When someone hands you their house key and their dog’s leash, they are trusting you with two of the things they care about most. Insurance and bonding are how professional pet sitters back up that trust, and they are one of the clearest differences between a business and a side gig.
General liability insurance
Liability insurance covers you if you accidentally cause injury or property damage while working, such as a dog you are walking knocking someone over, or water damage from a tap left running in a client’s home. Pet care policies are designed for these situations.
Care, custody and control coverage
Standard liability policies often exclude animals in your care. Pet care policies usually add “care, custody and control” coverage, which can help pay vet bills if a pet is injured or gets sick while you are responsible for it. Make sure any policy you buy includes this.
What bonding means
A bond protects the client if you or an employee is accused of theft. It is different from insurance, and the bond company may seek repayment from the business if it pays a claim. Bonding matters more once you hire staff, but many solo sitters carry it because clients ask.
What it costs
Pet sitting insurance for a solo walker or sitter commonly runs in the range of a few hundred dollars a year, often through pet care associations or specialist insurers. Bonding can be added for a modest extra cost. Prices depend on your state, services and claims history, so get a few quotes.
Do app platforms cover you?
Some pet care apps offer protection programs for bookings made through them. These usually only apply to app bookings and may have limits and conditions. If you book clients directly through your own website, you need your own policy.
Paperwork every pet sitter should have
- Service agreement covering services, payment, cancellations and responsibilities
- Veterinary release authorizing you to get emergency care and stating who pays
- Pet profile with feeding, medication, behavior and vet details
- Key and access policy explaining how keys and codes are stored and returned
- Visit reports with a note and a photo after each visit
Tell clients you are covered
Put “insured and bonded” on your website, your booking page and your business cards. It answers a question many clients are already asking themselves, and it supports charging professional rates.
Get the agreements with the starter kit
Our pet sitting and dog walking starter kit includes booking with pet profiles, a meet-and-greet request, visit report templates and a service agreement template. See our guide on how much to charge for dog walking and pet sitting, then vote for the pet care kit. Voters get 20% off at launch.
This is general information, not insurance or legal advice. Read any policy carefully and ask the insurer what is and is not covered.
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