Policies and Procedures

Welcome to the VIP Pet Family!

Office Hours: M-F, 9:00 am – 6:00 pm. Our office is closed on Saturday and Sunday.
Email and Phones: Monitored until 8 pm weeknights.
After-Hours Emergencies: Please call 469-215-7387 and leave a message to have someone paged.
Regular Pet Sitting Hours: 7 am – 9 pm, 7 days/week; additional fees apply outside of regular hours

We’re drooling with excitement that you’ve decided to become a very important part of Very Important Pets, LLC, a premier pet services company.

We take pride in caring for your pets and have a few commands to share that will help our sit and your stay run as smoothly as possible.

Let’s shake on it!

Reservations so easy a pet could make

Make reservations or changes to reservations through our website, via email or by phoning VIP Pets at either 972-416-0861 or 512-275-6701, not through your pet sitter.Last minute? It can be tough to collar a busy pet sitter at the last minute, but we do our best (and only when it doesn’t compromise our commitments with other clients). Additional fees may apply to reservations made with less than 48 hours notice.

Need to cancel?

Cancellations made within 24 hours of the first scheduled visit will be subject to a cancellation fee equal to one visit. This applies to non-holiday pet sitting visits only. Midday dog walks are refundable as long as we can catch the dog walker in advance of the visit.

Flexible scheduling

We don’t want your pet to have to beg! Your VIP Pet Sitter is available and happy to visit your pet as often as you request to make sure that your pets get the love and attention that they need to thrive. At a minimum, we recommend one daily visit for all cats and outside dogs and two daily visits for indoor dogs that do not have outside access.

Come and stay

Our sitters do their best to arrive as close to your preferred time as possible, but cannot guarantee an exact hour. Each of our pets needs undivided attention and each sitter routes assignments to spend time based on the animals’ needs and circumstance. Should your sitter be unavailable due to illness or emergency, we will make certain another one of our screened and qualified sitters steps in to care for your pet. If you have time-sensitive issues – administering medicine, vet or grooming appointments, package acceptance, home maintenance, etc., please notify the office in advance so that we can accommodate you.

Raining cats and dogs?

We’ll get out our galoshes and unleash the fun regardless of inclement weather. VIP Pet Services performs all pet sitting visits in all types of weather, however, we must exercise regard for our sitters’ safety. In extreme weather conditions, morning visits may occur a little later and evening visits earlier.In case of everyday storms, dogs will be walked unless conditions prove unsafe to the pet and walker. Indoor play will be exchanged. But if the Federal Government closes or goes on “unscheduled leave” due to inclement weather or natural disaster, all regularly scheduled dog walks are canceled and fully refunded.

Holiday Reservations and Cancellations

Holidays are busy! Book early! Holiday reservations must be secured with a credit card at the time of booking. We’re giving you a little leash here. Holiday cancellations are refunded in full if made two weeks prior to the first visit.

One week prior, 50% is refundable.
At least 3 days prior, 25% is refundable.
Less than three days, 0% is refundable.

Holidays include but are not limited to:

Spring Break (the entire month of March)
Easter weekend
Memorial Day weekend
Fourth of July Week (July 2nd – 5th)
Labor Day Weekend
Thanksgiving Week
Also: December 20th – January 4th

We compensate our pet sitters a little more during these times for putting in the extra effort. This extra compensation helps to motivate sitters to stay in town and care for your pets during the holidays and forego their vacation to another “off-peak” time. A $10 holiday charge is incurred for each of the following days:

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day
Easter
Memorial Day
Independence Day
Labor Day
Thanksgiving Day and Day After Thanksgiving
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Secure access

VIP Pet Services strongly recommends using a lockbox for our pet sitters to access your home, just as your Realtor or contractor would use. We offer two styles. A doorknob version attaches to a doorknob, gas meter, fence rail or other immovable objects (for $20, plus tax and shipping). A wall mount style adheres to a doorframe, siding, garage frame (for $30 plus tax and shipping). Keep your keys secure and available on your property at all times.If you choose not to use a lockbox, you may place your key somewhere on your property or schedule a key pick up prior to your service date (an $18 pick up fee applies). VIP Pet Services will also safe keep your keys for future use. We need two workable copies.

VIP Pet Services strongly recommends that you give a key to a neighbor. Protect your pet in the event of an emergency or natural disaster.

We’re just part of the pack checking on your pets!

VIP Pet Services does not recommend job sharing. Unlocked doors, over feedings, missed feedings, lost keys and miss-set alarms complicate matters and compromise the safety of your pet. Our insurance policies prohibit these situations. Please notify the office if a neighbor, housekeeper or anyone other than a VIP person has access to your home while you are away. Sorry to bark, but we reserve the right to decline these assignments.

You’re home! You’re home!

Let us know when you’ve arrived home. We want to know that all is okay. Should you encounter a challenge and change in plans, contact the office immediately so that we can add any visits necessary, else, we will assume that you have returned home as expected. We will follow-up by email on the last day of your reservation. Please respond to let us know how we did.

Payment

VIP Pet Services requires a valid credit card or debit card to secure all pet sitting reservations. We will charge your card for all payments 2 days prior to the first day of the scheduled visit.Simple payment options:

Enter credit card online through our website
Call us with your credit card in hand: 972-416-0861 or 512-275-6701

Please be aware!

VIP Pet Services is not responsible for any loss, injury or death that may occur to pets with open access to the outdoors while you’re away. This includes dogs in a fenced yard, cats that roam outside, and dogs and cats that use a pet door to come and go.

For specifics on cancellations, restrictions or liability, please refer to your contract with VIP Pet Services.

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