# recommended courses for dog walkers and pet sitters?



## Amanda Woolham (Apr 15, 2017)

Hi everyone,
Does anyone have any recommendations please for good courses? Has anyone done a dog walking diploma? Was it worth it?


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

Hi Amanda,

We did the dog and cat first aid courses online which is definitely worth doing, even just for the practical advice and just in case something should happen. 
We used a online trainer called ncfe dot org dot uk (sorry can't put proper link for some reason)

Really helpful and easy to contact if you have any questions. You can do the course at your own pace, which is great! When we were setting up we were always busy!

Always happy to help!

Simon


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## amberferne (Apr 25, 2017)

Hi, 

I was going to ask the same question, I'm looking at starting my own dog walking/sitting business and want to do some courses to help me understand it better but there seems to be hundreds of different sites offering online courses and I don't know mid some are more reputable than others... please help? 

Amber


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

amberferne said:


> Hi,
> 
> I was going to ask the same question, I'm looking at starting my own dog walking/sitting business and want to do some courses to help me understand it better but there seems to be hundreds of different sites offering online courses and I don't know mid some are more reputable than others... please help?
> 
> Amber


Hi Amber,

I can only definitely vouch for the course I mentioned before I took through ncfe.org.uk, they are a big nationwide trainer.

I took the Animal care level 2 and dog & car first aid with them and received certificates after the course was completed, they are nationally recognised qualifications.

I'm also a member of NARPSUK who provide a variety of courses which are also nationally recognised and are the biggest the national organisation specifically for dog walkers and pet sitters.

I do agree you have to be abit careful due to the amount of scammers online nowadays - It's just a sad fact that some people are like that.

Ive got a couple of posts on my blog at petbusinessland.co.uk that may help you (writing more as we speak!)

Always happy to help.

Simon


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

Sorry that should of been dog & cat first aid not dog & car!!


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## Nikkibee93 (May 16, 2017)

Simon. said:


> Hi Amber,
> 
> I can only definitely vouch for the course I mentioned before I took through ncfe.org.uk, they are a big nationwide trainer.
> 
> ...


Hi, i cant seem to find the dog and first aid course on the ncfe website. Can you point me in the right direction please?


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

Nikkibee93 said:


> Hi, i cant seem to find the dog and first aid course on the ncfe website. Can you point me in the right direction please?


First of all - My Apologies!!

It's been a few years since I took the courses!

I took the animal care level 2 course with ncfe - 
https://www.openstudycollege.com/courses/animal-care-2.html

The dog and cat first aid courses I took were with protrainings - 
http://www.protrainings.eu/courses/22-pet-first-aid

I took both courses online, the animal care level 2 was great.

After thinking back about the first aid course, I remember thinking at the time that it would of been better to do in a classroom environment with practical exercises rather than theory based training.

The first aid qualification generally only lasts around 3 years, so you have to re-take the course. I haven't got any classroom first aid courses that I could recommend as I haven't taken a classroom based course, but after taking an online course, I would recommend taking a classroom course instead, simply for the hands on training aspect. - I hope that all makes sense?!!

If I can help you with anything else, just let me know.

Simon 
PetBusinessLand.co.uk


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## Nikkibee93 (May 16, 2017)

Simon. said:


> First of all - My Apologies!!
> 
> It's been a few years since I took the courses!
> 
> ...


Thank you Simon, i was thinking a class room course would be better, i have found one for £45 near me in Glasgow which seems reasonable, i just want to make sure it is going to be worth the money so having a further look to make sure I find one that will be recognised as a proper qualification. I have completed an animal care course and feel, the first aid course would also be beneficial to have. Going to have a little nosey at your website just now.


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

Nikkibee93 said:


> Thank you Simon, i was thinking a class room course would be better, i have found one for £45 near me in Glasgow which seems reasonable, i just want to make sure it is going to be worth the money so having a further look to make sure I find one that will be recognised as a proper qualification. I have completed an animal care course and feel, the first aid course would also be beneficial to have. Going to have a little nosey at your website just now.


£45 does sound pretty good!
I think first aid courses are definitely worth taking for 2 reasons really.
1 - You're going to give your clients the reassurance that you're professional and have taken the time to take the course and gain the certificate.
2 - If the worst should happen whilst you're out walking, you will feel more confident that you know how to handle the situation.

I've only needed to 'spring into action' once, it was about a year and a half ago. I remember thinking just keep calm and do what I've learned!
Everything was absolutely fine in the end (thankfully!) and she is still one of our clients now!

Our client was so pleased and happy how it was all dealt with.
The dog was very young at the time and full of beans (and still is!) she managed to cut her side quite deep on a broken fence, which the farmer who owned it, hadn't fixed. Our four-legged friend wanted to carry on running around playing, she wasn't very impressed at all that her playtime was shortened and couldn't seem to work out what all the fuss was about!

I would recommend to anybody to always carry a fully stocked First Aid kit in your van. Hopefully, you'll never have to use it though.

Hope you enjoyed my site, we're currently writing more posts for the blog and we'll publish them as soon as they're ready. I'm trying to make them as detailed as possible, so it's definitely not a quick process!

Just let me know if I can help you with anything.


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## Nikkibee93 (May 16, 2017)

Simon. said:


> £45 does sound pretty good!
> I think first aid courses are definitely worth taking for 2 reasons really.
> 1 - You're going to give your clients the reassurance that you're professional and have taken the time to take the course and gain the certificate.
> 2 - If the worst should happen whilst you're out walking, you will feel more confident that you know how to handle the situation.
> ...


Yes i always thought taking the first aid course was a great idea and even for peace of mind for my own dog if anything happened. Definitely worth having. 
Oh wow, at least you knew exactly what to do. I have seen a couple first aid kits on amazon so still deciding on which one to get. 
Yes, keep me update on what blogs you have, my next step just now if designing my logo, i know exactly what i want and im still trying to figure out the best way of getting it designed and then start looking into getting a decent website up and running. Still in the early stage of things but slowly moving forward. You have been very helpful and it is greatly appreciated.


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

Nikkibee93 said:


> Yes i always thought taking the first aid course was a great idea and even for peace of mind for my own dog if anything happened. Definitely worth having.
> Oh wow, at least you knew exactly what to do. I have seen a couple first aid kits on amazon so still deciding on which one to get.
> Yes, keep me update on what blogs you have, my next step just now if designing my logo, i know exactly what i want and im still trying to figure out the best way of getting it designed and then start looking into getting a decent website up and running. Still in the early stage of things but slowly moving forward. You have been very helpful and it is greatly appreciated.


No problem. I can recommend PeoplePerHour.com for logo designers. I've hired freelance logo designers and graphic designers from there many times, since they began 10 years ago for websites I've built over the years.

If you need help sourcing a good logo designer, just send me an email. There is a few 'not so good' designers advertising on People Per Hour aswell!


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## DogWalkingPeople (Jun 23, 2017)

Hi Simon, I'd be grateful for your recommendations for logo designers please. I've just filled out my requirements on peopleperhour and would like to separate the wheat from the chaff when/if the offers start coming through.

Also, I have no idea how much a budget vs intermediate design would cost, any ideas? Is less than £100 achievable?


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## Simon. (Apr 18, 2017)

DogWalkingPeople said:


> Hi Simon, I'd be grateful for your recommendations for logo designers please. I've just filled out my requirements on peopleperhour and would like to separate the wheat from the chaff when/if the offers start coming through.
> 
> Also, I have no idea how much a budget vs intermediate design would cost, any ideas? Is less than £100 achievable?


Hi,
Having a logo designed for less than £100 is definitely achievable. Try to keep in the region of £20-£45.

The main guidelines I always give when choosing a freelancer are:

Always make sure they offer unlimited revisions of your design. If a freelancer only offers 2 or 3 revisions you could end up with a logo you don't really like!
Always use a freelancer that has the same native language as you and are based In the same country as you. Both of these points just simplifies the whole process and cuts down any possible confusion when explaining what you would like and how you would like it to be changed (revised)
Don't be overwhelmed by the amount of quotes you will get! You will get many quotes, your first quote will come usually within 10mins! and you will continue to get quotes for around 12-24 hours (and a few more after that) 
In the middle of the description of your job, put a sentence like - "please start your quote with the word 'Apple's" it sounds a bit strange but it's a great way to make sure the freelancer has fully read your job description and you are not getting an auto response from a bot.
Don't reply (or do anything!) for at least 24hrs, then disregard any quotes that don't meet the criteria (revisions, language or start quote with a word)

People per hour have a clarification board where freelancers can ask questions about the job. This usually is a big waste of your time! It is usually filled with questions from auto responders that freelancers use. You will see things like - "...contact me I can start immediately" or "...would you like your logo designed in Adobe" my advice is just ignore the clarification board, If you've explained that you want a logo for your pet care business and you've uploaded any images that are similar in design to what you are after, then, it's pretty clear what you are after!

Hope this is helpful
Simon


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