dog walking business?

Question

I'm thinking about starting my own dog walking business (in uk) what would I need to do so?
and also any ideas on how much I should charge per walk?(there is no other business like this in my area so no one to compete with,with prices etc

Answer 1

I do dog walking and charge £5 for an hour. lots of advertising in shops, maybe look into designing your own logo and do proper posters, word will spread and you will be much sought after, just make sure, it is definitely your own logo or you could get into trouble.

Good Luck. please say you dont live in Merseyside, you might take all my customers! lol

Answer 2

Do you really mean start a Dog Walking BUSINESS, or are you thinking of walking a single dog as and when? There is a big difference! It is obviously not an original idea but can be well worth while if - (a) You both like dogs, know how to handle more than one, are personable and reliable. (b) You are in the right area. If you are thinking of it as a small business, like any other business, you first of all need a business plan. At its most basic you need to establish some operating parameters such as - Where you will get your clients (this needs to be in a compact area and close to a park etc). What hours to you want to work. How many dogs at a time can you genuinely safely handle. What your hourly rate per dog will be. What is the minimum you need to earn to make it viable instead of a more conventional dog. You will need Third Party Insurance in place before you start. You need to keep a financial record (the dreaded 'books') This will be 'Earned Income' and must be reported to the Tax department and, if your earnings go above the Tax Free Allowance, you will have to pay Tax as in any other job. Do not think as most people will pay you in cash you can just put it in your pocket and thats the end of it! Upset one client who is a bit vindictive and informs the Tax Office that you are running a Business and may not be paying Tax and you might get a nasty surprise if they 'Assess' your earnings! The bottom line is there ARE professional Dog Walkers, mostly in big cities, who earn a decent living from it. This is WORK and is NOT the same as walking your Dog, which is Pleasure! If you just have some spare time and want to earn a little extra spending money that is different and often, if you are reliable, it can be like a Window Cleaning Round. Once you get a couple of regular customers you get word of mouth recommendations and people might approach you. Good luck either way.

Answer 3

Be careful, do it right and make sure you are insured. If a dog breaks free and causes an accident YOU will be held responsible.
As a rule you need to cover costs, phone aforesaid insurance, clothing, pooper scooper, leads, car etc therefore as a start try about a £10 an hour, that should give you a 40 minute walk or about 4 or 5 kilometers and time to get to client and return to your base.

Answer 4

There is some kind of law that that says if you have five or more dogs you need more than one walker. I think you should charge 15 pounds for a 1 mile walk or 25 for a two mile walk.

Answer 5

1. Leashes(just in case)
2. if your in the city, LOTS of plastic bags, i think.
3.$10 for each dog i would say but i think it depends on how far your going.
4.put signs up with your phone and/email on it so people know about it.
5. doggie treats for the dogs if they were good on the walk.
6. I forgot maybe something to connect the leashes like a sort of cheap collar with a clip.
that's all i can think of! Oh also maybe a back pack for the dog treats and the plastic bag...But I DON'T KNOW!?

Hope that helps!

Answer 6

I think its between £6 an £10 per hour not sure . But hell yeah start it up . i have a puppy and the poor bugger never gets a morning walk at the wkend as im too tired so youre service is neede honey X

Answer 7

i was thinking about doing that during the summer holidays for a bit of extra cash it works out that if you walk 2 dogs an hour for 6 hours at £10 a dog youll earn £120 a day, if you do that for 5 days a week for one week youll earn £600, so its well worth trying, you just need to get your name out there, and i know you have to get insurance which is about £200

Answer 8

I'm not sure about pricing in your country...but if you want to research a good website...have a look at mine, I have been running my own dog walking and pet sitting business for 2 years...thecrittersitter.ca (I am in Canada)

Answer 9

£10 a mile

Answer 10

walking on dogs it'll never catch on but best of luck