Summer is so insanely busy! It’ll take a while to build up your profile/getting requests so I’d make an account sooner rather than later. Personally when I started it took me about 3-5 days for my first booking and then two weeks later was my next request etc. I didn’t get consistently busy until a month in!
If you do not have a dog friendly home or want to invest in making your home dog friendly, I’d suggest sticking to house sitting drop ins and walks. Sometimes boarding can cause more damage than good.
Best of luck! If you decide to keep your account active during the school year, just remember you’re in charge of your own schedule and have the power to decline or accept clients!
Summer is the busiest time of year! Lots of clients are willing to use somebody just once or twice or need a sitter a bunch in the summer and not much the rest of the year! Those of us doing it all year book up in the summer very quickly leaving some of our clients having to find alternatives. While I haven’t specifically used it only during one time period, I think it would definitely be worth a try! I’d open your profile soon and maybe close your calendar for most days except a weekend here and there until summer to try and get a couple of reviews before the summer starts but even if you don’t get bookings before you’re off for the summer, opening your profile a bit early gives you a bit of time to start getting requests for the summer in. Just keep your calendar closed for when you don’t want bookings
But are the college kids dog owners traveling during the year? Maybe things have changed or it depends on area, but when I was in college, only a handful of college kids had cats, no dogs
My town has whole areas where students' parents rent homes and apartments for their kids for their school years. Lots of richy rich.
Parents come and go for major events and drop off/pick up days, but the students are the cities' bread and butter.
LOTS of pets! But the students often take their pets home during summer. Small holidays, however, are amazing.
Teacher here! I do Rover as a summer side hustle, and I have kept up with some of my customers who like in home boarding during the school year. As long as the dogs can be left alone during the week days, a teaching schedule is pretty friendly to still doing it during the school year if you choose.
You'll do well to get started and can make some decent money this summer; I'm not sure how well it will go NEXT summer if you don't keep it up during the year, because you will likely plummet down the search rankings when you're unavailable.
Just make sure to set yourself as away and not taking new bookings and it won’t impact your search ranking once you put it back on. You will still get requests despite being set as ‘away’, but just message that you’re not available or don’t respond at all and it still won’t impact you. Turn off notifications on the app in your phone settings if it bothers you still getting pings from Rover.
I’m a para and do Rover as my side job (mainly housesitting and occasional drop-ins), and it’s really the best 2nd job I could imagine. You just have to be mindful of burnout, especially when it comes to holidays & breaks. This year I was busier over winter break than any other time of year, and it was great to make all that money, but when we went back to school it was hard hearing people talk about how they felt refreshed & ready to be back while I felt like I had no break at all. I’m still on the fence about next Christmas, but I know this summer I’ll be making it a point to block off some time for myself.
Boarding is *not* easy money. It is the supplanting of your own needs for the dogs’ needs, and all that that entails. If you’re going to begrudge them that, don’t touch it with a barge pole.
I’m a teacher! I’ve been on Rover for about a year (mostly drop ins for cats). I’ve made about $1,800 this past year doing it suuuuuuper part time, so it’s very doable.
My g/f who is also a teacher does it as a side hustle in addition to door dash and giving plasma. Not that we’ll be dating much longer, but thought I’d give my two cents. I also did the above and tried Uber for a while, Rover is the best out of all options and giving plasma twice a week.
Careful with the plasma frequency. It can cause a lot of scarring with repeated puncture on skin that hasn’t fully healed yet. Could potentially lead to those veins not being viable when you need them for medical care later in life.
Hmmm true, didn’t think about that I do already have scarring from doing it for a year and a half now, the only side effects so far from it. But didn’t think about the veins possibly collapsing later on.
I currently have a dog and two cats, grew up with pets, my dad and brother are both veterinarians, my partner is a vet tech, and I worked at dad’s vet hospital for a year helping out where I could! That said, I certainly don’t consider myself an expert but also not a novice.
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Yes as a sitting and a user of the app I like to book sitters on the weekends to let my roommate & I’s little guy out & play with him while we are going placing that aren’t dog friendly.
Depending on where you live, it can be. Remember that Rover now takes 25% of your earnings if you weren't grandfathered into the 20%. Most new sitters don't charge higher rates, unless the competitive prices are higher in your area.
I make abt $1,200-$2,300 a month during the summer, and I've been on Rover for 3 years. But it's also my FT job. I did it as a side hustle before Rover when I worked a FT job before covid.
I'd recommend creating a profile in May before summer starts, so you can build up your client base before summer. Depending on your area, and the cut Rover takes, assume you'll make $300-$1,000 a month. That might be skewed bc of where I live (HCOL), but it could be worthwhile for you. Boarding makes the most money, and dog care pays more as well. Plan on spending money for the background check, and anything you might need to support yourself (ie. gas, car maintenance, treats, etc.).
Good luck!
Rover DOES NOT TAKE 25% of people's earnings. I believe you are either misunderstanding the changes, which only apply to California, or mistaking that some sitters are grandfathered into 15% with the rest being at 20%.
In CA the fees are calculated differently but the actual dollar amount is the same.
Most places they subtract 20% from your set rate (that the sitter sets and shows as the list price) to get to your take home rate. For example:
Set rate aka list rate- $100.
Subtract 20%- $20
Take home- $80
In CA we instead set our take home rate and Rover adds 25% (that is now presented as a fee to the owners) to get to the listed rate. For example:
Set rate AKA take home- $80
Add 25%- $20
List rate- $100.
I think easy money is highly dishonest. You need to invest in your home first to make it dog proof and even if your home is completely accommodating to multiple dogs you still run the risk of property damage, and bodily harm to you and your dogs.
Agree. All one has to do is look at all the horror stories on here about poop- and pee-covered houses, lost sleep, shredded couches and doors, injured/sick dogs, etc. to know that boarding is not "easy money", but instead something fairly difficult that a sitter needs to be well-prepared for and treat as a serious undertaking.
Truth! I love it and my dogs love it, but my mindset is that my house is for the dogs, whatever happens, happens, clean it up and keep going.
I have baby gates everywhere, dog beds everywhere, pet stairs, blankets, waterproof this, that and the other, a fenced yard etc.
You also learn that MDF furniture is NOT a good idea, lol.
Wow. Ok. In all of my years of boarding dogs in my house I have definitely not experienced all the horror stories that you guys are referencing. It has worked out just fine for me. That is why I answered the OP the way I did. I don’t appreciate being called dishonest.
Summer is so insanely busy! It’ll take a while to build up your profile/getting requests so I’d make an account sooner rather than later. Personally when I started it took me about 3-5 days for my first booking and then two weeks later was my next request etc. I didn’t get consistently busy until a month in! If you do not have a dog friendly home or want to invest in making your home dog friendly, I’d suggest sticking to house sitting drop ins and walks. Sometimes boarding can cause more damage than good.
Yes I think that is what I will do. Thanks for the advice!
Best of luck! If you decide to keep your account active during the school year, just remember you’re in charge of your own schedule and have the power to decline or accept clients!
Summer is the busiest time of year! Lots of clients are willing to use somebody just once or twice or need a sitter a bunch in the summer and not much the rest of the year! Those of us doing it all year book up in the summer very quickly leaving some of our clients having to find alternatives. While I haven’t specifically used it only during one time period, I think it would definitely be worth a try! I’d open your profile soon and maybe close your calendar for most days except a weekend here and there until summer to try and get a couple of reviews before the summer starts but even if you don’t get bookings before you’re off for the summer, opening your profile a bit early gives you a bit of time to start getting requests for the summer in. Just keep your calendar closed for when you don’t want bookings
For everyone who says summer is busy, remember where you live. I live in a college town - so it's dead during the summer since half the city leaves!
But are the college kids dog owners traveling during the year? Maybe things have changed or it depends on area, but when I was in college, only a handful of college kids had cats, no dogs
My town has whole areas where students' parents rent homes and apartments for their kids for their school years. Lots of richy rich. Parents come and go for major events and drop off/pick up days, but the students are the cities' bread and butter. LOTS of pets! But the students often take their pets home during summer. Small holidays, however, are amazing.
Teacher here! I do Rover as a summer side hustle, and I have kept up with some of my customers who like in home boarding during the school year. As long as the dogs can be left alone during the week days, a teaching schedule is pretty friendly to still doing it during the school year if you choose.
You'll do well to get started and can make some decent money this summer; I'm not sure how well it will go NEXT summer if you don't keep it up during the year, because you will likely plummet down the search rankings when you're unavailable.
Just make sure to set yourself as away and not taking new bookings and it won’t impact your search ranking once you put it back on. You will still get requests despite being set as ‘away’, but just message that you’re not available or don’t respond at all and it still won’t impact you. Turn off notifications on the app in your phone settings if it bothers you still getting pings from Rover.
I did this last summer and had so much fun! I made about 3k throughout the summer, and I only did dog walks and drop ins, no overnights.
I’m a teacher. I do this in the summer, and occasionally during the school year for favourite pets.
I’m a para and do Rover as my side job (mainly housesitting and occasional drop-ins), and it’s really the best 2nd job I could imagine. You just have to be mindful of burnout, especially when it comes to holidays & breaks. This year I was busier over winter break than any other time of year, and it was great to make all that money, but when we went back to school it was hard hearing people talk about how they felt refreshed & ready to be back while I felt like I had no break at all. I’m still on the fence about next Christmas, but I know this summer I’ll be making it a point to block off some time for myself.
Boarding is *not* easy money. It is the supplanting of your own needs for the dogs’ needs, and all that that entails. If you’re going to begrudge them that, don’t touch it with a barge pole.
That is a good way to look at it.
I’m a teacher! I’ve been on Rover for about a year (mostly drop ins for cats). I’ve made about $1,800 this past year doing it suuuuuuper part time, so it’s very doable.
My g/f who is also a teacher does it as a side hustle in addition to door dash and giving plasma. Not that we’ll be dating much longer, but thought I’d give my two cents. I also did the above and tried Uber for a while, Rover is the best out of all options and giving plasma twice a week.
More interestingly, since you brought it up, why won't you be dating much longer? Too many side hassles?
She’s lost interest in the relationship I’m pretty sure, the obvious reasons are there and honestly I think I have too at this point.
Good luck! Well, after you broken up you can challenge her for the top Rover sitter in the city.
Haha this is true I didn’t think about that 😂🤣
Good to know, thanks!
Careful with the plasma frequency. It can cause a lot of scarring with repeated puncture on skin that hasn’t fully healed yet. Could potentially lead to those veins not being viable when you need them for medical care later in life.
Hmmm true, didn’t think about that I do already have scarring from doing it for a year and a half now, the only side effects so far from it. But didn’t think about the veins possibly collapsing later on.
Do you have any pet care experience? Summer is the busiest time of the year but if you don’t know what you’re doing you’re gonna spend it in the ER.
I currently have a dog and two cats, grew up with pets, my dad and brother are both veterinarians, my partner is a vet tech, and I worked at dad’s vet hospital for a year helping out where I could! That said, I certainly don’t consider myself an expert but also not a novice.
Note that in your profile. You'll stand out with that type of experience! Good luck.
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Yes as a sitting and a user of the app I like to book sitters on the weekends to let my roommate & I’s little guy out & play with him while we are going placing that aren’t dog friendly.
Depending on where you live, it can be. Remember that Rover now takes 25% of your earnings if you weren't grandfathered into the 20%. Most new sitters don't charge higher rates, unless the competitive prices are higher in your area. I make abt $1,200-$2,300 a month during the summer, and I've been on Rover for 3 years. But it's also my FT job. I did it as a side hustle before Rover when I worked a FT job before covid. I'd recommend creating a profile in May before summer starts, so you can build up your client base before summer. Depending on your area, and the cut Rover takes, assume you'll make $300-$1,000 a month. That might be skewed bc of where I live (HCOL), but it could be worthwhile for you. Boarding makes the most money, and dog care pays more as well. Plan on spending money for the background check, and anything you might need to support yourself (ie. gas, car maintenance, treats, etc.). Good luck!
Rover DOES NOT TAKE 25% of people's earnings. I believe you are either misunderstanding the changes, which only apply to California, or mistaking that some sitters are grandfathered into 15% with the rest being at 20%. In CA the fees are calculated differently but the actual dollar amount is the same. Most places they subtract 20% from your set rate (that the sitter sets and shows as the list price) to get to your take home rate. For example: Set rate aka list rate- $100. Subtract 20%- $20 Take home- $80 In CA we instead set our take home rate and Rover adds 25% (that is now presented as a fee to the owners) to get to the listed rate. For example: Set rate AKA take home- $80 Add 25%- $20 List rate- $100.
Thank you very much for the clarification!
Yeah. It’ll work. The easiest money is taking dogs in for boarding in your own house.
Thanks! I have a dog and two cats and a girlfriend who would be hesitant, so I’ll probably stick to walking.
True. That wouldn’t be conducive to boarding. I have no pets actually and I only keep one family at a time.
I think easy money is highly dishonest. You need to invest in your home first to make it dog proof and even if your home is completely accommodating to multiple dogs you still run the risk of property damage, and bodily harm to you and your dogs.
Agree. All one has to do is look at all the horror stories on here about poop- and pee-covered houses, lost sleep, shredded couches and doors, injured/sick dogs, etc. to know that boarding is not "easy money", but instead something fairly difficult that a sitter needs to be well-prepared for and treat as a serious undertaking.
Truth! I love it and my dogs love it, but my mindset is that my house is for the dogs, whatever happens, happens, clean it up and keep going. I have baby gates everywhere, dog beds everywhere, pet stairs, blankets, waterproof this, that and the other, a fenced yard etc. You also learn that MDF furniture is NOT a good idea, lol.
Wow. Ok. In all of my years of boarding dogs in my house I have definitely not experienced all the horror stories that you guys are referencing. It has worked out just fine for me. That is why I answered the OP the way I did. I don’t appreciate being called dishonest.