Alana

Alana M.

Fenced garden
Identity Verification
Online Training
Administering medication

Experienced & reliable pet visiting service

30 repeat guests
188 reviews
Accepts Repeat Weekly Bookings for:
Dog Walking, House Visiting
Response rate: 99%
Last seen 6 months ago
About Alana
**Taking no new customers for any bookings between Dec 20th- jan 2nd**

**No current availability for any new regular permanent dog walking/play/ visits**

Dear Mums and Dads of pets in the Ballarat and surrounds,

My name is Alana, I'm 28 years old and a lover of all animals. I have always owned and cared for animals from a young age though I do profess to love dogs most of all! I currently own and love my 5 year old spoilt Miniature Poodle Charlie.

I have been a Pet carer on Madpaws for approximately 5 years now and it was the best career choice I have ever made, previously having worked as a PCA in Aged Care. Animals are my real passion and I never thought I would get the opportunity to do this as my job but here I am and loving what I do! I have countless pets clients who know and love me around Ballarat as well as surrounding towns including Creswick, Miners rest, Lal Lal and Bunninyong. With so many clients I even have 2 instances of owners living next to each other as neighbours by complete accident!

Animals I have looked after through Madpaws include cats, dogs, lizards, guniea pigs, fish, horses & chickens. My hope is that one day I will get a new enquiry for a snake!

My services include Pet visiting which entails all the usual care and attention your pet would expect at home. Including feeding (based on instructions you provide on how much and how frequently), walking, playing with toys, providing fresh water, cleaning of food bowls, cleaning of litter trays and of course plenty of love, pats and attention. My aim is to continue on with your pets normal routine while they are at home, which keeps them happy and comfortable. Owners can choose how many visits they would like per day and at what times.

Having done house visits for 4 years now I can confidently say that 99% of all the pets I have ever looked after have never fretted during their owner’s absence. They are always happy to see me come to the door and they come to accept and flourish with their new routine. House visits allow your pet to stay in an environment where they feel the most comfortable and secure. They know exactly where their food and water bowl is, where their favourite comfortable bed and toys are, and they feel comforted staying in an environment which is familiar to them with all of the usual smells and objects they associate with home. I can quickly form connections with animals and they come to love me very much. Each time i visit is cause for much excitement and happiness. 2 cats even jump in my car now when I pull up to feed them!

Each visit also includes:
- Walks (optional and based on a cost system of $2.50 per15min per dog on weekdays and double this rate on weekends and public holidays).
-Play time for cats (same rate as for dog walking. See above)
-Bringing in mail
-Taking out and bringing in bins
-Watering plants (for an extra charge)
- Closing and opening blinds, turning on and off lights


Extra things to note/costs:

-I visit anywhere in Ballarat for $10 per visit (with an extra cost of $1 per visit per additional pet). This cost includes a free meet and greet visit where i come out to meet you and your pet at your house before you leave to talk through details of the visits. This will often only take 20min

-I can enter your house and your pet via front doors, back doors, garages, back gates etc. Please consider what option you might go with before I come around for the meet and greet as it is easiest to grab a spare key off you during my meeting. Otherwise owners can drop off their keys to my property in Mt Clear or hide a key somewhere for me to find on my first visit.

-I can administer medication to your pet if necessary


Fine print:
*prospective clients living outside of Ballarat please note an extra charge for petrol is added per kilometre over 10km away from my house you are located. E.g if you live 21km away from my house an added charge of $21 per visit would be added. (I live in Mount Clear)

*occasionally due to strong demand around Ballarat I won’t always be able to visit at the exact time period owners would hope but rest easy knowing that your pet is never forgotten and I always arrive shortly before or after the desired time.

*Please note for those owners requesting dog walks: I am booked to capacity for my regular walking list of dogs and can only offer walks for dogs whose owners book for visits as well or who only need a walk done occasionally e.g once every few months. I will no longer be able to provide walks in any permanent arrangement.

*Please note for every booking enquiry I add a further 10% onto the total to help absorb the 15% of my earnings Madpaws takes from each of my bookings. E.g if the total for services came to $100 I would add a further $10.

*Please allow me some time to get back to new enquiries and messages. I will always respond within 24hrs.

*No new bookings taken within 24hrs of start date due to time difficulties arranging a meet and greet at such short notice and scheduling difficulties with other jobs.
*I ask that owners please read and accept the following conditions of my services before booking:

Condition 1: Daily photo updates are not always possible due to high work load, phone out of battery, ran out of data etc. However I always will send at least a few photos every few days minimum. Some owners in the past have demanded photos each day and sometimes this task becomes overwhelming and at times impossible. It also becomes very time consuming to take photos of everyone's pet every single day as sometimes I have over 30 pets in one day that I will see.

Condition 2: Sometimes my partner of 9 years Richard will accompany me on jobs especially dog walking if owners have more than 1 dog to be walked at a time and if they are quite strong. He helps make my job a little easier and I trust him completely with all animals and make sure your pet has a successful meeting with him before they spend time together. If I don't assess your pet as getting along with him I won't have them spend time together. When Richard isn't working full time at IBM he lovingly volunteers his time to help me with my growing business. This becomes especially helpful if I become sick during your booking period and require some extra help, injure my self, you have large dogs who pull a lot or simply just for helping me carry heavy bags of cat litter etc around. If for example you have booked me 30min to water the garden and 30min to walk the dogs on my most busy days of the year I might ask Richard to walk your dog's for me while I water the garden or vice versa, therefore allowing me some extra time in my day to get around to all my bookings.

If anything, Richard acts as my apprentice/employee and this business is as much his as it is mine as it is Richard’s car I drive around to bookings ever since mine has broken. I wouldn't be able to do this job if it wasn't for him. He does not come with me often but when he does I ask that owners please trust and accept him as an extension of myself he is a fellow animal lover and I trust him 100%. He very much enjoys meeting people’s pets and gives them lots of love and attention. I often call him the cat whisperer they just love him!
If you do not feel comfortable with the possibility of Richard helping me on a job then please do not book.

Condition 3: My 5 year old miniature poodle Charlie might also accompany me on walks from time to time he is very friendly and completely harmless. He enjoys meeting new friends and likes to socialise. I won’t walk Charlie together with another person’s dog until i have first established your dogs personality and if they would be a good match or not. I have always been a very good judge of this and ask that owners trust my judgement. Charlie has made lots of friends from my job and the dogs love seeing him aswell. Of course I will not introduce Charlie if you have specified that your dog does not like other dogs or if I have noticed this in your dog whilst out walking.


I look forward to hearing from you soon and meeting your pet(s),
Alana
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Owns pets
Pets Accepted
Small Dog
Medium Dog
Large Dog
Giant Dog
Puppy
Cat
Bird
Rabbit /
Guinea Pig
Alana's Home
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Type: House
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Medium backyard
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Fenced backyard
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Household
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Pets sleep indoors
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Pets sleep outdoors
Policy
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Cancellation: Flexible
A full refund will be offered to Pet Owners if they cancel up until the day before the booking at 12 noon. After which Pet Owners will be charged 50% of the total booking value.
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Accepts last-minute bookings
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Accepts long-term bookings
Reviews & Testimonials
188 reviews
Nicole K.
House Visiting - Jan 22, 2022
Thanks again Alana,! Love knowing you always take such great care of Milly! Appreciate your communication and care! Nic
Amanda V.
House Visiting - Jan 3, 2022
Alana always takes such wonderful care of our pets while we're away. Our pets love her, she is a great communicator and very thorough. We always feel comfortable knowing that they are in such great hands. Thanks Alana!
Angela H.
House Visiting - Mar 15, 2021
Fantastics service as always
Sharon R.
House Visiting - Feb 28, 2021
Alana is lovey, very attentive towards everything that you tell her about your fur babies. Am very much looking forward to dealing with Alana again in the future.
Service & Rates
Overnight Pet Services
Pet Hosting
At Sitter's Home
not offered
Pet Sitting
At Pet's Home
not offered
Daytime Pet Services
Pet Day Care
not offered
House Visiting
$ 12 / visit
Dog Walking
$ 6 / walk
Dog Grooming
not offered
Dog Training
not offered
Transport
Pick Up - Drop Off
$ 5 / journey
Emergency
Transport
Available