Help people look after their dogs by starting a dog caring business. Learn more in this article.
For people unable to properly care for a dog all of the time, you could share one of your well-trained and affectionate dogs with them. Your dogs could share time between you and several families.
You would provide each family with the practical items they need to care for a dog while it stays with them. This would include a dog bed, food bowls, food, brushes, a leash and collar, and a few small toys or balls.
Having these items will help the dog with the constant home transitions since it will provide it with familiar smells and insure that its environment is comfortable. Depending on the breed of dog, you could charge each family a membership fee of $100 to join and a $50 a month fee, in addition to food costs.
We all know that a dog is not just a man’s best friend; dogs can be a woman’s best friend too! There is a growing interest in the relationship between pets and health. Scientific studies have documented a wide range of benefits, including therapeutic, physiological, psychological, and psychosocial.
Owning a pet was even found to increase the perception of a neighborhood’s friendliness. This same study suggested that having the pet provided additional opportunities for interactions between neighbors. This is where your doggie business comes in!
It doesn’t need to be stated that almost every child in America has begged and begged their parents at one time or another for a dog of their very own to love. However, what if the child grows bored with their four-legged pal within a few weeks?
After spending money on a quality dog bed, food, and various toys, nothing is more frustrating than being the parent who is stuck with the responsibility of picking up after and caring for a pet that their child has no further interest in. Many people find themselves in situations where owning a dog is just not a practical idea, but they might be willing to rent one occasionally.
If this ‘business idea’ appeals to you, you would also likely want to invest in a comfortably sized cage to transport each animal safely to the families’ homes and for them to safely transport the dog back to you.
You will likely want to print up a specific care guide for each customer spending time with your dogs. You will need to provide very basic and detailed instructions. Certain points of pet-care might seem obvious, but for many people who have never had a pet, they might be something they had never heard of before.
For instance, you should include information explaining how much food your dog should be fed, as well as how often. Tell your customers how often the water bowl needs to be changed, washed, or re-filled.
Explain why a dog should not be allowed to drink from the toilet and that they should only be allowed to move their bowels out of doors. They should also be provided with a rough idea of how much exercise your dog will need and how often your dog must be allowed outside to do its business, so there will be no accidents inside their homes.
Explain what happens to carpet and hardwood floors if a dog is not allowed to go outside on a regular basis. Let them know, also, what behaviors are not normal and what symptoms might indicate that the dog is ill. Make sure they can easily call you with any problems they may encounter.
While unorthodox, this business would be a priceless resource for people in a variety of circumstances. For instance, a family that frequently relocates due to employment rarely gets to experience the pleasure of a family pet, since they can never insure that their next housing situation will be a pet-friendly one.
Studies in pet therapy have shown that pets have a beneficial effect on the psychological well-being of institutionalized elderly, especially with regard to depression and their perceived quality of life.
A service like this would therefore be great for a convalescent home that is not staffed to care for an animal full-time and yet whose residents would benefit greatly from the love and affection of an animal on a regular basis.
This service would be great for day-care facilities too, for similar reasons. For families with an aged or terminally ill family member, having a pet around part-time would relieve the caregivers of additional responsibilities, while allowing them the benefits of pet companionship.
This service would also be wonderful for families where there is shared custody of a child or several children who want to have a dog. Your service would allow the dog to be available to them whenever they were at one parent’s residence and then the dog could be returned during the times when the children are not there to care for it and love it.
Next, you will need to let people know how they can get in contact with you to rent one of your loving animals. People will need to know who to call! You will likely want to advertise your dog sharing services by running a visible advertisement in a local phone directory, list your business with an online business directory, and by printing up flyers and posting them in places where families and people with children and aged family members are likely to visit.
Among these places should be elementary schools, daycare centers, and hospitals. Be sure to include popular lunch places and coffee shops! Most post offices and grocery stores also have bulletin boards that they will allow you to place an advertisement on. Be sure to take advantage of any public bulletin boards in your immediate area to find the people looking for you and your dogs!