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Checklist & Policies

Checklist of what you should do before you take off:


AT YOUR HOME

  1. Food - please provide enough food to last for the duration of your absence. If you have a pet that needs live food, I can arrange to get live food at an additional cost.
  2. Veterinarian's name, address, phone number, just in case your pet needs to go to the vet (routine or emergency) please sign a “permission form” for Paws n’ Critters to take you pet to the vet.
  3. Proof of Vaccinations and well check. Your agreement will indicate what vaccinations are currently needed, as the protocol changes periodically to add additional vaccinations.
  4. Have a contact in the neighborhood or local area that can be reached in the case of an emergency and exchange the names of Paws n’ Critters with them, so we not only have theirs, they have ours in case they need to get a hold of us.
  5. Specific directions which we will go over together on your pets needs, quirks, anxieties, or particulars as well as what you are wanting done at your home while you are gone.
  6. Itinerary and contact number for where you are going and several numbers of how to reach you (where you are staying as well as your cells).
  7. Emergency Contact Sheet.
  8. Medications, how to administer, how often, what the medication is for and what to look out for. The need to know if the medication needs to be administered precisely at a certain time or a time frame is important. Please make sure before you leave that you have enough to last while you are gone and have extra in case your trip is delayed.
  9. First Aid Kit (we always have one with us if you don’t have one).
  10. Two working keys.
  11. Service Agreement with Paws n’ Critters.

AND if you are going to be leaving your pet at a sitter’s home you will need:


Policies


Please take the time to read this section of our policies and procedures.

Consultation

After phone contact, we will schedule a complimentary 30 minute consultation in your home. At this time we will get acquainted with your pets and go through the pet/home care routine.

All forms will be sent to you via email prior to the consultation after initial phone contact. The information on the forms will include:

Quantity of Pets

We reserve the right to charge extra for any household that has more than 4 pets in the household. The amount is determined based on the type of pets and the nature of the care needed and will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

In some cases, we may need to do a "meet and greet" for an on-site assessment of the care and routine before we do a formal consultation. If this is the case, you will be given an approximate amount based off the information given on the phone. The final amount will be determined after the on-site assessment has been completed.

Frequency of Visits

It is our policy to conduct no less than one visit per day for all cats. If you have kittens we recommend at the minimum two visits daily. Pets that are on insulin injections usually require a minimum of 2 visits per day because the injections need to be administered 12 hours apart.

If you have dogs, it is vet recommended to have a minimum of three (3) visits daily to reduce the chances of urinary tract infections (UTI) or other problems; unless you have a doggie door where they can come and go as they please to eliminate.

This is our best practices policy; if you are wanting the frequency of visits to be different, please discuss this on the phone or at the consultation.

Boarding

All boarding reservations start when your pet(s) are dropped off. If they spend the night a full charge is incurred. Check out time is no later than 12:00 pm noon (please coordinate this directly with your sitter).

All new boarding customers are required to put down a 1/3 non-refundable deposit to secure their dates of service. Established customers may be required to put down a deposit to hold dates at the discretion of Paws n' Critters.

Dog Walking

If multiple dogs are required to be walked at one time, we reserve the right, based of size or disposition of any breed, to charge for an additional walker, should the need arise. This will be determined at the consultation.

Overnight/Extended Day Services

We offer overnight two types of overnight services, the 11 hour and 16 hour service. The 11 hour service is typically from 8pm - 7am in the morning. The 16 hour service, the sitter stays in your home for the duration of your trip away, and they are able to come and go for up to 8 hours per day.

Please note, we do not prorate this service. If you book services and the sitter stays during the day and does not spend the night, there is no prorate, that is considered Extended Day.

New customers may be required to put down a non-refundable deposit of 1/3 to hold their dates of service. Established customers may be required to put down a deposit to hold dates at the discretion of Paws n' Critters.

If more than 2 dogs require walking, there will be an additional charge for a dog walker to assist.

Payment for Services

Checks, cash and credit cards are accepted via Paypal. Pay Pal offers a secure method for our clients to pay for Paws n’ Critters services.

All payments must be paid in full or at time of service.

PLEASE NOTE: All customers paying via credit card and credit card through paypal will incur a 3% processing fee.

Paypal will accept all major credit cards and online bank payments.

If you are paying via regular bill-pay through your bank (aside from Chase Quick Pay), you need to process the payment 5 business days before services start.

Please go to “How to Pay

Refunds & Cancellation of Service

Payment is expedited at time of service and IF you must cancel service before service begins; we reserve the right to charge you 100% for that first visit if the cancellation occurs within a 24 hour window for all customers.

Established M-F customers must cancel service for the same mid-day dog walking NLT 9am of the same day with no cancellation fee. If you call after 9am, you will be charged for that mid-day visit.

Keys

We require that you provide us with 2 working keys. One key is used as a backup and used for emergency purposes, lockout, or if a second person is helping out on the job. The other key is for the primary pet sitter.

If you only provide us with 1 key, you will be charged $5.00 for the additional key.

All keys are locked up when not in use, Additionally, every customer gets a unique ID code by which only Paws n’ Critters sitters are able to identify. One key is assigned to the sitter and the second is kept in the office safe. We do this in case a sitter falls ill or something should happen to the sitter, getting held up in traffic or accidentally locks themselves out.

Our pet care program allows you to call for pet sitting anytime, which most all our customers enjoy the ease of being able to book, even with short notice.

If you do not want us to retain your keys a fee of $20.00 will be collected at the time of the consultation to return your keys to you via USPS Signature Confirmation Mail or you can arrange to pick up your keys with the sitter at a mutually agreed date/time. Alternatively, you have the choice of putting your own contractor's lockbox on your property for us to use for keys, for access to your home.

Returning Home Early

If you return early from your trip with a 24 hour notice you will be refunding any remaining days with credit applied to future services with Paws n' Critters.

If you return early and the sitter is scheduled to arrive within a 4 hour window from your call, you will be charged for that visit if you arrive home early.

Scheduling Service

Established Customers can book regular pet-sits at their home at anytime, however, we request that you book at least 7-14 days in advance if possible. Boarding and Overnight service is always first come first serve and may not be available.

If you call to schedule service 4 hours or less and we are able to arrange service with that short of notice, you will be charged a $5.00 late booking fee in addition to the regular service charge.

Emergency Services

If your pet needs to go to the vet for emergency services or a regularly scheduled vet visit of which you need our services, customers are charged a minimum of $50.00 for the first hour, which includes the pet taxi portion. You will be charged an additional $25.00 for each 1/2 hour over the hour.

Last Minute Trip?

Established Customers - For same day, urgent or emergency pet & home care requests under a 24 hour notice, availability is not guaranteed. If you provide less than 4 hours notice, an additional $5.00 late booking fee will be added for that visit.

New Customers - with less than 36 hours to hold the consultation and service is to begin, will incur an additional $20.00 late booking fee in addition to regular service fees.

We always reserve the right to charge the full visit for same day cancellations of visit(s).

Holiday Fees

Paws n' Critters Holiday fees are $5.00 for each pet sit visit. Boarding customers pay $5.00 for each pet that is boarded on a holiday.

Overnight services holiday rates are $10.00 for the 11 hour overnight per day; $15.00 for 16 hour overnight/extended day services per day.

Aggressive Animals/Safety Issues

We do not offer our services to animals with aggressive behavior. We currently do not have any special animal handling skills that allow us to work with aggressive animals. If your animal has bitten anyone in the past or shows aggressive behavior we will not be able to help you..please make other arrangements.

In addition we reserve the right to refuse certain breeds with a disposition of aggressive behaviors. All dogs must be spayed or neutered. This reduces aggression in animals.

We also walk all dogs with leashes/leads. If your pet will not walk with a leash and your dog requires a leash to be taken out to potty (and you have no enclosed backyard) for safety and liability reasons, we will not be able to help you.

Home Care Services

We can care for just your home while you are away on a daily, weekly or monthly visit.

As a hands on homeowner, we are able to spot any problems on your while you are away. We encourage you to use our services for extended visits. Spotting a problem early can help reduce costly repairs while you are away.

Our Home Care Services offers perimeter checks outside and indoor checks. We can assist you with your everyday pool care and help to maintain the sense of security of someone being home while you are away.

Please contact us for a Custom Quote depending on how often you are needing this service and what you are needing while you are away.