Houndtrust field guide

Guides for solo dog-care pros

Practical notes on money, paperwork, and getting clients. Written from six years of running a home-boarding business.

Rover fees

Rover's tiered fees, explained by a real boarder

Rover calls it “earn more with repeat clients.” Here's what a new client actually costs you now: the 30/15/10 tiers, the pilot metros, and the math on a real home-boarding house.

Updated July 2026 · ~7 min readRead

Rover

How to leave Rover without losing your clients

A 6-year boarder's step-by-step playbook for running your own book: keep the clients who are legitimately yours, stay inside Rover's terms, and stop paying a cut on people you already know.

Updated July 2026 · ~7 min readRead

Getting clients

How to get your first 10 dog boarding clients

The channels that actually produce clients for a solo home boarder, in the order they pay off: word of mouth, vet and groomer referrals, local groups, and the referral ask, with no marketplace cut.

Updated July 2026 · ~7 min readRead

Pricing

How much to charge for dog boarding: a real rate card

An operator's pricing framework, not a consumer cost page: anchor a base night rate to your market, build in holiday and puppy premiums, and choose per-night vs 24-hour billing.

Updated July 2026 · ~8 min readRead

Paperwork

Dog sitting waiver template (free download)

A free, editable waiver template from a working boarder, with the three lines owners always skip: the emergency-vet spend cap, honest behavior disclosure, and photo consent.

Updated July 2026 · ~7 min readRead

Paperwork

Dog boarding contract template (free, editable)

A free, editable contract template for the business terms a waiver leaves out: rates and per-night vs 24-hour billing, pickup windows, cancellation, holiday premiums, and multi-dog terms.

Updated July 2026 · ~7 min readRead

Getting set up

The 5 things every dog sitter should get in writing

A liability waiver, emergency-vet authorization, intake details, cancellation terms, and photo consent - what belongs in writing before the first stay, and why each one matters.

Updated June 2026 · ~5 min readRead

Run your own book, keep 100%

Houndtrust is the tool the guides are written from: one intake link, e-signed waivers, both calendars, and your month's money in one place. No cut of your bookings. Free to start.

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