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Got pets? Got houseplants? Ever worried what on earth to do with them while you're on vacation or away on business? Well, so does everyone else! This is a business that is low, low cost to start up. Your only expenses will be the cost of promoting your new business and running costs for your car (which are, of course, tax deductible).

Essentially, all that is involved is to go to people's houses once or twice a day while they're on vacation or a business trip, collect the mail, feed and play with their pets (oh, go on, throw the tennis ball to the dog just one more time), refill the water bowls, maybe walk the dog, clean out the cats' litter tray, turn lights on and off, feed the fish and water the plants. What could be easier?

Of course, it's not quite THAT easy. This is a business that carries with it a great deal of responsibility and trust on the part of your clients. They rely on you to care for their home and their pets during their absence. If you're looking after pets, there's no missing an appointment. Things to consider:

Getting The Word Out

Placing a classified ad in your local newspaper would be a good start. You will probably want to confine yourself to a reasonably local area to avoid incurring excessive transport costs. Also consider placing a flyer on bulletin boards around your local area. Good places include local vets, community halls, shopping centres, schools and churches. Of course, do a letter box drop of your leaflet to houses in the area you are targetting.

References

Obtain character references if possible. Your clients will be entrusting you with the keys to their home. Every assurance you can give them about your personal integrity and trustworthiness will make them more comfortable doing business with you.

Testimonials

Once you have some satisfied clients, ask for testimonials and make these available to prospective clients.

Fee Structure

Decide how you will charge for your services. For example, $10 per day, a fixed rate for the duration of the say, a variable rate depending on the service required. Be sure to factor in your costs of transport and any other expenses you necessarily incur such as buying additional pet food.

Transport

You will need a reliable car and a method of logging mileage for tax-deduction purposes.

Security

You will need a system for keeping your clients' housekeys secure. You need a way to identify which set of keys belongs to which house/apartment but you DO NOT want to make this transparent. You must vigilant to ensure that no one else is able to identify which keys belong to which address. Just imagine if someone broke into your home and got hold of all of your clients' keys!

Contact Information

Make sure you have a way to contact your clients in the event of an emergency in their absence.

Veterinary Information

If you are looking after pets, make sure you have contact information for their usual vet in case of medical emergencies.

Supplies

Ensure your clients leave adequate supplies of pet food for the duration of their absence and instructions as to quantities, frequency of feeding etc.

Multiple Animals