Being a dog walker is awesome. Seriously, it rocks. But I thought it would be worth noting down, in no particular order, the five best things about being a dog walker.
Fresh Air and Nature
No matter what the weather is like, every day we are forced out into the fresh air. We get to spend at least a couple of hours a day walking through woods, or on the beach, or through open fields. As you might already know, we pride ourselves on interesting and exciting walks. The benefits of getting outside are huge, this could be the topic of a whole blog in itself! In fact, I’ll probably write that one too…keep an eye out.
I love getting outdoors, even when it’s cold and rainy. But even so, I used to avoid it! Something I’ve learned since becoming a dog walker is that the thought is always worse than the reality.
Once I’m out and about, the fresh air wakes me up, energises me, and gets me feeling really good. Being somewhere surrounded by nature doubles that up and, at the risk of sounding super-hippy, I just feel more connected to everything around me.
Exercise
Most jobs these days are very sedentary. Usually you will be working in an office or something similar, and you will mostly be sitting down. Our bodies did not evolve to sit down all day, they evolved to move, to do physical work! Being a dog walker gets you moving.
Prior to becoming a dog walker I was working in the fitness industry for six years, and even that didn’t get me as active as walking dogs!
Being more active reduces the risk of a ton of problems, including:
- Coronary heart disease and stroke reduced by 35%
- Type 2 Diabetes reduced by 50%
- Colon cancer reduced by 50%
- Breast cancer reduced by 20%
- Early death reduced by 30%
- Osteoarthritis reduced by 83%
- Hip fracture reduced by 68%
- Falls (in older adults) reduced by 30%
- Depression reduced by 30%
- Dementia reduced by 30%
Being Sociable
By growing our client base we have met so many cool and interesting people in our local area. Such a wide variety of people have a love of dogs, and it’s amazing what you can learn from meeting new people.
Not only that, but we meet so many other dogs and their humans while we are out and about. When you are out walking with your pack and you come across someone else with theirs you can’t help but connect on some level!
Communication in general is super-important to us, not only do we enjoy meeting new people but also building strong relationships with our current humans. We give feedback to clients after every walk, including photos of what their dogs have been up to!
Read more: About
Great Hours
The majority of people need their dogs walking in the middle of the day, while they are out at work. We do a slot either side of lunchtime, currently at 11:30am and 1pm, to make sure that’s covered. This means we start mid-morning and finish before the school run, which is perfect for us with two young daughters!
Most evenings we spend chatting to clients and sharing stories from the day, and socialising in our online community: The Adventure Paws Club (come check it out!)
Dogs
Last but certainly not least, we just love the dogs!
Neither of us can come away from a walk without a beaming smile, no matter the weather, terrain or any other difficulty.
There’s just something about spending time with the unbridled joy of dogs. The way they truly live in the moment is something I think we humans could really learn from. They are the perfect example of mindfulness!
Add to that the 15,000 (or possibly up to 36,000) year joint history of humans and domesticated canines, and no wonder we are connected so strongly.
What about you?
What do you think are the best things about walking dogs? Let us know in the comments!
And don’t forget to connect with us on Facebook and Instagram.
Big love,
Jay