No. I have a day job which is running my own business from home, which I’ve been doing since mid-2009.

I quickly found that working from home was quite solitary; at times I could go a week or more without speaking to another human being face to face other than my partner. I’m also not particularly motivated to get fresh air and exercise and so would end up just working and working.

To improve matters I started volunteering at a greyhound rehoming charity and also doing dog walking and dog sitting for friends. My nature is to be organised and work methodically so it made sense to do it as a business.

I take this work seriously and do it professionally, but it doesn’t pay enough to live on and I don’t want to spend too much time away from my partner.

Yes. I have:

• Public liability insurance. Needed in case a dog under my control causes damage or injury to members of the public.
• Professional indemnity insurance. Needed in case of any claim of negligence on my part.
• Key loss cover. Covers the cost of replacing a client’s locks if I were to ever lose their keys.

I have not ever yet had cause to rely on these insurance policies.

Yes! I have a clean basic DBS (formerly CRB) check certificate from the last year which you can be sent a link to view upon request. If you are wanting to see a DBS check I also recommend that you ask for references.

Since a DBS check costs money and very few people are bothered, I only get an updated copy once a year on request (takes about 2 working days). If you would like a new one to be issued then I’m happy to do that but will add the cost of the check (currently £23 at time of writing) to your bill and this will be payable whether your booking goes ahead or not.

This is a “basic” DBS check. Basic DBS checks do not list spent convictions. I don’t have any spent convictions either, but you have to take my word for that! There are also “standard” and “enhanced” DBS checks which will list spent convictions and other things, but:

1. These can only be requested by employers, not sole traders such as myself;
2. According to the gov.uk web site, a house sitting / pet sitting role is not eligible for a standard or enhanced DBS check.

I think there would have to be an element of something like caring for children or vulnerable adults before it would be possible to do a standard or enhanced DBS check. If you feel you need it, that your sitting qualifies and are willing to organise and pay for such a test though, I am happy to co-operate fully. I understand that it is possible to get your local council or various charities to sponsor these DBS checks.

My partner has an allergic reaction to all dogs (even so-called hypoallergenic dogs like bichon frise, various types of poodle, etc.) which makes it impossible for us to have dogs in our home. If we could, then I would have multiple greyhounds and wouldn’t be doing very much dog sitting for other people. 😀

When I was a child we had greyhounds, but since leaving for university I was for many years not in a position to have a dog again. I told myself that when I had my own home and time to devote to a dog then I would have greyhounds again.

My life hasn’t worked out that way: I have the stable home, relationship and time to give, but no dogs. It was my partner who suggested I look into the charity work and on seeing my love for and dedication to dogs also suggested I do this professionally.

I walk one pair of greyhounds twice a week and another pair of greyhounds once a week. Between that and the sighthound charity events I spend a lot of time around dogs even when not being paid to do so!

I don’t have anything against cats and am always happy to pet a cat, but I just don’t feel the same kind of devotion for them as I do for dogs. I strongly believe you need to have a passion for this kind of work to do it properly, and I already fill my available pet sitting time with dog bookings. I don’t want to have to turn down dog sitting bookings because I’ve agreed to look after a cat.

If you have cats as well as dogs then I’m happy to take care of your cat at the same time that I take care of your dog, for an extra fee.

In most cases, no. Without a car it mostly doesn’t make sense for me to travel to your home, spend an hour and then travel home again.

In cases where you are very local to me I may be able to do this. If you’re very near TW14 9XJ then feel free to ask about this!

My rate for up to 14 hours of sitting would apply. If you need more than that then it would be a 24 hour sitting.

No. It’s always appreciated when clients tell me to feel free to help myself to food, but you don’t need to and in general I will replace any food I consume.

If your dog has separation anxiety to the point that I will be unable to go out and do grocery shopping even for an hour, it would be appreciated if you could provide basic supplies for the first day until a grocery delivery can be organised.

You do need to supply enough of your dog‘s usual food and treats to last through the booking!

An electrical outlet to plug my laptop in to, and a Wi-Fi network with Internet access. That’s all!

I may listen to streaming music or watch streaming TV so if your Internet has a strict usage limit please let me know and I will avoid doing that.

I do need Internet access in order to do my work, but it may be possible for me to manage with mobile data (i.e. tethering through my phone). I will need to visit your home to check that the phone signal is strong enough for that.

I don’t normally use mobile data much so I have a fairly low usage limit on it. I will need to charge you £10 extra to cover the cost of a temporary upgrade.

I’m based in Feltham, West London, TW14 and local work is obviously preferred, but I will travel to anywhere as long as you’re willing to cover the cost of the standard class train tickets.

I’ll discuss this with you when you make a booking enquiry but if you’d like to look into it yourself, plan a route from either Feltham rail station or Hatton Cross tube.

I won’t be able to safely walk more than four dogs, so that’s going to be the limit if they all need walks. Four may still be too many depending on the nature of your dogs.

Of course, all dogs are different and I will have to decide on a case-by-case basis.

I am only insured to walk up to 6 dogs at once.

I’ll walk your dog wherever you usually walk your dog, as long as that is reachable by foot. I do not drive so will be unable to take your dog on a trip.

One thing to note is that other than exceptional pre-agreed circumstances, your dog will be on-lead with me on walks. If your dog is used to being off-lead and there are places where being on-lead would be stressful for your dog, I will likely avoid those places. For example, some dogs are unhappy at being on-lead when around other dogs that are off-lead.

I don’t hold any animal medicine qualification but I do have a canine first aid certificate which I renew every 3 years. I have experience administering medication as directed by your veterinarian, including injections e.g. insulin.

There won’t generally be any extra charge for this, but if the procedure is quite involved then I may have to charge a bit extra. We’ll discuss this fully and agree before your booking begins.