What would you want from a dog walker?

[bkwb]

Hi!!
You can probably guess I’m trying to start up a new business..! What would you want/look for in a dog walker? Id like to further understand the needs and wants of people

It's crazy when you think about it, isn't it?! I can't imagine trusting a random stranger with my own dog like that, lol.

Thank you so much everybody, this has been really helpful! To be honest, I don’t have an interest in doing group walks at all so this was reassuring in a way. Two dogs from the same household would be okay I feel (depending on the dogs and situation) but mixing households isn’t something I am interested in doing!

I don’t have a van, only my own car..is this acceptable generally? It’s a big car. I have a golden retriever (only 4 months currently!) but he will fit in there so it’s a good size.

I use my car and actually have lots of clients who prefer it as their dogs don’t travel well in crates ☺️

I want someone who can do adhoc walks, my dog loves going with a gang. Insured is good, some of this is quite precious.

I would want to know all the things mentioned above, but also specifically will you be walking in a variety of areas or just hiring a secure paddock and letting them all go.

We've used several walkers over the years and they all seem to gravitate towards this practice which is so frustrating.

We want our dog taken for a good walk, to sniff and experience new environments. But ultimately they all end up predominantly (maybe 3 walks out of 4) hiring out a paddock and letting all the dogs off at once. I get that might be easier and more efficient for the walker but we prefer actual walks.

That's exactly our issue with the local walkers @PettyMare , they just take a van load of dogs in cages and let them out onto a secure field to run as a pack. With some dogs this is not a safe practice. I absolutely would not trust them with mine.

Would you care to explain quite precious @ACynicalDad ? Your dog may love going with a gang but some dogs don't.

@bkwb
Car would be fine by me, our pup is too big for the multiple cages in a van type of set up, and is used to travelling behind a dog guard.
I'm sure there will be a lot of demand for solo and duo walks if you do get this off the ground - not every dog is suited to running around as part of a large group.

I also think a car is fine, good luck!

Our wonderful dog walker (who comes who I am teaching all day and also has her whilst I am holiday.
is reliable
is insured
messages me for a regular run down and photo from her walk with her friends.
my dog seems happy and is always pleased to see her. She is quite anxious but dog walker built her up over time. )for pack walks)
I am happy when she is happy!
if the weather is poor la rearranges the walk and sits wit her for an hour so she has company and a change to use the loo.
We love her :)

I have no idea if this is any good, but this insta account popped up for me today. She is a dog walker and she sells an e-book guide on setting up a dog walking business. Might be useful for you?
www.instagram.com/emmas_petservices?igsh=MWNhMTZpZWI0cHF5MA==

If it's the same one I saw on Facebook, her " dog walk" consisted of taking 7 dogs (including her own) to a secure field and letting them run around together. That's NOT a dog walk that I would pay for.

I see so many walkers walking multiple dogs where I live and I think it looks like a recipe for disaster. I also see two walkers meet up so there are loads of dogs being walked together. They are having a lovely chat and the dogs are doing whatever they want. It doesn't seem safe.

I would love to find a walker that just takes 2 or 3 dogs (ideally one being their own) at a time and is genuinely interested in learning about my dog and his character/quirks etc and thinking about which other dogs he would be ok with.

I did use a walker very briefly for a week when I was super busy with work and my DH was away. My dog didn't want to go with him by day 3 😬

For me it's about the amount of other dogs you have on each walk. I see a woman and her mum struggling with at least 10 dogs a day on our local walk, all on leads, snarling and tripping up each other. It doesn't look fun for anyone and any dog that goes near gets aggressively snapped at by all of the wound up dogs.

@HannahHamptonsGloves I do exactly that! Two or three dogs, often including my own, for small group walks. I do take a group of four occasionally- three are the same household plus my own.

In terms of solo walks I find that a lot of people want them until they’re told the price - then there’s radio silence 🙈

I was thinking that. It's understandable that walking several dogs together is what would keep the cost realistic for most of us. Truthfully I couldn't afford to pay for solo walks even though it would be the better option for my pup.

I think this is the issue - I no longer do solo walks as the price I would need to charge to make a profit is way beyond what anyone is willing to pay.

Another walker near me has just set up doing solos but I honestly don’t think her prices will be sustainable long-term. To make good money on solos you either need to charge a LOT or walk for hours everyday which just isn’t possible in summer or long-term, really, it’s too much.

Yep. I can understand that, completely. It's obvious that solo walks won't be realistic for most dog walkers the majority of the time, and it's not fair for owners to expect that it would be, unless they are willing to pay a lot more for it. It must be so hard with reactive dogs that can't be walked with a group though, both from the perspective of the walker and the owner.

Yep. I’ve offered solos in the past for nervous or reactive dogs but honestly, it just wasn’t enjoyable and nobody was willing to pay the amount needed to make it worth my time.

A lot of reactive dogs are also strong on the lead and will lunge and pull, and as sole business owner, I can’t afford to be off work because I’ve been injured or because my back and shoulders are knackered.

Insurance is also an issue for dogs with a bite history as many business policies won’t cover them unless they’re muzzled, which lots of owners are sadly reluctant to do.

I think it’s a case of owners accepting they need to pay a considerable amount for solo walks (or accepting shorter ones, or visits instead).

I’d also add that a lot of people seem to expect me to train their dogs - while I do basics like recall and lead manners, I am not a dog trainer and I am not paid anywhere close to what a dog trainer is paid.

My job is to provide exercise, stimulation and company, not to train.

Thanks @thisishowloween , all this is really interesting.

We have a very non average dog - LGD breed, not reactive or aggressive in the least, but too independent minded to be trusted off lead in public, and weighing over 50kg at 18 months. We currently walk her ourselves, as we did with all our others, but at 61 I'm kind of thinking ahead and can now see that it wouldn't be easy to find a dog walker for her if we did need one.

This thread has been helpful and I'm more able to see it from the other side now.

No worries @CoubousAndTourmaIet - FWIW I’d have no issue walking a nicely trained, large dog on a solo walk as long as the owners were happy to pay my rates - currently £15 for 45 minutes but will likely go up in April.

I do see both sides as my own dog goes out with another walker occasionally too - I think ultimately very few walkers are going to be able to provide absolutely everything so compromise is always a good thing, whether that’s on how long the walks are, location or price. I would love for mine to go off lead with others but ultimately I don’t trust him 😂 so our lovely walker keeps him on the lead and he goes off when I take him on my walks instead.

I've never used a dog walker because I simply don't trust anyone else with my little dog. I'm see plenty of dog walkers over the park though and I'm often surprised at the ones who walk 6-8 dogs at a time amd let them all off the lead, even those with poor recall. One guy walks several like this and lets them all off, then spends his time chatting with other people in the park, or scrolling his phone, not watching the dogs closely. More than once I've retrieved one that has followed me out of the gate as I've left and he hasn't even noticed. I'd hope you weren't like this.

small groups (absolute max of 4) and reliability.
There is a woman near me whose walks look amazing but she seems to have a lot of family drama and often cancels at short notice.

That’s because those of us that want what we are suggesting don’t use a service like your for exactly these reasons!