Guide · Paperwork

Dog Sitting Waiver Template (Free Download): The 3 Lines Owners Always Skip

By Dave Waggins, 6-year home boarder, founder of Houndtrust

Updated July 2026 · ~7 min read

A waiver is the one piece of paper I never take a dog without. My wife and I have boarded dogs out of our home in Salt Lake City for six years, and the waiver isn’t there to scare anyone. It’s there so that on the rare bad night, everyone already agreed how it would be handled. Below is the exact shape of the agreement I use, a free template you can download and adapt, and the three lines owners skip that you should never leave blank.

Why a waiver matters (from six years of it)

Most stays are uneventful, and you’ll wonder why you bothered. Then one night a dog eats something it shouldn’t, or slips a gate, or an owner is on a plane with their phone off, and the waiver is the difference between acting fast and standing in a vet lobby not knowing whether you’re allowed to say yes to treatment. A signed waiver documents that the owner understood the normal risks of care and agreed to them up front. It doesn’t make you immune to everything, and I’d never claim a piece of paper does. It sets expectations, records consent, and gives you something to stand on. It also makes you look like the professional you are.

The 3 lines owners always skip

Owners sign fast. They love their dog, they trust you, they want to get to the airport. The three lines they breeze past are the exact three that matter most when something goes wrong, so make sure each one is actually filled in, not left blank:

• 1. The emergency vet authorization and spend cap. Written consent for you to seek veterinary care, up to a dollar amount the owner sets, when you can’t reach them. This is the single most useful line in the whole document. Fill in a real number and the dog’s vet, don’t leave it as a blank you’ll “figure out later.”
• 2. The honest behavior and bite-history disclosure. The owner confirms the dog has no history of aggression they haven’t told you about. It’s awkward to ask and easy to nod through, which is why it belongs in writing. If a dog with a known bite history hurts someone and it was never disclosed, you want that on the record.
• 3. The photo and public-sharing consent. Almost every owner loves getting update photos. A few are private about their dog appearing on your social media. One yes/no line, checked in advance, keeps you on the right side of it and saves an uncomfortable conversation later.

Section by section, what each part does

1. Care.States that you’ll follow the feeding, medication, and routine the owner gave you, and gets the owner to confirm the dog is healthy, vaccinated, and (line one above) has no undisclosed aggression. This is also where any known behavior or medical notes go.

2. Health & emergency vet authorization.The spend-cap line. The owner authorizes treatment up to a set dollar cap if you can’t reach them, and agrees to reimburse costs you reasonably incur. Capture the cap, the dog’s vet, and a human emergency contact who isn’t the owner.

3. Liability. The owner acknowledges that care carries inherent risks and releases you from liability for things that happen despite reasonable care, with a carve-out for your own gross negligence or willful misconduct. A release is exactly the clause whose enforceability varies most by state, so this is the part to have an attorney look at.

4. Photo & update consent.One line for update photos to the owner, and a separate yes/no for public sharing. Keep them separate so a “no” on public posting doesn’t cost you the update photos owners love.

5. Payment & cancellation. Your rate, when payment is due, and your late-cancel or no-show policy. A couple of clear sentences here prevent almost every money argument before it starts. If you want the full business terms (billing method, pickup windows, holiday premiums, vaccine requirements), those live in a separate dog boarding contract template, and the five things every dog sitter should get in writing covers the why behind each one.

The full template

Here’s the whole thing. Copy it, or grab the editable file below and fill in the brackets.

DOG SITTING WAIVER & CARE AGREEMENT (TEMPLATE)

Between:          [Your business or your name]  ("Sitter")
And:              [Owner's full name]           ("Owner")
For the care of:  [Dog's name(s)]               ("Dog")
Dates of care:    [Drop-off] to [Pickup]

1. CARE
The Sitter will give the Dog attentive care and follow the feeding, medication,
and routine details the Owner has provided. The Owner confirms the Dog is in good
health, is current on vaccinations, and has NO history of biting or aggression
toward people or other animals that has not been disclosed to the Sitter in
writing.
Known behavior / medical / handling notes: [list here, or "none"]

2. HEALTH & EMERGENCY VETERINARY AUTHORIZATION
If the Dog becomes ill or injured, the Sitter will make reasonable efforts to
reach the Owner and the emergency contact first. If the Owner cannot be reached
and the Dog needs care, the Owner authorizes the Sitter to seek veterinary
treatment and to approve emergency veterinary care up to a spend cap of
$[______] (the "spend cap"). The Owner agrees to reimburse the Sitter for
veterinary costs reasonably incurred. The spend cap is a ceiling on what the
Sitter may approve; it is not a guarantee of funds.
Dog's veterinarian (name / clinic / phone): [______]
Emergency contact, not the Owner (name / phone): [______]

3. LIABILITY
The Owner understands that boarding, sitting, walking, and play carry inherent
risks. Except in cases of the Sitter's gross negligence or willful misconduct,
the Owner releases the Sitter from liability for injury, illness, escape, or loss
that occurs despite reasonable care.

4. PHOTO & UPDATE CONSENT
The Sitter may photograph the Dog to send the Owner updates. For any PUBLIC use
of the Dog's photo, check one:
   [ ] The Owner agrees the Sitter may share photos of the Dog publicly.
   [ ] The Owner does NOT consent to any public sharing.

5. PAYMENT & CANCELLATION
Rate: $[______]   Payment due: [when]   Cancellation / no-show policy: [______]

By signing, the Owner agrees to these terms and confirms they are the Owner or
are authorized to sign on the Owner's behalf.

Owner signature: __________________________   Date: __________
Printed name:    __________________________

Plain text, so it opens in any editor. The same disclaimer travels inside the file.

Getting it signed without chasing texts

A template is only useful once it’s signed, and signed beforethe first stay, not after something happens. You can absolutely print it or send a PDF and collect a signature app’s squiggle. The friction is doing that for every new client on top of collecting the dog’s details and booking the dates.

That’s the part I built Houndtrust to handle. It sends this waiver and the emergency-vet authorization inside the same intake link the client already fills out, collects a legally-disclosed e-signature, and stores an unchangeable copy tied to the booking. So instead of a template sitting in your downloads folder, the signature is done and on file before drop-off. Once you have clients to send it to, of course, so if you’re still building the roster, start with how to get your first 10 dog boarding clients.

Common questions

This template and page are general information, not legal advice. Laws vary by state. Have a local attorney review any waiver before you use it. Houndtrust LLC accepts no liability for its use.