What Walking Services Charge Extra For and Why

From Trails and Tails Dog Walking – Seattle

We believe in being upfront, fair, and transparent with our clients—especially when it comes to pricing. While most of our rates are straightforward, there are a few additional charges that occasionally apply. These are outlined in our privacy policy (which all clients agree to), but we also walk through them in person during your initial meet and greet—because no one likes surprise fees.

We’re breaking down these extra charges here, along with the reasons behind them, so you know exactly what to expect and where your money goes.

🐾 Holiday Walks: +$10

Most people receive holiday pay at their jobs, and we believe our walkers should too. On holidays, our team often has fewer walks scheduled, which can mean taking time away from their families or holiday plans for just one or two dogs. The additional $10 charge for holiday walks goes directly to the walker—it’s our way of ensuring they’re compensated fairly for working on days when most others are off.

🐾 After-Hours & Weekend Walks: +$10

Walks requested outside of our standard weekday hours (typically before 9am or after 5pm), or on weekends, also come with a $10 surcharge. These time slots fall outside our regular routes and schedules, and the added fee helps us fairly compensate our walkers for their flexibility. As with holiday fees, this charge goes directly to the walker.

🐾 Clean-Up Fee

Accidents happen—we totally get that. But in cases where there’s a significant mess that requires extra cleaning, we do charge a clean-up fee. This is rare and only applied when necessary (for example, if a walker has to spend extra time cleaning up a large indoor mess before or after a walk). We’ll always communicate with you directly if a clean-up fee applies, and it’s always done with fairness and respect.

🐾 Meet & Greets: Always Free for Clients

We never charge clients for the initial meet and greet—we see this as an essential step in building trust and ensuring your dog is the right fit for our team. However, it’s worth noting that we do pay our walkers for their time during these visits, because we believe their time and energy are valuable—even before the first walk begins.

🐾 Two-Week Stop Notice Policy

This is a newer policy for us, and we’ll be honest—it’s been a little clunky to roll out, but we’re committed to making it part of our regular process moving forward.

If a client decides to stop services with less than two weeks’ notice (for example, due to a move), we now require payment for two additional weeks of walks. This helps protect our walkers from sudden income loss and allows us time to adjust schedules and fill the space in their routes. We understand that life happens unexpectedly, and we’ll always do our best to be flexible—but we’ve found that this policy is necessary to maintain balance and fairness for our team.

Why We Share This Info About our Walking Services Upfront

We don’t believe in hidden fees or fine print. These services require our walkers to go above and beyond their normal (amazing-ness) and standard walking services. Our goal is to be transparent with you from day one—so that your experience with Trails and Tails feels smooth, respectful, and built on mutual trust. These extra charges aren’t about squeezing more money out of our clients—they’re about supporting our team of dedicated walkers, most of whom are walking dogs rain or shine, seven days a week, all across Seattle.

If you ever have questions about billing or policies, we’re always happy to walk you through them. Just reach out!

Thanks for being part of the Trails and Tails community. We appreciate your trust, your communication, and of course—your amazing pups. 🐶

– The Trails and Tails Team | Serving Capitol Hill and Greater Seattle

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