idealmike
Level X3
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It can be hard going finding work and a good paid job in today's over populated concrete jungle. But thanks to mans best friend, there is a way to make some money in the meantime. Or even a possible full time business.
When I was growing up as teenager, not only did I hold down several newspaper rounds for a few years but sometimes I also got work on the weekends and after school doing other chores for cash like washing cars, sweeping leaves, mowing lawns and occasionally walking my neighbors dogs. It wasn't bad work since I love animals and it used to keep me active and give me something to do and keep out of trouble! Plus I'd be trying to save up for things I wanted like tape packs and Bauer 88 skates!
I never realized back then that I could have turned it into a legitimate, successful and lucrative business. Neither did I realize that in future times, professional dog walking would be so popular and multi million dollar industry. With people keeping more dogs than before and their lives getting ever more busy, many owners don't have the time to take their best friend for a walk. This is where you can coin in!
If you have an affinity with animals, with dogs in particular, and you're a good all round, down to earth and responsible person. And you're looking to raise some cash. And you are fortunate enough to live in a rural area where there are a lot of homes or families or people with dogs. And somewhere where you can actually safely walk them or give them a run. Then you can probably turn to professional dog walking to make money with!
Image Source: [Daniel Radcliffe: Dog Walker?]
Can I Be a Professional Dog Walker?
Do you love dogs and animals in general?
Are you physically fit and able to walk for several hours a day?
Can you handle dogs of all sizes big and small?
Do you have any dog walking experience or history?
Do you know any basic training commands like stay, sit etc?
Do you have an affinity with animals and a duty of care?
Are you a responsible, friendly and outgoing person?
If you answered yes to all or most of those questions. Then you can probably and more then likely become a professional part time or full time dog walker!
How Much Money Do Professional Dog Walkers Earn?
It will largely depend on how many dogs you are walking, how many times a week and how much each owner is paying you. If you only get a few jobs a week and only make $5-10 per walk. That could be around $15-30 per week. Or $60-90 p/ month.
You could charge by the hour as well of course. Some dog walkers can earn up to $25+ per hour and walk for up to 16+ hours a day if they are busy! It's all about bagging big clients if you know how to advertise and pitch to.
A fully qualified and busy dog walker can earn up to $33,600 per year.
$25 an hour for 16 hours = $400 a day.
$400 x 7 = $2800 a month.
$2800 x 12 = $33,600 a year.
That's not a bad extra income to have and can go a long way if it's something you do for years. You might have to set a certain charge yourself based on size of dog, requirements such as whether it needs a ball thrown 10 times or how long the walk is / distance traveled etc. And of course, you'd probably have to supply your own doggie bags to pick up the poop of the ones that do do a do do on you!
Fortunately, depending on the food they eat, they are easy to pick up and bag. Sometimes not and big dogs take big dumps and as the walker you're also the responsible picker upper. Essentially, this is another reason why people hire dog walkers as well. Happier to pay someone else to walk him/her and pick up their mess and bin it instead of them doing it lol.
How to Become a Professional Dog Walker?
Start small and work your way up! If you already own a dog and can get out and about talking to other dog owners and see if they want a break from walking their dog every once in a while! And naturally a love for dogs and animals would help! But you'll need some dog skills too or have to pick them up like dog body language, leash handling, pack composition, basic obedience skills. You may also need a permit or license and have to check with your local council or authority as some towns and cities require dog walkers to have a license to walk their dog.
Get out there and find clients!
The best form of advertising is word of mouth. Tell other dog walkers you know of what you do and ask them to ask around or mention you if they know anyone that requires it. Advertise in your local area by placing flyers on community boards and shop windows. Take out an ad in your local paper or magazine. And be sure to promote your services with your own website and promote and market it on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc. You can get really creative promoting your dog walking services online and what you put into that will be near around what you get out!
Gain trust first then gain references & recommendations
Remember start small at first. Build up a name for yourself as someone who is a good dog walker and the orders will start coming in. Some people may let you just take their dog but some may want to speak to you and "vet" you first to make sure you're alright. I mean, come on, they're trusting you with their beloved pet and want the best for it!
Expand your enterprise and outsource. Think about ways in which you can grow your business. Find other dog walkers who want to earn money by walking dogs and then forward them to people where you take a cut from it. Keep doing that over and over until you have enough people to walk all the dogs you do so you can stop doing all the walking and just do all the banking from instead! In theory anyway!
A few dog walking tips!
As a good dog walker, you'll need to know the area you are in and make sure you're able to take the routes they ask for and know where fields are that are safe to let the dog run around in and that. Also you should know whether you're allowed to take the dog off the leash in that are/city/town without a permit to do so. You need to know these things! And as it's something you'll likely take quite seriously, and you can never stop learning when it comes to animals/dogs, you should get to learn more about dogs.
What would help and can even help you to get started, you can join the International Association of Canine Professionals, where you can chat and network with other dog walkers around the world and get tips from dog walking pros and find ways to help you grow, promote and improve your business enterprise. And check out the NAPPS (National Association of Professional Pet Sitters) organization as they have many dog walking services among its membership you can apply for.
Become a Dog Walker With WagWalking.com
wagwalking.com is a great way for animal lovers and pet care professionals to earn income doing something they truly enjoy is to become a dog walker with Wag! If you’re over 18 years old, own a smartphone and prefer an active lifestyle to being chained to a desk, then becoming a dog walker with Wag! might be the right fit for you!
Wag! is currently accepting dog walker applicants in the following cities/areas: Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area, Portland, Seattle, Denver, Austin, Chicago, Miami, Washington D.C, New York & Boston.
I'm not entirely sure how the whole process works on wagwalking.com but I believe it's like a hub where dog owners can find dog walkers in their area. You register as a dog owner or as a walker and then can find work using their app. You have to attend their face to face assessment but if you pass you are then given chance to become a dog walker with Wag! Apparently Wag! dog walkers can earn up to $25 an hour
It just goes to show there is a big demand for it. And they would have started off in the same way. The CEO probably started walking dogs first, then outsourced it and employed other people and started the business. Now they mostly sit in an office doing admin and office duties and forecasting profits if the weathers nice!
And that my friends, is my 'ruff' guide to make money walking dogs by being a professional dog walker! Hope it's not too 'far fetched' for you! ;D
Mike.
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TommyCarey
To get clients I would post flyers with pull tabs at starbucks and any type of business that had bulletin boards. I didn't post my phone number on there because I didn't want random high school kids prank calling me, but I did have an email listed. I probably should have set up a website so people could go to it and read about what I was offering, but I didn't
Another job that I saw, similar to dog walking, was to pick up dog poop in peoples back yards. Normally you have to target richer towns in order to get any clients, but it could be worth it if you get enough sign ups on a monthly plan. I called one of these companies just to see how much they were making, and it was a lot more than I thought lol. I didn't ask them how much they profit, I talked to them like I was interested in signing up. They charged based on the size of your yard and how often you wanted to get your yard cleaned. They had plans for small, medium, and large sized yards and they could be cleaned once a week or twice a month. Obviously the larger yards getting cleaned once a week were the most expensive, so that's what I got a quote on
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