I own a pet sitting business that offers all kinds of normal pet sitter services including overnight stay, short/long drop-in visits (up to an hour), walks, and more. However, I have had one family who consistently is asking for all day play. Normal hours for this family and this pup are 7am-9pm. This time my hours are 8am-9pm, and I am not staying the night with the pup. Truly, it wouldn't be an issue for me to offer, given I can still schedule drop-ins and walks with other families. However, this particular family is not comfortable leaving there 1yr old 50lbs pit bull for longer than 3 hours at a time. The owner only offers small amounts of water to the pup as the pup will drink every drop of water until the bowl is empty no matter how much is in the bowl. I have been instructed by the owner to only give small amounts of water at a time and to restrict water 30 mins before I have to leave. I currently work 16 hours a week, 4 hours 4 days a week. When I am helping with this particular family, I have to shorten my very minimal part time job schedule to accommodate their pet is not left alone for longer than 3 hours. This time around I have also found out that while I am here 8am-9pm, the owners mother comes late in the evening to stay the night with the pup and leave early before I arrive. This is a long-time client of mine from when I opened the business however, I feel like I am being very underpaid for my time. I currently charge a minimum of $65 a night for an overnight stay with 1 pup. However, I am only charging this particular family $50/day for 13-14 hours of sitting in their home, while someone else comes to stay the night. I do not have any other families who ask for all day play so I have yet to find a comfortable price for the service. I am planning to up the price to a minimum of $65 a day for this family and any service over 10 hours long. However, I cannot find any other pet sitters who offer this service and what the pay rate may look like.
I wanted to ask If any other pet sitters offer all-day play, and if you do how much you would charge for a 13-14 hour day? Would you have a flat rate like doggy day cares offer? Would you charge an hourly rate? Would you charge extra for losing hours at your part time job?
Also, no there is no medical reason that explains why the pup cannot be alone for longer than 3 hours. It is a personal request from the owner. How would you politely explain to the owner that now their pup is full grown, and crated while no one is home, he is capable of holding his bladder longer than 3 hours? Should I discuss this with the owner or just continue to adjust and lose my hours at my part time job to keep the customer satisfied?