This page provides independent, editorially reviewed information on pet-care business software. The process of allocating each boarding or daycare pet to a specific run, kennel, suite, or play area — tracked so staff know where every animal is and which spaces are occupied or available.
Run / Kennel Assignment
The process of allocating each boarding or daycare pet to a specific run, kennel, suite, or play area — tracked so staff know where every animal is and which spaces are occupied or available.
Run (or kennel) assignment is how a facility decides and records which physical space each pet occupies. A run is an individual enclosure; larger operations may also offer suites, cabins, or shared group rooms. Assignment answers two questions at once: where is this animal right now, and which spaces are free to sell.
In boarding software, run assignment is usually a visual board — a grid or map of the facility — where staff drag a booking onto a run. The system prevents double-booking, flags incompatible pairings (two dogs that shouldn't share a suite, or a cat placed near dogs), and can auto-suggest a run based on size, temperament, or the pet's history.
Assignment feeds several downstream tasks. It drives the kennel card that gets posted at that run, it lets staff build efficient feeding and cleaning routes, and it underpins accurate capacity and occupancy reporting. When check-out happens, the run is released back into inventory.
For multi-species or multi-building facilities, assignment also handles zoning — keeping cats in a quiet ward, separating intact males, or reserving certain runs for medical isolation. Getting run assignment right is central to both animal welfare and revenue, because unsold or mis-assigned space is lost income.