How to Make Money as a Pet Sitter
If you love pets, starting a side hustle as a pet sitter might be the perfect opportunity to help you boost your income. People are busier than ever and can have trouble finding a trustworthy person to watch their furry friends. Since you love animals, you could watch their pets in exchange for cash in your pocket. In this article I am going to be talking all about How to Make Money as a Pet Sitter.
It isn’t hard to do. You might give them food and water, play with them, take them for a walk or scoop cat litter. Giving medicine or checking on a medical condition, if they have one, might be part of your duties, too.
Being a pet sitter can be an excellent way to make extra money on the side.
How to Make Extra Money as a Pet Sitter
1.) Choose what services you’ll offer.
Your first step to becoming a pet sitter is to choose the services you’ll offer. There are so many ways to take care of pets – from dog walking and daily check-ins to daycare, overnight services, bathing, and grooming.
The services you choose depends on what you like doing and how much time you have available. For instance, if you love dogs, but don’t enjoy bathing them, you might not offer that as a service.
You could also offer walking, animal daycare, or overnight pet sitting are other activities.
2.) Decide how much you’ll charge.
One of the hardest parts about starting a side gig can be deciding how much to charge. You don’t want to price your pet sitting too high but you want to earn enough to make it worth your time.
I would recommend downloading the Rover App and using that to charge for your services. You can check out your competitors prices and what they offer. I personally use two different pet sitters that I found on the Rover App. You can read the reviews of the sitters from previous pet owners, which makes me feel a lot more trusting of their services.
Take a look at your local area to see how much pet sitters are charging. Try to match their prices as best you can to remain competitive. A pet sitter living in New York City may charge $25 or more per hour but a rate closer to $10 or $15 per hour is more common in rural areas.
Each service can be priced differently, too. You may charge by the hour to walk a dog but charge a flat rate for an overnight stay or to groom or bathe a pet.
3.) Tell everyone you know.
Now that you have your pet sitting business set up, you need to get your first client. Family, friends, and neighbors are a great place to start.
Share an update on your Facebook page to tell everyone you know about your pet sitting services. Local Facebook groups can be a good place to advertise, too. And don’t forget about a good ol’ fashioned flyer! You could hang up a flyer at the grocery store or on the bulletin board at the library.
Rover.com is an excellent place to list your services. Set up a profile on the site, and people looking for pet sitters in your area can easily find you.
4.) Meet pet owners in person.
Before you commit to a job, you should find out the details to see if it’s a good fit for you. Ask what days the pet owner will need your services and what type of pet they have. If you’re available, the next step is to set up a time to meet the client and the pet in person. I call that a meet and greet. To make sure my pet gets along with the pet sitter.
A few questions you may ask the pet owner include:
- How often does the pet get fed?
- What are the pet’s bathroom needs?
- Is there a medical history you should know?
- Where are the pet supplies?
- Do they have special training or know commands?
- Are they good with other animals?
- Which behavior should you reward?
- Are there bad behaviors to watch out for?
- Should you also water plants or bring in the mail?
- Does the home have a security or alarm system?
- Does your pet have flea and tick prevention on
Create a “pet information sheet” for the pet owner to fill out to make the process easier. That way, all of the information you need will be in one place and you can keep the paper on file for the next time they ask you to pet sit.
If you have pets at your home and you are petsitting, make sure that your home is free of fleas and any bugs. Make sure that the pet you are watching is also treated for fleas so they do not bring them into your home.
5.) Show up on time and give their pets great care.
As a pet sitter, it’s essential that you are on time. Your client is relying on you and a late arrival can cause them to question your ability to care for their pet.
You can either pet sit in your own home or you can go to their home. I typically drop my dog off at my pet sitters home because I don't feel comfortable having a stranger stay at my home.
Talk to the pet owner to review what they expect of you and make sure you do everything they ask. If the cat eats once per day at 6 p.m., only feed the cat once per day and be sure to do it as close to 6 p.m. as you can.
Give the pets the exercise they need, clean litter boxes and cages, and take care of any additional duties such as bringing in the mail or watering plants.
And of course, you’ll want to spend a lot of time playing and cuddling, too.
6.) Add a special touch.
Make yourself stand out by going above and beyond to help get repeat customers. You may send updates and pictures to the pet owner while they’re away. If the food supply is running low, send them a note to let them know so they can pick some up on their way home.
If you pet sit in their home, leaving the house cleaner than you found it is always a good rule of thumb. Check around the home to see if the animals knocked over any flowers or magazines and pick them up.
Also, follow up with clients if you’d like the opportunity to pet sit for them again. Send them a text message. A note in the mail to commemorate a special occasion or holiday is another way to keep in touch with past clients.
Keep in mind that many pet owners think of their pets as a member of the family, so you must love animals to be a successful pet sitter. But if you can’t get enough of your furry friends, pet sitting can be a rewarding way to earn extra money.
If you are interested in signing up to be a Pet Sitter, sign up on Rover.com or you can use this link at Rover.com to find a pet sitter for your pet! Rover is the only place that I go to look for petsitter, it has found me some really amazing women to watch my precious fur baby! So THAT is how to make money as a pet sitter!
Read More Source
No comments:
Post a Comment