Doggy day care
Doggy day care in a sitter's home
Updated By PetymFacts checked against official sources on
Doggy day care on Petym means your dog spends the working day in a checked sitter's home and comes back to yours each evening. The sitter follows your written plan for meals, walks and rest, keeps walks to the cooler hours, and sends a photo update every day. You meet the sitter free first.
Petym is not taking bookings yet. A city opens when its sitters have passed Petym's checks: PAN identity, a video walk-through of the home by Petym, the housing society's permission for paid pet sitting, pet first-aid training, a named 24-hour vet within reach and a pet limit for the home.
Day care in a home is smaller and calmer than a busy day care centre. It suits dogs who dislike long hours alone, puppies who need frequent toilet breaks and company, and owners whose office days mean nine or ten hours out of the house.
FromRs 999a full day (up to 10 hours)Rs 1,299 in Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Bengaluru. All prices
- Meet your sitter first, free
- PAN-checked, first-aid trained
- A photo every day
- Pay through Petym, never cash
What’s included
- A free meet and greet firstYou and your dog visit the sitter's home before the first day, see the rooms your dog will use, and meet any other dog that will be there.
- Set drop-off and pick-up timesYou agree the times at the meet and greet, so the sitter's day and your commute both work. Your dog sleeps at home every night.
- Walks in the cooler hoursIn Indian summers, walks move to the morning and evening. Exercise in heat is the most common trigger of heatstroke in dogs, so the midday break stays short and shaded. Animals (2020)study
- Play matched to your dogFetch, sniff games, a puzzle feeder or calm company. Play with another dog happens only if both owners agree and the dogs have met first.
- Proper rest in the afternoonA quiet, cool spot with your dog's own bed. Dogs in a group can become overtired, and a rest period is part of every day, not a gap in the schedule. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Meals and water as you wrote themLunch for a puppy, a chew for an adult, or nothing at all if your dog eats twice a day at home. Fresh water is always out.
- Medicines at the right timeA midday tablet or eye drops given exactly as your vet's prescription says, and logged when given. Merck Veterinary Manual
- A pet limit for the homePetym sets a pet limit for every home it lists, so a flat never becomes a crowded creche.
- A daily photo updateEvery day, a photo update from the sitter, with a line on what your dog ate, where it walked and how it rested.
- First aid and a named 24-hour vetEvery sitter is trained in pet first aid before the first booking. In an emergency the sitter calls you and takes your dog to the nearest 24-hour vet on the city's list.
What’s not included
- No overnight stays Day care ends at pick-up. For nights away, choose home boarding in a sitter's home, or a sitter who stays at yours.
- No large open groups A Petym home is not a day care centre with many dogs: it takes at most 3 dogs. Any other dog at the sitter's home is named before you book.
- No training courses or behaviour treatment A sitter uses kind, reward-based handling, but day care is not a training programme and does not treat separation anxiety or aggression, which need your vet.
- No grooming or baths Paws are wiped after a muddy monsoon walk; baths, haircuts and nail clipping are not part of the day.
- No pick-up and drop by the sitter by default You bring your dog and collect it. If a sitter offers to travel, that is agreed separately and is not part of standard day care.
What does a day at doggy day care look like?
Each day follows your dog's own plan. This example is for a young adult dog on a summer working day.
Your sitterAn example day, not a real conversation
- Drop-off at the sitter's home. A short sniff walk round the block to settle after the car or auto ride.8:30 am
- Water, then a calm game or a puzzle feeder indoors while the sitter's household starts its day.9:15 am
- Rest in a cool room on your dog's own bed, away from the door and the noise of the street.11:00 am
- A short toilet break in the shade. Lunch only if your plan says so, or any midday medicine, logged when given.1:00 pm
- Afternoon rest. Dogs in company still need long naps, so the house stays quiet.2:00 pm
- Play: fetch in the hall, tug, or time with a dog it already knows, if both owners agreed.4:00 pm
- The longer walk of the day once the pavement has cooled. A paw and coat check for ticks afterwards.5:30 pm
- The daily photo update and a note of the day, then pick-up and a calm handover.6:30 pm
Which dogs suit doggy day care?
Day care suits dogs who enjoy company and settle in a new home within a visit or two. Dogs who guard toys or dislike other dogs can still have day care, as the only dog in the home.
- You work long office hours and your dog is alone all day
- Your dog barks, howls or chews when left alone
- Your puppy is too young to be left for a full day
- You work from the office some days and from home on others
- Your home is busy with repairs, guests or a function for a day
Pets it suits
Breeds it often suits
How much does doggy day care in a sitter's home cost?
These are Petym’s launch prices for doggy day care in a sitter's home, for one pet. You pay through Petym, with no booking fee on top, and the care plan estimator prices your exact dates. Extras such as a puppy, injections or festival days are on the rate card.
| For one pet | Big cities | Other cities | Each extra pet |
|---|---|---|---|
| A full day (up to 10 hours) | Rs 1,299 | Rs 999 | + Rs 899 (Rs 699 in other cities) |
| A half day (up to 5 hours) | Rs 799 | Rs 599 | + Rs 549 (Rs 399 in other cities) |
| A pack of 10 full days | Rs 11,699 | Rs 8,999 | + per extra dog, each day |
Included: At most 3 dogs in the sitter's home; Your dog's own meals, water and rest; Walks in the cool hours, play and company; Photos during the day.
What changes the price
- Length of the day
- A half day and a ten-hour office day take very different amounts of a sitter's time.
- How many days a week
- A regular weekly pattern and an occasional single day are planned differently by a sitter.
- Number of dogs
- Two dogs from the same home share a sitter's day but count twice against the home's pet limit.
- Age and energy
- A puppy who needs toilet breaks every couple of hours, or a working breed who needs long walks, asks more of the day.
- Medicines and special care
- Midday medicines, a special diet or a senior's slow walks add time to each day.
- Handover times
- Very early drop-off, late pick-up or a day that overruns changes what a sitter can plan around it.
How are Petym sitters checked?
Every sitter passes these checks before Petym lists them. Petym does not claim more than it checks.
- PAN identity check. Identity verified with PAN before listing.
- Home walk-through. A video walk-through of the home by Petym, for sitters who host pets.
- Society permission. The housing society's permission for paid pet sitting, for sitters who host pets.
- Pet first-aid trained. Pet first-aid training before the first booking.
- 24-hour vet named. A named 24-hour vet within reach of where the pet stays.
- Pet limit per home. A limit on how many pets a home may take at once.
Trust and safety in full, including what happens if your pet falls ill.
What should you prepare?
- Book the meet and greet, and if you can, a short first day of a few hours.
- Check the vaccination card: puppy series finished, rabies current and booster dates written in. WSAVAstudy
- Ask your vet whether your dog needs the kennel cough vaccine, since it will meet other dogs. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine
- The UK day care standard asks for primary vaccinations to be finished at least 2 weeks before a dog starts; ask your vet what fits your puppy. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Keep tick and flea prevention current, and write down the product and the date. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- Write your dog's day: meal times, toilet habits, how long it walks, how it naps.
- Note how your dog behaves with other dogs, children, food bowls and toys.
- Pack lunch or treats only if your plan includes them, in your dog's usual food.
- Send any midday medicine in its original labelled container. US Food and Drug Administration
- Send your dog's bed or a blanket that smells of home.
- Use a well-fitting harness and leash, with an ID tag on the collar.
- Leave your vet's number and a backup contact for the days you are in meetings.
- Fill in Petym's pet care sheet once; it covers every day care day.
Put it all on one page: make a free pet care sheet for your sitter.
Doggy day care, a dog walker or home alone: which fits your working day?
All three cover the hours you are out. They differ in how long your dog is alone and who it spends the day with.
| Day care in a sitter's home | Dog walker | Home alone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time alone | None: someone is home all day | The day minus the walk | The whole working day |
| Company | The sitter, and only dogs agreed in advance | The walker for the walk | None |
| Exercise | Walks in the cool hours, play and rest | One or two walks | Only what you give before and after work |
| Toilet breaks | As often as your plan says | At walk times | None until you are back |
| Where | The sitter's home | Your home and your street | Your home |
| Suits | Sociable dogs, puppies, dogs who hate long hours alone | Calm adult dogs fine alone between walks | Adult dogs comfortable alone for short spells |
Separation anxiety signs are often worst in the first 15 to 30 minutes after a dog is left, so a dog that panics alone needs your vet as well as day care.
What does a well-run day care look like?
Petym found no Indian national standard written for dog day care (checked 21 October 2026). The UK licenses day care, and its published numbers are a useful yardstick to ask about.
10
Dogs or fewer for each member of staff, under the UK day care standard Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
1 hour
The longest a dog may be crated in any 8 hours of UK day care Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
2 weeks
Gap between the end of primary vaccination and a first day of UK day care Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
6
The most dogs one person may walk at once under the UK standard Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
How are play groups kept safe in a sitter's home?
In a Petym home your dog only plays with dogs whose owners have agreed, after a proper introduction. The UK standard for day care asks for the same care.
- Every dog is screened before its first day: here, at the meet and greet. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Dogs are matched for age, size and behaviour, so a Great Dane puppy does not flatten a Chihuahua. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- A dog that shows any aggression is separated from the others at once. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Dogs from different homes are fed apart unless both owners agree in writing. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Dogs under one year are kept apart from older dogs unless the owner agrees. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Females in season are kept apart from male dogs. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
- Toys and chews that cause guarding are put away when dogs are together.
- Play is broken up with calm pauses before it gets rough.
- Every dog has its own resting place, out of reach of the others.
- A dog that starts coughing goes home and stays away from other dogs. PDSA
Is doggy day care good for socialisation?
It can help, if the dogs and people your dog meets are calm and healthy. For a puppy the timing matters most, and so do its vaccines.
The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior says the most important time for socialisation is the first three months of life, when a puppy should meet as many new people, animals and places as can be managed safely, without overwhelming it. It encourages owners of older puppies to keep socialising as much as is practical.
The Merck Veterinary Manual puts the key socialisation age at 2 to 4 months and says puppies need vaccines every 2 to 3 weeks until about 4 months old, kept away from unvaccinated dogs and dogs of unknown vaccine status until then. AVSAB says puppies can start puppy classes from 7 to 8 weeks with at least one set of vaccines 7 days before and a first deworming, but advises avoiding places used by dogs of unknown vaccine status.
For an unvaccinated puppy, that means day care with no unknown dogs: the sitter, the household and calm, fully vaccinated adult dogs only, as your vet agrees. For an adult dog, socialisation in day care means calm company, not a free-for-all. Some dogs dislike other dogs, and inter-dog aggression is a recognised behaviour problem, not a failure of training.
| What | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Key socialisation window | The first three months of life. | American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior |
| Puppy vaccines | Every 2 to 3 weeks until about 4 months old. | Merck Veterinary Manual |
| Before the series ends | Keep away from unvaccinated dogs and dogs of unknown vaccine status. | Merck Veterinary Manual |
| Puppy classes | From 7 to 8 weeks, with one set of vaccines at least 7 days before and a first deworming. | American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior |
| Kennel cough | Spreads among dogs kept close together, including in day care. | Merck Veterinary Manual |
| Adult dogs | Some dogs are aggressive to other dogs; they can have day care as the only dog. | Merck Veterinary Manual |
How long is too long for a dog to be alone on a working day?
There is no single number for every dog. Age, health, toilet needs and how your dog copes alone all change it, which is why day care is planned around your dog rather than your office hours.
A typical Indian office day, with a commute in Bengaluru, Mumbai or Gurgaon traffic, can keep an owner out for ten hours or more. The UK's licence standard for home boarding says a boarded dog should not routinely be left alone for more than 3 hours in 24, a useful yardstick for how much company a dog in someone's care is owed.
Puppies need the most company. Merck lists the times a puppy needs to go out: first thing in the morning, last thing at night, after meals, after a big drink, after a nap and after play. A puppy left for a working day cannot keep to that, and house-training suffers.
For dogs with separation anxiety, Merck notes that signs are often worst in the first 15 to 30 minutes after being left: barking, howling, chewing at doors, or toileting indoors. Day care takes away those hours alone. Seniors, and dogs on a midday medicine, also do better with someone at home through the day.
| What | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Puppies | Need toilet breaks after meals, naps, play and big drinks, and several times a day at first. | Merck Veterinary Manual |
| Dogs with separation anxiety | Signs are often worst 15 to 30 minutes after the owner leaves. | Merck Veterinary Manual |
| A yardstick from the UK | Home-boarded dogs should not routinely be left alone for more than 3 hours in 24. | Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK) |
| Hot months | Heat waves come mainly from March to June, worst in May, so midday walks are out. | India Meteorological Department |
| Dogs on a midday medicine | Need someone at home to give it at the time your vet wrote. | Not stated |
What do people get wrong about doggy day care?
Day care is a good answer to long working days. It is not a cure-all, and a tired dog is not the same as a well-cared-for one.
You may have read
A dog should play all day to come home tired.
Myth
What the sources say
Dogs need real rest. The UK day care standard asks for a clean, comfortable place for every dog to rest and sleep, and a calm afternoon nap is part of a good day. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK)
You may have read
Day care will cure my dog's separation anxiety.
Myth
What the sources say
Separation anxiety is a condition in which a dog panics when left alone. Day care reduces the hours alone, but a vet-led plan treats the problem itself. Merck Veterinary Manual
You may have read
Every dog loves group play.
Myth
What the sources say
Some dogs are aggressive to other dogs, and many simply prefer people. Such a dog can still go to day care as the only dog in a sitter's home. Merck Veterinary Manual
You may have read
A young puppy should meet as many dogs as possible.
Myth
What the sources say
A puppy should meet new things safely. Until its vaccines are done, avoid unvaccinated dogs and dogs of unknown vaccine status. Merck Veterinary Manual
You may have read
A vaccinated dog cannot catch kennel cough.
Myth
What the sources say
The vaccine lowers the risk and can make illness milder, but it does not give 100% protection. PDSA
How does a day care sitter handle Indian heat and the monsoon?
Heat waves in India come mainly from March to June, worst in May. A day care day is planned around the heat, not in spite of it.
If A hot afternoon in May
Walks move to early morning and evening, the midday break is short and in the shade, and play stays indoors in the coolest room. India Meteorological Department
If A flat-faced dog such as a Pug, a Shih Tzu or a French Bulldog
Extra care in heat: short, slow walks and no rough play. Flat-faced, overweight, young, elderly and long-haired dogs are most at risk of heatstroke. PDSA
If Heavy panting, drooling or wobbling
Treated as possible heatstroke: move to a cool room, pour cold tap water over the body and phone the vet straight away. PDSA
If A power cut in the afternoon
The sitter moves dogs to the coolest room, keeps water topped up and stops play until the fan or cooler is back.
If Monsoon puddles and wet paws
Walks avoid standing water where possible, because dogs catch leptospirosis from contaminated urine and water, and paws are dried after each walk. Ask your vet about the yearly leptospirosis vaccine. Merck Veterinary Manual
If A tick found after a walk
The sitter removes it with tweezers close to the skin, without twisting or squashing it, cleans the bite and tells you at pick-up. Merck Veterinary Manual
How do you help a dog settle into day care?
Start small, keep the handover calm and keep the routine the same at both ends of the day.
Do
- Start with a half day before a full working day.
- Walk your dog before drop-off so it arrives calm.
- Keep breakfast and dinner at home at the usual times.
- Send the same bed or blanket every day.
- Use reward-based handling at home and ask the sitter to do the same. American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior
- Tell the sitter about any change at home, such as a new baby or a move.
Don’t
- Do not send a dog that is coughing, vomiting or has diarrhoea. PDSA
- Do not drag out the goodbye at the door.
- Do not change your dog's food in the same week it starts day care. PDSA
- Do not expect a young puppy to last the day without toilet breaks. Merck Veterinary Manual
- Do not punish fearful behaviour at drop-off. Merck Veterinary Manual
Is doggy day care right for your dog?
Pick by your dog's day, not by habit. If one of these fits, follow it.
If Your dog is alone for most of a working day and dislikes it
Day care in a sitter's home removes the long hours alone. How long can a dog be left alone?
If Your dog is calm alone but needs exercise
A dog walker for a midday walk may be all it needs. Dog walking
If You are not sure between a walker and day care
Compare the two side by side for your dog. Dog walker or doggy day care?
If Your dog panics when left and destroys doors or howls
Talk to your vet about separation anxiety as well as day care. Separation anxiety in dogs
If You will be away overnight
Home boarding covers the nights as well as the days. Home boarding
If Your dog is a puppy, a senior or on medicines
Special-needs care puts your vet's written plan first. Special-needs care
Pet care in your city
Free tools for your trip
- Dog walk plannerDaily exercise for your dog's breed, and when it is too hot to walk.
- Pet care sheetA printable instructions sheet for your sitter: meals, walks, vet and house notes.
- Puppy vaccination plannerYour puppy's vaccine dates from its birthday.
- Vaccine due-date checkerWill its vaccines be current for your trip?
Words on this page, explained
Questions owners ask
What is doggy day care?
- Doggy day care is daytime care for your dog while you are at work. On Petym it happens in a checked sitter's own home: you drop your dog off in the morning, the sitter follows your plan for walks, meals, play and rest, and you collect your dog in the evening.
How is day care in a sitter's home different from a day care centre?
- A sitter's home has a pet limit and only dogs whose owners have agreed, so the day is smaller and calmer than at a centre with many dogs. Your dog rests on its own bed in a quiet room, and walks are planned around the heat.
Will my dog play with other dogs at day care?
- Only if you agree. Other dogs at the sitter's home are named before you book, and dogs meet first at the meet and greet. A dog that prefers people, or guards toys, can have day care as the only dog in the home.
Can a puppy go to doggy day care?
- Yes, with care about vaccines. Merck advises keeping puppies away from unvaccinated dogs and dogs of unknown vaccine status until the series ends at about 4 months. Until then, day care means the sitter and calm, fully vaccinated dogs only, as your vet agrees.
Which vaccines does my dog need for day care?
- The core vaccine, often written DHPPi on Indian cards, and rabies, current on the vaccination card. Kennel cough spreads among dogs kept close together, including in day care, so ask your vet whether your dog needs the kennel cough vaccine before its first day.
Does doggy day care help a dog with separation anxiety?
- It shortens the hours your dog spends alone, which can help day to day. It does not treat the condition: separation anxiety is a panic about being left, and a vet-led plan treats it. Tell the sitter about it at the meet and greet.
What does a day care sitter do in very hot weather?
- Walks move to early morning and evening, the midday toilet break is short and shaded, and play stays indoors in the coolest room. The sitter treats heavy panting or wobbling as possible heatstroke, cools the dog with cold tap water and phones the vet.
Will my dog get any rest at day care?
- Yes. A rest period in a quiet, cool room is part of every day. Even the UK's day care licence standard asks for a comfortable place for every dog to rest and sleep. A dog that rests well comes home calm rather than overtired.
Can my dog have its medicine at day care?
- Yes. Send the medicine in its original labelled container with your vet's instructions, and the sitter gives it at the time written and logs it. Injections are not part of standard day care; special-needs care covers pets who need them.
How will I know how my dog's day went?
- The sitter sends a photo update every day of day care, with a note of what your dog ate, where it walked and how it rested. If anything unusual happens, such as a cough or loose stools, the sitter calls you at the time.
How much does doggy day care cost on Petym?
- A full day of up to 10 hours is Rs 1,299 in Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Bengaluru and Rs 999 in other cities; a half day is Rs 799 or Rs 599, and 10 full days Rs 11,699 or Rs 8,999. A puppy, a dog over 25 kg, injections or a late pick-up add a fixed extra.
Going away soon? Tell us your dates.
A checked local sitter feeds, walks and keeps your pet company at home, follows your care sheet to the letter and sends a photo every day. Petym is opening city by city: send your dates and we will tell you when a sitter can take them.
- Meet your sitter first, free
- PAN-checked, first-aid trained
- A photo every day
- Pay through Petym, never cash
Keep reading
- How long can a dog be left alone?The four-hour guide, puppies and older dogs, and what Indian heat and power cuts change.
- Separation anxiety in dogsThe signs, what helps and what makes it worse, and how to plan care when you travel.
- Heatstroke in dogsThe signs, how to cool a dog on the spot, when to go to a 24-hour vet, and which dogs are most at risk.
- Summer pet care in IndiaHeat waves, walks, water, hot roads and power cuts, for dogs and cats.
- Monsoon careLeptospirosis and floodwater, wet paws, ears and skin, ticks, snakes and storms in the Indian rains.
- Vaccines before boardingKennel cough, lead times, what a sitter or boarding home asks for, and what to do if a dose is late.
- The meet and greet checklistHow to run the first meeting with a sitter, what to check, and how to read your pet.
Keep exploring
Other Petym services
Sources
Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources
- Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK): Dog day care licensing: statutory guidance for local authorities (updated 1 June 2026) (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: How drugs are given to animals (opens in a new tab)
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine: The risks of kennel cough (Riney Canine Health Center) (opens in a new tab)
- Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites: Guidelines for the control of ectoparasites of dogs and cats in the tropics (2022) (opens in a new tab)
- US Food and Drug Administration: Medication errors happen to pets, too (opens in a new tab)
- PDSA: Kennel cough (opens in a new tab)
Show all 18 sourcesShow fewer
- American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior: Position statement on puppy socialization (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Puppy care (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Kennel cough (canine infectious tracheobronchitis) (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Behavior problems in dogs (opens in a new tab)
- Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (UK): Home boarding for dogs licensing: statutory guidance for local authorities (updated 1 June 2026) (opens in a new tab)
- India Meteorological Department: FAQ on heat wave (opens in a new tab)
- PDSA: Heatstroke in dogs (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Leptospirosis in dogs (opens in a new tab)
- Merck Veterinary Manual: Tick removal (opens in a new tab)
- PDSA: Diarrhoea after a change of food (opens in a new tab)
- Animals (2020): Dogs don't die just in hot cars: exertional heat-related illness (opens in a new tab)
- WSAVA: 2024 guidelines for the vaccination of dogs and cats (WSAVA Vaccination Guidelines Group, Journal of Small Animal Practice) (opens in a new tab)