Care for Your Pet’s Health

It is one of the most fulfilling things in the world to own a pet that loves you unconditionally. Coming home from work to meet your hairy friend wigging its tail because he is so happy that you’re back is an experience that most pet owners know and love. For many that is one of the primary reasons that they keep a pet in the first place.

Cats are animals that can spend a lot of time on their own. That is however not the case for dogs as their personality isn’t to have things its own way as it can be with most cats. You can’t leave your home for days and leave your dog stranded without food or water. Even if you had provided it with sufficient food and water it would still require a regular exercise and human company to stay happy and fit.

So what do you do when you’re going away for a trip that last more than a day and you can’t take your dog with you? The obvious option is to have friends or family take care for him while you’re gone but for many people that is not an option. Maybe they do not have many friends and family or they live to far away to be able to help. Maybe they are allergic to dogs and have a handicap that makes them unable to take the minimum daily walk with the dog.

Next option will be to find some pet sitters. Pet sitters are people that will pet sit your dog for money and they are often very professional in their approach. One of the larger pet sitting agencies are Pet Sitters International (find them at www.petsit.com) but they are not the only agency out there. By doing a simple search online you will find hundreds if not thousands of pet sitting companies that will be more than willing to help you with your pet.

Normally there are two options to choose. One is the home pet sitting where the pet sitter comes to your home once or twice a day to feed your dog and take him for a walk. This option is great if you want to keep your dog in its natural environment and if you think it is a good idea to have someone look after your house at the same time. You will however need to be able to trust the company you’re dealing with. In that case I suggest that you go with one of the larger companies and be sure to check that they are insured (just in case).

The other option is to drop your pet of at the pet sitters place. I suggest that you go visit the place before entering into an agreement with the agency. You need to see for yourself that they have a great place and that they know how to treat animals the right way.

Finally there is the issue of price but I suggest that you don’t focus too much on that part. It is far more important that you pet has a great time while you’re away. You would not forgive yourself if you came home to a mistreated and unhappy pet.

If you are living in the San Diego area and are looking for a pet sitter, then Google has developed a great tool called Google Maps, which they have now implemented into the normal search results. So if you use Google as your primary search engine you see a picture that looks somewhat like the one below.

Now it is really great that you are provided with such a great list of options when in reality you haven’t really found out that much. Yes there are pet sitters in the area and yes you can see on the map where you can acquire their services but do you really want to go through every single website? There are lots of unanswered questions so what I have done here is pick out a few of them and search through their websites to find the answers for you.

Pet Tenders

First I would like to talk to you about the company called Pet Tenders. From their website you’ll find that they have been around since 1983, which is more than 20 years. At least that should give you some idea that they have a serious business. Pet Tenders offers in house pet sitting which will not only reduce the stress of your pet (instead of sending it to a kennel), but you will also have someone that can water your plants, take in the newspaper and mail and even turn lights on and off a few times a day.

Pet Tenders are regular San Diego Pet Sitters operating from Carlsberg all the way down to Chula Vista. East to Lakeside and west to the beaches. Before entering into an agreement with them an interview is arranged so that you know who will be in your home while you’re gone. Because the interview is quite extensive Pet Tenders charge $25 for it if the pet sitter deal is aborted. Pet Tenders have more than 250 letters of recommendation and they’ll gladly show them to you if you’re interested.

You can find out more about them here or by calling them at: 619-298-3033

The Original Paw Pleasers

Now you should not judge a book by its cover but when I visit the PawPleaser website I really don’t feel comfortable. That doesn’t mean that they won’t take excellent care of your pet but merely that they suck at designing websites. *LOL* Their site doesn’t really say much about their pet sitting services other than that they have been around for 15 years - not quite as long as Pet Tenders.

You can find PawPleasers here or by calling: 619-293-7297

Both of the San Diego Pet Sitters above have offered in house services but what if you do not want a complete stranger walking around in your home while you’re gone? Then the next best thing would be to find either a kennel like the next one…

Dogs and the City

This is what is called a daycare and spa. Now that sounds really nice so maybe you as an owner could come too? On their website they promise: “To provide a fun, safe, upscale environment for dogs to play, exercise, and receive lots of love and attention” and “To provide convenience and peace of mind to busy parents who want nothing but the best for their furry kids”. That sounds really nice and since this is a Spa, you’ll have several wellness treatments that you can have them provide for your pet.

Using a daycare compared to an in-house solution is that here you can have them groom your pet while you’re away, have them give your dog a massage and maybe even a time in the hot tub. One of the coolest things they have is a webcam solution so you’ll be able to watch your pet thrive from anywhere in the world 24/7. It’s like you never really left them.

You can finnd out more about them at their website or by calling them at: 619-234-WOOF

Finally there is a site that offers both “in house pet sitting” as well as walks, waste removal, taxis and playtime with your pet. The company calls itself San Diego Pet Services.

San Diego Pet Sitter Services

Like most of the other sites they offer: “We will be leaders in the pet care profession by promising to provide the very best, most reliable, and most convenient care to your beloved pets.” Now that is all very nice but when all sites state the same it is a bit hard to believe. Therefore I’ll suggest that you call on all of the San Diego pet sitters so you’ll be able to find and invite all of them to have a small meeting with you and your pet.

That way you’ll easily be able to figure out whom you trust the most and who you feel will be competent enough to take care of your pet while you’re away.

If you want to contact San Diego Pet Services you can find them here or by phoning them at: 619-282-1217

In our world today we are all busy taking care of our jobs and hobbies and sometimes we don’t really have time for our pets. Now that is a shame and we can’t allow our pets to suffer because we’re not able to fit them into our schedule. After all we were the ones that got them in the first place.

When you want to travel and especially if you want to travel the world it can be almost impossible to bring your pet that is when it is important to know what pet sitters cost. You might be one of the lucky ones that can have friends or family members take care of your pet while you are away but if you aren’t that lucky you will have to look for the other option.

Pet sitters are available almost everywhere. You can put a flyer in your local supermarket or you can go for the professional pet sitter companies. The first option will definitely be the best priced but then you won’t have any guarantee that they have any knowledge in handling of pets. If you want to be on the safe side of things then I suggest that you go for the professional solution.

Prices vary depending on the number of pets you want them to take case of as well as the type of pet that you own. Goldfish will naturally be cheaper to pet sit than horses or larger dogs as examples. So what do pet sitters cost? Well if vary from state to state and the time of year but you can expect to be paying from $16 a visit and upwards. If your pet can’t be left alone but will need a pension, food and every other time of caretaking then you can easily pay from $100 a day or more.

When looking for pet sitting in your local community I suggest that you go online to find someone that can help you out. Either go to Google or use the Yellow Pages. Both will help you find what you want. The money you will have to pay varies depending on the service level you want for your pet. So before contacting a bureau to find out what pet sitters cost you’ll need to think about exactly what kind of service you actually want.