Become a Professional Pet Sitter and Dog Walker with Paws at Home!

Hello and thank you for your interest in Paws at Home! Please read through our Pet Sitter and Dog Walker job description. If you feel this job would be a good fit for you, please fill out our application below. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

Dallas Sapla – Owner, Pet Sitter & Dog Walker

Pet Sitter and Dog Walker Job Description

In this job description, we try to answer many of the common questions applicants have about professional pet sitting and dog walking. If you have any questions about the job, please email us at jobs@pawsathomecare.com

Pet Sitting and Dog Walking Job Duties

Below is a summary of some of the job duties for Paws at Home Pet Sitters and Dog Walkers. We provide thorough training on everything listed below.

Accept visits assigned to you through our online system.
Meet clients at the Meet & Greet and understand the tasks you will be responsible for
Complete Pet Sitting and Dog Walking visits during the requested time block.
Clock in and out of visits, and complete them for the length requested.
Read the client’s profile and all notes about the visit.
Follow all client instructions.
Take pictures of the happy pets and send informative updates to clients.
Form good relationships with the pets and give them lots of attention, love, and care.
Form a good and trusting relationship with clients.
Clean up any pet messes and maintain pet health.
Double-check all notes before administering medications, and administer the correct medications every time.
Keep track of what is done at visits through our various communication channels and checklists.
Notice subtle preferences and behavior patterns of pets.
Identify behavioral patterns that may indicate stress or a health issue in pets.
Keep pets and their environment healthy, clean, and safe.
Maintain great communication with the office and with co-workers through phone calls and team chat app.
Keep all client information confidential.
Bring in mail and packages.
Be flexible in case of last-minute booking or last-minute cancellation.
Make the safety of pets and the security of the client’s home your top priority.

What does a pet sitting and dog walking visit look like?

Visits are generally 35-50 minutes long for dogs and 20-35 for cats, plus drive time (mileage and drive time is paid one way). The time at visits is generally spent preparing meals for pets, giving medication if needed, walking dogs, indoor and outdoor playtime, general cleaning, refreshing water dishes, scooping the litter box daily, cleaning up pet messes, taking cute pictures of happy pets, and sending an update to the client.

You will also check over the house for any problems, bring mail and newspapers inside, water indoor and outdoor plants, and take care of any other general household items included with our services. Pet sitting visits are completed at approximately the same time each day to keep things consistent for the pets. Pet sitting visits are generally booked for 3 to 10 days at a time.

Dog walking visits are generally booked on the same days each week. They are good, consistent income, and are usually 20-50 minutes long, plus drive time. Dog walks are great and are just like they sound. You take the dog for a walk!

Professional pet sitting and dog walking is independent work, it’s enjoyable, low stress, and active.

What is a Meet & Greet?

Meet & greets are scheduled for all new clients, so we can meet the client and their pets. You and another sitter meet at the client’s house at the time of the meet & greet. It’s a good idea to get to the client’s house a few minutes early to read their profile and any notes about this visit

Our meet & greet checklist includes all of the questions you need to ask the client during this initial meeting. You will also take a tour of the client’s home to see what you will be responsible for while the client is away. Meet & greets usually take 20-30 minutes, and we have a well put together training program to teach you everything you need to know.

You Get Breaks Throughout The Day

Keep in mind, pet sitting and dog walking is not constant work throughout the entire day. Rather, you complete 1-3 visits during a scheduled time block, then you will have a break.

However, from time to time visits are booked during two consecutive time blocks, so you can complete a more visits in one outing.

What will my schedule look like?

At our company, two sitters to work as a team to cover each set of visits. One sitter covers more of the AM shift and the other sitter handles more of the PM shift. Everyone gets two days off each week. In the example below, Kate has the AM shift and Sean has the PM shift.

We look for sitters who have consistent availability during our designated AM or PM shifts and we are currently hiring for both the AM shift and PM shift.

AM Shift

On a regular day for an AM shift person, they would be scheduled visits from the morning timeblock to the evening timeblock (see our timeblocks below). On a big day, the AM shift person would have visits scheduled from the morning timebock to the bedtime timeblock.

Regular days: Tuesday, Friday, Saturday

Big days: Sunday, Monday

Days off: Wednesday, Thursday

PM Shift

On a regular day for the PM Shift person, they would start with the late morning or mid-day timeblock. On a big day, they would have visits from the morning to the bedtime timeblock.

Regular days: Tuesday, Friday, Saturday

Big days: Wednesday, Thursday

Days off: Sunday, Monday

Timeblocks

Below you can see our timeblocks for pet sitting and dog walking visits. Visits need to be completed within the designated timeblock. On your busiest days, you would have 2-3 visits during a timeblock and breaks during the day.

A Few Notes About Our Scheduling App

You will receive your pet sitting and dog walking assignments through our scheduling app, Precise Pet Care. Bookings often come in daily as clients request visits through the online system.

You will generally know your schedule well in advance, but from time to time we have clients who book last minute. For all visits requested last minute, we’ll check to see if it works for you. From Precise Pet Care, you can see your schedule, request time off, and make notes on visits.

How will I get Clients?

We have many new clients calling us for service every week. So, you do not need to find your own clients. Onboarding new clients and getting you consistent work is the job of the office staff.

Where will I be working?

Most of your time at work will be spent at the clients home doing visits and taking care of pets. From time to time, you will need to pick up or drop off supplies at our office located in central Fort Collins. You do not need to commute to the office before or after your shifts, you can go straight to the clients home and start working.

Because our pet sitters and dog walkers drive to visits multiple times per day, we only hire candidates who live in our service area, or very close to it.

Will I need to work on holidays?

Pet sitting and dog walking is a business that is inherently busiest during the times people travel, which includes holidays. You will need to work two of the three major winter holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years). It’s your choice which two you would like to work.

This is a thorough list of job duties, but should not be considered complete. Paws At Home may add or subtract from this list.