Whether your goal is to supplement your income or set a new career path entirely, dog walking is a rewarding and dynamic profession. Anyone that owns a dog and works outside of the home regularly stands to benefit from your services. Your ideal customer, however, is the consumer who is concerned for his or her animal being left alone and who has the means to pay for your services on a regular basis. Recent studies indicate that Millennials and Baby Boomers are the age groups spoiling their four-legged family members the most.
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Your business will generate revenue from each canine you walk. Examples of these additional services will be provide in a later section of this article. While competition in this field is strong, there are many opportunities for growth.
How to Start a Dog Walking Business
You should be detail oriented, organized, and have strong interpersonal skills. A basic understanding of canines and the characteristics of each breed would prove beneficial. Unlike most startup businesses, your initial investment is fairly small. Once you're ready to start your dog walking business, follow these steps to ensure that your business is legally compliant and avoid wasting time and money as your business grows:.
Select your state below for an in-depth guide on completing each of these steps in your home state. One of the greatest resources an entrepreneur can have is quality mentorship.
As you start planning your business, connect with a free business resource near you to get the help you need. Having a support network in place to turn to during tough times is a major factor of success for new business owners. Try one month membership for for free. The following are some tips from experienced, professional dog walkers who have chosen to make a career out of their passion:. As with every modern business, online marketing should be an integral part of your marketing strategy.
Include a blog on your website, offering pet owners tips, tricks, and advice on raising a canine.
Getting Started
Share your blog on social media and request to be a guest blogger on other well-known industry blogs. Add your listing to Dog Service Search , which helps consumers locate the services they need in their area. Upon opening your business, issue a press release to local papers announcing your grand opening. Network with pet stores, veterinarians, and dog groomers in the area. These businesses regularly come in contact with dog owners with a new puppy or an elderly canine that might need to be walked more often than most. As your local business grows, you could begin to build a team, with each member targeting a specific part of town.
This will require a more complex, interactive website and, for best results, a mobile application. This should include running both criminal and driving reports, as well as a basic canine knowledge test. Dog walking businesses are typically not required to obtain any particular licensing or permits. However, it is advisable to look into the particularities of your municipality:. Most businesses are required to collect sales tax on the goods or services they provide. To learn more about how sales tax will affect your business, check out our informative guide, Sales Tax for Small Businesses.
Typically dog walkers provide their clients with a dog walking contract to decrease legal liability and encourage transparency. A sample contract can be found here. Rocket Lawyer makes it easy to create a professional service agreement for your dog walking business when you sign up for their premium membership. Structuring your business as a limited liability company LLC ensures your personal assets are protected in the event your business is sued. What is an LLC?
Much like your startup expenses, ongoing expenses are minimal. The bulk of your budget will go towards fuel costs, vehicle maintenance, and insurance. These costs will vary depending upon your location and how wide of an area you serve. To avoid the costs associated with hiring employees, many dog walking business owners hire individuals as freelancers.
And this is based on your services alone. If you enjoy brewing, you could consider selling dog beer. For pet lovers with artistic talent, you can offer your services as a custom portrait artist. Customers can send you photos of their pets or tell you about their breed, then you can draw or paint their animal for a fee. If you own any unusual animals that serve a practical purpose, you could consider renting them out to people who want to use their services.
For instance, some goat owners have rented out their goats to people with fields that need manicuring. People dye their hair all the time. So you could allow customers to order custom pet tags that you engrave with their specific information. Or you could use your creative talents to design and sew clothing items for dogs, cats and other animals. When pet owners go on vacation, they often need to find a sitter or boarder for their pets.
But those who are really into their pets may look for something even more specific. So if you offer some luxurious or upscale details like spa services, real-time streaming or private rooms, you could cater to that market. Alternatively, some pet owners might feel more comfortable leaving their pets in a real home.
There have even been some websites and other services that have opened up in the last few years that connect pet owners with people who will care for them in their homes. Gone are the days where pet owners need to go to the store to get some food or treats for their pets. Much like food trucks have grown more popular in recent years, so have dog food trucks. You just need a large enough vehicle, some food and treats and a love of dogs. Many dog breeds are naturally inclined to run, jump and do various other sporting activities. So, if you enjoy physical activity and event organizing, you can set up various competitions and sporting activities for dogs in your area.
You can open a doggie day care to serve that need. Among the many different handmade items you can sell to pet owners are customized pillows.
How to become a dog walker
You already know that dog walking can be a lucrative pet business. But if you enjoy being active and want to take dog walking to another level, you could start a dog running or workout program. For dog owners who want their pets to get a bit more exercise, you can take them for runs regularly.
Pet restaurants, much like bakeries and food trucks, have taken off in the past few years. You can offer various food items for dogs to enjoy right there.
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Or you could make your own dog or cat food and sell it to local pet stores, restaurants or even on your own website. If you have expertise dealing with animals aside from just dogs and cats, you could offer your services to people who own larger animals. Particularly in rural areas, you might find enough people who have horses, goats and various other animals that need care on occasion. There are plenty of different ways for people to search for a new pet. Some small businesses have even created apps or websites to help match people with their ideal cats or dogs at nearby shelters.
Around Halloween in particular, lots of pet owners purchase costumes for their animals to wear. Making and selling pet costumes can allow you to make some really interesting and creative items. Another way to sell pet treats and other items is by starting a subscription box.
Setting up a dog walking business: a comprehensive guide
You can charge pet owners a monthly fee and send them a box each month with various items for their pets. Massages have been shown to benefit cats, dogs and various other animals. With a bit of training, you can offer your services as a pet massage therapist.
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For some pet owners, going to pick up food, medicine and various other supplies can be a hassle. So you can offer them the option of getting those items delivered instead. While you obviously need to go to veterinary school to provide health care to animals, you may be able to offer some very basic tips when it comes to things like diet and exercise. There are also lots of different pet related events that you can help plan — adoption events, dog shows and more. There are plenty of different health and beauty type services you can offer for animals. Or you could offer a more all encompassing spa experience for pets.
Just as you can build a brand around yourself, you can also build one around your pets. Animals like Grumpy Cat have gained fame online and used that fame to launch books, drinks and various other products. If you have marketing expertise, this could be an industry worth exploring. There are over professional Pooper Scooper companies in the US alone. Just my two cents worth. I guess it depends on your point-of-view, Tim. Do you mean yard maintenance? Its not unusual around here. I found an organic treat maker. And more than just little treats, she creates little cakes for pets.
I think that it is really creative. Now, her business has grown into a mini restaurant that caters to both pets and humans. Can you give me the info. I am in the market to find a pet business to start and I love the treats, cakes etc. I saw your comment on this thread. I have a podcast called Hound Vibes and I interview several entrepreneurs and one of them has their own organic dog treat business. What a great article. There are so many new businesses starting today, but only a few unfortunately make it. I found an underdog that finally listens to pet owners need.
You wouldnt believe how many of them out here are into building data bases and profit: X I think its called Max and Kitty and another one pet sitters care. Some great ideas here but there are also some that are so overdone. There are so many pet collar businesses out there already — it would be hard to break into that market for example. But it would be amazing to have a business catered around the love of animals! So what type of small business would I be filing for?
And all the other online sell n buy apps I could find. I have a podcast called Hound Vibes on iTunes and I interview several entrepreneurs that have their own pet start ups including rescues. I would love to help connect you with one of them at no cost. Hello Senette, my comment is long time after this discussion, but are you active in this idea rescue dogs from China etc.? Cause my heart is really bleeding because of what happens with them and I would love to help with this! I am from Europe Czech republic. I would love to get involved somehow.
Please let me know a bit more about how this works and what you have been doing. I may be interested in your business idea, Please tell me more. I am starting up another pet business and I am a huge advocate on the humane treatment of animals. I would love to get involved in this type of business.