I’m currently thinking of sacking off an unfulfilling job (I wouldn’t call it a career!) and setting up a dog walking/pet sitting business.

After the pet first aid, dbs check, insurance and membership of a “professional” body, is there anything else I’d need to think about?

If you make use of a dog walker/pet sitter, what services do you wish they offered but don’t?

Cheers for the tips and advice!

I don’t want anything fancy from you, I just want you to be honest and reliable, and preferably not too expensive.

I’ll need you to turn up when you say you will, and walk my dog for the time I pay you to do so. I’m also more than likely to give you a spare key to either my shed or my house, so you better be pretty damn clean and honest, or the **** will most definitely hit the fan.

The only people who I ever employed to walk my dog, who I trusted on all these scores were a couple, who were also ex police, who runs our locals kennels. Because I knew them from leaving the dog at the kennels, I trusted them enough the give them a key. Not sure I would do this for someone who I just met.

They had an automatic policy of never walking a dog off the lead either. Too much risk otherwise. Rates were about £5 a day, which translated to about a half hour walk. Outside of major cities, I’d say this is about average. Inside a major city, pick your price !! ( so it seems )

Think about the people who you’d walk dogs for. The people I know who have dogs walked for them are older or frail people who have a pet for companionship but not the range/strength to give them enough exercise.

Potentially thats a double service in that the dog gets the shits and giggles it needs and the owner gets someone dropping in frequently.

My mum had to make use of a dog walker when recovering from hip surgery. Her dog is from a rescue charity and has something in his past that makes him flip out when he encounters other dogs, so although she’s pretty much recovered and can walk fine again unless she goes out at 5am its not fun having him thrashing about on the lead so she’s kept the walker on partly to make sure the dog gets plenty of exercise but also to be on their books for dog sitting if she goes away for a few days.

So being that reliable person – a key holder, someone who’s got other family members phone numbers on their phone and so on -is perhaps just as important as walking fido.

I don’t know if it would ever be asked for – but something like a PVG check (or whatever the equivalent south of the border is) might be useful.

Perhaps have some ideas for mal-adjusted pets up your sleeve too. The lass who walk my mums dog has pulled some strings with a local livery yard and takes him there instead of parks and woods so that he doesn’t have unexpected meetings with other dogs – there he’s happy to run around properly, elsewhere he’s not really happy to be let off the lead.

I use a dog walker for my springer 2-3 days a week. We pay £10 a day and she’s walked with other similar dogs for at least an hour (off lead) She’ll be out of the house for around 2 hours with pick up / drop off time.
Our dog walker also offers overnight stays (our dog in his home with his friendly dogs) at a similar good rate.

My priority really is reliability and comfort that she has a great walk and loves going out with him.

Hope that helps

J

Flexibility and reliability! I’ve previously used bigger “company” type dogwalking services and they’ve been a pia, but then I’ve prob been a pia client! My work movements are a bit erratic and often change at short notice so individuals who walk a few dogs here and there and can accomodate that are perfect. Current dogwalker is an ex-lawyer who gave up work to have a daughter and just does a bit of dogwalking on the side as she walks her dog anyway. £16/day for 2 dogs, plenty of off the lead exercise – Manchester.

£5 a day! I’m guessing you live up North.

I’ve used dog walkers and doggy daycare if I have to leave the dog alone for more than 4 1/2 hours due to work etc. Normal rates down South (Bristol) are £12 to 15 a day.

Not sure what I look for, as I normally try and work out if I trust the person, if any alarm bells ring then I don’t bother, as you are trusting someone with something very very valuable to you.

Some examples of very successful dog walking/daycare I know of are which might be interesting for you to look at:

More industrial but the dogs love it:
http://www.k9express.com/playschool-for-dogs.html

5*, very expensive (off peak £40, on peak £65 a night!) and a very hard to book your dog in as they are so busy:
http://www.thepawseasons.co.uk/

People send their dogs away on holiday? 😆 I’ve seen everything now!

Anyway, I remember the wife trying to book a dog walker and she could only do outside working hours! Useless. So yeah, flexibility.

(might nick this idea when I get made redundant)(TraildogsRus 🙂 )

£5 a day! I’m guessing you live up North.

Yup. My sister lives in London and pays A LOT more for her dog walker. Probably closer to £20 a day.

She lives opposite a large park, which is full of people walking their dogs. I reckon you could probably clear up to 40K* a year if you were a decent, honest and reliable dog walker in London.

*Honestly, people will pay and pay well for that kind of service in London village.

People send their dogs away on holiday? I’ve seen everything now!

Huge business and really nice people running it, they have capacity for around 30 dogs (in 3 houses) and they are always fully booked!; they must clear 400 to 500K+ a year.

I have only used it a few times after my dog after getting back from kennels and he had started to develop separation anxiety which was causing him to damage my house (he removed a 5M section of skirting board and a dado rail after I left him for an hour)

I’ve got (well, had – she lives with the ex mostly) one of the neurotic ones. Kennels one time only – bloke said she barked ALL THE TIME – 24 hours.
Took 3 weeks plus to settle in the ex’s new house.
Took 4 or 5 stays before she’d settle in my new house (still can’t leave her alone there).
Sending on holibob not an option!

I would be very surprised if she wouldn’t be OK at the Paw seasons as its not really a kennels, as the dogs stay at old country houses which have swimming pools, orchards, stables, horses, chickens etc and get to play with other dogs of similar breeds (certain places take certain breeds) all day and then sleep by the aga at night. Its nicer than most peoples houses as they seem to be million £ country houses with all the trappings and the women running it are doing it as they are a bit dog mad and are doing it as something to do.

Disclaimer: I don’t work for them or send my dog there anymore as its too expensive and I’ve now got two so the problem has gone away.

…chickens

I hope they’re in a pen… My dog’s a pointer. Chicken? Nomnom!

I hope they’re in a pen… My dog’s a pointer. Chicken? Nomnom!

In a huge fox proof pen, they were obviously let out at some point as mine (HPR) is an expert at tracking down rotten eggs hidden away

Our dog walker charges £5 per day for a half hour walk at lunchtime, although he’s often out for much longer. She’s just raised her prices by an extortionate £1 per day. This is in rural Hertfordshire, and she lives 2 doors down, so has no travel costs.

One of our customers works for a dog sitters in london.
They collect the dogs in the morning drive them down to Chessington to their dog proof field. A 2 hour run in the morning , a massage another 2 hour run then dropped back to london.
Some of the people pay £1500 a month for the service.

…a massage….

😯 Really?

Crazy….. would be funny to see someone try and massage my dog though as he doesn’t like too much attention or being touched, so it would send him into a wild scamper/thieving frenzy.

…a massage….

Otherwise known as stroking?

Cheers folks, the suggestions etc. are much appreciated!

I reckon you could probably clear up to 40K

So, not exactly worthwhile if this is a full time occupation in London.

This is something that I considered doing.

However when I sat down and worked out that if I charged £10 per dog for an hours walk, and I would recommend walking no more that 4 dogs a time.
I would have to do at least 3 trips of 4 dogs to make £120, and when you start thinking about your outgoings ie fuel etc there doesnt seem much money to be had.

Unless of course you own a big plot of land where you could pick a large number of dogs up and take them for a good run around hoping they all get along.

My sister does this for a living. It’s great in the summer when the sun is out, but when it’s wazzing down in November and you can look forward to 5 hours walking in it…..
She is in a rural location and runs a Vivaro to carry the dogs, it’s kitted out with cages in the back on two levels. Walks up to 6 dogs at a time and some of them ride in the van all day if the client asks or she is pushed for time. Email in profile of you want to mail her for some pointers (not those type Dez!)

I’ve just started up dog walking. I do only the client’s dog or dogs (to a maximum number, depending on the dogs). I don’t do clustering, my service is for nervous, aggressive, elderly or unwell dogs who cannot be walked with others. I have always had rescue dogs with various issues and I want to be the walker I needed for my own dogs. It’s individual, it’s bespoke, the client gets the whole hour or half hour, I am experienced with difficult dogs. I know I won’t make as much money as the clusterers, but this is the service I feel good about offering, and after my last job I want to feel good, right and honest in my work.

I launched on April 26, and have only a few clients so be prepared for a slow build up. I am comprehensively insured for everything with Cliverton and I have a current DBS certificate.

I genuinely love dogs, I feel so much for them, especially the rescues, being able to help them deal with their issues and become happier more confident animals is a joy and a privilege. I love being outdoors and I have clothing to keep me warm/dry/cool as appropriate.

I am also quite happy to spend long periods without human company. These are things you need to think about. Cold. Wet. Loneliness. Your market. Surviving for x months with no income (I do part time kitchen assistant work to pay the bills). Getting clients. Getting around/where you plan to work. Insurance.

HTH