Dog Walkers/Sitters

[cassandra_andy_anderson]

Has anyone ever hired a dog walker or sitter?

Once Val comes back to the city with me I won't be home for most of the day (far too long for him to hold it) and I don't want to leave him locked up in his kiste all day. I'd rather just block up the kitchen once its puppy-proofed so he can run around a bit and play.

But I don't want him to get into the habit of just messing on the floor or on training pads. I was thinking about hiring someone to come once or twice a day and make sure he's alright and take him for a quick walk around the block or something.

Has anyone ever hired someone to do this? What kind of questions do you ask? What sort of rules are reasonable. I don't want to hire someone who;s going to yell at him or put his face in his mess when he makes one inside. It wouldn't be forever, Just until he's old enough to control his 'processes' a little more. Right now he seems to have to go about once or twice every four hours, every 20 minutes if he's playing and being a little beast.

Any tips would be helpful. Thnaks again!

[golden-lover]

My mother works as a dog sitter as a part time job. I used to walk dogs, but it became to much with school work to walk my dogs and others.

[KatzNK9]

Sorry, can't help with this one. If it is a company, I'd ask questions, make sure they know your wishes, get references, are bonded/insured, etc. A friend you trust would likely be better but that's a tall order to put on a friendship even if somebody you know is available. Hope others have some good advice for you.

[Ibizan]

I don't trust anyone else with my dogs.
I let the neighbour's daughter walk one of my Ibizans once with me right by her side, and she got jerked hard when he saw a rabbit nearby. She was 16 or 17 too, pretty tall and not frail really. She just assumed that my skinny dogs didn't have umph!

I guess I'm just a picky dog mommy, but nobody babysits them or walks them but me! :D
Good luck in finding one though, I'm sure there are obvious red flags to notice too.

[Mom to Lil Buddy]

We have a pet sitter in town, who I've used off and on. He is a member of a national organization. He came for a pre-visit before he took care of Koko the first time, and had a full page intake document. He wanted to know, vet, special problems, her routine, where food, leases etc were kept. As she was diabetic, he wrote down @and time of shots, @ of food, where the karo syrup was, if he had my permission to take her to the vet if it was indicated in his opinion, which house door to go out, and any special habits she had.

We reviewed exactly what I wanted him to do, and the times I would like to have him come. Because she was diabetic he did give special consideration to that, now with Max it is just an approximation.

He spent generally 30-40 minutes, walking her, (even would brush her), playing with her, and anything else I asked him to do, including cleaning up any accidents that Koko had.

I feel very fortunate to have him, many of the other diabetic pet owners had an extremely difficult time finding someone to care for their pet. He did charge more for her because of her diabetes, and the charge was double if he came twice aday. I think he charged $13 per visit, and for Koko $15. (It has been a while so it might have been $2 less).

Koko developed severe separation anxiety after she lost her hearing and her vision and became more senile so it was very important to me that I could have care for her in our home.

[golden-lover]

I don't trust anyone else with my dogs.
I let the neighbour's daughter walk one of my Ibizans once with me right by her side, and she got jerked hard when he saw a rabbit nearby. She was 16 or 17 too, pretty tall and not frail really. She just assumed that my skinny dogs didn't have umph!

I guess I'm just a picky dog mommy, but nobody babysits them or walks them but me! :D
Good luck in finding one though, I'm sure there are obvious red flags to notice too.

Same here. Charlie being a oversized golden can pull anyone, even with his choker on. Including my father. He usually heels, but if he sees another dog on the street, or someone throws a ball, the person usually goes flying unless they catch it with a check.

Kira I just don't trust with anyone since she means everything to me.

[cassandra_andy_anderson]

That was especially helpful Mom to Lil Buddy. I didn't know Dog Organizations existed...

Vals perfectly ealthy so far and growing like wildfire. I jsut don't want him to get into the habit of being a lazy bum at home while I'm at work or out of town. I don't have anyone I could rely on for an ongoing basis as Im new in my neck of Toronto and don't know too many people.

Oart of the reason I want a sitter/walker is becuase I don't want Val to get on the nerves of the neighbours in the building. He's quiet after his 30 minutes tantrum, but I think it would be considerate for my Neighbours to know there I someone coming to check and keep him happy and thus, less bothersome. Ill have to update you Toronto owners (if there are any) if I find a really good one!

[Sabledog]

have you considered doggy daycare opposed to someone coming to your house? i plan to open one when i have a bigger house and a bit more tome to do it, that way you know your pup will get good socialization and will have constant supervision.

[vagreys]

My wife dogsits for people. She has a checklist of topics she goes through with her clients, to learn about their needs and desires for the care of their pets. Some only want her to visit once a day. Others twice. Some have her visit four times a day while they are out of town. She usually spends 30-60 minutes per visit, depending on what all the people want done.

I think the most important thing is to get several references and talk to those people about their experience. If the prospective sitter won't give you references, then find someone who isn't unwilling to let you talk to their other customers.

[tessa_s212]

I've been a dog walker. But never had anyone walked my dog.

I might also consider doing some sitting/boarding because I do have kennel area connected to the back of my garage, and also a laaarge fenced in yard.

I of course, would always tell people of my experience, my method sin training, and how I handle uncooperative dogs. Because I am not licensed in any way, its better to lose the business before they can be unhappy with you rather than later.

[cassandra_andy_anderson]

Doggy Daycare? Is that like....daycare daycare? lol

[KatzNK9]

I found this info that might help you when you move to Toronto ... but have no personal knowledge of these places.

Tailwags Doggy Daycare
523 Eglinton Avenue West
Toronto, ON M5N 1B1, Canada

(416) 915-9247

and

Toronto Dogs, A Guide for Urban Dogs
(links to dog walkers, etc)

http://www.torontodogs.com/daycare.htm

and

Barking Along
http://www.barkingalong.com/

[Mom to Lil Buddy]

Just another note. Our petsitter is also bonded. Because we are a small town, no problem with references. He is the only "professional" pet sitter. go to petsit.com for the international organization for pet sitters.