could follow under pressure. That's exactly what the Escape Risk Audit gives you.
What's included
A lost dog expert's eyes on your business
Dave Rimmer has spent years searching for missing dogs with Eye In The Sky. He knows how dogs get out, where they go, and what makes the difference in the first hour. The Escape Risk Audit puts that experience to work on your premises.
1. The walk-round
A thorough check of every place a dog could get out:
- Entrances and exits, including your double-barrier system (two secure doors or gates between a dog and the outside)
- Doors, gates, latches, locks and door closers
- Fencing, gaps, height and dig risk in outdoor areas
- Waiting areas, reception and handover points
- Grooming tables, bath and drying areas, and crates
- Vans, driveways and collection routines
- Busy-time risks, like drop-off and pick-up rushes
2. Your written escape procedure
We review the procedure you have, or write one with you if you don't have one yet. It sets out step by step:
- How escapes are prevented day to day
- Exactly what staff do in the first 60 seconds
- Who calls the owner, and what they say
- Who stays with the other dogs, and who searches
- Who to contact: owners, vets, the local dog warden, microchip databases and search teams
- How posters and social media appeals are done
- How every incident and near miss is recorded
It's written for your premises and your team, not copied from a template.
3. Your Escape Risk Report
A clear written report you keep on file:
- Every risk found, rated high, medium or low
- A simple, prioritised action list
- Quick wins you can fix today, and bigger improvements to plan for
4. Staff training (selected packages)
A practical session so your whole team knows the procedure and could act on it under pressure.
5. Escape Risk Audited badge
A badge for your window, website and social media, showing owners you've had your escape risks checked by a lost dog specialist.
Who it's for
Dog groomers (salons, home-based and mobile)
Your highest-risk moments are drop-off, collection, and moving dogs between the table, bath, dryer and crate. Mobile groomers face extra risk at the van door and on driveways. The audit gives you safer routines, a written procedure, and a badge that tells owners you've gone the extra mile.
Dog daycares
With lots of dogs, lots of handovers and outdoor play areas, the stakes are high. Licensed daycares in England must have written procedures covering the escape of an animal. The audit checks your double barriers, fencing and collection routines, and makes sure your written procedure is clear, specific and ready to show your inspector.
Boarding kennels and home boarders
Dogs in boarding are away from home and their owners, often for days at a time, which makes them more likely to run if they get out. The audit checks your premises and routines, and makes sure your escape procedure and emergency plan are written, practical and known by everyone on your team.
Pricing
Book your Escape Risk Audit
Daycare and boarding packages cost more because the premises are bigger, there are more staff, and the written procedure must meet licensing requirements. Remote video audits are available anywhere in the UK.
We're based in Wimborne, Dorset. Travel is free within 25 miles of Wimborne. Further afield, a small travel fee applies — £25 for 26–50 miles, £45 for 51–75 miles — worked out from your location and confirmed with you before your visit. Over 75 miles? Choose our Remote Video Audit, available anywhere in the UK.
1. Your business
2. Tick what you'd like
Add-on
Choose one audit package. Choosing another package swaps your choice.
Add the online Lost Dog Protocol course for your team at 20% off when you book any audit — just ask Dave.