How Much Do Dog Walkers Make?

How much do dog walkers make? You hear the glamorous stories of famous dog walkers making upwards of $100K a year, but is that normal? Those folks are definitely unusual, but how much dog walkers make depends on a lot of factors.

Region

Dog walkers in big cities can make a lot of money catering to the rich and famous. Then again, these folks often have personal staff that take care of their dogs and do not need dog walkers. Really to know how much dog walkers make you need to look at the normal areas, not the extremely rich in the big cities. It is true that the cost of living is higher in larger cities and thus dog walkers make more. In areas where there is a lower cost of living, how much dog walkers make will be lower.

Experience

A Professional Dog Walking Company will charge more and thus pay their dog walkers more than a neighbor’s kid. Plus employees of a dog walking company should be covered by insurance, get time off and other perks. As a client, with a professional dog walking company you gain experience, animal expertise, a back up plan for emergencies and a generally higher level of professionalism. You pay more, but it is typically worth it.

Group vs Individual Dog Walk

You see a lot of pictures of one person walking a group of 15 dogs. While this does happen, the normal case is much less glamorous. Most dog walkers only walks dog together from the same household, so only 1-2 at a time. Individual walks tend to be from 15 minutes to 1 hour in length, so through the course of an afternoon a dog walker could work with up to 8 household, depending on the time and length of the walks. Many people want mid-day dog walks, which limits the amount of visits a dog walker can take on.

For group walks, there is a lot of time invested in the pick up and drop off of the dogs. The walks tend to be longer so the dog walker may only take out one group per day. In both individual and group dog walks, how much the dog walker makes will depend on the number of walks and dogs in the group.

Overall

So really, how much do dog walkers make? This can vary greatly but generally falls in the range of $10-25 an hour. If you are curious how much our dog walkers make, you can read up on our Hiring Guide. There are many ways to structure being a dog walker but in most cases it will be a fun job that you can enjoy, pay is ok and you can get out and enjoy the sunshine!