I want to remind everyone that we are still under a mask mandate, as COVID cases and positivity rates continue to rise.
For the protection of all of us, we ask that you please wear a mask when interacting with your dog walker or pet sitter.
If you are working in another part of the home, the dog walker can enter and leash the dog and exit. If space limitations or other concerns necessitate greeting them at the door, please mask up.
We’ve all been doing a great job of dealing with this for 10 months, and we appreciate your efforts to keep each other safe.
Governor’s Executive Order Dec. 10, 2020
VA Dept. of Health Recommendations
Please, stay safe, mask up and keep washing your hands. We appreciate it so much.
Saturday, January 16th, 2021 @ 3:37 pm | Comments (0) | Categories: Dog Walks, Dogs, Emergency
As we move into Phase 2 reopening, we want to remind clients of our ongoing COVID-19 precautions.
Clients can help by also adhering to the recommended safety practices. We will also be limiting our contact in your home such as food/water clean up (if you are home while we are dog walking). For pet sitting clients, we will follow our normal pet care routines, and clean kitchen/pet areas after each contact.
Our collective efforts have made a positive difference in fighting this virus, and we must remain vigilant as restrictions are slowly lifted.
Thursday, June 11th, 2020 @ 10:32 am |
Comments (0) |
Categories: Dog Walks, Emergency, Pet Care, Pet Sitting, Uncategorized
Tags: Coronavirus, COVID-19, dog walking, pet sitting
Monday, March 30th, 2020 @ 3:50 pm |
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Categories: Dog Walks, Emergency
Tags: Coronavirus, COVID-19, dog walking
As you all know, this situation is changing rapidly and as such our response may change in the next coming days and weeks. This is our response as of March 16, 2020. -Kim 
Dear Clients,
The health and well-being of our clients and staff is of the utmost importance at The Pet Elf, and I wanted to update you all as we navigate the evolving impact of coronavirus on our community.
At this time, no one knows how severe this outbreak will be. Given this uncertainty, and the fact that the seasonal flu virus is also widespread, we want to make sure everyone is taking proactive steps to stay healthy. First and foremost, we want to maintain a safe workplace and encourage and/or adopt practices protecting the health of both sitters and clients. We also want to ensure the continuity of business operations in the face of a pandemic, if possible.
Our pet sitters and dog walkers are following CDC and WHO guidelines to take necessary steps to reduce the transmission of communicable disease. This includes washing hands frequently, and using hand sanitizer, which as pet sitters, is a commonly accepted practice in the course of a normal workday. Sick sitters are requested to stay home, and we would ask that if you have anyone sick in your home, please cancel your visits.
If you are working from home, but healthy, please consider keeping your scheduled walks in place. The routine is important for your dog, and reduces the financial impact on your dog walker. We have not assessed any cancellation fees for cancelling dog walking or pet sitting visits, but our sitters do not get paid when they are not working. If you don’t want to have any contact with a dog walker, you may also cancel the walks while still being invoiced as usual. While not everyone is in a position to do this, we want those clients who have offered to keep paying to know how appreciated they are.
The good news is working outside is one of the safest places to be, and the virus is not spread in the air. It is spread person to person through respiratory drops when one person coughs or sneezes and another inhales the droplets. According to the CDC, It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads. And according to the World Health Organization, there is no evidence to suggest that dogs or cats have become ill with this virus or will become a source of infection of COVID-19 in other animals or humans.
Our management team (Kim and Nikki) will be working from home, and email to petelf@petelf.com is the best way to reach us. Please feel free to email or call to discuss your particular needs.
We want everyone to feel safe, while continuing to serve our clients to the best of our ability.
If you have any concerns, please let me know.
Kim Waite-Williams
President & Owner
Friday, March 20th, 2020 @ 9:49 am |
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Categories: Dog Walks, Emergency, Pet Care, Pet Sitting, Uncategorized
Tags: Coronavirus, COVID-19, dog walking, pet sitting
Did you know more pets go missing this time of year than any other? While there’s plenty to do on the 4th of July holiday in Reston and Herndon, it’s not a dog-friendly time of year. The commotion, stress, heat and parties can be too much for our pets. According to the ASPCA, one in five dogs go missing due running from a loud noise; including fireworks. They’ve developed an important mobile phone app that can help you be prepared in the event of an emergency.
Don’t let your dog become a statistic. Keep him indoors, and walk on a close leash for his relief breaks. Please don’t leave your dog unattended in a yard. If you’re having guests, let them know not to feed him “people” food. And if you’re gathering outside, don’t let your dog become overheated, and keep him on a leash.
Always make sure your pet has current ID, or a microchip, to improve the odds of reuniting.
Keep the radio and TV on to help cover outdoor noise. And once dusk falls, it might be a good idea to move your pets to a quiet, back bedroom where they will feel safe. Play some indoor games, with treats as rewards. Nothing is distracting as a good treat!
If you need to be away from home, our overnight staff will be happy to stay with your pets, and keep them safe, happy and entertained. Our holidays book months in advance, so it’s never to early to get on the schedule for major holidays!
Have a safe, happy 4th of July!
Tuesday, July 3rd, 2018 @ 4:16 pm | Comments (0) | Categories: Dogs, Emergency, Holidays, Pet Care, Travel
We do ask a LOT of questions! Find out more about the experiences that shape and test our policies.
Monday, September 11th, 2017 @ 3:06 pm |
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Categories: Emergency, Holidays, Pet Care, Pet Sitting, Travel, Uncategorized
Tags: Overnights
