Is the dog walker insured and background-checked?

Every Dogtown walk is led by a member of our staff, from the team that runs the playgroups at 210 Eastern Ave. That is published, and so is what follows from it: the person at your door has met your dog, because every dog new to Dogtown completes the free evaluation first, on a weekday between 6:30 and 9:30 AM. Walks are solo, one dog and one walker, and a photo and a short note arrive after every outing.

What this site does not publish is how walking is insured or whether background checks are part of hiring. We would rather say so plainly than put a reassuring word on the page that the details may not match. Both questions are answered at the evaluation, or by the front desk when you set up the schedule, for the people who will actually hold your keys. Our dog walking page covers the service itself.

A background check is something an employer or an individual walker arranges before taking on the work, and for a walker the part owners care about most is criminal history. The MSPCA's advice for anyone who will care for your pet in your home is to ask for proof of a recent criminal history background check. The word recent matters: a check run years ago says less than one run before the person was given keys.

Ask three things. Is a check part of hiring for the people who walk dogs? How recent is it, and is it repeated? And who sees your key, your code and your address? At Dogtown, keys, codes and lockboxes are settled with each household when the schedule is set, so that last answer comes out of the same conversation. The front desk will tell you what applies to the staff who will walk your dog.

Gloucester's dog regulations say dogs must always remain under the control of their owner or keeper, and while your dog is out the walker is the keeper. Rockport asks for a leash or direct voice control, a leash downtown at all times, and pick-up after every dog. The walks most likely to involve other people are the ones on busy summer streets in either town, which is why the coverage question is worth asking before the season starts.

Walks run 20, 30 or 60 minutes at $25, $35 or $55, with 10-packs and 30-packs for regular routines, and availability depends on your address and the season; ask us whether we cover your address. If a dog is hurt or unwell on a walk, your own vet is the first call, and the City of Gloucester keeps a list of local emergency veterinary offices for after hours.