Has anyone started in pet walking and care business?
I am trying to start my own little business and was thinking that walking dogs in a condo complex might be sorta fun and lucrative for me. Has anyone done this and what did it entail, how did you start, what did you charge and are you still doing it?
This is a fun and lucrative business. You need to consider what type of services you are planning to offer. Are you going to walk dogs during the day on weekdays? Are you going to walk and feed dogs during their owner’s vacations? If you do the first, look for condo complexes and the like. What you can charge will depend on your area. I’ve generally seen walkers charging $10-$15 per dog per day. If you can get 10 dogs (probably two walks as it would be difficult to walk 10 dogs at once), that’s $100-$150/day. The second option is more lucrative, but more work. You can charge about $20/day if you feed and walk the dogs 2x per day. However, you’ll probably have to work EVERY major holiday.
If you decide to start this type of business, you should a) look into insurance (what happens if you forget to lock someone’s door and they’re robbed or someone gets bitten by a dog you’re walking), b) learn as much as you can about working with dogs, c) learn about the legal and tax consequences of starting a business in your city/state (e.g., will you have to have a license or charge sales tax), d) find some folks with dogs in nearby condos or dog parks and tell them you’re thinking about starting a dog-walking business and you’d like to bounce a few questions off them, and e) look at your library for books about starting a home-based business (many include dog walking/pet sitting.)
Good luck. FYI, my dog walker makes $80K per year.
I know of several businesses that do this, so there clearly is a market.
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I know someone who built a kennel and kept pets for people, she made lots of money. It is hard work, I don’t know about the walking part. But if you get too many dogs at once you’ll have your hands full.
References :
This is a fun and lucrative business. You need to consider what type of services you are planning to offer. Are you going to walk dogs during the day on weekdays? Are you going to walk and feed dogs during their owner’s vacations? If you do the first, look for condo complexes and the like. What you can charge will depend on your area. I’ve generally seen walkers charging $10-$15 per dog per day. If you can get 10 dogs (probably two walks as it would be difficult to walk 10 dogs at once), that’s $100-$150/day. The second option is more lucrative, but more work. You can charge about $20/day if you feed and walk the dogs 2x per day. However, you’ll probably have to work EVERY major holiday.
If you decide to start this type of business, you should a) look into insurance (what happens if you forget to lock someone’s door and they’re robbed or someone gets bitten by a dog you’re walking), b) learn as much as you can about working with dogs, c) learn about the legal and tax consequences of starting a business in your city/state (e.g., will you have to have a license or charge sales tax), d) find some folks with dogs in nearby condos or dog parks and tell them you’re thinking about starting a dog-walking business and you’d like to bounce a few questions off them, and e) look at your library for books about starting a home-based business (many include dog walking/pet sitting.)
Good luck. FYI, my dog walker makes $80K per year.
References :