Dog Walking Service

 First you have to check with your local authorities for any bylaws regarding a dog walking business. I'm sure every area is different but here is the low down in my area.

1. $200 license required/yr/individual walker

2. Insurance is required (ie if a dog is injured/lost or a dog injures or damages property)

3. limit of 6 dogs/walk

4. fees range from $15 -$20

These apply to any individual walking more than 3 dogs. Even owners! Also if you are going into clients homes when they are not there you may need to be bonded.

 Thanks. I just looked it up on what it would take to start one. My friend and I (both stay at home moms) are seriously thinking about starting one. We're always going shopping and out to eat so we figured we would be nice and try to find ways to make money and have fun while saving our husbands their money. We both love animals and think it might be fun plus we can take our daughters with us.

Just a friendly note, not all dogs get along w/ one another, so you would have to be careful with taking more than one at a time (I'm sure you thought of that).  Also, since you both have kids, just be careful, too that the dogs you walk are good around kids, I would hate to hear something bad happening.  Otherwise, it sounds like a great job!  Good luck, and let us know how it pans out.

What most dog walking services in my area advertise are that they are insured and bonded, that the dog walkers have pet first aid training and that dog walkers use positive reinforcement training methods.   Also, that dogs walked in groups are matched based on compatibility.  Group walks are usually about $15-20/hour and individual walks are about $20-30 for 30 minutes or 1 hour.  A lot of places have packages where you get a cheaper rate if you pay for 10 or 20 walks upfront. 

If you really want to do this, you need training with lots of dogs and lots of situations.  Highly unlikely you will find a program like that or someone you can apprentice to in your area.  So,  go find the shelters and rescue organizations in your area and volunteer for them extensively.  Do all the stuff inlcuding dog walking.  You will need to deal with all sorts of animal care and management.  Dogs come in all sizes, shapes, personalities and abilities (read that medical, mental and level of training).  If you are going to do this, you need to know your limits and your strengths and you need to be able to evaluate potential clients.  That is above and beyond any business regulation you must follow.

I thought I knew alot about handling dogs until I started working of a kennel in the summer (my friend owned it) and began teaching public obedience classes.  I was in my 30s at that time.

For the people who are interested in your service, in order to get to know the dog's habits, you can have a questionnaire with simple questions about the dog's temperment, if it gets along with other dogs/children, what they use for commands (everyone has different things they say for their own dogs as commands) etc.  I think it will be very good, and I hope it works out great for you!