The dog walking service, originated when the dog no longer just served as a guard animal, but became a companion animal and the owners were away from home more often and longer and ‘double-income earners’ became more common. The dog walking service: A luxury of today, the 21st century, impossible to imagine without!
The dog walking and the purpose
The dog walking service: A common luxury today, it is seen as a nice alternative to day care in kennels, where fewer people are working on more dogs anyway. The advantages of the average dog walking service is that the dog is picked up from the address and then (usually) can play for an hour with its peers, after which the animal is brought home safely tired and satisfied. The condition is that the dog listens to basic commands (such as here, sit and down) and is not aggressive towards other dogs or can react unpredictably to children or people with umbrellas, just to name a few.
Origin of the dog walking service
How and where the walking service ever started is unclear, but the reason why is obvious. Today, more and more people are working far from home, there is more work pressure and more and more work is put into compact hours, which means that almost no one has time to go home to walk the dog. I also the woman at home, generally working in a company (far) from home, so today you have a lot to do with dual earners.
Yet the need for a dog has not diminished, where in the past the dogs were mainly used as a guard animal, they are now seen as a family member and an important form of relaxation in a busy life. In addition to the fact that a dog regularly has to go to the bathroom, people also want to use these services to give their beloved animal that little bit of extra fun and socialization with other dogs. That is exactly what some people realized and took advantage of by starting a dog walking service.
Today there is a wide choice of different dog walking services, some walk the dogs on a large area where the dogs run around, others go into the woods or into the heath, depending on the possibilities.
Depending on the walking service, there is also a choice of how long the dog will go on a walk.
Rules
There are also guidelines for dog walking, a fairly new recognized profession. For example, to be able to join the recognized walking service group, called ‘HUS Nederand’, you must meet the following requirements:
Terms and Conditions
- The walking service must be registered with the Chamber of Commerce.
- The walking service must obtain a statement on paper that the dogs have been vaccinated for their cocktail shot and kennel cough, are de-wormed and deflated preventively and are insured for liability insurance.
- The walking service has to keep to the agreed times.
- Dogs that are let out in an open area must wear a badge from the walking service with telephone number.
- The walker must be in possession of the course “Dog walking service” with Martin Gaus.
- The walker must be able to keep the dogs under control without any problems and to clean up poo where it can be a nuisance.
- The HUS must be aware of the financial and organizational matters related to running a HUS.
- The HUS must be recognizable as a walking service for third parties.
- Walkers are allowed to bring 10 dogs on open terrain, the maximum is 15 dogs on closed terrain.
- Puppies should not be allowed to walk more than 5 minutes every month they are old.
The bus
- The bus must be disinfected once a week.
- The floor must be covered with an anti-slip mat.
- All parts in the can must be easy to clean.
- The ventilation of the bus must be sufficient and even.
- The bus must be divided into at least 3 sections so that dogs can sit separately.
- It must not be possible that the dogs can leave the bus immediately as soon as the door opens, a gate must be placed in front of this.
- The bus must be properly insured.
These rules have been drawn up to develop a good and high-quality system, most exhaust services are therefore already affiliated with HUS Netherlands. However, it is not mandatory to join this organization although it does have its advantages. It provides more security for the walking service and for the owners of the dogs. So it works both ways.
The walker and the dogs
As previously stated, the dog must be compliant and well socialized, it is the walker’s job to take charge of the pack and ensure that the dogs do not run away, listen badly, cause nuisance or even fight. to start. That is why it is important that one does not bring too large groups and that the choice in forming groups is made carefully.
Ultimately, the profession of “dog walker” is a profession that you really have to love, you have to have a feeling for it, not think too easily about it, you walk through all kinds of weather and you have to constantly pay attention to it, pay attention to the attitude of the animals, check if all dogs are still there, letter on dogs from third parties, because these dogs are not necessarily compliant or feel overwhelmed by the group.
Nevertheless, it is a beautiful profession that you can enjoy, especially on sunny days, a very rewarding job close to nature!
