How To Become A Dog Walker: What It Is and Career Path

What is a dog walker and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

If you love dogs and want to earn money by spending time with them, then a job as a dog walker may be the right one for you. When you become a dog walker, you will, of course, be responsible for walking clients' dogs and ensuring that they get enough exercise for the day. More than that, you are also expected to play with them, pick up their waste, and ensure their safety at all times.

Sometimes, you may also perform basic grooming duties as a dog walker, depending on your arrangement with your client. These duties may include wiping the dog's feet when they get dirty, brushing their fur, and drying them off if they get wet during the walk.

There are no qualifications to become a dog walker other than a trustworthy person and, of course, an affinity for all dogs. With this job, you can earn around $11 an hour, not a bad rate for spending time with other people's pets. And best of all, you can do this on the side after or before your day job.

ScoreDog WalkerUS Average

Salary

2.4

Avg. Salary $30,893

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.7

Growth rate 28%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.47%

Asian 2.65%

Black or African American 4.33%

Hispanic or Latino 18.42%

Unknown 6.39%

White 67.74%

Gender

female 70.83%

male 29.17%

Age - 29

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 29

Stress level

6.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.0

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

8.1

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a dog walker

Explore dog walker education requirements

Most common dog walker degrees

Bachelor's

47.4 %

High School Diploma

26.2 %

Associate

17.5 %

Start to develop specific dog walker skills

Skills	Percentages
PET	49.83%
Walkers	44.03%
Clients Homes	2.12%
Fresh Water	1.36%
Minute Walk	1.06%

Complete relevant dog walker training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New dog walkers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a dog walker based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real dog walker resumes.

Research dog walker duties and responsibilities

Manage all breeding, whelping, raising of puppies, grooming and showing of dogs for owners in the AKC.
Head groomer, use of dremel, clippers, dryers, hemostats.
Provide in-home grooming services such as bathing, nail trimming, and clipping for all breeds and sizes of dogs.
Provide general bathing and preventative services, such as nail clipping and ear cleaning to maintain and improve clients health.

Prepare your dog walker resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your dog walker resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a dog walker resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable dog walker resume templates

Build a professional dog walker resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your dog walker resume.