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Pet Sitting for Your Summer Vacation

June 9, 2017 by Mary Telesz

Pet SittingIt’s already May, and planning for the summer holidays has begun. Having a pet can sometimes limit the amount of time you go away for, or might even prevent you from getting a break altogether. Luckily, there are a variety of options you can avail of in order to look after your pet while you’re away.

Pet sitting is a great alternative to boarding your pets while you’re away on summer vacation. It can be challenging to find affordable and reliable care for your pet. Because of this, there are a number of things you should consider when hiring a pet sitter:

Things to Consider When Hiring a Professional Pet Sitter

If bringing your pet along on the vacation or leaving them with trusted friend or family members isn’t an option, pet sitting is an ideal alternative. Here are a number of factors you should consider in order to ensure your pet gets the level of care they need while you’re away:

The Needs of Your Pet

Every animal is unique: cats and dogs, for example, all have unique personalities. The breed of your animal may partially determine its personality, but any serious dog owner knows that the individuality of pets cannot be explained entirely by their breed. You, the owner, are the person who knows your pet best, and you understand their whims and quirks better than anyone.

The needs of your pet can greatly affect what type of pet care you decide on, and should be an important factor when hiring a professional pet sitter. If, for example, your dog has any extreme anxiety or aggression issues, is it really sensible to opt for a pet sitter? In such cases, you may want to think of other alternatives.

Luckily, pet sitting companies will often include a meet-and-greet service in order to give you peace of mind regarding your pet’s suitability. Both you and the company can decide together if the temperament and behavior of your pets makes them eligible candidates for pet-sitting.

Services Offered

The services offered by professional pet sitters can differ greatly, so make sure you write a detailed list of the services provided when you’re shopping around for the most suitable pet sitter. Assessing pet sitting services will help you make an informed decision about the care of your animal, allowing you to enjoy your holiday without having to worry about whether they’re being properly cared for. Pet sitting services can include some, or all, of the following:

Regularly Scheduled Visits

How much attention does your pet need? Are they exceptionally clingy, or are they more independent? Pet sitting services can work with you to customize a plan for the care of your cat or dog while on holiday. Moreover, pet sitting isn’t just restricted to cats and dogs, so if you have an unusual pet, pet sitting can still be available to you.

Pet SittingNo matter what kind of pet you have, you can request as many daily scheduled visits as you think is appropriate for your dog. If, for example, you have a younger dog who is still prone to eating the furniture and excreting inside, you can ask for more visits to give you peace of mind. Worrying about your animal while you’re vacationing can ruin your holiday, so organizing the correct frequency of scheduled visits will greatly improve the quality of your time away. There’s nothing more conducive to relaxation than the peace of mind that comes from knowing your pet is in good hands.

Assistance with Pet’s Medication

If your animal has special dietary needs or needs to take medication on a regular basis, pet sitters can do this for you on request. Search for a pet-sitting company that provides medication administration as part of their standard service, so that you know you’re hiring someone who can assist your dog with confidence. Such services are necessary if your dog has special medical needs, such as requiring insulin injections. Many pet-sitting professionals possess the technical expertise to carry out such requests.

It is recommended that you hire pet sitters who are fully qualified, and can show you their documentation as proof on request. Look out for qualifications such as PetTeach Petsaver First Aid and CPR, and make sure the qualifications are up to date as many require recertification within a two year period.

Qualifications that have expired are essentially null and void, as the monitoring of petcare regulations is updated in order to remain current with the best practices. Make sure whoever you hire holds the most recent version of their qualification, or else their knowledge and expertise could contain gaps that could make all the difference to the care of your pet.

Overnight Visits

Does your pet require a lot of love and attention? Do they get anxious or upset if you leave them alone for long periods of time? If so, your animal may require overnight visits while you’re away. It’s wonderful that some pet-sitters offer this service, because it provides the fullness of care of a boarding kennel while also allowing your animal to remain secure in the comfort of their home.

Just make sure that your animal is friendly to strangers, and meets other qualification criteria including being house-trained and up-to-date with their flea treatment and relevant vaccinations.

Overnight visits mean that the professional pet-sitter literally spends anywhere between 12 and 24 hours with your animal, and provides them with as much love and attention as they get when you’re not away on holiday.

While you’re deciding on whether an overnight visit is appropriate, it’s recommended to think carefully about factors such as cost and convenience. This high level of pet care will obviously cost more than hiring a pet-sitter just to call in and check on your pet once a day. Like any other service, prices goes up according to the level of care and frequency of visitation you require. It’s entirely up to you, as the pet owner, to come up with a tailored schedule for visitation and routine feeding or grooming, in order to ensure that the quality of life of your pet doesn’t diminish while you’re on vacation.

Additional Considerations

While the needs of your pet and the services offered by potential pet-sitters are both considerations of the utmost importance, there is another factor to think about when it comes to vacationing during the summer months: keeping your pet cool in hot weather. This is your responsibility as a pet-owner no matter where you live. There are geographical areas all around America that have notoriously hot summers. Northern Virginia and Washington DC, for example, boast high average temperatures in the mid to high 80s during the summer months.

It’s wonderful to take advantage of the warmer weather during the summer months, but animal lovers need to consider the needs of their pet in order to avoid them overheating or becoming dehydrated. Luckily, while you’re away sunning yourself at your holiday destination, expert pet-sitters possess the experience and expertise required to look after animals no matter what the weather conditions are. Good pet-sitting companies will ensure that their staff are trained and certified in order to give their customers greater confidence in their care-taking and comply with relevant government regulations.

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
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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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