I was recently invited on the BBC Breakfast sofa with Nina and Roger to talk about my thoughts on dog walking legislation. At the moment, just like the training and behaviour industry there is ZERO legislation which means anyone can set up a dog walking business and walk as many dogs as they like. A few years in to my pet care business I saw someone walking numerous dogs at one time.. even thirty at one point. It is irresponsible and compromises dog and human welfare. There are lots of wonderful dog walkers out there. If you’re thinking of working with one here are some considerations.

Here are some questions to ask (I’ve divided them into different sections)

Physical Health of your dog

·     Do they have a first aid qualification and do they carry a first aid kit on board (as well as their staff)

·     What is there procedure if the weather is too hot or cold.. do they offer pop in visits so your dog can still go to the bathroom

·     Do they carry water and bowls? You may prefer your dog to have their own.

Insurance and liability

·     The dog walker will need specific business insurance for the car if they are carrying your dog

·     Public liability insurance

·     Is the car suitable for the dogs to travel in? I.e is there a crate or are they all loose? They need to be secured (remember the belt needs to be on the harness not collar incase they break swiftly or there could be a neck injury

Things for you to provide to your dogs dog walker/ to ask

·     Ensure that all walking equipment is free from frays and damage

·     Vet details and emergency contact details and insurance

·     Emergency contact in the event you were not available

·     Permission form to walk your dog off the lead

·     Asking the procedure if something untoward occurred (a dog got sick for example).

·     Covers for your key and where the keys are stored. I heard someone once putting the address on the key! Not ideal if the key gets lost.

·     DBS check – they are coming into your home so this is important.

·     What is the procedure for cleaning my dog (dogs like fox poo rolling and you don’t want that all over your sofa.

·     Ask if you can do a trial walk with them – see their set up and how they handle your dog.

The Mental health of your dog

·     Let the walker know if your dog has any injuries /any places they don’t like to be touched… paws can be sensitive so desensitising them to this (after any pain is ruled out is needed.

·     Ask directly how many dogs will be walked at once. Too many dogs can not be handled easily. Also Where will the dogs be walked? Is it away from busy roads?

            Remember that lots of dog walkers may walk in the same area and this is where          issues can occur and big groups of pack walks can be harder to control if one dog feels uncomfortable and scared.

·     Avoid anyone that says they use gentle corrections or is the pack leader.. this could lead to mental and physical health dangers.

Disaster planning – it’s best to be prepared!

·     Who does visits/walks if the walker was sick/ on holiday.

This is important as if you’re at work for long periods of the day then this could mean your dog would be alone

·     How will the dogs be introduced to the pack?

Quite often, issues can occur on a short lead and in a narrow space (the first time the dogs meet should be somewhere neutral not in the back of the car.

·     What do you do if my dog is doing something wrong

This is such an important question to ask. Unfortunately, there is still a lot of debate in the dog care and training world and some people use methods such as shouting and hitting or tapping on the nose. This can lead to behavioural problems.

·     Get references and look at Facebook and google reviews.

Things to consider

Does your dog want to go in the car?

If not this is for a reason.. it may be that they’re scared or in pain. There can be lots of reasons and considering this is really important.

It’s important to work with someone you trust, if there are any red flags then walk away. A good dog care professional will ask you lots of questions too… you’ll never know what someone is doing with your dog as you’re not there so trust is paramount.