Starting a Dog Walking Business? Here’s What You Should Know!

Dog Walking and Pet Sitting Business

If you love dogs, starting a dog walking business can set you on the way to financial independence. 

— purrfect-petsitting.com

Dogs… Human’s best friends. Many of us, pet lovers, lucky enough to live with dogs in our homes, already know the extent to which our four legged friends complete us. Our dogs train us to be more compassionate, more patient, more responsible. They offer us a lifeline to our humanity and in doing so, make us better humans.

Dogs give us love and support and all they need in return is a little TLC. As social animals, our dogs see themselves as a part of our family and need to be treated as such. Which means, feeding them nutritious food, making sure they are healthy, take them on daily walks etc..

All these necessities are ordinarily easily met but there are times, when we, their human parents will need help in meeting their needs and this help is commonly offered by pet sitters, or dog walking services. If you want to start a dog walking business yourself, you can be one of those owners will call for help.

Running a Dog Walking Business

Let’s be honest… We could all do with more money. Irrespective of background, social status, personal accomplishments etc… there is always something more we need whether it fits into the category of basic necessities, or just plain luxuries.

There are countless claims out there as to the possibility of earning additional income by way of opening up a home business. Some of these claims are just plain “get rich fast” scams which most of us are wise enough to stay away from. Other opportunities are more legitimate and do indeed carry real promises. One of these opportunities is of course a dog walking business, whether it is part of a pet sitting company which offers dog walking, pet sitting and other pet care related programs or a service that concentrated solely on dog walking.

If you are interested in running your very own dog walking business, here are some of the things you will need to keep in mind in order to be successful. Like most other businesses, you will need to be adaptable and flexible. Until such time as you are able to hire help, you will be responsible for things like

• Invoices
• Banking
• Marketing and advertising
• Customer services 
• Answering the phone
• Returning calls
• Replying to emails
• Accounting
• Taxes

… and a myriad of other tasks to numerous to be featured here. Running a business is a labor of work and will required dedication, and time. For dog lovers who want to start a dog walking business the rewards, however, can be plentiful.

Make sure you get into dog walking as a business because it is something you want to do. As a general rule, we find that dog walkers are people who care more about their communities and are ready to give back. They are the people more likely to become successful dog walking business owners.

Jake Schen, manager of purrfect pet sitting

Make sure you know what you’re getting into

Once you have considered the issues that are more business orientated rather that the strictly dog-walking aspects of starting a dog walking business, and you are confident of your ability to excel at pet care, you will need to broaden your search and consider the practical aspects of how to start a dog walking business. And that can only be done through research.

Is there a need for dog walkers in your area, and if yes, how many people will you be competing with? Here, it is important not to assume anything but do walk around your neighborhood and ask those neighbors who are out and about walking their own dogs if they would ever need the services of a dog walking business. Next, talk to people at your local pet store, vet and local dog grooming services.

Indeed you need to find out quickly if there is a demand for dog walkers in your area. Once you have more data, and it shows that there is indeed a demand for dog walking jobs, get yourself some business cards printed, as well as flyers that you will want to distribute locally. Look at the classified ad section of your local papers as an additional source of potential leads and the next step into your search.

If the demand is there, you will need to assess who you are competing with. Search online for local dog walking businesses, browse through Craigslist and other such online classified sites to see how many people offer dog walking services in your area.

Training to be a dog walker

Like most businesses out there, it is important to bring to you dog walking business the necessary skills and experience you will need when walking your customer’s dogs. Some dogs are easier to walk than others, large and powerful dogs may need special considerations before a dog walker endeavors to walk them, but in all cases, it is highly recommended to take a formal dog training course and gain experience interacting with as many dogs as you can. These steps will provide you with the tools you need to start your dog walking business with confidence.

Legally speaking

Some people starting a dog walking business sometimes believe that legal consideration as to their business can be looked at at a later stage. This is of course not a course of action that can be recommended and can be highly detrimental. Whether you walk dogs, or offer any type of services to customers, there are legal considerations required such as having the proper business license as required by your local authority.

The following are some recommendations:

• Operate your dog walking business as a business entity. Of course, you could be a dog walker working as a sole proprietor, indeed a popular choices made by many dog walkers when they start but you will want to consider the ramifications this might entail. A legal form of business such as a limited liability company or corporation will offer more protection because you will be responsible for the dogs you will be walking. 
• Licensing or not. Dog walkers are not ordinarily required to get a license for their dog walking business. But you do need to check if your state requires a general business license. When it comes to licensing, dog walking or otherwise, you will need to check the requirements of your own specific region.
• Rules and regulations. A professional dog walker will know all about the local regulations as their pertain to his or her dog walking business. Rules about dog sanitation which require a walker to clean up after their dog, the use of leashes and where a dog can be allowed to run free without one must be considered. If in addition to your dog walking services you decide to offer dog sitting in your home, local zoning regulations may or may not allow you to do so.
• Dog walking contract. This very important document will lay out the responsibilities of a dog walker, how much his or her services will cost etc. It will also touch on how eventual emergency medical care for your client’s dog must be handled.

Insurance

Dog walkers are responsible for the dogs they are walking during the time they are in their care. It is important to prepare for damages done by the dogs or to the dogs while you walk them. Accidents can happen and the best way to handle this type of eventuality is by acquiring adequate insurance coverage.

Bonding

In addition to personal insurance, a company who hires dog walkers may consider bonding for its business as it will protect the business entity in the even of an employee theft of client property.

Dog walking franchise opportunities

Why invent the wheel when it has already been invented. If you are interested in starting your own dog walking business, but would prefer the benefit of an existing franchise’s business plan and system, it may worth consideration purchasing a franchise instead.

Purchasing an established dog walking franchise may offer the possibility to start your business quickly. For starters, you may opt into a system that is already known in your neighborhood, is active in advertising and marketing their services for their members, thus “cutting corners” by being able to become full self reliant quicker that the usual dog walking business startup process.

Running your own dog walking business can indeed be a very rewarding career. We hope this article has giving you some answers as to any question you may have had before starting a dog walking business.