Dog walkers / day care - who knew it would be so difficult?

[TreacherousPissFlap]

We have 3 dogs.
TreacherousDog1 is an oldie and rather fancies a potter through the village without the pesky puppies interrupting his sniffing.

TreacherousDog3 is extremely anxious and will only leave the house with me - she even considers DH a bit of a loose canon. She will cheerfully arrange her cushions and wait patiently for us to return home.

Which leaves TreacherousDog2 who is a working breed and 6 years old. Recent job changes have meant that on my early shifts he is extremely difficult to walk sufficiently at this time of year. It's dark when we leave and dark when we get home and he's just not getting the stimulation he needs.

As responsible dog owners I have contacted various local providers. Our local day care requires regular days, which is utterly pointless as I work on a rolling rota. The fact I can tell you what I will be working this time next year makes no difference. Surely it's actually people like me who work 24hr shifts that need the extra help?

The next closest day care advertises solely on Facebook - I'm not on Facebook and am frankly suspicious of a business that does not have an actual legitimate website.

So we've moved on to dog walkers. One has not got back to me, one took nearly two weeks and was very dismissive of me working shifts. I have replied as above, and will wait (probably another two weeks) for her reply. Two others have stock photos of dogs and badly worded info, with no mention of insurance or DBS checks.

I totally get that you cannot just whack a load of strange dogs together so need regularity, and from a financial POV you need a regular commitment (which I'm willing to give) I just didn't realise it could be so difficult.

Perhaps I'm in the wrong business

Round here dog walkers and daycare are highly sort after and get filled up very quickly. This means they can somewhat pick and choose clients for ease. I use daycare 3-4 days a week and have done since BiteyDog was a puppy.

I'm a bit confused about what hours/days you would want and perhaps that's why you are finding it hard. I wouldn't discount Facebook. I hate it but as my first comment mentions the ones here can pick and choose how they operate and advertise.

If you want flexibility to book different hours at different days you may do better with a sole trader than a full business. My walker allows a good amount of flexibility and always tries to work with me to determine the best way to meet my and the dogs needs. I think even she would struggle to match up different hours on different days, though.

She also only has a fb page. Many (not all) dog people are a bit wary or uninterested in technology so are perhaps less likely to have a website because of the hassle of getting it set up. I think you're going to have to relax your rule in that one because otherwise you're cutting out a good proportion of excellent dog professionals.

An alternative is to choose a time that works mostly for you and the dog and stick to it. Even if that means it's not ideal.

Eg I book Tue and Thu every week even if I am going to be home because that regular booking keeps the dogs place. I can then book extra at short notice if I need to. Sometimes that means I pay for a walk I could do myself for free but just view that as part of the over all cost.

Our day dare allows me to give notice of dates a month in advance. There policy is once Ddog has a space the space is his so I can and have dropped him there with very short notice.
I too was skeptical of only advertising on fb but visited anyway and loved the set up. Ddog has been going for over a year now and thoroughly enjoys it! Maybe pay them a visit before you discount them.

I think that's probably it bitey, they can afford to pick and choose.

We would need help on the days I work an early shift and DH is also at work. DH works normal 8-4 hours so regular daycare would be fine, or a walk at some point in the day. It's just ensuring that he gets enough stimulation during the days we're not able to provide it.

Hi OP I found my dog walker on the website tailster. Put your details in and they match you up. I got four quotes and picked the best. My dog walker is really reliable and had all the necessary paperwork and DBS. Worth a try.

I don't understand why DH can't get up early and walk the dog before work, and then again when he gets home, or do you have DC he has to be home for?

DH or I get up and are out with the dog at 6am most days - yes, it's dark and cold and exhausting and it's not fun in the pissing down rain, but isn't that just what you do? We're not alone either, I meet plenty of people up and about early in the mornings doing walks with their dogs.

Lots of daycares and walkers won't accommodate switching days around all the time - there are ratios they have to abide by after all. And like Bitey said, they can generally afford to pick and choose, so why wouldn't they choose the customer who will provide them with regular income on set days each week?

We do walk him before work adaline, but realistically we've struggled to exercise him enough physically and mentally. During the summer we can do it when we get home, and I can do it in the daylight before I start my later shifts, it's just the earlies that have caused us an issue.
He's also an utter monster in the house if he's bored, so sleeps in a crate or the kitchen. We're unhappy about him being confined in this way for extended periods. DH can often pop home during the day but can't guarantee it. Having a dog walker or using day care will mean this is not an issue.

Ah I get you, so the daytime walk will be in addition - that makes more sense!

I think like a PP you need to find someone who works for themselves and who has more flexibility if you don't need set hours and days. If I was a business owner and could afford to pick clients, I would pick the ones who gave me set days and set income each week, because then I could make sure I was always full and maximising my income. It would also make it easier to ensure I had set days off each week, for example.

It makes perfect sense really adaline, I just assumed it would be a bit like nursery and you booked what you needed when. I've had dogs all of my adult life and never needed to use a service like this before.
Every day a school day as they say!

I would say also, make sure you research your daycare really well.

We went by word of mouth and picked a family run service. Our dog attended for a year, but he now goes to my FIL while we both work. Dog is much much happier now.

I recently found out that the son (in his twenties) was seen in public kicking someone's dog on a walk. I have no idea whether my dog was ever treated like that but his behaviour and temperament has improved tenfold since we took him out of that environment.