Keys and codes
Do dog walkers need a key or a code?
Nobody likes handing a stranger a key. This page explains what a Dogtown walker actually needs to get in, the three ways Cape Ann households usually arrange it, and what to write down so the first visit goes as you pictured it.
The short version
The walker needs a way in, and you choose which one
A walk from your door only works if the walker can open the door. So yes, we need something: a key, a keypad or smart-lock code, a lockbox with a key inside, or someone at home who answers. Which you use is your call, and it is one of the three details we ask for when the schedule is set, next to the days and the walk length. There is no standard Dogtown key policy printed anywhere, and we would rather not pretend there is; the front desk settles it with you.
What we can say is what the walker does with the way in. They use it for the walk and nothing else, they lock up on the way out, and the note after each walk confirms the dog is inside and the door is shut. If anything about the entry is unusual, a door that swells in humid weather, a gate that needs lifting, an alarm that chirps, tell us before the first visit.
- Key, code, lockbox or a person at home: your choice
- Settled with the front desk when you set the days and the walk length
- Used for the walk only, and the door is locked behind the walker
- The note after every walk confirms your dog is home and the door is shut
How it works at Dogtown
Set the entry up in one conversation, then test it before the first walk
The entry conversation happens when you book the schedule, after the free evaluation. Come to it with a decision already made and the details written down. If it is a code, the code and the sequence to disarm the alarm. If it is a key, where the walker collects it and where it lives between walks. If it is a lockbox, where it hangs and its combination. The front desk records what you tell us and the walker works from that record.
Then test it. Before the first walk, go to your own front door and do exactly what the walker will do: open the lockbox, punch the code, turn the key in the deadbolt that sticks. Rockport line commuters who leave before seven rarely see their own door in daylight during the week, and a keypad with a dead battery or a storm door frozen shut in January is a walk that cannot happen.
- 01
Decide on the way in: key, code, lockbox or someone at home
- 02
Write down the code or combination, the alarm sequence and any quirks of the door or gate
- 03
Give the details to the front desk when you set the days and the walk length
- 04
Test the entry yourself the way the walker will use it
- 05
Message the front desk through the app whenever a code, a lock or a routine changes
Three ways in
Key, code or lockbox: what each one asks of you
A key is the simplest thing to hand over and the hardest to replace, so households that use one keep a labeled spare for the walker and a second they can reach. A code costs nothing to change, which is its whole appeal: set one for the walker and retire it if the routine ends. A lockbox puts a key at the door without anyone carrying it, and it is the usual answer in the summer rentals and second homes of Rockport and Gloucester, where the people change but the dog does not.
Whichever you choose, label nothing with your address, tell the front desk before you change a code, and keep the walker's way in separate from the one your children use. Ask how keys or codes are stored between visits when you book; that is a fair question and the front desk will answer it plainly for your situation.
| Way in | What you set up | What to tell the front desk |
|---|---|---|
| Key | A labeled spare, plus a second spare you can reach | Where the walker collects it and where it lives between walks |
| Door or alarm code | A code you can retire later, and the disarm sequence | The code, the sequence, and how long before the alarm re-arms |
| Lockbox | A box at the door with a key inside | Where it hangs and the combination |
| Someone at home | A person who answers inside the walk window | Who they are and a phone number for the walker |
What it means for your dog
The door is the riskiest thirty seconds of the whole walk
Your dog does not care about keys. It cares that a door is opening, and for a young dog or an escape artist that is the moment to bolt. A good entry routine keeps the walker between the dog and the open door, has the leash within reach of the threshold, and never involves fumbling for a key with the door ajar. Tell us if your dog rushes doors, guards the hallway or hides from visitors, and the walker will plan the greeting around it.
Weather sharpens the point. In a nor'easter the walker may be juggling a lockbox, a wet leash and a dog who has waited all morning, so a cleared step and a towel by the door make the exchange calmer. From December to March, salt on the path and ice on granite steps deserve a moment of your attention the night before; the walker's footing is your dog's footing.
- Leash hung within reach of the door, not in a closet down the hall
- Tell us if your dog rushes doors or hides from visitors
- Steps cleared and salted before a winter walk
- A towel by the door for wet or salty paws
At Dogtown
The walk behind the door
Solo walks of 20, 30 or 60 minutes from your own home, led by Dogtown staff who already know your dog.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this
Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.
Can the walker come in through the garage?
What if I forget to leave the key out?
Do I need to give the walker my alarm code?
What happens to the key if I stop the walks?
More questions? Read the full FAQ
Sources
Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.
Keep reading
Next step
Sort out the way in once.
Book the free evaluation, then set the days, the length and the entry with the front desk. After that, the walks run themselves.
- 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
- 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
- 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
