Pet sitting and dog walking

Im thinking this is what id like to get into Im getting quite confident with Millie now and would probably only walk smaller dogs (or maybe older ones)) to begin with would probably never walk anything like a wrottie a im only 5 ft.

as for pets I have a spare run for rabbits and guinee pigs its covered converted verted aviary (chickens and other small poultry too))

I am also qualified in animal care and have cared for in my time most small animals and aviary birds ((Zebra finches, Quail, canary, Kakariki, cockatiels and budgies))Rabbits, guinnee pigs, rats, mice, gerbils, hampsters (loadsa experience with hammies)) fish (a bit alien to me))

I did used to do a bit of dog walking when I was in college and really enjoyed walking the tutors dogs a group of us would go out and felt safe walking the dogs as they were extremely well trained.

I guess what im asking how does one get started pet sitting and dog walking and how would I make my prices fair as a beginner??

You have to cater to the owners needs.
And I'd also spell the animals species names right first, I don't think anyone will take you serious if you don't.

Other than that - Sam (Pawsonboard) can help you with the dog stuff and I'm sure others can help you with the pet stuff - I just wanted to point out that if you set this up you can't discriminate against what dogs or animals you say you will look after. If you are uncomfortable with a breed of dog or other animals then ask to go round and get familiar with them before you sit them or walk them. If they look too strong for you, ask if the owners would mind if you walked them on a halti.

The dog walking would be more what id like to get into though

As mentioned, you can't discriminate about which breeds you will take. Your physical size should be irrelevant because you should have enough experience to handle all breeds of dog.

I would try and do a bit of market research first before you set about doing anything formal. Check out the competition in the local area. If you already have several well established dog walkers and pet sitters in your local area, what can you offer that they don't?

You will also need to sort out advertising, insurance, training (do you have first aid qualifications?, etc.), contracts (what will your policies be?), transport (do you have appropriate transport?), go walking location scouting (do you have access to enough safe areas?), purchasing of equipment (spare leads, ID tags for clients, etc.), etc.

I'm only 5'2 (and a bit!) and walk a GSD and Rottie cross together so I would be wondering why a dog walker would rule them out and it would probably put me off using them even for a smaller dog. If you were nervous around larger breeds then I would also be worried about what you would do if a large dog were to run over to you, and how you would cope with the situation.
Have to agree with the spelling too - no offense, incorrect spelling doesn't affect your pet care skills but if you want to make a professional business of it then you need professionality in all areas. As well as a spellcheck I would get someone to proofread as spellcheckers won't necessarily know all animal species - or at least the shortened versions, e.g. Rotties. Also a spellchecker won't detect the use of words that are correct in spelling but the wrong word to use - e.g. "add" isn't a misspelling but in that situation it should be "ad", as in "advert". Not picking, just pointing out the need for proofreading as well as a spellchecker. The last thing you want is to print out hundreds of flyers and your first impression to customers to be made on the wrong use of a word or two!
Have to say, I've seen many people say that dog walking is only really a sideline business and doesn't tend to earn them enough of a wage to live off of, they either have to get a "proper" job alongside it or earn money on the petsitting, grooming, training, etc. side of things with the dog walking being something they enjoy and to tempt customers to use the other services.

You CAN discriminate as much as you like, there is no law against it!

The problem is that may wipe out a great deal of your clientele and thus income.

As said previously, no offence, you will need to engage help with drafting advertisements etc.

Insurance is a necessity both for yourself and third party, and of course if you are using a car then that will change from private use to business use.

You will need some sort of relevant qualification for some clients and Canine First Aid of some description.

You will need to familiar with any Dog Control orders in your area (good idea to join KC Dog).


Contracts

Who is going to provide the poo bags, you or the client?

Do you have a means of transporting and disposing of said waste when on the move?

Have you attended a Dog Law seminar?

Advertising costs.

Payments

Do you have a bank account for business use only.

Mobile phone for emergencies eg client's vet numbers.

Another thing is references. You will need to have references to point new clients towards, preferably from dogs you have walked previously. You will need references who can vouch for both your dog walking AND small animal pet sitting skills.

Since starting my business up (well still attempting to ) most people are noticing the CRB cleared part I have mentioned on my posters. Obviously they need to know you can be trusted, ok so CRB doesn't guarantee it BUT if people see you are, it goes along way with them considering they are trusting you to look after their pet & go into their home etc..

I'm currently looking into pet first aid & I have looked into the seminars but couldn't afford that just now but keeping it in mind for the future.

I have a website, a social networking page & posters up absolutely everywhere, awell as business cards that have literally just been delivered.

You can discriminate against what dogs you want to walk..but as others have said it will have quite a detrimental affect on your business. Good luck.

My spelling is all ways lazy on forums but if im doing important stuff ill all ways spell check and proof read twice and if its very important ill get dad to have a look too as his spelling and grammer is a lot better then mine. If spell checker didn't exist im not sure were that would leave me except it would probably take me three times as long to write anything.

I have a National Certificate in Animal care which covered a lot on dogs including training :>
but that was ages ago so not sure if it would be valid since knowledge on dogs and training methods changes all the time with experience. I did a first diploma which was more animal nursing based but havent done any first aid in years. I guess if business is good I could re train in that area


I don't have a car I was thinking that maybe a problem but again if I get a good deal of clients I could save and get a drivers liscence and a car as that will help a lot in this kind of work.

As for advertising I could do all of that myself I learnt a bit of webdesign and have some graphic design skills too as I have photoshop cs2

If you don't have a car then I would try to consider things like what you'd do if the dog was to get injured or ill on a walk. Would your local taxi firms take a dog that was vomiting, had diaorreah or bleeding heavily? Would you have your own dog with you too, making it hard to carry an ill dog? Also bear in mind where you would walk dogs with limited mobility? If it's a 10 minute walk to the local park but the dog is limited to a 20 minute walk due to health issues, it may make things awkward, especially if the dog is better off avoiding pavement pounding, I think a car is definately worth looking into (and then you'll need to look into what's most economical, price up the cost of cages or guards to make the car as safe as possible, etc)