Frequently Asked Questions

This can be a completely different answer for each Pet Parent and their pets and unique situation.

When work and travel keep you away from your pets, you likely consider various pet care options, from asking family or friends for help to boarding to securing the services of a Professional Pet Sitter.

An increasing number of pet owners are taking advantage of just some of the benefits that in-home pet care provides:

• Pets are often happier and experience less stress at home.
• Diet and exercise routines are uninterrupted.
• Travel trauma for both owner and pet is eliminated.
• Pet’s exposure to illness is minimized.

While having friends, family, or neighbours care for your pets may seem like a choice, most professional pet sitters do this for a living and have the experience necessary to care for your animals.

A Professional Pet Sitter:

• Is trained and experienced in working with all types of pet personalities and will know how to tailor your pet’s care based on their individual likes, dislikes, fears, and habits.
• Knows how to spot and avoid potentially dangerous situations, and can react quickly and effectively when necessary.
• Is trained and experienced in administering medications.
• Knows how to tell if your pet needs veterinary attention.
• Has backup in case of emergencies, car troubles or illness.
• Can be relied on to fulfill all of your care requests on time, each and every time.
• Provides peace of mind knowing that your pet is being cared for by a professional.

Here’s a link from Pet Sitters International that helps describe a Pet Sitter and the act of Pet Sitting.

We primarily provide in-client home care. Our staff mainly travel to our clients to provide care for the pets.

Our services are customized to our clients and their needs. A few examples of where we can assist and be there for you:

• Drop ins or Dog walks for those long days at work, late meetings or an evening out
• Overnight stays with your pet(s) in your own home
• Nail Trimming or Administering
• Medications
• Boarding for Small Animals
• Assisting with Nail trimming or Administering Medications

We provide care for many non venomous and non aggressive species, including cats, dogs, rabbits, rodents, hedgehogs, guinea pigs, reptiles, amphibians, etc

Our current rates can be found on our Services page. Our prices may vary depending on several factors, including clients location and needs.

Our rates reflect our experience, dedication and qualifications. We are a small business that has invested in Insurance, Bonding and Pet First Aid, as well as professional certifications, pet care software and continuing education. For some of our staff, this is their sole income, not a side gig.

Please note that if you are looking for “cheap” care, we likely will not be a good fit. We prefer to look at our pricing as an investment. We are investing our time in providing high quality care for you, your home and your pet(s), and you’re investing in quality care, experienced and professional service.

We primarily focus on providing care in the comfort of the pets own environment- your own home!

We are pleased to offer boarding for Small Animals & Reptiles (Rabbits, Guinea Pigs, Rats, Hedgehogs, Ferrets, Bearded Dragons, Geckos, etc)

We cannot care for aggressive or venomous animals.

All of our services and service lengths are customized to each client and their specific needs. Due to other clients, potential emergencies/incidentals, etc, we do not guarantee specific visit times. Our general timeframes are as follows (please contact us if you require different or more specific times)

• Anytime Visit 9 am – 9 pm
• Morning 7 am – 10 am
• Midday 11 am – 3 pm
• Afternoon 4 pm – 6pm
• Evening 7 pm – 9 pm
• Overnight Arrive 9 pm -11 pm, Depart 5:30 am – 7:30 am

Medical or 2x/day visits are scheduled 10-12 hours apart

Our normal visit times range from 15 min to 60 min. Longer visits may be available on a case-by-case basis.

Overnight and Extended Care times are customized to each client

Please note that our policy is DAILY visits. We visit pets minimum once per calendar day. We are unable to visit your pet(s) every other day or twice a week. This is for insurance, pet health and safety reasons

We send updates minimum once per day, by end of day. Please inform us if you wish more frequent updates

We are happy to set up a Consultation Meeting (or a repeat meeting) with one of our staff. We do require our onboarding process to be followed (see How It Works) before meeting.

A $25 (+ HST) fee is applicable to cover administrative costs and the caregiver’s time.

Vet Tech Pet Services sitters collaborate as a team. We are not able to guarantee the same sitter each time. We aim to assign 1-2 primary sitters and a backup sitter in most cases. This is to ensure that your pets are cared for according to the prearranged visit schedule and that our staff are not working extended hours.

Please understand that our staff are not super heroes! They get sick, have emergencies (sometimes more than one at once!), need days off and go on vacation. There may be times where we need to send a replacement sitter or adjust visit times without notice. Our sitters are all covered under our company bonding & insurance and are informed on care for your beloved pets.

If you wish to meet additional sitters, an additional meeting fee will apply for each meeting.

This consultation meeting is a crucial introduction for our clients to meet one of our staff and a chance to review and understand our services. Please allow 30-45 min for this meeting.

During this meeting, the pet caregiver(s) will:

• Introduce themselves
• Spend quality time with the pet(s)
• Review essential home and pet care details (e.g., vet info, emergency contacts, special requests)
• Address any additional questions or concerns
• Collect and test two house keys (one for the caregiver and one as a backup).

Please note that this meeting is required before services can begin.

A $25 (+ HST) fee is applicable to cover administrative costs and the caregiver’s time.

New Clients- please follow the Become A Client steps.

We have an easy to use software, Time To Pet! All bookings are to be requested through this software (desktop or app)

The Time To Pet app can be downloaded from either Google Play or Apple Store.

We cannot accept phone, email or text bookings.

Service requests are reviewed as soon as possible, Monday through Friday. We have limited weekend office hours

Payment is required to secure reservations. Please see below for more specific policies

Daily Walks or Visits:

100% payment due upon booking. Services are billed biweeky or monthly.

Payment is required prior to services.

Any unexpected changes will be added to the following invoice.

Vacation Visits:

50% non refundable deposit is required when booking services.

Balance is due 48 hrs prior to services beginning.

Special Needs/Medical Assistance & Nail Trims:

Full payment is required at time of service.

Overnights and non Major Holidays:

50% non refundable deposit is required when booking services.

Balance is due 7 days prior to services beginning

High Peak Holidays (Christmas/New Years):

A 50% non refundable deposit is required when booking services.

Full payment is due by Dec 1 (Christmas and New Years bookings)

Full payment (non refundable) is due on booking for reservations made after Dec 1 for Christmas and New Years bookings

Yes we water plants upon request. We request specific instructions.

Please note that most of our staff are not plant experts. Vet Tech Pet Services and Staff cannot be held responsible for unhappy, dying or otherwise previously unwell greenery. Vet Tech Pet Services and Staff aim to follow any client instructions for plants as much as possible, but cannot be responsible for plant livelihood. All plants should be visible and ideally together.

Daily Walks or Visits:

24 hrs notice

Vacation Visits:

48 hrs notice

Special Needs/Medical Assistance & Nail Trims:

24 hrs notice

Overnights and non Major Holidays:

7 days notice

Yes. We have experience with a variety of medications and ailments. All medications/treatments require a care plan from a licenced Veterinarian.

All special needs pets/pets requiring medication should be stable and non aggressive.

We have reviews and testimonials available on our website and Google