Feeding Plans, Vaccination & Vet Emergency Contacts for Pet Sitters

The handover is the one moment when you receive all the information you will later need. It also happens under time pressure: the owner is heading to work, the dog is excited. A fixed structure helps more than a good memory.

The most common cause of complaints in pet care is not an emergency but a digestive upset following an unintended change of food or a wrong quantity. Both are avoidable if the plan states three things: the time, the quantity in grams, and the exact product name.

Household measures are the heart of the problem. A cup may hold 120 or 250 grams depending on the cup and the food. For a small dog that is the difference between half and double the daily ration.

Two additions make the plan workable. First, write down explicitly what the animal must not have — with allergies the forbidden list matters more than the permitted one. Second, record what to do if a meal is refused. A dog that skips one meal is rarely an emergency; a dog that leaves two is a reason to call.

Most handover notes give only a product name and a rough time. That is not enough for safe administration. These three are missing most often:

1. The exact dose in units or milligrams — "half a tablet" is only unambiguous if the strength is known as well.
2. Whether it is given with or without food — for some active substances this changes absorption considerably.
3. What applies if a dose was skipped — catch up or skip? This question arises more often than owners expect.

There is also a boundary worth knowing. Administering a medicine prescribed by a vet, following that vet's instructions, is part of the care you provide. Adjusting a dose yourself, skipping a dose at your own discretion, or giving something that was not prescribed is not. When in doubt: call, do not decide.

Signing off each administration with date and time has proven its worth in practice. It takes five seconds and answers every later question.

For caring for several dogs together — group walks, day care, boarding — documented vaccination status is the norm. In Germany, statutory requirements centre chiefly on rabies vaccination in connection with travel; beyond that, requirements follow your own terms of care and, where applicable, the rules of the responsible veterinary authority.

Booster intervals follow the marketing authorisation of the particular vaccine and the assessment of the treating veterinary practice; they differ between products. Rely on the date in the vaccination record rather than on a rule of thumb.

• Record the expiry date, not the vaccination date — only that lets you set a useful reminder.
• Check the record yourself when taking on a new animal instead of relying on the owner's word.
• Set a reminder four weeks before expiry; a booster appointment is not always available at short notice.
• For group care, define which proofs you require — and apply the rule to every client equally.

An emergency while you are out leaves no time to search. The details must sit in one place you can reach one-handed within seconds.

• Name of the veterinary practice, phone number, and full address
• Opening hours and, explicitly, the nearest emergency practice for evenings and weekends
• The owner's mobile number and a second number as a fallback
• The animal's microchip number and the registry it is listed with
• Known pre-existing conditions and intolerances in one sentence
• The treatment authorisation with its monetary limit

The last point is forgotten most often and is the trickiest when it matters. Without authorisation it is unclear whether you may commission treatment when the owner cannot be reached. A written arrangement — for instance treatment up to 400 euros without consultation, above that only after contact — creates clarity for both sides and belongs in your care agreement.

Having the information is one half. Reaching it while you are out is the other. A folder on a shelf does not help when you are standing in the park.

1. Reachable on the device you carry anyway — usually the phone.
2. Findable by the animal's name, not the owner's surname. Out on a round, you think in animals.
3. Updatable without creating two versions. A note on the phone and a sheet at home will drift apart.

For recurring assignments a fourth point applies: fixed walks or day care should be enterable as a series. Booking every Tuesday round individually costs time and eventually you will miss one.

1. Animal details including weight and microchip number recorded.
2. Feeding plan with time, quantity in grams, and product name noted.
3. Forbidden list for allergies and intolerances written down.
4. Medication documented with dose, timing, and what to do if a dose is skipped.
5. Vaccination record seen, expiry date noted, reminder set.
6. Veterinary practice and emergency practice with addresses stored.
7. Second means of reaching the owner recorded.
8. Treatment authorisation with monetary limit agreed in writing.
9. Key handover and return documented.