High
Frequency Marketing
PR & Media Relations in Spanish - Website positioning
START A PET-SITTING SERVICE
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Flexible hours, Promising salary. Holidays negotiable. Be your own
boss. No experience necessary.
If you spotted the above ad in the Help Wanted section of your
local newspaper would you laugh, "Too good to be true"? But it is
true! Have you always said, "I'd never have the money or the
skill to start my own business." But you do! One of the easiest
businesses to start and operate requires very little money. The
only necessary skills are patience, time, and lots of love. The
business? Pet-sitting!
Jackie McDonald owner of Jackie's Pals in Houston, Texas, started
her pet-sitting business after working eight years in a doctor's
office. "I wanted to do something I enjoy," she says. "I love
animals and I find this work is very calming." Mcdonald spoke
with other pet-sitters in her area and discovered how busy they
all were. She felt her neighborhood could support another
pet-sitter. She was right. Mcdonald just completed a very busy
and successful holiday season.
Pet-sitting involves going into someone's home and caring for a
pet when the owner isn't available. The service can include
plant watering and mail and newspaper pick-up. The focus,
however, is on the animal. Pet-sitting saves a client and the
animal the aggravation of dealing with a kennel. Clients expect a
variety of services: feeding, watering, liter box cleaner, pill
giving, and especially some Tender Loving Care for a lonely
animal who misses its master.
ADVANTAGES, DISADVANTAGES
Owning a pet-sitting business has many of the same advantages of
owning any business--you are your own boss, you set your own
hours (depending on the number of clients you serve per day), and
your paycheck will be limited only by your willingness to work.
McDonald especially enjoys the flexible hours. "I also work out
of my home," she says, "and that's a big advantage," Another
advantage of pet-sitting is the opportunity of getting to know
some real characters: Missy, the cat that only eats facing north
(a real example, believe it or not), or Rufus, the blue-footed
Amazon parrot who refuses to stay in a cage. Your list will be
endless. McDonald describes the pleasure she finds in meeting
both pets and their owners, "Ninety-nine percent of the people
are very nice. Most are concerned about their pets or they
wouldn't call me. And the animals love me no matter what."
As with any business,pet-sitting has a few disadvantages as well.
If the business is to succeed, long hours and hard work is
necessary. "this is not a get rich-quick scheme," McDonald says.
Holidays will be especially busy. Servicing fifteen pets, each
two times a day is not an unreasonable expectation. This doesn't
leave much time for football viewing on New Year's Day. Unless
you're a real animal lover some of the tasks can be unpleasant:
Who wants to clean a litter box twice a day for two weeks? But
that wildly wagging tail or the purr of a lonely animal that
greets you at the door does make it worth the trouble. So do
those paychecks at the end of the Christmas holidays. "you must
truly love animals," McDonald advises, "or you won't enjoy this
business."
START-UP COSTS
Start-up costs for pet-sitting business are small. Expenses can
be divided into three categories: marketing, insurance, and
transportation. Initial outlay can be as little as $200 or as
much as 4300 if you choose to pay for a visit to an accountant.
That isn't a bad idea. An accountant can explain tax laws and
policies governing this type of business. In some states, for
example, he or she will tell you not to charge sales tax because
you perform a service that is not taxable.
Although most clients will come your way by word of mouth, invest
in a few marketing tools. Business cards are essential. Costing
anywhere from $25 to $50, business cards can be placed anywhere
pets are found--pet shops and vet clinics. Because most vet
clients have kennel facilities, some may not allow you to place
your card with them. Establish a relationship with a vet in your
area, though, and he or she will begin to recommend you when the
kennel facility is full. Design a flyer and place copies on
community bulletin boards, church bulletin boards, at the grocery
store, and any other place you can think of.
"Welcome-to-the-community" associations may be willing to give
your card to new residents, too. Keep trying to get your business
known. People will be delighted with this service when they hear
that you are a top quality pet-sitter. If you can afford it, buy
an answering machine. Once your business is booming, you'll need
one to take all your business calls.
Clients will ask if you are bonded. This means that an insurance
company finds you trustworthy and is willing to put this in
writing. An insurance policy protects the homes you enter. If
something is broken while you are there, your policy will cover
it. Being bonded, however does not protect against damage to pets
while in your care. With this type of policy, your premium
increases as your business increases. Initially your coverage
cost $100 per year. As you client list increases, you can pay as
much as $500 per year. Being bonded, however, is worth the
expense. Clients are more likely to use your service if they know
you're backed by an insurance company.
Keep a log of business miles traveled in your car. Also keep
track of gas and auto expenses. These are all tax deductible.
OPERATIONS
What are the mechanics involved with pet-sitting? When a client
calls, arrange a meeting before his departure. This gives you an
opportunity to see the pet, familiarize yourself with the
routine, and get a key. The client also gets to check you out and
give instructions. Appear professional. Have a printed
instruction sheet ready for the client to complete. Include space
for emergency phone numbers and vet information. Also include a
section on pet preferences. A pet whose routine has no
disruptions is a much happier one when his master returns. The
master will be satisfied and you'll reap the benefits by gaining
a repeat client.
"Suggest that clients limit changes to a pet's routine," McDonald
advises. the pet will be happier and easier to care for. Provide
references to all clients who ask. When you're just starting out,
ask a neighbor whose cat you've fed once or twice if she'll be a
reference. Most clients won't call references, but will be wary
if you've got no one to vouch for you. An important note here:
ask clients to be specific about when they'll returning. Have
them call you when they do get home. Avoid the disaster of one
pet-sitter who clients was three days delayed and whose cat went
unfed for that time. When you return your clients key you pickup
your payment.
WHAT TO CHARGE
Determining a fee is a personal matter. McDonald consulted other
pet-sitters in the area to determine an appropriate charge. fees
range anywhere form $5 to $10 per visit. Some pet-sitters charge
more for initial visit and less for subsequent visits. The fee
will also depend on the number of pets involved and the amount of
trouble they will be. Obviously the household with three cats, a
turtle, two birds, and a hamster should be charged more than the
one with a single dog. Decide in advance what your limits are,
too. If you don't care to feed, water, and brush a horse each day
be prepared to say no. Once your business takes off, one turned
down request won't affect you.
A wide variety of people will use a pet-sitting service.
Certainly vacationers will be a number-one market. Therefore,
holiday times will be extremely busy. Some people own pets but
have little time to spend with them--couples who both work
full-time, and singles who travel.
A few words of advice and notes of caution:
* Be prepared for a mess. Bored animals are messy little things.
They knock over plants, break vases, and chew furniture. Although
yours is not a house-cleaning service, your clients will
appreciate your efforts to tidy things up.
* Follow your client's instructions to the letter. Even if no one
but you knows Fido ate exactly at 6 P.M., do what is asked.
Owners can detect when a pet's routine has gone wary.
* Pregnant women should be aware of a condition known as
toxoplasmosis. caused by a parasitic organism found in cat feces,
toxoplasmosis can cause severe damage to a fetus. Pregnant women
should use extreme caution when disposing of cat feces or else
wait until after the baby is born to start a pet-sitting
business.
* Expect a few complainers. Most clients will love you. Some,
however will be annoyed that Fifi's nails grew too long while she
was in your care, or that Bucky seems listless since their
return.
A pet-sitting business is an easy one to start. The only
requirement is a real love for animals. You will find that people
are quite interested in your service and are more than willing to
pay for it. McDonald sums it up this way: "this is a very time
consuming business. But I really enjoy it and I've learned from
it. You're certainly compensated and it is very satisfying."
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