How I turned a side hustle into a business.
Eight years ago we had a dog free home. I had a full schedule between work and all the kid's activities. My husband and the kids had been trying to talk me into getting a puppy for awhile. They promised to do all the work but I knew I would end up being the one who took on the responsibilities.
On Mother's Day they asked me again for a puppy. Maybe I was more open and emotional that day because I gave in. We went to Nashville Humane Society to look for puppies. The kids picked a puppy and we were on our way to buy supplies. His kennel name was Ross but was quickly turned into Rozay. I was not very interested in the puppy and did not give him much attention at first.
Of course I was the one who ended up caring for Rozay, I fed him and came home on my lunch break to potty him. He began following me every where I went, the shower, bed, couch, he was on my heels. It did not take long for him to steal my heart. He was my puppy, my Mother's Day gift.
When he was about a year old I decided he needed company and began looking for a little girl puppy. I fell in love with a white puppy with floppy spotted ears who I found on the Humane Societies website. We went to meet her and took Rozay. She was a wild child but I knew she was ours. She was a 6 month old amstaff / beagle mix, her name was Sadie. We later found Chewbacca and completed our pack.
When we would travel my father in law would keep our puppies. When we moved 50 miles outside of the city we had to find a sitter. There were only a couple of dog sitting options in Dickson at the time. I had been having puppy fever and thought dog sitting would be a good way to spend time with other puppies. I set up a dog sitting profile on Rover.com. It quickly turned into a side hustle. I booked dog stays and put the money aside for family vacations.
Over time my client list began to grow and I booked more stays. I was receiving positive reviews on my page. I got a part time job at a local kennel to gain extra experience and knowledge. Before covid hit I was working full time and kept a full schedule with dog sitting. Within a couple days I was laid off my jobs and all my dog bookings were cancelled.
The time I spent at home during quarantine made me reevaluate my career and where I was spending my time. I knew I wanted to be home more and couldn't ne going back to work full time. I decided to focus on turning my dog sitting side hustle into a business. I am happy to be doing what I love, spending time with dogs.
