Who is the best dog walker in Guernsey?
A common question that we often hear people ask is “who is the best dog walker in Guernsey?”.
There are a number of factors that you may wish to consider when deciding who the best dog walker in Guernsey is for you and why we think that Mooney and Friends is the best dog walker in Guernsey.
It also goes without saying that Mooney and Friends is the best dog walker in Guernsey, but this is a matter of opinion and like anything, it is of course subjective!
Having said that, here are some reasons why we think that Mooney and Friends may be the best dog walker in Guernsey:
We are dog owners ourselves (we have two Frenchies, Mooney and Laika), so we understand how important it is for dogs to get their exercise, but also how important it is finding someone you can trust to look after your dog in Guernsey!
We offer a free introductory dog walk for all of our clients. This is because we want to get to know your dog with you there, but also to give you the opportunity to ask us questions and to make sure that you feel that we are the right fit for you!
We provide an honest, reliable and flexible service, meaning that if you have any schedule changes that mean you don’t need our help we won’t charge you as long as you let us know a day or more in advance. Equally, if you need extra help with dog walks in Guernsey, we can help by adding on extra walks!
We follow the States of Guernsey Vet’s guidance for dog walkers. This means that our groups are small and we only walk dogs off lead if we are absolutely confident in their recall ability, to keep your dog(s) and others safe.
Mooney and Friends is the best dog walker in Guernsey because of our competitive pricing. Put simply, the more walks you need per week, the less you will pay, which is great news if you have a very active dog.
Mooney and Friends has excellent reviews and a 5-star rating on both Google and Facebook. You can visit our reviews section of the website to read real reviews from our customers!
We use customized, eco-friendly electrical vans, meaning that your dog will be safe during transit.
We know all the best spots for dog walks around the island, meaning that your dog will get to discover new and exciting places.
We carefully match dogs in our small groups together, to ensure that they all get along. While some dog walker take out huge groups of dogs (often off-lead), we keep our groups small to ensure that all of the dogs are friends with each other.
We offer easy, convenient and flexible payment methods. Want to pay for your dog walker with Amex, or another credit card? Not a problem, enjoy your extra air miles!
All of our team members are fully insured, background checked and have extensive training and experience in handling dogs to ensure your dog is kept safe and comfortable at all times.
We also offer pet sitting services, meaning that if you need to go away we can help to look after your dog and he would be looked after by someone that they already know!
We’ll take lots of cool videos and pictures of your dog while they’re out with us. Check out our Instagram page to see some of the most recent pictures that we’ve taken!
We have been operating for over 2 years and are a fully registered and insured business that’s here for the long term.
We support local charities like the GSPCA whenever we can.
We are responsive and will provide you with regular updates as often as you want them.
These are just some of the reasons why we think that Mooney and Friends is the best dog walker in Guernsey, but don’t just take our word for it - contact us today for a free intro walk and get to know us!
Who can look after my cat while I’m away in Guernsey?
While Mooney is a dog (a Frenchie), we cater to the needs of animal friends in all shapes and sizes and this includes cats!
This means that if you’re going away on holiday and need someone to look after your cat in Guernsey, we will be more than happy to help.
While one option is to use the GSPCA cattery we understand that this can be quite costly and it’s also often the case that the cattery in Guernsey doesn’t have space available.
The key benefits of using Mooney and Friends for your cat sitting needs are as follows:
Affordable and cost effective - we can look after your cat from just £20 per day, which includes a morning and evening feed, but can also tailor our package to have more frequent check-ins during the day if required.
Your cat gets to stay within the comfort of the home they know and love and we will pop-in to check in on them and feed them.
More cost effective if you have multiple cats, as we will give you a discount. A bit like a multi-car discount you can sometimes get for insuring multiple cars with the same insurers, we can offer very attractive discounts if you have more than just one feline friend.
Regular updates with pictures for your peace of mind. We know that being away from your cat can be stressful, which is why we will do our best to keep you up to date with how things are going with them, and this includes sending you pictures of them.
We offer a lot of flexibility when it comes to extending our help in looking after your cats. We understand that travel to and from Guernsey can be a nightmare at times, which is why we will always do our best to cater to your needs in case your trip runs over (for example due to Aurigny or Condor cancellations or delays) and we charge our regular agreed rate for any additional days that you require our help for.
That’s just a quick summary of why Mooney and Friends is a professional, reliable and affordable alternative for the cattery in Guernsey, but please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or would like a cat sitting quite from us. Thanks!
How do I know if a dogwalker is reliable and trustworthy?
In today’s blog post we will answer another very popular question asked about dog walkers, namely how to tell if a dog walker (in Guernsey or elsewhere) is trustworthy or reliable.
We think that this topic is very important, because we understand that dogs are basically family members and so it is important to make sure that you entrust your dog with a reliable and professional dog walker.
While it’s of course difficult to guarantee that a dog walker will be a good fit for you and your dog, here is a handy checklist which you can use to work out if the dog walker you’re thinking of using is a trustworthy and reliable dog walker.
Does the dog walker have a website?
While having a website is not necessary to be a good dog walker, it is often a sign that someone takes their job seriously and offers a professional dog walking service. A website is also a good place to get a better feel for the dog walker, because you can read more about them and sometimes every see pictures in their gallery.
How long has the dog walker been working or trading for?
Another thing to look out for is how long a dog walker has been operating for. Generally speaking, the longer they have been going for, the more likely it is that they can be trusted with dogs and it also means that if they have online reviews, you will be able to read a wider selection of them. We often see brand-new dog walker businesses popping up and disappearing very quickly in Guernsey and so there is definitely something to be said for dog walkers who have been trading for a long time.
What do the reviews say?
It’s definitely worth seeing if the dog walker you’re thinking of using has any reviews or testimonials online. Mooney and Friends is currently a 5 Star rated dog walker in Guernsey based on multiple Facebook and Google Reviews.
How responsive is the dog walker?
A good test of reliability is simply checking to see how long it takes the dog walker you’re thinking of using to reply if you contact them. While it’s normal for replies to take a bit longer if you contact a dog walker late in the evening or on a weekend, in general you should expect to get a reply fairly quickly. At Mooney and Friends, we aim to reply to all messages within one working day (and typically on the same day of your query) and you can test this out by visiting the contact us page.
Does the dog walker have a Facebook page?
Similar to the website point at the start, many dog walkers also have a Facebook page which can help to give you a better feel for the dog walker. Things to look out for are reviews, as well as whether the page has pictures of various dogs and sometimes you can also find that dog walkers post stories on their Facebook page which can give you a better idea of their day to day activity. On that note, feel free to check out our Facebook page for Mooney and Friends to see what we’ve been up to!
Is the dog walker insured?
A key thing to look out for is to make sure that your dog walker is fully insured. While insurance is something that most of us pay for and never hope to use, it can offer peace of mind on those rare occasions that something unforeseen happens. To put it differently: you wouldn’t (and shouldn’t) drive a car without insurance and the same is true for dog walkers: a good, reliable dog walker should always have professional dog walker insurance and that is why Mooney and Friends is fully insured.
What vehicle(s) do they use?
Unless your dog walker lives very close to you, chances are that they will need to drive to your dog to pick them up and then drive them to wherever they’re going for their walk. This means that it’s important to know what vehicle your dog(s) will be traveling in, to make sure it’s safe and fit for purpose. For example, Mooney and Friends uses environmentally friendly electric Nissan env-200 vans which have been custom fitted with Kong dog crates to ensure that dogs are safe and secure when traveling.
Has the dog walker completed a dog first aid course?
Another key thing to check is whether the dog walker you’re thinking of using has been first aid trained. All dog walkers at Mooney & Friends have completed doggy first aid training which means that they’re prepared to help if it’s ever required.
How much does the dog walker cost?
We get it - having a regular dog walker can be a big expense. Having said that, as the famous saying goes, if something sounds too good to be true then it probably is and the same is true for dog walkers. In other words, we would say that cheap is rarely best and can be a sign that a dog walker is trying to maximize their profits and/or group sizes, over an above offering a professional and reliable dog walking service. If you want to find out more about how much a dog walker costs in Guernsey then click here.
Does your dog walker offer a free introductory walk?
We strongly believe that every dog walker should spend the time to meet each new client and their dog in a 1 on 1 setting before agreeing to take them on. This is very important because it gives the dog walker the opportunity to find out more about your dog and for example means that if the dog is joining for group walks, they can be paired with suitable dogs. This is why at Mooney and Friends we offer a FREE introductory dog walk for all new dogs we take on in Guernsey.
Does your dog walker collect key details about you and your dog?
At the end of the day, we believe that being a dog walker is a big responsibility and that’s why we ask all new clients to complete and sign a form which contains key information about them and their dog & the services they’d like to sign up for and this forms (no pun intended) the basis of our relationship.
What’s your first impression of the dog walker when you meet them?
Another simple but important thing to look out for is how the dog walker comes across when you speak with them and meet them for the first time. For example, are they on time? If they do happen to be late, did they let you know in advance? Do they sound like they love and care for dogs? Have they walked any dogs of a similar breed before?
How big are the dog walker’s groups?
All dog walkers in Guernsey should abide by the States of Guernsey Guidance for Professional Dog Walkers. Part of this guidance states that dog walkers should exercise no more than 5 dogs at a time, so if the dog walker you’re thinking of using ever walks bigger groups than that then it can be a sign that they’re not abiding by the guidance. At Mooney and Friends the maximum group size for any walks with a single dog walker present is 5, but quite often our groups are even smaller than that. What’s more, we’re also very cautious about which dogs we will walk off-lead, as we have to be sure that those dogs have perfect recall skills.
What kit does the dog walker use?
The equipment used by the dog walker can also be an indicator of whether they are reliable and trustworthy. At Mooney and Friends we use reliable Halti Leads and professional Kong Dog Crates. All of our kit is regularly checked and reviewed and any equipment which is no longer fit for purpose is replaced. We also do not use extendable (retractable) leads because we consider them to be dangerous in a group walking setting.
That’s it for our blog post article about how you can tell whether a dog walker is reliable and trustworthy! While there are other things which you can look out for, the checklist above is a handy starting point for ensuring that your dog(s) end up in the care of a professional, reliable and trustworthy dog walker in Guernsey. Thanks for stopping by and please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like to have a chat about the needs of your dog(s)!
How much is a dog walker in Guernsey?
How much is a dog walker in Guernsey? Find out by reading our blog!
One of the most common questions we hear is “how much is a dog walker in Guernsey” or “how much does it cost to get a dog walker in Guernsey”?
The short (and perhaps unhelpful) answer is that it really depends on your needs and requirements!
As of March 2024, on weekdays we currently charge £20.00 per dog for a 1-hour group walk in Guernsey, while a solo 1-hour dog walk in Guernsey would cost you £22.50, but please bear in mind that these prices are subject to change in the future.
It’s also worth noting that if you have more than 1 dog at home or if you would like us to walk your dog 5 or more times a week (for example Monday - Friday and on Saturdays), then we would be more than happy to discuss adding in a small discount for you, so please feel free to contact us about this.
If the cost of getting a dog walker in Guernsey is too high for you, then perhaps you might want to consider our check-in service, which starts from just £12.50 per dog!
This option is great if your dog just requires someone to pop in during the day, for example to play with your dog, let them outside, feed them or make sure that their water bowl is sufficiently filled up.
Our lunchtime check-ins in Guernsey are especially popular with people working in town, because we all know how much of a hassle it can be to try and find a parking space after lunchtime!