Dog/pet/house Sitting

[~Sarah~]

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I am considering setting up a dog/pet sitting service and wondered if people could comment or PM me with their thoughts.

I have already done this for about 4 years for my neice who runs her own business with dogs staying in her home while the owners are on holiday. She also walks dogs locally and does cat visiting. When she has a holiday I stay there and take over looking after the dogs etc (the owners are obviously aware of this). I really enjoy myself while I am there and get to meet a lot of lovely dogs and do a lot of walking.

There seems to be quite a variation on what people charge so I wondered what people on K9 would consider a fair price. I would be prepared to travel, but the petrol cost would have to be factored in.

I had thought about offering a reduced price if my 2 well behaved whippets could also join me, although not essential as OH would be at home, but I do miss them when I am away!!

I would have the correct insurance and references, and I already have been CRB checked.

At the moment it is in the early 'thinking about' stage, but I would be grateful for any comments.

 

[pippywhippet]

Hi Sarah, I have set up my own dog walking/boarding business last year. I have only ever intended for this to be a part time job to help pay for the childrens various sports clubs fees ( surfing, swimming, surf lifesaving, etc etc.. the list goes on- very expensive!!) which it has done and paid extra too :thumbsup:

I think you have all the right things in mind- I have good insurance which doesnt just cover public liability, but also covers clients vets bills for animals in my care, if I have been negligent, and gives cover for lost keys etc whilst I am working

I have CRB checks, and references. I also have a contract which I ask all owners to sign which asks for general info like vets, dogs age, vaccination status, etc, as well as more specific information such as the dogs temperament, whether it is suitable for group walks, and most importantly whether they agree to it being exercised off lead or not- if they agree they must sign an additional form giving permission for me to do so, and also acknowledging that this is entirely at their own risk.

I walk a maximum or 6 dogs (including my own, which are insured separately) at a time. Obviously I have walked them individually prior to a group walk as I have found that not everyone is truthful or accurate about their dogs temperament and how sociable it might be. My insurance doesnt cover me to walk more than 6 at a time- in any case this is the most I feel I can safely walk at one time. Luckily we have huge open areas nearby without livestock where it is safe to let them run free.

I charge £8.50 per hour per dog with a reduction if there is a second dog from the same house- that is for a group walk, or £10 for an individual walk. I charge slightly less if the dog is close to where I live and I only walk in a 5 mile radius of where I live- the price includes my travel costs, and the hours walk only begins once we have reached the beach or woods, etc.

I always do a home visit before I walk any dog, and there have been a couple I have refused :unsure:

For boarding the owners supply the dogs food, and I supply the rest, I charge between £12 and £15 per day, this includes 3 walks a day and the dogs live in the house - I have to be very choosy however which dogs I accept for boarding, although I have been lucky enough to have had some lovely house guests over the past 12 months- some I have been sad to see go. :wub:

Good luck whatever you decide... :luck: I do enjoy what I am doing, its the first job I have ever had where I can honesly say I enjoy going to work every day :thumbsup:

 

[TillynPip]

I have three dogs, two cats and a hamster so going away is rather like a NATO exercise and now we simply do not go unless the dogs come with us, which still means cattery and nice neighbour for hammy. I did put my two rescue whippet X's in kennels and Gracie, who was only 6 months, went back to her breeder when we went to France 16 months ago for my God daughter's wedding. No other occasion would have made me put my girls in kennels and I couldn't wait to get back to them. They both came out with kennel cough. Now we also have Milo who is 10 months so any trip without them is not an option.

If I could find someone with impeccable credentials, references that checked out (a word of mouth recommendation would be a bonus) and who I had a good feeling about, I would jump at the chance of having them look after all my animals in my home. The fact that that person also owned whippets would be a bonus and I would be happy for her dogs to be in the house, assuming they were house trained, non destructive etc! I haven't considered price but will think about that. I'm sure there must be many people like me with neither family nor friends nearby or they have but who aren't willing to take on a multi dog household. Would be interested to know what your conclusions are although, unfortunately, you're probably too far away from me as I'm Cheshire.

 

[~Sarah~]

Hi Sarah, I have set up my own dog walking/boarding business last year. I have only ever intended for this to be a part time job to help pay for the childrens various sports clubs fees ( surfing, swimming, surf lifesaving, etc etc.. the list goes on- very expensive!!) which it has done and paid extra too :thumbsup:
I think you have all the right things in mind- I have good insurance which doesnt just cover public liability, but also covers clients vets bills for animals in my care, if I have been negligent, and gives cover for lost keys etc whilst I am working

I have CRB checks, and references. I also have a contract which I ask all owners to sign which asks for general info like vets, dogs age, vaccination status, etc, as well as more specific information such as the dogs temperament, whether it is suitable for group walks, and most importantly whether they agree to it being exercised off lead or not- if they agree they must sign an additional form giving permission for me to do so, and also acknowledging that this is entirely at their own risk.

I walk a maximum or 6 dogs (including my own, which are insured separately) at a time. Obviously I have walked them individually prior to a group walk as I have found that not everyone is truthful or accurate about their dogs temperament and how sociable it might be. My insurance doesnt cover me to walk more than 6 at a time- in any case this is the most I feel I can safely walk at one time. Luckily we have huge open areas nearby without livestock where it is safe to let them run free.

I charge £8.50 per hour per dog with a reduction if there is a second dog from the same house- that is for a group walk, or £10 for an individual walk. I charge slightly less if the dog is close to where I live and I only walk in a 5 mile radius of where I live- the price includes my travel costs, and the hours walk only begins once we have reached the beach or woods, etc.

I always do a home visit before I walk any dog, and there have been a couple I have refused :unsure:

For boarding the owners supply the dogs food, and I supply the rest, I charge between £12 and £15 per day, this includes 3 walks a day and the dogs live in the house - I have to be very choosy however which dogs I accept for boarding, although I have been lucky enough to have had some lovely house guests over the past 12 months- some I have been sad to see go. :wub:

Good luck whatever you decide... :luck: I do enjoy what I am doing, its the first job I have ever had where I can honesly say I enjoy going to work every day :thumbsup:

Many thanks for your very helpful and informative reply. :thumbsup: I am actually thinking of staying at other people's houses while they are away, so a little different to what you do. I had thought about boarding in my own home, but OH wouldn't allow it. I have also thought about dog walking in my local area but I don't want to be committed every week of the year (which is usually the case with dog walking), so I thought pet/house sitting would be the best thing.

 

[~Sarah~]

I have three dogs, two cats and a hamster so going away is rather like a NATO exercise and now we simply do not go unless the dogs come with us, which still means cattery and nice neighbour for hammy. I did put my two rescue whippet X's in kennels and Gracie, who was only 6 months, went back to her breeder when we went to France 16 months ago for my God daughter's wedding. No other occasion would have made me put my girls in kennels and I couldn't wait to get back to them. They both came out with kennel cough. Now we also have Milo who is 10 months so any trip without them is not an option.
If I could find someone with impeccable credentials, references that checked out (a word of mouth recommendation would be a bonus) and who I had a good feeling about, I would jump at the chance of having them look after all my animals in my home. The fact that that person also owned whippets would be a bonus and I would be happy for her dogs to be in the house, assuming they were house trained, non destructive etc! I haven't considered price but will think about that. I'm sure there must be many people like me with neither family nor friends nearby or they have but who aren't willing to take on a multi dog household. Would be interested to know what your conclusions are although, unfortunately, you're probably too far away from me as I'm Cheshire.

Many thanks for your reply. :thumbsup:

My thoughts at the moment are to charge a daily rate (regardless of the number of animals) with possibly adding on petrol costs if I have to travel a long distance. I live in Northamptonshire and have good access to the M1/M6 and would be prepared to travel (to select people with Whippets/Iggies/Lurchers!!)

 

[FlyLurcher]

I would love a Holiday, i've forgotten what they are.

We haven't been away for more than 2 nights in the last 11 years because of our pets and the last time my brother looked after them for us and we came home to a trashed house and found out he hadn't stayed here as he'd told us he would :angry:

If i could find someone who was reliable, fairly priced and loved dogs as much as we do then i would be happy to leave my house and pets in someone elses care. I have to admit that cost is our biggest factor as we already spend everything that comes in on our basic living plus the pets, but if we could budget in a sitter for a couple of weekends a year for me & hubby to get away and have some "us" time i would seriously consider doing it.

We'd be happy to let the sitter bring thier own dogs as ours are friendly but we do have 10 dogs & 5 chickens that they'd have to get along with :teehee:

If you feel able to handle our lot and we're not too far away in Birmingham then let me know if you decide to go ahead with the sitting service :thumbsup:

 

[gilliwigs]

As I've said to you on Facebook Sarah, we have gone down the house sitting option just once, for an overnight stay. It worked out really well and we wouldn't hesitate to use the company again if we needed to. They charged us £20 a day, which meant that for 2 days, including an overnight stay, it came to £40. They charge £25 for a weekend day. This doesn't seem to vary with the number of dogs you have so if you have multiple dogs it does compare very favourably with the costs of kennelling them. They didn't stay in the house all the time with our two but did limit the time they were on their own to 4 hours. But they did spend the whole night here - wouldn't have been happy if they hadn't!

Good luck with it if you decide to go ahead Sarah. I'm sure there would be plenty of business out there. :thumbsup:

 

[gilliwigs]

As I've said to you on Facebook Sarah, we have gone down the house sitting option just once, for an overnight stay. It worked out really well and we wouldn't hesitate to use the company again if we needed to. They charged us £20 a day, which meant that for 2 days, including an overnight stay, it came to £40. They charge £25 for a weekend day. This doesn't seem to vary with the number of dogs you have so if you have multiple dogs it does compare very favourably with the costs of kennelling them. They didn't stay in the house all the time with our two but did limit the time they were on their own to 4 hours. But they did spend the whole night here - wouldn't have been happy if they hadn't!
Good luck with it if you decide to go ahead Sarah. I'm sure there would be plenty of business out there. :thumbsup:

Just thinking that £20 won't actually give you much of an income! Had a quick look at what others charge and what we paid does seem at the cheap end of the market. I suppose it could also vary with area. I've found prices at £32 and £46 a day, a vast difference! And some charge for the sitter's food and some don't. It must be quite hard to get the price right. I was happy to pay £20 and maybe a bit more but I wouldn't employ a house/pet sitter at £46 a day - that would double the cost of our holiday!!! (w00t)

 

[~Sarah~]

As I've said to you on Facebook Sarah, we have gone down the house sitting option just once, for an overnight stay. It worked out really well and we wouldn't hesitate to use the company again if we needed to. They charged us £20 a day, which meant that for 2 days, including an overnight stay, it came to £40. They charge £25 for a weekend day. This doesn't seem to vary with the number of dogs you have so if you have multiple dogs it does compare very favourably with the costs of kennelling them. They didn't stay in the house all the time with our two but did limit the time they were on their own to 4 hours. But they did spend the whole night here - wouldn't have been happy if they hadn't!
Good luck with it if you decide to go ahead Sarah. I'm sure there would be plenty of business out there. :thumbsup:

Just thinking that £20 won't actually give you much of an income! Had a quick look at what others charge and what we paid does seem at the cheap end of the market. I suppose it could also vary with area. I've found prices at £32 and £46 a day, a vast difference! And some charge for the sitter's food and some don't. It must be quite hard to get the price right. I was happy to pay £20 and maybe a bit more but I wouldn't employ a house/pet sitter at £46 a day - that would double the cost of our holiday!!! (w00t)

I also wondered if prices vary depending on the area. I think £20 is very reasonable Gillian. :thumbsup:

 

[Dotty&Duke]

Hi we have 2 whippies and use a local dog walker to do a lunchtime toilet break, if we are going to be out more than 4 hrs, they charge £10 for the 2 of them we live in south Wales. A friend of mine has 4 dogs lives in Bristol and still only pays £10 for 4 dogs. I think what we pay is quite resonable. Sorry Don't know about the cost of actually sitting but it sounds like a good idea and a fabulous job good luck :luck:

 

[TillynPip]

I have three dogs, two cats and a hamster so going away is rather like a NATO exercise and now we simply do not go unless the dogs come with us, which still means cattery and nice neighbour for hammy. I did put my two rescue whippet X's in kennels and Gracie, who was only 6 months, went back to her breeder when we went to France 16 months ago for my God daughter's wedding. No other occasion would have made me put my girls in kennels and I couldn't wait to get back to them. They both came out with kennel cough. Now we also have Milo who is 10 months so any trip without them is not an option.
If I could find someone with impeccable credentials, references that checked out (a word of mouth recommendation would be a bonus) and who I had a good feeling about, I would jump at the chance of having them look after all my animals in my home. The fact that that person also owned whippets would be a bonus and I would be happy for her dogs to be in the house, assuming they were house trained, non destructive etc! I haven't considered price but will think about that. I'm sure there must be many people like me with neither family nor friends nearby or they have but who aren't willing to take on a multi dog household. Would be interested to know what your conclusions are although, unfortunately, you're probably too far away from me as I'm Cheshire.

Many thanks for your reply. :thumbsup:

My thoughts at the moment are to charge a daily rate (regardless of the number of animals) with possibly adding on petrol costs if I have to travel a long distance. I live in Northamptonshire and have good access to the M1/M6 and would be prepared to travel (to select people with Whippets/Iggies/Lurchers!!)

I should have said, mine are two whippets and a rescue whippet X and because of our cats, any incoming dogs would also have to be cat friendly.

 

[~Sarah~]

I have three dogs, two cats and a hamster so going away is rather like a NATO exercise and now we simply do not go unless the dogs come with us, which still means cattery and nice neighbour for hammy. I did put my two rescue whippet X's in kennels and Gracie, who was only 6 months, went back to her breeder when we went to France 16 months ago for my God daughter's wedding. No other occasion would have made me put my girls in kennels and I couldn't wait to get back to them. They both came out with kennel cough. Now we also have Milo who is 10 months so any trip without them is not an option.
If I could find someone with impeccable credentials, references that checked out (a word of mouth recommendation would be a bonus) and who I had a good feeling about, I would jump at the chance of having them look after all my animals in my home. The fact that that person also owned whippets would be a bonus and I would be happy for her dogs to be in the house, assuming they were house trained, non destructive etc! I haven't considered price but will think about that. I'm sure there must be many people like me with neither family nor friends nearby or they have but who aren't willing to take on a multi dog household. Would be interested to know what your conclusions are although, unfortunately, you're probably too far away from me as I'm Cheshire.

Many thanks for your reply. :thumbsup:

My thoughts at the moment are to charge a daily rate (regardless of the number of animals) with possibly adding on petrol costs if I have to travel a long distance. I live in Northamptonshire and have good access to the M1/M6 and would be prepared to travel (to select people with Whippets/Iggies/Lurchers!!)

I should have said, mine are two whippets and a rescue whippet X and because of our cats, any incoming dogs would also have to be cat friendly.

My whippets are NOT cat friendly, so they would have to stay at home with OH if I house sit where there are cats!!

 

[Janimal]

I think its a brilliant idea Sarah....I pet sit here for cats when people are on holiday...but cats only now..because I found dogs

just too much with my 4 boys too. I do look after the odd reptile, and also rabbits and guinea pigs and fish.

Cats are are lot different too, I can go to the house and feed, change litter, let them in and out... :thumbsup:

I would be prepared to ask someone into my home, although at the moment my boys go into kennels...but it will be a first for all four of them

if we go away this year. I think this is the way forward for Dogs :thumbsup: