Getting started as a dog sitter

Thank you for your interest in joining doggos.com as a dog sitter! Before being approved for a dog sitter account, new users will need to go through an application process, which includes:

• Submitting an application
• A video call with doggos.com
• Age verification
• Drivers license verification
• Background check

While this process may seem intimidating, it is necessary to protect the pets on our platform, and helps cut down on the risks associated with inexperienced pet care providers. Ultimately, this process is part of what helps keep platform fees as low as possible (and offer additional benefits like 0 fees for sitters, and same-day payouts) so we thank you for your patience if your application is still being processed.

Doggos.com pays all costs for applications, so unlike other platforms, there are no fees for background checks or ID verification.

After you've gone through the application process and passed a background check, you'll receive an email with a link to login to your new sitter account. You can click the "Login" button on the website and use your email address to login as normal from this point forward.

Setting up your profile

Your profile is the first thing potential dog sitting clients see when they find you on Doggos, and is how they learn more about the services you offer. Before your can go live, you must fill out every field of your profile, which includes:

• Your business name (or the name you would like to be referred to as on Doggos)
• A description of your neighborhood or the location you offer dog sitting
• Interior photos of your home, including entries and exits
• Details about your home & services (resident pets, how much exercise you will provide during a stay, etc.)
• A description of your experience with dogs
• At least one clear photograph of you

Setting up your profile for the first time can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes. We recommend taking as much time as you need to take well-lit photos, craft engaging copy, and choose the search criteria that best applies to you, because it will be the way potential clients find you and decide if you're the right sitter for them, or if they should keep looking.

New features are always being added

We respond to customer needs lightening-fast, and we expect to be updating this documentation with more features as they go live. If you see something new in your sitter account and want to know how it works, check back here!

You can draft and preview your profile as much as you want before saving it. For an eye-catching profile, we recommend studying other sitters in your area to observe what prices, services, and calendar settings are working best for them, while adding special services that are unique to your background.

Setting up your calendar

Setting up your calendar is an important part of going live. If you mark yourself as “unavailable” or you don't set up your calendar, your profile won't appear in search results.

You fully control what days you're available, and the amount of dogs you're willing to book on those days.

We limit the maximum amount of dogs that can be booked on a single day to 3 per household, but you can contact us directly if you'd like this limit increased.

To set up your calendar, simply login. Your calendar is the first thing you see, with booking requests and reservations displayed if you have any. You can edit your prices and availability by clicking the "Manage availability" button.

You can also click on individual days to make them unavailable, if you'd like to manually override your availability.

Note: When you confirm a booking through Doggos, your calendar availability will update automatically.

Choosing your rates

On Doggos, you set your own rates. To set your rates, simply login and go to your calendar, where you can easily adjust rates for each day. We'd recommend setting consistent rates throughout the week, and reserving price adjustments for weekends, holidays, and other special ocassions that make sense for your business.

Dog owners appreciate consistent pricing when looking for a dog sitter, especially if they plan to book with you more than once.

Once you've set up your rates, availability, and profile, you're ready to start accepting reservations! Your profile will be automatically shown in our search results when it's completed (unless you mark yourself unavailable.)

Be patient while waiting to book your first client. Our search automatically re-ranks results multiple times a day to take into consideration any changes in pricing and availability, but it can take several weeks for your profile to be seen by the perfect client for you. Don't worry, your profile is being discovered, even if you're not getting messages initially! There are many factors that go into a successful booking, such as season, holidays, your location, price, and the services you offer. Demand changes throughout the year, so be sure to keep your profile & prices updated accordingly.

Getting help

If you're having an issue with a booking and you need help, you can reach out to doggos.com directly in your chat by messaging "@doggos". This will send a message to our support team, which will make your chats visible to doggos.com staff so we can help resolve your issue. Your messages to @doggos cannot be seen by anyone but you, and doggos.com.

We use a combination of machine learning and real human staff to respond to and prioritize requests as best as possible. During business hours (7AM-4PM PST), the support team strives to respond to all inquiries in under 4 hours. After business hours, responses may be delayed until first thing the following morning.