Why We Don't Offer Dog Sitting as Part of our Pet Sitting Service

Introduction

With a name like The Cat Butler, it’s abundantly clear that our pet sitting services are exclusively for feline friends. However, we are often asked why we only offer our services to cats. Some may wonder whether this limits opportunity within a pet sitting business, especially when many of our competitors provide their services to all animals.

It’s our honest belief (and demonstrated by our track record!) that our focus on providing specialised cat sitting is a net positive for the business and our franchise network. In this article, we share a handful of great reasons that back this up:

Our Focus on Cats

For our customers and their busy modern lives, it’s not always possible for people to entrust caring for their pet to a relative or friend. And so, they inevitably turn to one of the many options, including a boarding kennel or pet sitting service.

Dogs, by their nature, are highly sociable animals, making them unsuitable to be left for long periods, including overnight. In contrast, while being sociable, cats are much more independent, requiring different care and attention from dogs.

This allows flexibility for our customers to offer one or two daily visits, making for an affordable, quality service that suits their cat's needs.

This flexibility in caring for our feline friends works well for our customers and offers a service that’s tailored to their pet's wants and needs, understanding their temperament and behaviour to ensure they are comfortable while their owners are away.

In addition, some owners have several cats, and equal care for all of them brings its own set of challenges and opportunities that Cat Butlers are uniquely skilled to provide. Compared with an alternative, such as a cattery, this makes for an affordable, well-defined service that customers understand and trust. But don't just take our word for it, read here what some of our clients have to say about their Cat Butler experience.

Caring for Kitty’s Emotional State

Cats are very territorial, especially when it comes to other animals. Their sense of smell is much stronger than us humans (14 times stronger, in fact!).

As their sense of smell is so sensitive, it is important for us not to smell of the animals that cats consider as predators or bring an unfamiliar scent into a cat’s environment, particularly dogs.

We ensure we do not arrive smelling of a dog or other animals, as we know how unsettling this can be for some cats, especially the indoor kitties.

You become an expert in Cat Care

The Cat Butler has remained exclusively for cats and has only offered our services to cat owners for the last seven years. This means we’re experts in the field of cat care. As we only work with cats, we have gained a vast amount of knowledge and experience when it comes to feline care!

It is true that dogs are commonly referred to as man’s best friend, but here at the Cat Butler, our feline friends come first.

We offer services that fit perfectly to our clients and their cats. As we solely care for cats, our services are more attractive to owners who prefer a service with this specialism.

Cat Butlers are Cat Owners and Cat Lovers!

Our Cat Butlers are experienced cat owners, which means our clients are safe in the knowledge that their precious kitty will be looked after by a Cat Butler as if they were their own. They don’t just look after them because it’s their job, they choose this position out of genuine love and respect for cats.

Serving and taking care of cats is our passion. We understand their behavioural tendencies and exactly how to make them feel comfortable. This is why we are more than just a feeding service, and dedicate the time to care for our kitty customers, cleaning up any accidents that they may be the culprit of, administering any medicines or injections that are required, but most importantly, spending quality time with them, playing, cuddling and rubbing their chins as well!

We Offer More

While some pet sitting services simply visit the pet for a few moments to feed and water, The Cat Butler, in addition to caring for a customer's cat, provides a complimentary home care and security service whilst clients are away from home.

We are able to offer our clientele more peace of mind by deterring any criminal activity by opening and closing curtains of a morning and evening and turning lights on and off in different rooms to ensure your home appears lived in and remains safe.

If required, we can also keep our client’s indoor and patio plants alive with daily watering. On top of that, we are also more than happy to take in post and accept deliveries and see that the recycling and refuse bins are collected and put away.

Conclusion

With over 12 million cats in the UK (Source: PFMA Pet Population 2021), the cat sitting market is substantial.

For a typical franchise territory (the area where a Cat Butler franchisee operates), this means 27% of households are potential customers to use their specialised cat sitting service.

The focus on only cats serves as both a marketing opportunity as well as a reassurance for any cat owner that their feline friend will be well cared for by an experienced pet sitter.

Next Steps

If you’d like to learn more about setting up your own cat sitting business with The Cat Butler, please call us on 07896 233754 or 01727 821372 or email franchise@thecatbutler.co.uk.

You can also request a copy of our free franchising brochure, which contains a wealth of information about our history, the opportunity, its rewards and the candidates we’re looking for.

Sandra James

Owner & Founder

The Cat Butler was set up by Sandra James in recognition of the fact that a stay in the cattery can be extremely distressing and unsettling for most cats and also their owners.