My domain will not verify (or my site is not live on it)

You typed your domain into Dogly, added the DNS records, and waited, but the status never turns green or your own address still does not show your site. This is almost always a small mix-up with one record, and it is fixable. If DNS records are new to you, keep How to add DNS records open in another tab.

What you are seeing

Go to Settings → Website & search → Custom Domain. Next to your domain it says a status:

• pending_dns: Dogly has not found your verification record yet. It looks about every 15 minutes.
• failed: Dogly looked for about 7 days and never found it.
• verified (with a green check): ownership is proven, but your site can still take a while to go live.

Most likely causes, in order

1. The TXT record is in the wrong boxes. The panel shows a line starting TXT _domain-verify.yourdomain.com followed by a long code. At most registrars, type only _domain-verify in the Name box, because they add your domain on the end. Paste the code into the Value box on one line with no spaces. If your registrar shows quote marks inside the value after you save, delete them. Dogly compares the code exactly, so one stray character stops it.
2. You pressed Update Domain after adding the records. Every time you submit the domain, even the same one, Dogly makes a brand new code and the old record no longer matches. Open the Custom Domain panel, copy the code it shows now, and replace the value of your TXT record.
3. It has only been a few minutes. Dogly checks on the quarter hour, and DNS changes can take anywhere from minutes to a few hours to spread. Wait an hour before changing anything.
4. The status says failed. After about 7 days of not finding the record Dogly stops looking. Fix the record, then type your domain again and press Update Domain. That starts a fresh 7 days with a new code, so update the TXT value to match.
5. It says verified but your own address does not show your site. The verification record only proves you own the domain. The site also needs the A record Dogly gave you earlier, which points your domain at Dogly. Check it is still there at your registrar with the same numbers, and remove any older A record for the same name that points somewhere else. After that, give it up to an hour: Dogly sets up the secure padlock on a separate pass that also runs every 15 minutes.
6. Only www does not work. The www version is added only when it points to the same place as your bare domain. Add the optional CNAME record from the panel. See What about www?
7. You use Cloudflare. Set the A record to DNS only (grey cloud) until the site is live. Or use My domain is on Cloudflare: add these for me in the same panel, which adds the records for you.

Messages when you save the domain

• That doesn't look like a valid domain. Type it like yourkennel.com, with letters, numbers, dots and hyphens only.
• That domain is already in use by another kennel. Contact us (below) if it really is yours.

Good to know

• Your free yourkennel.dogly.ca address keeps working the whole time.

Related: Connect your own domain, Let Dogly add my DNS records (Cloudflare), Disconnect or change my own domain.

Still stuck? Open More → Dogly Support and tell us your domain name, where you manage its DNS, and what the Custom Domain panel says. Ask us if it has said verified for more than a couple of hours and the A record is right. A screenshot helps.