Having Your Neighbor Care for Your Pet vs Hiring a Professional Dallas Pet Sitting Service

With pet ownership at an all-time high in America, it makes sense that there is a strong need for pet sitting services in Dallas. But WHO people use when they need a Dallas pet sitting service, and HOW they choose such people has really changed. First, if you rewind to thirty years ago or so, it was much more common for both cats and dogs to be kept outdoors. Many pets—while loved and cared for–had not yet been elevated to “family member” status. Fast forward to today, pets have moved “from the barn to the bed” in many American households; and due to shifting human dynamics like having fewer children, more single people living alone, and waiting until later in life to have children (among other factors); pets have now become important companionship options and are much greater focuses in people’s lives. It is not uncommon now for dogs and cats to have their own clothing drawer, human quality food, regular grooming visits, multiple soft beds to sleep on and an array of toys scattered throughout a home. They are called people’s “babies” or “furkids,” and maintaining their health and well-being has become paramount. How does that translate in today’s world when someone needs a Dallas pet sitter because they are going out of town? Well, 30-plus years ago, most people had never heard of a professional pet sitting service in Dallas. Most people had lived in their neighborhood for many years, and knew all of their neighbors. So if someone needed a Dallas pet sitter, it was common to simply ask one of your neighbors to come throw some food in your pet’s bowl once or twice a day. Since more pets were kept outside and people were often very friendly with their neighbors, this was a pretty easy request to make. Fast forward to present, and people everywhere are much more transient. People are moving to and from Dallas all of the time, and it is much more common to not even know the names of your neighbors. In addition, pets are commonly kept inside the house now, so if you need a Dallas pet sitter today, you now must provide a key, possibly a fob and maybe even an alarm and/or gate code as well. While many people today may think that it is still okay today to ask a neighbor, or even pay a neighbor’s teenager to come over and care for the pets inside your home, there are a number of factors to consider when doing so.

How experienced are they with pets? Would they recognize a pet health emergency if they saw one?
Do you have sensitive items in your home like alcohol or prescription drugs? Have you locked up those items so they cannot access them? You could be liable if they chose to “partake” in using those substances in your absence.
Have you been clear that you do not want anyone else in your home? As Dallas pet sitters ourselves, we have heard horror stories about unauthorized wild drunken parties, romantic encounters and other shenanigans that have occurred when a neighbor or neighbor’s child was utilized to care for a family’s pets.
Can you be totally sure they will stick to your desired pet care schedule and perform all the duties you need them to fulfill? What happens if they forget or get sick or get in an accident? Will you even know that something was wrong?
What would you do if they stole something out of your home or they slipped and fell while on your premises? It would be your responsibility to address any theft issues, and injuries suffered while on your property would be yours to handle and make whole.

Many people that need a Dallas pet sitter don’t think about the negative “what ifs” of asking a neighbor or a neighbor’s teenager. They can be viable options at times, but it is important to know that they are not professionals, they are most likely not trained in pet care, safety and first aid, and they are not bonded and insured for performing that service. A professional Dallas pet sitting service like ours is all of those things. All of our staff are interviewed for pet care experience, and undergo background and reference checks. They undergo company policy and procedure training, plus go through detailed pet behavior training. Every two years they undergo certification in pet first aid and CPR. All of our Dallas pet sitters are bonded and insured through the company, and are covered by workman’s compensation insurance; so if something unexpected occurs, the company will cover the costs. Our staff carry smart phones and/or tablets where they can access their electronic schedule and pet and home details for the families they are caring for. They check in and out of each visit so we can be certain that all visits ordered by a client have been performed. All of these precautions, training and tools are what you get when you hire a professional Dallas pet sitting company like Park Cities Pet Sitter. Our goal in outlining these “what ifs” is not to scare you, but instead, to educate you on the realities of what can happen. With 28 years of experience under our belt and counting, we want to minimize the chance of anything happening to you, your pets, your home and our staff. That means taking all the preventative measures seriously so that you can have peace of mind and a great service experience.