A pet-sitting arrangement refers to someone acting as a temporary caregiver for another individual's pet for a relatively short period of time. The person who does this is called a pet sitter. Pet-sitting may transpire at the pet owner's home or elsewhere; some individuals offer drop-off pet-sitting in the provider's home. The term pet-sitting describes a more personal and individualized arrangement for care than the terms boarding or kenneling (of a pet).
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Professional industry
According to the Pet Sitters International's 2016 State of the Industry Survey, its members completed 17 million pet-sitting assignments and generated more than $391 million in pet-sitting revenues in 2015. Many of the surveyed pet owners preferred hiring pet sitters rather than taking advantage of the more traditional pet care options available. Reasons people use pet sitters include:
- Possible reduction in stress levels on pets, as pets are cared for in their own homes
- No "travel trauma" towards pets as there is no need for transportation
- Minimised exposure to illnesses and parasites from other animals
- Required vaccinations are often less restrictive than those necessary at a kennel
- Pets stay on their regular routines and do not need to adapt to a new environment
- Convenience for pets with health problems and mobility issues due to arthritis, dysplasia, incontinence, etc.
New business owners find the pet-sitting industry attractive as many industrialized countries hold a large number of pet owners. The low input cost and barriers to entry make the industry an attractive one.
Professional pet sitters are often licensed, and insured for liability including care, custody, and control of the pets in their care. Many pet sitters are also bonded or insured for theft. Pet sitters usually have training, such as pet first aid certification, animal husbandry classes, or pet sitting accreditation. A number of professional organizations exist to help pet sitters improve their services. Pet sitters may be interviewed prior to being given the job.
In many areas, no special occupational license is required for pet sitters. The term "licensed" is often used by pet sitting professionals to refer to licenses to do business, kennel licenses, and/or animal transportation permits available within the coverage area of the business. These licenses may be required, depending on the location. Licenses are not available in all areas.
The gig economy has led to the creation of various apps and websites to match pet-sitters with clients.
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Services
There are many different services which can be offered by pet sitters:
- dog walking
- pooper scooping of animal waste
- cleaning litter boxes cages and dog crates
- pet taxi to the vet hospital and grooming appointments
- housesitting of the pets home
- potty break for dogs outdoors
- feeding and treats distribution
- watering and refilling dishes
- playing indoors and out
- snuggle and cuddle time
- petting and stroking
Vacation care
During vacation, a petsitter visits a client's home several times, as required. The exact length of visit is determined by both pet owners and pet sitters, averaging from fifteen to forty-five minutes. Typical services offered include: providing the pets' customary diet and exercise routine, administration of medications, vitamins, and other special care, monitoring health and arranging for medical treatment in case of illness. Most pet sitters bill clients on a per-visitor per-day basis, including additional charges for multiple pets, travel expenses, and special tasks. Less commonly, pet sitters offer live-in care. Pet sitters also provide house sitting in conjunction with vacation pet care.
Dog walking
Pet sitters also commonly provide dog walking services. Disabled clients and the elderly often hire pet sitters to exercise and care for their pets if they are unable to do so.
Pet sitters may also offer other more aggressive methods of exercise for dogs during dog walking appointments. These may include jogging, running, inline skating, bicycling, or dog scootering with client dogs.
Commercial dog walkers in some regions are required to obtain license for dog walking along with inspection of vehicle that is used to transport dogs for commercial walking and limitation over the number of dogs that can be walked at one time.
Additional services
Some pet sitters may also offer additional pet services, such as dog boarding, dog grooming, or veterinarian care. These additional industries are often subject to special regulations and licensing requirements.
Insurance and bonding
Insurance
Most professional pet sitters are insured through pet sitter insurance providers. Most pet sitting insurance providers are country-specific, and currently are limited primarily to the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, and Canada.
As of 2016, the major American and Canadian pet sitting liability insurance providers include limits from $2,000,000 to $4,000,000 for liability claims. They also include an uncommon endorsement that provides coverage for care, custody, and control of the client pets from $10,000 to $200,000 per occurrence. Coverage is included for fire damage, lost keys, and other negligence claims. The major UK pet sitting insurance providers claim coverage limits between £2,000,000 and £10,000,000. The limits for liability claims generally range from £2,000,000 to £5,000,000.
Most pet sitter insurance plans provide coverage for pet transport. The majority of pet sitting industry insurers also provide care, custody, and control liability coverage for all animals, excluding the loss from income from an animal that may be used for other business ventures such as farming.
Some resources recommend that pet sitters be bonded. That recommendation has been dismissed by many professional organizations in recent years.
Bonding
A dishonesty or fidelity bond claim generally applies when a pet sitter is convicted in criminal court of theft from a client home. When the pet sitter is convicted, the bond will reimburse the client for the loss, and then seek reimbursement from the pet sitter. This process can take many years to complete, and usually relies on a criminal law court conviction.
Many pet sitters have decided to seek actual insurance coverage for theft instead of procuring a bond. Theft insurance coverage does not require convictions, and can include coverage for accidental breakage, mysterious disappearance, and accidental damage to items in a client home.
Other insurance topics
Pet sitters are generally not protected from injury to themselves by regular pet sitting liability coverage. Pet sitter liability insurance usually covers injury to other people and other pets.
Certification and accreditation
A variety of pet sitting organizations offer optional training, testing, or review of credentials for pet sitters in the form of certification or accreditation. The curriculum of pet sitting programs may include pet care, health and first aid, animal law information, nutrition, and behavior, and/or business development and management.
Certification that is credentials-based may require the pet sitter to provide a criminal background check, proof of insurance, proof of bonding, certificate of completion of a pet first aid program, documentation of business methods and policies, or other evidence to support their professionalism and adherence to pet sitting industry standards.
It is common for pet sitters to obtain a separate certification for pet first aid. Hands-on training classes for this are obtained through many private businesses and well-known organizations like Red Cross. Virtual classes are also available.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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