How I Got Into Pet Sitting And Dog Walking

“You actually have the best job in the world” is something that’s often said to me by both clients and friends. Another familiar question I get is “so how long have you been doing this for?” and “is this your full time job!?”.

I get it. Dog walking is often considered little more than a weekend job for teenagers and pet sitting is a concept that is still unheard of to many. I went to Stamford Girls School and left with good A-Levels, before studying for an Executive PA Diploma and moving to London. I worked at a law firm in the city and most recently at the Ministry of Defence on Whitehall, so becoming a full time cat cuddler wasn’t exactly the next logical step…

So why did I decide to set up a pet sitting business, and how did I do it?

After a day at the office. Greenwich, 2016.

My last day at MOD. Victoria Embankment, 2019.

The Motivation

I’ve always adored animals. I felt attached to them from a very young age, not understanding why they weren’t always treated well and why people didn’t care as much as I did. I grew up with cats, with whom I felt a real kinship, only latterly rescuing our pound pup Tobie in 2016 who ignited my love for dogs. I always say that despite sharing most of my personality traits with felines, I love both cats, dogs, and all animals, equally.

So you’re probably wondering why I didn’t want to become a vet - that seems the obvious career choice for an animal lover, right? Well, I think I always knew I wasn’t emotionally strong enough to handle seeing poorly animals every day (also, I really wasn’t good enough at science). Therefore, in terms of other jobs involving animals, I was essentially left with zookeeper - which just didn’t appeal - or dog groomer, which if you’d seen any of my lockdown haircut attempts just wouldn’t have worked out for me.

Aged 5 with my first cat Sabrina.

Visiting an Animal Rescue Centre a few years ago.

The Inspiration

After a gap year I went off to study marketing at University, which unfortunately just didn’t suit me. Despite having a keen interest in the subject matter, nothing on this earth could persuade me to endure the other compulsory ‘business’ modules (accounting, finance and economics? No thank you). So I left, returned to Stamford and worked in retail alongside studying for an Executive PA Diploma. A few months later I moved down to London with my boyfriend and cat Lucie, starting work as a Legal PA.

Once settled in, we had to find care for Lucie over the weekends we would be travelling back home to see family. We hadn’t really heard of catsitters before and assumed our only option would be to take her to a cattery each time, which for a timid rescue cat filled us with dread.

After googling local catteries for a while we noticed a few adverts for cat sitters instead - and one in particular stood out to us. They had a great website, explained that they had DBS checks and were fully insured, and most appealingly had an app that they use to send visit updates and photos. We arranged a Meet & Greet, and the rest was history!

One of the images sent to us of Lucie while we were away.

A False Start

We were so impressed by the service provided to us by our cat sitter. It afforded us the ability to make trips back home, often at the last minute, knowing that Lucie was being looked after in her own environment. That said, it wasn’t just from her point of view that I thought it was amazing, “What an actual dream job” I used to say to my boyfriend. At a time where I was getting on the tubes every day with an armpit in my face just to sit at a desk for 8 hours, I couldn’t have been more jealous.

Inspired, I set up a pet sitting and dog walking profile online and put up flyers around our building advertising my services. I could only work in the evenings or at weekends and couldn’t afford a fancy app, but figured I had to start somewhere.

I had a few requests, but was only able to fulfil a small number of them due to working full time; it was exhausting doing both and sadly unsustainable. As we all know, London is an exceptionally expensive place to live and so my full time job had to take priority. For the time being, my dream job was put on the back burner.

Dog walking in Hither Green, SE13.

Cat sitting after work.

The Stamford Catsitter

Fast forward 3 years and I was working on Whitehall, and my boyfriend was nearing his graduation from university. At this point, we made the decision to move back to Stamford and start saving for a house (unthinkable in London). I was unsure what I was going to do upon moving home, but I knew it had to involve animals.

I pondered on this for the last few weeks of my time in London. How was I going to make enough money to save for a house and pursue my dream job? Would anyone in Stamford want to use a pet sitter? There’s already so many dog walkers in Stamford… could I approach one of them and ask to join part time?

With all of these uncertainties pinging around my head, one day I suddenly decided to take out my laptop and make a logo for a pet care brand. I wanted to have a main focus on cats, (I sensed a slight gap in the market and they’re my area of expertise) but I also wanted to tailor the sitting and walking services towards older dogs and puppies that may not benefit from pack walks. I’m not really sure what caused me to do it that day but I remember thinking even if it fails and no one wants to use my services, at least I’ve tried.

The next day I decided to make a website, along with social media pages and a few days later I published the lot. I took out the relevant insurance, got a DBS check, and attended a few Pet Care & First Aid Courses. Within a week, The Stamford Catsitter was officially born.

My few months of marketing skills finally coming in handy - building The Stamford Catsitter brand.

Lessons Learnt & The Future

I still pinch myself that this is my job, and that I built this brand myself, despite all of the worry and self-doubt. I can now proudly say that I have over 130 clients, have endured a global pandemic and taken on an official team member all in my first 20 months of business. I try to think about how 5-years-ago Lydia would feel if she could see me now, that every one of those bleak mornings on the London Underground would eventually lead to this.

I suppose (in the most clichéd way ever) I’m trying to say don’t give up. Your biggest passion in life could become your career, even if you don’t think it possible. Even if people think it’s silly and not a ‘grown up job’ - there’s more to life than just the 9-5. Do your research and find your niche. In my case it was a personal, un-rushed approach to pet care with modern technology at the forefront.

I hope to keep expanding the brand in the future; increasing our service area, our client base and our team. I’m bursting full of ideas and learning constantly along the way. In the meantime, life’s pretty good as a professional cat cuddler.

The Best Job Ever.