Questions?
Have a question? Email us!
- 1. How do your services work?
- 2. What hours do you operate?
- 3. Are you licensed, bonded and insured?
- 4. Do you have references?
- 5. What kind of animals do you have experience with?
- 6. Do you always pick up dog poop?
- 7. What areas do you serve?
- 8. What's your cancellation policy?
- 9. Do Kindrey and Steph ever get time off?
- 10. Does my pet need to meet any requirements to be eligible for service?
- 11. How does payment work?
- 12. Will my dog be walked in my neighbourhood, or somewhere else?
- 13. What are "minimum care requirements"?
Q: How do your services work? [top]
A: Basically, we do what you ask us to. If you need
us to do anything in addition to the general services
we offer, like water your plants or get your mail, we're more than happy
to make arrangements. Getting started is easy:
| 1) | Make sure your pet meets our minimum requirements. |
| 2) | Fill out our pet profile and service request form. |
| 3) | We'll get back to you as soon as possible. |
If we can fit your pet into our day, we'll set up a time to meet you and your
pet(s). At this meeting you will need:
|
Q: What hours do you operate? [top]
A: We can be available almost anytime to care for your
pet(s). In an effort to maintain a healthy work-life balance, our regular
work week runs from Monday through Friday from 10am - 4:30pm. We're
available to work outside these times, but extra fees apply - please check out our rates and
services for more information). We're available by phone and email
Monday through Friday from 10am - 6pm...unless we're driving or our
hands are full of dogs.
Q: Are you licensed, bonded and insured?
[top]
A: Yes. Proof of insurance is available on request,
and please feel free to ask us about the specifics of our coverage.
Q: Do you have references? [top]
A: Yes. We have great references from many happy clients
available on request.
Q: What kind of animals do you have experience
with? [top]
A: We have experience with a wide range of dogs (below)
and cats, as well as rats, hamsters, gerbils, treefrogs, newts, fish,
and aquafrogs. We can administer medication, and have several diabetic
pets in our care.
- Australian Cattle Dog
- Bearded Collie
- Border Collie
- Boston Terrier
- Cairn Terrier
- Chihuahua
- Dachshund
- German Shepherd
- Great Dane
- Greyhound
- Jack Russell Terrier
- Labrador Retriever
- Lhasa Apso
- Miniature Pinscher
- Miniature Schnauzer
- Poodle
- Portuguese Water Dog
- Rottweiler
- Shetland Sheepdog
- Shih Tzu
- Staffordshire Bull Terrier
- West Highland White Terrier
- Wheaton Terrier
Q: Do you always pick up dog poop?
[top]
A: Yes. We use only biodegradeable poop bags, and sometimes
we even pick up other poop we come across that doesn't "belong" to us!
Q: What areas do you serve? [top]
A: Vancouver, primarily areas north of Broadway, between Commercial and Alma,
including the West End and downtown. Our capacity to serve areas outside these boundaries is
limited, though we're working towards hiring walkers across the Lower Mainland.
Q: What's your cancellation policy? [top]
A: We know that things come up last
minute, and you may need to cancel a day here and there. While we're quite flexible in dealing with cancellations for long-term regular service, we also have to pay our walkers -- so we need enough notice to give them notice (two or three days is great), and as always if we arrive and your pet isn't home you'll be charged for the visit. If you need to cancel services for good
(or at least for now), we require two weeks' notice.
For short-term contracts,
we accept payment in advance, and cancellations are refundable in full up to 3 days before the
contract begins (75% with 3 days notice, 50% with 2 days, and 25% with up to one day's notice).
Refunds are not available for services booked for holidays or holiday weekends.
Q: Do Kindrey and Steph ever get time off? [top]
A: Yes please. We're pretty big on maintaining a healthy work/life balance, not
just to help ourselves, but so we can be mentally, physically, and emotionally available for our
friends, family, and your pets. If one of us is sick, the other one can cover, and we have
relief workers in the event that we're both ill or on vacation. On extremely rare occasions, if
our relief workers aren't available and we're not able to work for any reason, we will need a day or two off. We'll give you plenty of notice!
Q: Does my pet need to meet any requirements to be eligible for service? [top]
A: Yes. We only work with pets who are spayed or neutered, have up-to-date vaccinations, and who can walk relatively
well on-leash if applicable (no heavy pulling from strong dogs, please). We won't work with animals who have a history
of aggressive behaviour.
Q: How does payment work? [top]
A: We accept cash, cheques or money orders payable to Little Dog Pet Services, on a weekly or bi-weekly basis for regular walks. You may pay us at the beginning or the end of the week, and we can invoice you if you'd like a reminder. Payment for short-term contracts is payable before service begins (see our cancellation policy for details.) A nominal amount may be charged for late payments ($5 - $25), depending on how late the payment is and if we've had to pay one of our walkers before having received payment. If your cheque bounces, you will be charged $30.
Q: Will my dog be walked in my neighbourhood, or somewhere else? [top]
A: Group excursions generally include transporting your dog(s) to a dog park, unless there's one very close to your home. Private and semi-private walks will almost always take place in your neighbourhood, but may include transportation if necessary -- our vehicle is insured for this purpose.
Q: What are "minimum care requirements"? [top]
A: Our minimum care requirements are defined by the All Canadian Pet Services Network (ACPSN), whose policy reads as follows:
"A member of the ACPSN who provides pet sitting services to dogs shall provide a minimum of three (3) visits in each 24 hour period during the absence of the pet parent. During dog sitting services, the member will endeavor to provide visits with no more than 10 consecutive hours between visits.
Exceptions:
- Where the pet requires medication or special care, the member will provide services in accordance with the requirements of the animal or the direction of a veterinarian, within the minimum guidelines stated above.
- Where the pet parent has provided alternate care for their animal through arrangement with other personnel (friends, neighbours, etc.) the member will ensure that the minimum requirements are met by the combined visits and shall abide by other applicable Standards or Policies of the ACPSN with regards to the additional persons.
- Where the pet parent has specifically requested services which do not meet the minimum requirements above, the member will educate and inform the pet parent of this policy and the potential hazards associated with decreased visits. Though not recommended, the member may, at their discretion, amend the service agreement to reflect the client's request and waiver of liability. The member is advised to seek advice of the ACPSN in doing so."
