Dog walker or doggy day care

vickyandcads

Hi,
I am due back to work at Easter after my maternity leave and am worried that my dog has gotten so used to me being home with the baby she will find the change and being home alone again stressful.
I have looked at getting a dog walker or putting her to a dog day care set up but I didn't realise how many there are - or what makes one better than the other - what should I be looking for???? (finding the right nursery wasn't as hard as this!)

SensibleSarah

As a former dog walker/pet sitter and also someone who has used a few different dog walkers myself in the past - my advice would be to go off personal recommendations from other local dog owners that you trust if possible.

If it's a daycare place, make sure you can go and view it. Are the dogs all lumped in a big space together and left to their own devices? If so I'd avoid it to be honest. Do they actually get walked or any 1-on-1 time with staff at the daycare place? If not, I'd avoid again.

For dogwalkers, make sure you meet them with the dog first (if they don't insist on this anyway, avoid at all costs) and use your gut instinct. I didn't follow my gut for the first dog walker I hired when I wasn't 100% sure on her, but when I happened to catch her coming in to the house on my webcam whilst I was at work a couple of days in, I spotted her being downright nasty to my dog and handling her roughly. The next dog walker I hired I got a totally different feeling about and he was brilliant.

Good luck!

sheramber

Ask for recommendation from other dog owners or on facebook.

check qualifications/experience/ insurance,
accompany a dog walker on the first walk- how do they interact with the dog ,do they have control of the dogs they walk, do you feel at ease with them, is your dog happy with them?
Do they give a structured walk or do they let the dogs do as they please?
Is there a back up if they are unable to do a walk? Some walkers team up to support each other.

Are you happy for your dog to be off lead?
Do you want individual walk or are you happy for the walker to walk several at once?
Remember you will giving them a key to your house. Do they have a DBS check?

ndonal02

Hi

I had a very similar issue when i went back off mat leave my dog was so used to my company, he pretty much came everywhere with me when possible. I found a website called mypetpeople.co.uk which was recommended to me by a friend, all you do is search your local area and they have walkers on there along with groomers and pet shops etc.

Worth a go maybe as i know they are all over the UK.

Thanks
Naomi

Soot2006

I walked my dog around popular dog walking areas and spoke to a few walkers ... I ended up using a walker 3 days a week and day care for my full day at work ... He hated the day care. It took me a while to figure it out but he was difficult, bad anxiety, etc ... Then one day I was home for his pick up and I saw how he didn't want to go with the lady. When his other walker picked him up he was ready waiting so happy to see her ... I cancelled his day care that evening and had an extra walk instead. Within a few weeks his anxiety reduced and he turned back into his cheerful self. Should have listened to my gut when his behaviour deteriorated!

gettingtheresometime

Where in the country are you?

Timpu

Just to add: Do check how many dogs they have at a time. Also ask who helps them. A few dog walkers around here will have someone to help on walks over a certain number of dogs.

Wholeheartedly agree with SensibleSarah, do go with your instinct.

We didn't know anyone to get recommendations off. The first dog walker through the door squealed at our puppy and ignored my repeated request to put her bag on the table to stop our puppy chewing it. The second dog walker walked in the door and calmly greeted our puppy. In that moment, we knew she was the right person for us.

mystikori

Most dog walkers will also offer day care so you can get that personal home from home feeling without your doglet going into a big day care facility which, depending on the temperament of your poochie, can be slightly intimidating!

I'm not a massive fan of using FB for recommendations of this kind as it can be open to abuse. For example a FB friend of mine has just started as a dog walker with no experience of the commercial side, yes she has her own dog but it's not the same, she already has her FB friends recommending her just because they ARE friends with her.

Ask your doggy owning friends for their recommendations/Google/ask professional dog walkers in the park (you can usually spot them a mile off!!) and interview EVERY SINGLE ONE. We all have our own way of working our businesses and you may just "feel" that something isn't quite right when you meet with them. Ask to go out on an intro walk with them and see how they interact with your dog whilst out.

Every dog walker worth their salt will have insurance (which will list the amount of dogs they are insured to walk) and possibly depending on where you are will have a licence for doggy daycare/home boarding. This doesn't guarantee that they are good at their job but at least it will go a little way to reassuring you that they are serious.

As for security cams, I welcome them and when I eventually have enough time to go away on a holiday and have to have somebody look after my mogs, I WILL be making sure the camera is on. If people are doing their job properly they don't have to worry.

Ultimately it may be that for some reason your dog just doesn't like your walker (it can happen despite the walker doing everything possible to make the experience enjoyable) ... in that case, move on and start the process again!

Also may be worth asking if an hour's walk is actually an hour's walk ... travel time shouldn't be taken into consideration really.

Good luck and go with your gut! Hugs to your pup-pup.

Soot2006

Also may be worth asking if an hour's walk is actually an hour's walk ... travel time shouldn't be taken into consideration really.

This is a really good point!
I have a GPS tracker on my puppy so I get to enjoy his walks from work (I get an automatic alert when he leaves the house and comes back & the GPS checks in every 10 min on standby mode)

HarryAzhar

I prefer dog walker if you find reliable person who actually take care your doggy. I prefer because our pets love to stay in their house and that is why day care is not that good option. Just advice you to find professional reliable dog walker and that is it. It will not effect your pet's as much as it can in day care.