Runs With Dogs
FAQ & Pricing
Q: What are your prices?
A: Daycare - $20 for first dog, $10 per additional dog
Overnight boarding - $30 for first dog, $15 per additional dog
| Daycare |
One dog $20
|
Two dogs $30
|
| Overnight boarding |
One dog $30
|
Two dogs $40
|
Q: How do I get started?
A: Contact me for visit to check things out and see if this is the appropriate environment for your dog. Please fill out this application if you decide to continue with my service.
Q: What requirements should my dog have to stay at your location?
A: Your dog should be current on the standard vaccinations (parvo, distemper, rabies, bordetella, etc.) and flea preventative, be able to co-exist peacefully with other dogs, and not suffering from any contagious disease such as parvo or upper respiratory infection. Senior dogs and post-op patients are possible candidates on a case-by-case basis. From consistently negative experiences, I will unfortunately have to exclude unfixed males, aggressive dogs and male/female pit bulls regardless of no prior aggressive history. I would not advise new adoptions (less than a month) as good candidates to stay here, but recommend they stay with a someone who does not have any dogs or maybe one or two dogs until the dog becomes acclimated following the adoption period.
Q: What do I bring with my dog for his stay here?
A: Enough food for their stay here and any daily medication (heart, throid, arthritis, IVs, etc.) are mandatory. Hypo-allergenic treats should also be provided if that is a health concern for your dog. Blankets, dog pillows, and toys are optional.
Q: Do you take multiple dogs from one household?
A: Yes I do. If the number of dogs is large, it may be more convenient and cost-effective for the owner to use another petsitter who will come to your location.
Q: What kind of exercise can you provide my dog?
A: I will walk them assuming they are leash trained and in reasonably good health. For more exuberant dogs, I like to run them tethered to a bicycle. Playing fetch is always in style.
Q: What type of experience do you have with animals?
A: Before I had any pets, I started volunteering at the Houston SPCA by helping out with adoptions, cleaning cat cages, feeding, and walking dogs. I gained a lot of my animal experience helping out there and after seven years I ended up as 1991 Volunteer of the Year, adopted many wonderful pets, and had many great friendships along the way.
My pet history includes seventeen animals (nine dogs, five cats, two ferrets, one tortoise). I currently have four dogs. With so many pets, I've grown accustomed to handling a multiple pet household with feeding, providing medication, walking, etc. I have cleaned up horse stables in 20F degree weather at 7:00 am in the morning, fixed 20 feet of a client's fence that his dog had escaped from, carried handicapped pets outside in the rain for bathroom breaks, and cleaned up carpets from pets that could not wait. Needless to say, not much surprises me concerning the scope of a petsitting assignment.
Q: What kind of medical issues have you encountered concerning pet care?
A: Along with the usual vaccinations, I've personally had pets with chronic bronchitis, congestive heart failure, degenerative myopathy, cancer, severe wounds from dog attacks, handicapped leg, body imbalance, ear mites, and giardia. Two foster pets suffered from heartworms and were treated.
I have had many pet diagnosis from X-rays, mylograms, sonograms and blood workups at my veterinary clinic, specialist and emergency vet clinics. I have irrigated open wounds, administered IVs, dispensed liquid and pill medication to pets and helped pull cactus needles from a dog's muzzle.
Q: How did you end up petsitting?
A: I had a career in the high-tech industry for nine years doing server BIOS testing in Houston and six years in firmware development at a small startup here in Austin, but got layed off in March 2005. While updating my resume for the next high-tech job, I started petsitting and fortunately it took off as an alternative to sitting behind a desk.
