Dog Walk Safety Protocols:
No Pack/Group Walks
All of our dogs are walked per-household, so there will never be another dog joining yours on the walk.
No Off-Leash Play
Dogs are fully leashed up and secured at all times while outside of the home during a Windy City Paws walk. We don’t take our dogs to dog parks or any other off-leash areas outside of your home, including dog runs attached to buildings.
No Dog Socialization
Our walkers are trained and required to avoid any interaction with other dogs while outside on walks. Regardless of the temperament of the dog we’re walking, we cannot predict the behavior of other dogs outside and want to ensure our dogs are receiving one-on-one time with their walker.
No Human Interaction
Walkers are similarly required to avoid interaction between our dogs and passersby while on walks. This is for the safety of our dogs as well as people outside, since dogs of all temperaments can be triggered by unknown variables. This further ensures that dogs in our care are spending more time focusing on walking than distractions.
Office Support Staff
During all hours of operation, at least one Windy City Paws staff member is reachable by our walker team. This helps guarantee immediate action and resolution in case of a mid-walk emergency.
Your Walk Equipment:
Walk Equipment
We’ll use whatever walk equipment you already use with your dog, such as harnesses, prong collars, etc. This will help ensure consistency across all of their walks, and you’ll know that your dog is wearing equipment they’re already comfortable with and is already fitted to their body and walk style.
Weather Gear
If specific gear is provided for various types of weather, such as rain coats, booties, etc., we’ll use that as well. Information regarding what circumstances require what gear is gathered during our onboarding process and stored within our pet care profiles, so your walker has access to that information year-round.
Treats
Walkers are only allowed to provide treats to dogs that have been provided by that dog’s owner. For health and safety reasons, walkers do not carry their own supply of treats and will not allow dogs to partake in treats from outside sources during the walk.
Additional Windy City Paws Safety Equipment:
In addition to your provided equipment, Windy City Paws will utilize two pieces of safety equipment to provide extra security on walks: a Safety Belt and a Coupler.
Safety Belt
The Safety Belt is worn around the walker’s waist, and it attaches to your provided standard leash via a locking carabiner. Our company policy states that walkers must maintain two hands on the leash at all times, as demonstrated in the photo below, but implementing a third point of contact provides additional security.
Coupler
The Coupler is a small device that connects whatever walk equipment you use (harness, prong collar, etc.) to your dog’s regular collar. Walkers will continue to connect the leash to the usual walk equipment, but if for whatever reason that equipment comes loose or falls apart, there will still be a connection maintained via the collar. If your dog is just walked on their regular collar with no secondary piece of walk equipment available, the Coupler will not be used. The Coupler can be seen in the photo below connecting to a prong collar.
