Start a Pet Sitting Business

Most of the pet owners today want the best care to be lavished on their pets, and are willing to pay large sums of money to the pet sitters. This has turned pet sitting business into a major business. More and more youngsters and animal lovers are turning to pet sitting as an easy way to make money.

Job Requirements: Pet sitters are required to pay two or three visits a day to a client's home to feed pets, play with them, give medicines, walk them and also perform household responsibilities like plant watering and security checks. Sometimes, overnight visits may also be needed, but these are in rare cases. Pet sitters must be ready to work in all kinds of weather, and round the week.

Qualifications: You don't need any special qualifications to start this business. But you certainly must know how to handle pets. You should not arouse hostility among pets. Otherwise, you cannot run a pet sitting business.

Start-up costs: The start-up cost for pet sitting business varies from $3,000 to $5,000. Most of these costs come from the need to obtain liability insurance and a dishonesty bond. In several states, the pet sitter may require to pay license fees also. The amount of the license fees depends upon the size of the business. Besides this, a pet sitter also needs to have a phone connection to communicate with the clients easily.

Business name: There are several ways in which a pet sitting business can be named. You may use local geographical features or your own first or last name in front of Pet Sitters, Pet Sitting Services, Pet & House Sitting or Pet Care Services. You can also go for a trademarked name, but this will require considerable paper work and effort. Also, it will cost around $500 and you will need the help of a lawyer.

Insurance: In order to protect your personal assets, you must carry liability insurance. It covers expenses resulting from an accident and damage to your client's property or anything that causes harm to the pets in your care. Pet Sitter Insurance is one agency that offers special liability coverage for at group rates.

A dishonesty bond is required by large companies to safeguard themselves against theft at client's home by employees, and single owners buy it as a way to improve business image and public relations.

Service contract: A service contract is a must in the pet sitting business. It lists the terms and conditions of work, provides information about your clients and their pets; and lays down in black and white the duties that you have agreed to perform. All pet sitters must sign such a contract to avoid unnecessary disputes.

Pet sitting fees: The fee depends on the total number of pets, number of daily visits and days required. Normally, a pet sitter charges around $12 for each half-hour of pet-sitting visit, and $1 to $3 for each additional pet. The fee for an overnight visit averages around $35 per night. The fee also depends on location, part-time vs. full-time pet sitting, and the number of visits.

Business promotion: The best way to promote a pet sitting business is to advertise in the classifieds section of the local business newspaper. You can also print colorful flyers and hang them in pet stores and grocery stores where they can be seen by a large number of people. However, you need to define the range of your business. You can at best operate in a small radius. There is therefore no point in spending money on large scale promotions. You can surely consider discounts for those clients who refer their friends. This is a good way to build business.