Dog Walking Versus Doggy Day Care – How To Decide Which Is A Better Fit?

You work away from home for long hours or have days when you are gone for extended hours leaving your dog behind.  You don’t want to leave your dog at home alone all day without stimulation, exercise, a potty break, love, and attention.  Should you hire a dog walking professional or take your pooch to doggy day care? Have you weighed your options to help decide which is a better fit – dog walking versus doggy day care?

Below are 5 questions to ask yourself to help determine if dog walking versus doggy day care is a better fit for you and your dog.

1. Does my dog like playing with other dogs?
2. Can my dog handle the stimulation of playing with other dogs all day?
3. Does my dog prefer one on one attention?
4. Does my dog like to nap a lot?
5. Will it be convenient for me to drop off my dog and pick up my dog from day care or do I want to pay extra for this service?

Based on how you replied to the above 5 questions you should have an idea of what would be the better fit.  Clearly if your dog doesn’t enjoy the company of other dogs or can’t handle the stimulation of playing all day then doggy day care would not be the right fit.

I am a mom to an English Bulldog, Beatrice and to a French Bulldog, Florence. Beatrice loves to play with other dogs but hours of stimulation at doggy day care can take a toll on her making her exhausted for a day or two after all the activity.  Although we know Florence gets along well with Beatrice, we are not certain how she would react around other dogs.  Based on Florence’s personality and disposition, I believe she would prefer the one on one attention of a private dog walker also allowing her to stay home in the environment she knows and loves napping on an off throughout the day.

In my experience as a professional dog walker and pet sitter the answer to this question doesn’t have to always be black or white.  Some pets do well with a combination of 1-3 days of doggy day care mixed with staying home for private dog walks 2-3 days a week.

If you’ve never hired a dog walker before you may find our articles useful on Tips For Finding A Dog Walker, Questions To Ask When Checking References For A Dog Walker, and Benefits Of Hiring A Dog Walker.

Which option do you find works best for you and your dogs?