So you think licensed dog boarders are greedy?

I know many of you will skip read the following and others won't bother at all but that's life. 

But it has to be said...so pull up a chair and grab a cuppa or something stronger and read. 

I get abuse and rude people fairly often who don’t like my charges so I thought id share with you an insight into a dog boarders life below….

Apparently Licenced home boarders are GREEDY because we won't support owners budgets with our costs at £40-£80 per night depending on time of year is apparently laughable but no one ever questions a trade person who charges £60+ per hour like a plumber to tighten a loose bolt, or a hairdresser to cut and style your hair for 2 hours at £70+, or a nail technician who charges £30 per hour!! It is an utter insult to refer to licenced businesses as GREEDY...yes, you read it right. 

The subject or insult I would say, is raised a few times through the year by people who simply do not understand the businesses we run & what we in fact do.  It is those owners who sadly and stupidly use unlicenced dog sitters/boarders etc, individually, or through Rover, Bark, Tailister, Pawshake etc etc....because they have a budget or simply want something cheap, or because the person is nice & trustworthy.  Love it or hate it, if you have a budget in mind where you want to pay less than £40-£80 per night per dog then sadly, I wouldn’t be able to help you. 

A licenced business offers a service where we are insured, trade legally & where your dogs needs are our priority. If home boarding isn't for you ...perhaps look at licensed Kennels or a pet sitter who comes to your house. 

Firstly each licenced home boarder works for far less than the minimum hourly wage. Home boarders are limited to the number of dogs per day. The average number of dogs is 4-6 (less if we have our own dogs).

So let's base our hourly rate on 18hrs work per day...at my average of £45 per dog per night. Per hour we get paid £10 for four dogs !! (4 dogs x £45 per night x 18 hrs 🤦🏼‍♀️) For one dog it's less than £2.50 per hour.  Far less than the minimum wage plus we have to pay all the extras on top. Based on that calculation - NO id say we are not greedy.

Licenced home boarder businesses generally pay out for:

• licence applications

• renewal applications

• inspection fees

• awarded licence 

• modifying their homes & outdoor spaces

• change of use applications

• mortgage applications

• income tax

• NI class 4

• accountants & accounts software

• qualifications some of which are compulsory 

• first aid training & kits

• business overheads, extra utilities, insurances, advertising etc

• equipment both within and outside of their premises

• printers, laptops, stationery, 

• wear & tear on their homes/ premises & vehicles.

• all maintainance costs home/car

• ensuring their premises are safe & secure

• required to be compliant to all regulations set out...which includes replacing height of our fencing outside, erecting double barriers, putting safety gates up in our home

• replace garden grass and maintenance

• replacing flooring, carpets, rugs because someone's dog has decided to use the inside as a toilet

• registering their businesses with a vet

• using their vehicles to transport dogs to fulfill exercise & enrichment needs, going to vet.

• extra storage space, fridges, freezers to appropriately and safely store the dogs food in

• extra ventilation & heating equipment.

• all the running bills of extra equipment or heating on a constant temp

• bedding, toys, treats, enrichment equipment, the list is endless...

• replacing furniture & furnishings

• replacing personal items, clothing. ( On average I get through a quality pair of walking boots every 12 months doing this job

What we do daily: 

• We monitor all pups play. Do not think that when the sun is out that we are in our garden lazing in the sunshine getting a tan when we have 4-6 different dogs from 4-6 different households, with 4-6 different personalities, energy levels and disabilities etc etc.  No, our eyes and ears are alert to sounds, body language, movement at all times, our brains never switch off to being alert. 

• We heavily monitor your dogs in public spaces too. Always on the look out for risks, random dogs bundling over to say hello when their owner is across the field on their mobile phone, ignoring what their dog is doing, or yelling he's friendly, when we may have dogs who are on leads for a reason, or are lead reactive or do not want to bothered, or elderly, or young or disabled. 

  
  

• We look after each dog holistically & ensure their welfare needs are met.

  
  

• Your dog gets 24/7 human contact. We are not kennels!

  
  

• Under our regulations and for the health and safety of all our dogs we are expected to ensure our homes are disinfected between dogs, multiple times a day if necessary, particularly if there are spillages, leaks or toileting issues with disabled dogs or puppies. 

  
  

• Our washing machines and dishwashers are on several times a day/week. Everything from toys, lick mats, puzzels, to bedding, throws, bowls, towels anything a dog uses is cleaned and disinfected regularly.

  
  

• We have to assess each individual dog on their behaviour and also in a group to ensure they are all compatible.

  
  

• We have to be registered with a vet. 

  
  

• The majority of us do not get a full night's sleep.

  
  

• We have to keep detailed records of each individual dogs visits on a daily register each day.

  
  

• Register each dog with the 3 step process which can take a few months and make sure each and every pup is up to date with vaccinations and all paperwork is up to date for each holiday. 

  
  

• Lots of admin to keep up to date with vaccinations, sending invoices and chasing payments.

  
  

• Daily videos for each individual pup's owner as well as organising parties if there is a birthday and daily social media updates.

  
  

• We also have to have compliant up to date documents, policies and procedures in place written, updated, maintained & ready for any inspection at any time. 

  
  

• We have high standards, we are held accountable for every aspect of our job 24/7. 

  
  

• As well as all the licensing & insurance costs and other major costs, licenced home boarders look after your dogs, giving up their social and family life, with no staff to come run a legitimate and legal business if we fall unwell, whereas an unlicenced one will just go out and leave your dog unattended and with other dogs too, in many cases....with no accountability or care for the welfare of your dogs. They may even stay out overnight, and not care if your dog has been in a fight with another boarder, unsupervised by humans. And who do you then get in contact with when your dog is injured in their care? How do you get that business to pay for vets fees etc? There is no one, when it goes wrong because their is no accountability, financially or otherwise. 

  
  

I, myself have given up my valuable days off to support my clients so that they can go out with their friends or be with family members at times of crisis or when they desperately need a break. 

Majority licensed home boarders are passionate about their businesses and we are certainly not in it for the money. We get less than £2.50 per hour for one person's dog and we charge what we do to survive in this business and keep our doors open. You get what you pay for. Quality,  professional, licenced insured businesses who are accountable and responsible, and legal. 

A Licenced business has contracts in place to safeguard you and your dog...but rarely will we take an emergency, no matter how desparate an owner is, all new dogs must go through our assessment process to ensure every dog  is safe & every dog is compatible.  

Would you leave your child with an unregulated, unregistered, unlicensed child minder or child care facility or get into a car with a person who you knew didn't have a licence or insurance??

Remember when you pay for your dog to stay with a licenced home boarder, our lives for that duration of time revolve around your dog & keeping them healthy, safe, enriched & loved so you can enjoy a relaxing time away safe in the knowledge that your precious pup is cared for exactly as you'd expect.

If you do not value the work I do & how I support and care for animal welfare, or if you do not understand when prices are needing to be raised my end due to increases in my own daily life the same as you have also going up for me as well, then may I suggest you risk your dog under the care of unscrupulous, UNLICENCED, law breaking humans who put money before welfare. They are the ones who are greedy....not us. 

So do you think we are greedy now?? 

I hope that has given u a bit of insight into what goes on behind the scenes guys- it’s not all fun and games like social media will have you believe.