Paw Pals Pet Sitting

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Five Tips For Choosing a Northern VA Cat Sitting Service

February 16, 2018 by Mary Telesz

cat that is going to be taken care of by a Northern VA cat sitting serviceWhen you have to travel and leave your feline companion behind, what do you do? You can pay a lot of money to board at a kennel or a vet, but that is stressful for your cat and for you. Your cat is thrown into an unfamiliar environment surrounded by strangers for several days, and you have to handle the logistics of transporting your cat there and back home according to their business hours. If you have more than one cat, this becomes quite challenging, not to mention expensive!

Why put yourselves through that, when you can hire a professional Northern VA cat sitting service. Your cat will stay comfortably at home with the company of a person you can trust and who will love and care for your cat as much as you do. That is why Paw Pals should be your choice. Paw Pals provides a wide variety of pet sitting services both in-home and out-of-home for dogs, cats, and other small pets around Northern Virginia.

Paw Pals pet sitters come to your home to give your cats the attention, exercise, food, and supplies they need. The Cat’s Meow service includes playtime attention, brushing, treats, fresh food and water, litter box cleaning, and medication administration. You will find a good variety of options for visits, both in frequency and length. If you don’t want to leave your cats all alone at night, a certified and trusted Paw Pals cat sitter can stay at your house with your cats overnight to care for them and keep them company.

Whoever you hire to take care of your cat, you need to know something about whoever will be responsible for it. Here are five tips to help you select the best service for you and your cat.

1. Ask Questions.

You want to know if the person you will be taking care of your cat has any experience taking care of other people’s pets, especially cats. Here are some guidelines for getting the information you need to know:

    • Engage in a conversation about the extent of the sitter’s experience. If you prefer someone with more experience, make your views known.
    • Establish protocols in case an accident happens. For example, what do you want the sitter to do if something gets broken in your house? You need to make sure you and your property are protected if anything happens while you are gone.

Northern VA cat sitting service specialist caring for a cat

    • Be sure the sitter is responsible enough to have complied with local laws pertaining to pet sitting services. You do not have to worry about that with Paw Pals—a licensed, bonded, and fully insured service.
    • Discuss the sitter’s arrangements for inclement weather. Ice, snow storms, hurricanes – make sure you both understand and agree upon any back-up plans for weather emergencies. At Paw Pals, a responsible back-up sitter is always available in case the unexpected happens (your sitter becomes suddenly ill, car troubles, etc.). Your cat is cared for no matter what.
  • Find out if more than one person will be sharing your job. You have the right to know who will be coming into your home. For example, the sitter may want to bring a young child along while taking care of your cat. You do not have to agree to those arrangements. You should make your views very clear on this point.

2. Understand the Services to Be Provided.

Get clear about the services the sitter’s basic fee covers and how much time the sitter will spend in your home with your cat. At a minimum, the cat sitter should feed the cat at established times each day, provide fresh water, and clean the litter box daily. Additional services may include medicine administration, grooming, vet appointments, or petting or play time. Your cat may or may not need those services. Understand what the additional services and those charges will be. Many professional Northern VA cat sitting services provide a written service contract that specifies the fees to be charged and the services to be provided.

At Paw Pals, these basic services are included in the basic package. Extra services such as extra play time are available. Paw Pals also offers house sitting and garden watering in addition to our Northern VA cat sitting service. The cat sitters can take care of your cats and your home while you’re away.

3. Get References and Check Them.

woman holding her cat and talking to a Northern VA cat sitting service referenceThe sitter should be willing to provide two or three references who can attest to the sitter’s reliability and performance. Be sure to call the references and talk to them about their experiences with the sitter.

If the sitter has a website, look at the reviews. You can learn more about the service there. Some services, like Paw Pals’ Northern VA cat sitting services, publish their reviews on their website.

4. Hire a Person with Animal Health Training.

If you have a cat with serious behavior or health problems, you may want to hire a service with people who have training in taking care of cats with special health care needs. A service like Paw Pals sitters, whose sitters are 100% PetTech certified in Pet CPR and first aid, would be great for you.

5. Access to Veterinary Services Is a Must.

Whether the sitter has health training or not, the sitter is probably not a vet. Your sitter should be willing and able to transport your cat to a vet if needed. Be sure to provide the sitter with your vet’s contact information, and agree on the protocols if your cat needs vet care in your absence.

Paw Pals is dedicated to the excellent care of your pet. Our Northern VA cat sitting service at Paw Pals is highly flexible and customizable to keep your cat happy, stimulated, and healthy while you’re away. Paw Pals wants only happy pets AND happy pet parents. So you can rest easy knowing your best friend is in good hands while you are away.

Filed Under: Pet Sitting

Contact Paw Pals for More Information

Paw Pals specializes in professional dog walking, dog sitting, and pet sitting services. One of our reliable, adult staff members will keep your pet safe, while providing your pet the love and care they need when you are away. Contact us to learn more!

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Office Location

Paw Pals Pet Sitting, LLC
14001-C Saint Germain Drive #213
Centreville, VA 20121
(703) 345-1695

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Office Hours

Monday
9am - 5pm
Tuesday
9am - 5pm
Wednesday
9am - 5pm
Thursday
9am - 5pm
Friday
9am - 5pm
Saturday
Closed
Sunday
Closed

Areas Served

Centreville – 20120, 20121
Chantilly – 20151
Clifton – 20124
Fairfax – 22030, 22033
Fairfax Station – 22039
Manassas – 20109, 20110, 20111
Reston – 20191, 20190

Google Rating
4.9
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
4.9
Taylor Smith
Taylor Smith
21:22 03 Oct 21
I never worry when Mary and team take care of my dog!
Michæl Silva
Michæl Silva
21:38 01 Jul 22
Mary at Paw Pals Pet Sitting is the greatest! She has helped me train my pooch Chico how play nice with other dogs and for that I am extremely grateful! A+A+A+A+A+A
Kwi Kim
Kwi Kim
22:37 17 Jun 22
I hired Paw Pals based on my sister’s referral. Meet & greet was very thorough and detailed. I was surprised that my finicky cat came to check the sitter out. Subsequently, a sitter watched my cat over several separate visits, and it was clear through the visit reports that my cat loved the sitter. All the visits were completed having followed my directions & with professionalism.I would highly recommend Paw Pals to anyone who’s looking for a dependable, personable, & professional sitter.
Joseph Walter
Joseph Walter
19:55 13 Jun 22
Paw Pals provided a large number of photos of our pets along with a personalized message on how our pets were doing with every single visit. I would highly recommend using Paw Pals, we'll be continuing to use them whenever we go on vacation.
Ashley Manning
Ashley Manning
09:50 11 Jun 22
Highly recommend as pet sitters!Initially, a sitter from the company will visit the house to meet the pets and learn where everything is. Tatiana took careful notes and we got her some spare keys.While we are away, Paw Pals sends sitters to come and look after our boys. They feed them, scoop litter, bring in mail and packages, and they will even manage trash, recycling, blinds and lights so that everything is comfortable for our kitties. Each time they check in, we receive an email message with updates and pictures, which is so comforting when we are on the road.Also, if you don’t let Paw Pals know when you are home, they assume something has happened and will continue to care for your babies. If something were to happen, I know they would be okay.Five stars for Paw Pals!
Brian Wood
Brian Wood
04:08 22 May 22
We have used Paw Pals for a number of years now and would highly recommend to anyone looking for help with their pets. Great communication from owner Mary and flexibility to make adjustments in schedule as life changes over time. Have had a consistent set of walkers who have gotten to know our pup and the various walking routes around our neighborhood quite well.
Lesley Bush
Lesley Bush
13:58 18 Mar 22
We can't rave enough about Paw Pals. They took care of our 18 year old Cat and 20 year old Chinchilla while we were away and when our flight got cancelled, they were so accommodating and available last minute for an extra day. We worked with Jen to coordinate visits from Miko and Danny. I loved the pictures and updates on how our Lil geriatric guys were doing. Thanks a million, Paw Pals!! Our special pets were so well cared for.
Sebastian Barnes
Sebastian Barnes
01:06 17 Jan 22
I have used Paw Pals for several trips over the last few months, and they have been phenomenal every time! Mary is extremely kind and responsive, and she makes sure that my cat and dog have the care that they need every time I am out of town. All of the pet sitters that I've had have been incredibly sweet to my pets, and they treat them like their own! Will gladly continue using Paw Pals every time I need a sitter.
Julie Shildt
Julie Shildt
17:45 14 Nov 21
It has been a pleasure doing business with paw pals. We have used this company for several trips we have taken over the past 6 months. They have been wonderful caretakers for our 2 cats. Anytime there is ever a question they don't hesitate to give us a call and they leave the best notes and pictures in the emailed report of each visit. We are so glad have found such a great company.
Andrea Hall
Andrea Hall
22:45 03 Oct 20
I wasn't sure about hiring a new doggie walker service... after all they are our kiddos... my babies were in great hands and I felt relaxed having them in their care. Thank you for everything!
Katie McCune
Katie McCune
19:19 15 Jul 21
I honestly cannot recommend Mary and her whole crew enough! We started using Mary originally about 7 years ago to stop by occasionally when our Aussie Lana was younger. Over the next couple years Lana stayed with Mary and her family for a couple weekends when we went on vacation. When we moved to our new house in Manassas, Lana stayed with Sam, who lives in Manassas, overnight for moving day, and did great. Right before the pandemic, we adopted our second Aussie, Goose, and Mary recommended a fantastic trainer for him.We now have weekly walks for the dogs, and they love all of their walkers! Trevor, Paul, Hazel, Sofie, and probably a couple others have helped Goose get used to more people, and have helped my husband and me when our schedules are crazy.Paw Pals is our go-to for any help with our dogs, so I highly recommend them!
Alexandra Hill
Alexandra Hill
22:43 23 May 21
I was a nervous mommy to leave my cats with a sitter service for the first time. Paw Pals went above and beyond to care for my cats and ease a nervous mommy. I already made a reservation to use them again!
Cindy Welgoss
Cindy Welgoss
13:12 27 Nov 20
We have been using Paw Pals for several years, and through a variety of pets that we have loved. Mary and her team have always been *exceptional* in every way. They are professional, courteous, and truly love our fur family! Mary herself is an organized and stellar administrator of her pet care business, keeping detailed records of our pet’s needs, scheduled pet visits, payments, and balance due easy to keep track of as the pet owner. The pet caretaking team is reliable and trustworthy. When our dogs see any of their Paw Pal friends, they get SO excited to see them! Follow up comments are left via text to keep the pet owner informed of the visit and how the pets are faring. Paw Pals has allowed our family the peace of mind to leave our pets at home, for work, weekend getaways and longer times away when necessary, where they are the most comfortable and familiar. We are grateful to Mary and her team for giving us the ability to enjoy pet ownership without feeling tied down. The responsibility of having pets comes with the need to keep them safe and comfortable at all times, and Mary and her team affords us this when our family has to be away.
Dr Tammy Cashion
Dr Tammy Cashion
21:11 12 Mar 19
We have used Paw pals pet sitting on multiple occasions for our bunnies while we are away. Many pet sitters are not interested in small pets however; Mary and her team, are amazing and we trust her implicitly! We are very happy with the outstanding service we have received from her team including texts and photos of our pets when we are out of town. They always go the extra mile and we highly recommend them!
Kristin Conrad
Kristin Conrad
16:00 16 Nov 19
We are so grateful we found Mary and her team at Paw Pals. They are exceptionally responsive, amazingly organized and detail-oriented.We have such peace of mind when we travel knowing our home and pets are so well cared for. Paw Pals is the best pet sitting service we’ve used, and we’re so happy we found them.
Katie Russell
Katie Russell
15:01 17 May 20
Paw Pals is fantastic! I have had a great experience with Mary! Compassionate, professional, responsive, and prompt! Thank you!
Phillip Evans
Phillip Evans
14:38 11 Jul 20
When we adopted our new dog in January, Paw Pals agreed to walk her and give her some outside time so she wasn't in the crate all day. She loved her dog walker and you could see her excitement every time the walker showed up. We moved out of the area but would recommend Paw Pals to anyone needing someone to care for their pets.
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