Archive for the ‘Pet Sitting’ Category

Best Fit Pet Sit Services Celebrates Second Anniversary!

Story by: Christine Morrison

Gwinnett County, GA – January 5, 2011

This month marks the second anniversary for one of Gwinnett County’s best pet sitting services, Best Fit Pet Sit, which was born out of hard work and experience, along with a lifelong dream of owner Valerie Pegg. “Denny (her husband) and I started the business in January 2009 from the ground. The idea of starting my own pet sitting service came to me through years of experience working for doggy daycares, boarding kennels, and as an independent professional pet sitter combined with ten years of fostering dogs and a lifetime of loving and caring for animals.” Val also volunteers for Daffy’s Pet Soup Kitchen and the Georgia Humane Society. To say her world is animals would be an understatement.

Valerie’s business has done so well in two years that she has been able to add five independent pet sitters on a part time basis in addition to her full time sits and her husband’s part time assistance.  She currently has a client base of 75 pet parents and over 150 furry, feathery and scaly family members. In total Best Fit boasts seven sitters with sincere passion for animals throughout Gwinnett County and Val has an idea of expanding into neighboring towns. She credits her success, in part, to her mentors Mike Howell and Jasen Ory, owners of Two Dads Pet Services who taught her the ropes of the pet sitting business.

For pet parent reviews and information on their services visit Best Fit Pet Sit Services website www.bestfitpetsit.com. You will also find them listed Georgia Network of Professional Pet Sitters (www.georgiapetsitters.com) and Professional United Pet Sitters (www.petsits.com) or on FaceBook (www.facebook.com/BestFitPetSitServices) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/bestfitpetsit).

 

Professional pet sitters are experienced, insured and full time pet care providers. There are many reasons to hire a professional pet sitter or dog walker.

Instead of dropping your dog off at the local kennel or at the veterinarian’s office, a professional pet sitter comes to your house and cares for your pet in the environment that they are most comfortable in. Some pet sitters also provide boarding in their homes. Terry Albert of Poway Pet Care is a perfect example of this. She provides in your home pet sitting, and in her home pet boarding.

Most professional pet sitters also provide dog walking services. This is great for people who work long hours, have an appointment after work, or just want their dog to get some extra exercise.

There are many benefits for you and your pet to hiring a professional pet sitter and dog walker.

• Your pets gets to stay in familiar surroundings with all of the smells and comforts that they are accustomed to
• Your pets get to keep their eating, exercising and bathroom routines, there is no risk of someone feeding your pet the wrong food
• Your pets get one on one play time, snuggle time and quality time
• Your pets’ health, happiness and well being will be monitored closely
• Professional pet sitters can administer medications and injections that your pet may need and there is no worry that your pet will get the wrong medicine, too much or too little of their medicine, or the wrong pet’s medicine
• No exposure to other animal’s illnesses (kennel cough, parvo) or parasites (fleas, worms, etc)
• No travel time or trauma (not all pets travel well)
• Having your home being cared for while you’re away; burglars are less likely to target a home with a person coming in and out
• Pet sitters can water your plants and lawn, bring in your newspapers and mail, bring in packages, check doors and windows to be sure everything is secure, alternate opening blinds and turning on lights to give your home a lived in look, and many other functions
• Having the confidence that your pets are in professional hands and can handle any issue that may arise calmly, efficiently and assertively
• And last but not least, you don’t have to feel as if you are imposing on neighbors, friends and relatives

Before You Hire A Pet Sitter:

There are a lot of resources where you can find professional pet sitters in your area. A great one in Georgia is Georgia Network of Professional Pet Sitters (GNPP) . You can use their zip code or city finder and find a great professional in your area.

Make sure you get a warm and fuzzy feeling from your sitter. If the person doesn’t insist upon meeting you and your pets before your trip, this is a big red flag. Professional pet sitters want to meet and get to know you and your pets before agreeing on service. When you meet, the sitter should be very interested in your pets, interacting with them and asking questions about your pets.

A professional pet sitter will be able to provide you with a copy of their insurance policy and a list of references. They will have informational sheets about you and your pets for you to fill out and also a contract of service.

When you’re telling the sitter about your pets and their routine, eating habits, etc., watch to see if they are engaged in what you’re saying and paying attention. During this “meet and greet,” make sure to tell the pet sitter about any special needs you pet may have, such as medications, illnesses or conditions or special dietary needs.

Please look into all avenues before deciding what to do with your pet while you’re out of town or working all day. It depends on your pet’s personality where they’ll be happiest. If you decide on a doggy daycare or boarding kennel, please stop in there randomly and ask to see the back where the dogs are. If they won’t let you, that’s a red flag. In my humble opinion, pets are happiest at home.

The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.  – Maya Angelou

Terry Albert of Poway Pet Care has a fantastic blog that has helped me out with a lot of my questions about my business. Her blog also has a lot of great information for pet owners. Terry is a pet portrait artist, web site designer, pet sitter and author who writes about dogs. I highly recommend reading her blog and checking out her website!

Here are her links:

Blog

Pet Portraits

Paintings

Graphic Design

Web Design

Pet Sitting