Easy Steps to Finding The Best Pet Services: Pet Sitters, Dog Walkers, and Pet Businesses
by petadministration on Sep 24, 2009 with 0 Comments
From Pet Administration – Pet lovers love the Pet Administration.
Pet Sitters, dog walkers, and house sitting professionals have become a booming business in recent months. In the past, before we finalized vacation plans, pet owners would have little choice but to trust our teenage children (in that irresponsible stage), the neighbor we didn’t really want to count on (or end up owing something to later), or worry about having someone else in town drop by the house occasionally and cross our fingers that they remember to do so. Pet lovers don’t want to have to worry about their pets!
The result of the increasing in pet work necessity has led to the rise in pet jobs becoming an attractive avocation in recently. Pet sitters, house sitters, and dog walkers in nearly every city have been the greatest boom among these home based businesses. But how do we know how to choose the difference between a good petsitter, or what really is a bad dog walker. Let’s walk through some details to find a pet professional that is worthy of your money, and moreover, the trust of your pet.
In order to hire a reliable pet professional, the initial thing to consider is references. Pet referrals are the first step in finding someone you can trust with the health and safety of your dog, cat, or other pet. Check pet references liberally. Veterinarians are also a great source of pet service referrals. One word of caution with vet pet referrals. Discern whether the individual is referring friends or true professionals. If the pet professional gives you the guilt trip on this issue, look elsewhere for your pet service needs. The best pet care providers are normally proud of their clients and pet work and enjoy the pet community. If you sense a different attitude toward pet references, or any indignant rebuttals, it is a sign of potential problems. Avoid the stress by taking a few moments up front.
Another method for quality pet service providers is organizations and affiliations. Websites will often offer affiliations but remember the website usually charges for membership so they will only list those that pay them. This also can lead to conflicts should there be negative feedback. If all pet members have terrific feedback, you will soon realize this pet referral site is not very helpful.
The yellow pages pet section and local boards at coffee shops are yet another venue for pet service finding. Again, remember that we rarely, if ever, find a service professional say that their service is terrible. This is true in pet service finding as well. Leaving your pets will add stress to the trip. Performing your due diligence for your pet can not only lower your stress but also make it more enjoyable with the gratification that you gave your pt the gift of missing its wonderful pet owner! On the other hand, your pet will give you the cold pet shoulder if they are stressed for two weeks of your pet abandonment during vacation, should they be stuck with a pet service provider that is irresponsible or dislikes pets. Don’t let your animal buddies down.
Items to ask for are pet business and business licensing, certifications, veterinary experience, length of service, number of pets and clients currently working with, and the reference list. Prioritize these as to your case and your dogs, cats, and pets.
Petsitter rates and Pet Care charges will usually include a dog walk each day, 3 15-30 minute house visits, and other minor items that you might prefer. For instance, plant watering, mail checking, litter box changing, etc. Spending the night will usually be done at an additional charge, as will providing pet medications or pet sitting animals with pet illnesses.
Pet service charges can range from $10 per visit to $30 per visit. There is a huge range when searching pet providers. A good rule of thumb is to have someone that is willing to negotiate with your situation. $50 a day is a fair average price to start with (you provide all the pet food). 2 week vacations will usually allow you some flexibility in pet service charges. Make a list of the services with “definitely need”, “would like to have”, and “it would be nice” categories. Pet medications and pet illness duties would definitely fit into the “definitely need” section. You can check sites like Pet Administration for more information and classified articles about pet sitter rates.
A couple other notes worth mentioning here. Have a contingency plan for you and your pet sitter. Have a number of that neighbor or coworker in case something happens to the pet service provider. Give this to your pet sitter also, with the signed, agreed upon task list. Again, stress reduction is a good thing. Pet care should not prevent you from smiling during those vacation photos. Centralize all pet food, medications, and other tools needed for the job in question. Write down a daily pet list for your pet service provider. Leave your contact info there as well. Don’t forget to leave the mail key out. The pet sitter will not feel comfortable going through drawers and doesn’t want to call over such a small issue.
sitting jobs, find pet sitter
Liked it
Published in: Pets
