How to Start a Dog Walking Business: A Practical Guide

Written for the UK scenario, but the principles apply in most English-speaking nations.

Dog walking is one of the few businesses you can start with almost no money, no premises and no formal qualifications. Demand is steady, customers book week after week, and a good walker with a full diary can earn a decent living.

But you are responsible for other people’s much-loved animals, and often their house keys too. Owners choose walkers they trust, so the businesses that succeed are the ones that look professional, carry the right insurance and handle problems calmly. This guide covers what you need to set up properly, what to charge and how to find your first clients.

Is a dog walking business right for you?

Loving dogs is a start, but it is not enough. Before you commit, be honest about the realities:

• You work outside in all weathers. Owners still need their dogs walked in January rain and July heat.
• Your busiest time is the middle of the day. Most clients are at work from about 9 to 5, so your walks bunch up around late morning and lunchtime. That limits how many walks you can fit in.
• You need to handle dogs safely. That means reading body language, managing a reactive dog, breaking up a scuffle, and knowing which dogs should never be walked together.
• It is physically demanding. Several hours of walking a day, plus loading dogs in and out of a vehicle.
• Holidays are hard. Your clients rely on you. Taking a week off means finding cover or losing income.

If that all sounds fine, the rewards are real: you are your own boss, you spend your day outdoors, and you build a loyal, repeat customer base. Canine first aid and dog behaviour courses are worth doing early. They are not legally required, but they make you safer and give owners confidence.

Licences, local rules and insurance

You do not need a licence to walk dogs. But if you add home boarding or dog day care, you do. In England, those activities need a licence from your local council under the animal activities licensing rules. Don’t advertise boarding or day care until you have one.

Check your council’s rules on dog numbers. Many councils have Public Spaces Protection Orders that limit how many dogs one person can walk at a time in parks and public spaces, and set rules on leads and dog-free areas. Check your council’s website for every area you plan to walk in. Your insurer will also set a maximum number of dogs.

Every dog must wear a collar and tag in public. The law requires a tag showing the owner’s name and address. Make checking this part of your routine, and refuse to walk a dog without one.

Get specialist dog walking insurance. A general policy is not enough. Look for cover that includes:

• Public liability, in case a dog in your care injures someone or damages property.
• Care, custody and control, which covers injury to, or loss of, the dogs themselves. Many policies leave this out unless you ask.
• Key cover, for the cost of changing locks if you lose a client’s keys.
• Vet fees for dogs injured while with you.

Register as a sole trader with HMRC once you start earning. It is free and takes about 10 minutes: [ADD LINK TO SOLE TRADER POST].

Start-up costs and equipment

If you walk dogs within walking distance of your home, your start-up costs are mostly insurance and a few bits of kit. Once you collect dogs and drive them to fields or woods, you need a suitable vehicle, and that is where the real cost is.

What you will need:

• Spare leads, collars and slip leads, in case a client’s breaks or is forgotten.
• Poo bags, and plenty of them. Leaving mess is the fastest way to lose your reputation and get a fine.
• A canine first aid kit, plus water and a collapsible bowl.
• Towels, for drying dogs before you return them to clean houses.
• Waterproof clothing and good boots.
• A secure key safe or lockable key box for client keys.
• A vehicle set up for dogs, if you drive: secure crates or a fixed dog guard, so dogs cannot move about or escape when the doors open. Tell your car insurer you use the vehicle for business. Ordinary social cover will not pay out.

A mobile phone with GPS walk tracking and photo sharing is worth having from day one. Sending owners a photo and a route map after each walk costs you nothing and keeps them loyal.

Services and pricing

Most dog walkers offer a mix of these:

Work out your prices from your costs, not just from what others charge. Your walks are limited to the middle of the day, so you have fewer paid hours than you might think. Add up your yearly costs (insurance, vehicle, fuel, kit, phone, marketing), add the income you need, and divide by the number of walks you can realistically do in a year. That gives you your minimum price per walk.

Then check local walkers’ prices. Charge extra for weekends, bank holidays and dogs that need walking alone because of behaviour. Agree a cancellation policy in writing, such as full payment for walks cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice. Without one, a cancelled walk is lost income in a slot you could have filled.

Our free Charge-Out Rate Calculator helps you with the sums: www.tradeskillshubacademy.com/profit-tools.

The paperwork that protects you

Good paperwork is what separates a professional dog walker from someone doing it for pocket money. Before you walk any dog, get:

• Written terms and conditions, covering prices, payment terms, cancellations, what happens in bad weather, and your right to refuse a dog that is aggressive or unwell.
• A client and dog record form: owner contact details, an emergency contact, the vet’s name and number, vaccinations, microchip details, health problems, and behaviour around other dogs, people and traffic.
• Vet consent: the owner’s written permission for you to take the dog to a vet in an emergency, and agreement on who pays.
• Off-lead permission, signed by the owner, if you plan to let the dog off the lead.
• A key and alarm log. Tag keys with a number, never a name or address, and keep the list separately.

Always do a meet-and-greet first. Meet the dog and owner at home before the first walk. Watch how the dog behaves, take a short trial walk, and only then agree to take it on. Start new dogs on solo walks before you add them to a group.

Have a plan for emergencies. Know what you will do if a dog is injured, slips its lead, or if you are ill. Keep every owner’s details and the nearest emergency vet saved on your phone.

Finding your first clients

Dog walking is a local business, and owners pick walkers on trust and recommendation. These work best:

• A Google Business Profile. Free, and it gets you found when someone searches “dog walker near me”. Ask every client for a review.
• Local Facebook groups and Nextdoor. People ask for dog walker recommendations there all the time.
• Vets, groomers and pet shops. Ask if you can leave cards or put up a poster. A recommendation from the local vet carries real weight.
• Being seen. Walking with a branded top and well-behaved dogs is advertising in itself. Carry cards: people will stop you and ask.
• Offer existing clients a free walk for each new client they send you.

Keep your clients in a tight area. Every minute spent driving between collections is unpaid. A full diary within a few miles of home earns far more than the same number of walks spread across the county.

Once you are full, raise your prices for new clients rather than squeezing in more walks.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need qualifications to be a dog walker?

No. There is no legal requirement for qualifications to walk dogs. Canine first aid and dog behaviour courses are strongly recommended, and many owners look for them.

Do I need a DBS check?

It is not a legal requirement, but you will often have keys to clients’ homes. A basic DBS check, which you can apply for yourself on GOV.UK, is a simple way to show you can be trusted.

How many dogs can I walk at once?

It depends on your council’s rules, your insurance and your own ability to control the dogs. Check all three. Fewer, well-matched dogs is always safer than a large group.

Can I start a dog walking business part-time?

Yes. Many walkers start alongside a part-time job, as most walks happen in the middle of the day.

Do I need a van?

Not at first. If you can walk dogs near home, you can start without one. Once you collect dogs and drive them to walking spots, you need a vehicle with secure crates or a dog guard, and business-use insurance.

Your next step

How to Set Up and Run Your Own Dog Walking Business covers all of this in full: insurance, client forms, pricing, safety, marketing and growing beyond what you can walk yourself.

Download the How to Start a Dog Walking Business eBook here.