How To Prepare Your Dog For A Pet Sitter

Here we will discuss a few things to do before going on vacation to ensure the faultless transition of the dog. Pet parents get desperate for their pets to help them when they find it complicated to spend time on vacation.

If you go by statistics, in 2015, in the USA alone, dog owners spent around 5.41 billion dollars on various pet services like sitting, grooming, training.

Preparing for a pet sitter is not simple as locating some keys. You should assure yourself that your fur-baby and sitter are comfortable and everything is in position if something goes wrong.

It gets easier if you choose the same sitter again and again. Your go-to nanny learns about your house and gets accustomed to the routines and nature of your dog.

Try to socialize your dog as much as possible before D-day, especially if it is the first time. Socializing with others makes it easier for your sitter to communicate with your pets.

Before your sitter arrives, list your dog’s preferences and requirements. Mentioning the various aspects of the dog will help your sitter handle it better.

Familiarize your dog with schedules

Before your tour schedule, let you accustom your pet to the walking and eating schedule you give to the sitter. However, they will miss you. Usually, during meals, your availability is a requirement for your dog.

Hence, amalgamate the eating-walking routine in daily life at least four weeks before you go away. It will help your dog adjust their daily habit as soon as possible.

Below are the steps to help your dog get accustomed to new eating times.

• When feeding, leave the bowl for at least five minutes.
• Pick up the bowls after 5 minutes, whether empty or full.
• Repeat the same thing next time of feeding.

They will gradually learn to eat their food when the bowl is down. It is never advisable to let your dog munch all over the day. If you make overeating a routine for your dog, you let a lot of food rot or help the dog gain weight. The best way to feed an adult dog is twice a day; for puppies less than five months old is three times a day.

Many pets related websites will guide you for better training of your dog. For the walking schedule, account for viscosity. Fix an alarm at regular walking time. You will notice your dog has a strange sense of timekeeping.

Gradually, they become a natural alarm for you. It shows how well these dogs adapt to any surroundings.

Meet & Greet

Make sure your pet has the opportunity to meet the sitter before your vacation. Provide the sitter with your pet plan, feeding, and medication instructions.

Allow your sitter to take your dog for a walk, so they get accustomed to each other or make a strong bond. Arrange every pet care item in a specific way in a particular place so that your sitter does not need to search for it.

The items should include food and supplies, leash and collar/harness, extra food and consumable supplies just in case, paper towels and cleaning supplies, broom/dustpan or vacuum cleaner, medications (with clearly written instructions), plastic bags for waste disposal, litter and scooper, and potty pads if used. Write out a to-do list and any special instructions for your sitter.

Your pet items should be in your locker and sealed at home. The thermostat is to be fixed at a comfortable temperature. Leave the instructions for adjustment of temperature in case of a power outage. You should notice whether the sitter is a good match for your dog. You can understand their experience with dog handling. Discussing the schedule is crucial.

Most dogs are territorial. Hence, better to meet the sitter in any public or neutral place. It prevents the resident dog from being territorial and permits the guest dog to find its natural place in the pack.

It is more worth it if other dogs are present with the sitter. A meet and greet is the ideal time to grasp more about a guest dog’s health, diet, detectable history, and other necessity.

It is a great opportunity to talk about what the dog sitter and the owner will furnish (e.g., tags, leash, and collar) for the stopover. Be sure you get contact details and veterinary information.

Always pay for the booking, which should include insurance. Pets can be more curious and stupefy when they are left lonely and get into disobedience.

The Toilet lid should be down. Also, the cupboard and closet will be closed. Medicine stock, small objects, household cleaners, chemicals, and perfumes should be out of the reach of your pets. Mention the area kept off-limit to your sitter and also close the door.

Close the lock and doors like garages, windows, and patio doors. If you live in the community, better to let aware your get keeper and neighbor of your sitter so that he can come and go without interference.

Consider Walking or Day Care First

Even after the meet and greet go satisfactory, it is better to judge how your dog will be in sitter care. The best is to use daycare or walk with your dog before leaving.

The sitter will be accustomed to the nature of your dog when on a walk. It will give a rough idea of the attitude of your dog around people, animals, or other dogs they meet on the walk.

For example, some pet owners would say their dogs are well-behaved. Some complain their dog pulls loads and makes nuisances like running behind the local wildlife and other animals in the park.

If you are already satisfied with the walking service, it is better to choose a daycare service to ensure that your pet is comfortable in the sitter facility.

Another advantage of daycare service after a walk is that your sitter will adjust to your dog’s routine. Even after the same sitter is unavailable, your pet will have a sloppy prelude to a new person with the dog walker.

Succeeding a few days’ affairs, your dog should get accustomed to going on board when you are on leave. Probably, you say goodbye to prepare your dog to get it adjusted and handle detachment stress.