This is due to a new breed of kennel, where pets are treated like royalty with their every whim catered for, be it fresh linen, a game of football or a juicy bone to nibble.

The Happy Hounds Hotel and Purrfect Puss Paradise in Cavan is one such kennel. Owner Aoife O'Rafferty set it up three years ago after seeing how much her own dogs hated being sent to boarding kennels. "When I collected them, they obviously hadn't enjoyed themselves, eaten properly or had a warm, dry bed or a good walk during their entire stay, " she said.

"And these weren't cheap kennels either. My ideology was that while the owners are enjoying their holidays, their dogs should enjoy themselves too."

And so, in Happy Hounds, dogs and cats are given everything they require to keep them happy. Each 'guest', as they are termed, is treated on an individual basis with individual walks at least twice daily, one hour of playtime with a member of staff every afternoon, and fresh linen every morning. Both the kennel and cattery have a television and RTE Lyric FM playing in the background to soothe the guests. At night, every pet is given a bed treat and a special pat or cuddle before lights out.

"We simply give dogs what they need to be happy, " said O'Rafferty.

"And that means a loving environment, a warm and secure kennel that they know is a safe place, feeding at the same time twice a day so they know they will not go hungry, long walks, a bit of TV to watch and a warm fire to nod off at while munching on a treat."

Happy Hounds also has a free service whereby pets are collected from their homes and dropped back once their owners have returned from holiday. It serves a wide range of counties including Dublin, Northern Ireland and most of Leinster with prices ranging from 159 to 199 for a fortnight's boarding.

When checking out, each dog is given a complimentary wash, condition and blow-dry, as well as a goody bag and bandana to take home. While in the hairdressers, which also has a television, O'Rafferty said the dogs particularly seem to enjoy watching Off the Rails, with American Idol and The X-Factor also big favourites in the evenings.

"Whether it's because of the singing or because they hate Simon Cowell and are thinking up ways to bite him, I don't know, " said O'Rafferty. "But they definitely don't have much time for Pat Kenny on the Late Late Show."

With all this activity, few dogs seem to get homesick at Happy Hounds, unlike their owners, who tend to miss them more than they expected.

Because of this, O'Rafferty has started a daily phone-text service to keep owners informed on how their pet is doing.

A typical text message might run like this: 'Babs all tucked in for the night with lots of blankets and bedtime chewy bone after a very busy day, which included a wee paddle in the lake and duck-chasing competition.'

"It really eases the pain a lot of owners experience upon being separated from their pet for a short or long time, " said O'Rafferty, who plans to introduce a webcam service from January so owners can go on-line to view their pet's progress.

Her devotion to her charges is unquestionable . . . she postponed her wedding twice and lost two deposits because the 'Hotel' was too busy to leave. "What can I say? I really, really love dogs, " she concluded.