Pet sitting can be a relief for those working long ... - Fetch! Pet Care
Pet sitting can be a relief for those working long ... - Fetch! Pet Care
Pet sitting can be a relief for those working long ... - Fetch! Pet Care
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<strong>Pet</strong> <strong>sitting</strong> <strong>can</strong> <strong>be</strong> a <strong>relief</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>those</strong> <strong>working</strong> <strong>long</strong> hours :: Lifestyles :: Daily Southtown<br />
http://www.dailysouthtown.com/lifestyles/637055,110707pet-sitters.article<br />
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11/7/2007<br />
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LIFESTYLES :: PRINTER FRIENDLY » EMAIL ARTICLE »<br />
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<strong>Pet</strong> <strong>sitting</strong> <strong>can</strong> <strong>be</strong> a <strong>relief</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>those</strong> <strong>working</strong> <strong>long</strong> hours<br />
Novem<strong>be</strong>r 7, 2007<br />
By Vickie Snow, Staff writer<br />
Lisa Sharpsteen was torn <strong>be</strong>tween two loves.<br />
Her fiance, Ivan Huergo, opened a physical therapy clinic in Willowbrook in February and<br />
depended on her as a personal assistant <strong>for</strong> everything from patient documentation to fill-in<br />
office manager.<br />
» Click to enlarge image<br />
But Bailey, the <strong>be</strong>loved 10-year-old cockapoo<br />
she inherited from a late friend, depended on<br />
her, too, and was left home alone in Orland<br />
Park <strong>for</strong> hours on end. Long hours got <strong>long</strong>er<br />
when patients requested emergency<br />
appointments. Then there were the frequent<br />
out-of-town medical conferences.<br />
Lisa Sharpsteen, right, pets her<br />
cockapoo, Bailey, while chatting with<br />
Michelle Lagestee in Sharpsteen's<br />
backyard. Sharpsteen relies on<br />
Lagestee to take care of Bailey while<br />
Sharpsteen is at work.<br />
(Jason Han/Daily Southtown)<br />
LOOKING FOR PET CAR INFO<br />
To find a pet day care and boarding facility<br />
accredited by the Ameri<strong>can</strong> Boarding<br />
Kennels Association, go to<br />
www.abka.com.<br />
To read what clients are saying about<br />
local pet sitters, visit<br />
www.petservicesreview.com.<br />
It's a good idea to check with the Better<br />
Business Bureau <strong>be</strong><strong>for</strong>e hiring a pet sitter.<br />
Visit www.chicago.bb.org.<br />
TIPS FOR HIRING A PET SITTER<br />
1. Check at least three references.<br />
2. Be sure the company is bonded and<br />
insured.<br />
3. Ask about the sitter's criminal<br />
background check.<br />
4. Ask about the sitter's training, including<br />
pet first aid.<br />
5. Interview the sitter with your pet on<br />
hand to observe their interaction.<br />
If you'll <strong>be</strong> boarding your pet, visit the<br />
sitter's home or facility in advance.<br />
6. Ask about the sitter's availability. Can<br />
you call or e-mail and get a quick<br />
response<br />
"We were struggling with how to get Bailey<br />
taken care of," Sharpsteen said.<br />
Then a patient referred her to Michelle<br />
Lagestee, owner of Kisses & Cuddles <strong>Pet</strong> <strong>Care</strong><br />
in Orland Park.<br />
Ever since Bailey started spending the day at<br />
Lagestee's in-home doggie day care, she's a<br />
happier dog and the clinic is a more prosperous<br />
business.<br />
"We've <strong>be</strong>en able to streamline our business,<br />
simplify our schedules and take one car,"<br />
Sharpsteen said. "I <strong>can</strong> work more and<br />
generate more profitability."<br />
Work hours, commute time and dual incomes<br />
<strong>can</strong> translate into a challenge <strong>for</strong> pet owners.<br />
Yet, more Ameri<strong>can</strong>s than ever have at least<br />
one pet. And we spend more money on our<br />
pets every year, even more than on <strong>can</strong>dy or<br />
toys.<br />
<strong>Pet</strong> sitters - from dog walkers and day care<br />
providers to people who will pick up dog poop,<br />
take Fido to the groomer or keep your cats<br />
company in your house while you travel - are<br />
bridging the gap <strong>be</strong>tween careers and pet<br />
ownership. And employers are starting to help,<br />
too, by offering discounts <strong>for</strong> pet sitters akin to<br />
company-wide reduced mem<strong>be</strong>rships to Costco<br />
or Lifetime Fitness.<br />
"The more <strong>be</strong>nefits you offer, the <strong>be</strong>tter<br />
percentage you have at keeping the talent in<br />
the house," said Wil Guido, director of<br />
employee activities and special projects <strong>for</strong><br />
Fox's 6,000 employees in Los Angeles, many of<br />
whom work 60-hour weeks in television<br />
production. He negotiated an employee<br />
discount <strong>for</strong> services provided by <strong>Fetch</strong>! <strong>Pet</strong><br />
<strong>Care</strong>.<br />
"My job is to procure amenities to make their<br />
lives easier," Guido said of his co-workers. "Our<br />
bargaining tool is we <strong>can</strong> reach so many people<br />
in our company."<br />
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LIFESTYLES<br />
<strong>Pet</strong> <strong>sitting</strong> <strong>can</strong> <strong>be</strong> a <strong>relief</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>those</strong><br />
<strong>working</strong> <strong>long</strong> hours<br />
7. Ask about back-up sitters in case of an<br />
emergency.<br />
8. Be sure the sitter <strong>can</strong> accommodate<br />
your conditions as far as time spent<br />
walking and playing with your pet,<br />
checking food and water, etc.<br />
9. Don't shop based on price alone.<br />
On the flipside, while many people rely on pet<strong>sitting</strong><br />
services due to career demands, others<br />
are banking on an all-time national peak <strong>for</strong> pet<br />
ownership and pet owners' willingness to<br />
pamper in order to build their own pet-related businesses.<br />
The Ameri<strong>can</strong> <strong>Pet</strong> Products Manufacturers Association expects Ameri<strong>can</strong>s to spend more than $40 billion on pet products and<br />
services this year, up from $38.5 billion in 2006.
<strong>Pet</strong> <strong>sitting</strong> <strong>can</strong> <strong>be</strong> a <strong>relief</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>those</strong> <strong>working</strong> <strong>long</strong> hours :: Lifestyles :: Daily Southtown<br />
http://www.dailysouthtown.com/lifestyles/637055,110707pet-sitters.article<br />
Page 2 of 3<br />
11/7/2007<br />
10. Don't wait until the last minute. The<br />
<strong>be</strong>st sitters book up early.<br />
Source: <strong>Fetch</strong>! <strong>Pet</strong> <strong>Care</strong><br />
There's a pet in 63 percent of Ameri<strong>can</strong> households, or 69 million households, according to the association.<br />
Feeding the frenzy - an increase of one million pets per year since 2002 - is a boom in pet-related franchises, which have increased<br />
by 23 percent from 2005 to 2006, according to Entrepreneur Magazine's Septem<strong>be</strong>r issue.<br />
Not only do more pet franchises exist today, but they also have a greater shot at survival compared to other franchises.<br />
The turnover rate <strong>for</strong> franchises is 11.8 percent, according to independent franchise in<strong>for</strong>mation tracker Frandata. <strong>Pet</strong> franchises have a turnover rate of only 9 percent.<br />
"I take on new clients every week," said Linda Stevens, a Tinley Park resident who stopped <strong>working</strong> <strong>for</strong> a real estate developer and opened her <strong>Fetch</strong>! <strong>Pet</strong> <strong>Care</strong> franchise in<br />
March.<br />
Of her 50 regular clients, including a Frank<strong>for</strong>t couple who pays Stevens to walk their boxer twice a day at $18 a visit, half rely on her dog-walking and in-home boarding<br />
services <strong>be</strong>cause of their jobs, Stevens said.<br />
Other clients may work part time but have puppies or older dogs that need to go out more frequently. Others rely on Stevens <strong>for</strong> business trips.<br />
Pam Eitmant, who owns e Strategy Group in Lockport, often hires Stevens to stay in her home with her Havanese dogs Pablo, Tango and Coco.<br />
"My work takes me out of town two or three times a month <strong>for</strong> three or five days at a time," Eitmant said. "It's important <strong>for</strong> animals not to <strong>be</strong> stressed when their owners are<br />
gone. And I feel <strong>be</strong>tter when I leave knowing that they're well taken care of."<br />
Doggie day care is a burgeoning industry.<br />
Of the Ameri<strong>can</strong> Boarding Kennels Association's 3,000 mem<strong>be</strong>rs, 83 percent board cats and dogs.<br />
The Southland has companies barking up its tree.<br />
Boulder, Colo.-based Camp Bow Wow is currently negotiating leasing and zoning <strong>for</strong> one of its doggie day care/overnight camps, complete with cabins, in Orland Park, Tinley<br />
Park or Mokena.<br />
K9 Tailshakers, a doggie day care and overnight resort in New Lenox, has amassed 400 clients since opening in June 2006, owner Jan Flanagan said.<br />
Many day cares, including K9 Tailshakers and Alfie's Poochie Playlot in Mokena, have Web cams <strong>for</strong> pet owners to check in from a job site or laptop.<br />
"The day care is mainly <strong>for</strong> people with <strong>long</strong> work hours and <strong>those</strong> who want to socialize their puppies and who have high-energy dogs that need more exercise than they <strong>can</strong><br />
offer at home when <strong>working</strong> full time," Flanagan said. "It is a great way to allow a family with both partners <strong>working</strong> to still have a dog in the family without feeling guilty about<br />
leaving them home everyday alone."<br />
But that guilt-free feeling has a price.<br />
Tailshakers and Alfie's charge $22 per day, $14 <strong>for</strong> a half-day or $100 <strong>for</strong> the week. And just like many child-care providers, Alfie's charges extra when you're late. After 7 p.m.,<br />
every 15 minutes will cost you an extra $5.<br />
For boarding, <strong>Fetch</strong>! <strong>Pet</strong> <strong>Care</strong> franchisee Stevens charges at least $45 to keep the pet in her house and $60 to stay in a client's house. That's per dog, per night.<br />
The <strong>Fetch</strong>! transportation service costs $22 <strong>for</strong> the first 10 miles and $1 <strong>for</strong> each additional mile.<br />
"One of the dogs I walk regularly I pick up from the groomer once a month or so and bring her home," Kisses & Cuddles' Lagestee said. "That way she doesn't have to sit in the<br />
cage all day waiting <strong>for</strong> her owner to get off work and pick her up."<br />
Kelly Kane, of Mokena, said she considers her pet-<strong>sitting</strong> bills a normal part of the household budget, similar to utilities.<br />
"It's money well spent," said Kane, who accepted an accounting job an hour away on the condition that Lagestee would <strong>be</strong> available to care <strong>for</strong> her dogs, Kayla and Karly, every<br />
day. "She's very important to us. She lets the dogs out, checks their water and food and gives them attention and interaction while I work."<br />
Sharpsteen, who was able to double her hours at the physical therapy clinic upon hiring Lagestee, said Bailey's day care and overnight boarding expenses are a necessary<br />
expense similar to child care.<br />
"Bailey is part of the family," Sharpsteen said. "If doggie day care is our biggest expense, it's not the worst thing. Michelle (Lagestee) takes care of Bailey the way I would if I<br />
were home, and that's worth the money <strong>for</strong> me."<br />
Bailey, a finicky eater with a sociable personality, seems pleased with the arrangement, too.<br />
"Bailey is calmer now and has <strong>be</strong>tter graces with other dogs, which is nice <strong>be</strong>cause she really hadn't <strong>be</strong>en around other dogs much," Sharpsteen said. "This last month, our<br />
busiest travel period, half the time Bailey's <strong>be</strong>en with Michelle. Whenever I pull up to Michelle's to drop Bailey off, she gets excited and <strong>can</strong>'t wait to jump out of the car."<br />
Vickie Snow may <strong>be</strong> reached at vsnow@dailysouthtown.com or (708) 633-5981.<br />
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<strong>Pet</strong> <strong>sitting</strong> <strong>can</strong> <strong>be</strong> a <strong>relief</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>those</strong> <strong>working</strong> <strong>long</strong> hours :: Lifestyles :: Daily Southtown<br />
http://www.dailysouthtown.com/lifestyles/637055,110707pet-sitters.article<br />
Page 3 of 3<br />
11/7/2007<br />
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