We recently sat down with Chenelle from the Pet Industry Mentor podcast for an hour-long conversation about what it actually takes to run a pet business. Not the Instagram version. The real version.
Chenelle is a former pet business owner who grew her operation to multiple six figures before selling it in 2025. She now mentors pet professionals who want to build sustainable, profitable businesses. So when she talks about the hard parts, she is not guessing. She has lived them.
Here are the 9 takeaways that could change how you think about running your pet business.
1. Passion Gets You Started, Professionalism Keeps You Going
This was the very first thing Chenelle said, and it set the tone for the entire episode.
"I genuinely believe that loving animals is not enough to run a safe, sustainable pet care business."
It sounds harsh. It is also completely true.
Passion for animals gets you started. But systems, processes, policies, pricing, and professionalism are what keep you going. The businesses that thrive are not the ones with the most love for dogs. They are the ones that treat their operation like a real business.
If you are reading this and thinking "but I really do love animals," nobody is questioning that. The question is whether you also love running the business side of things enough to do it properly.
2. Your Business Has Outgrown Your Diary
Chenelle shared a story that made us laugh and wince at the same time. She bought a beautiful diary from Officeworks, genuinely excited to have a dedicated work diary for all her client bookings.
It worked. For a while. With five clients, writing things down was manageable.
Then the business grew. Suddenly she was juggling texts, emails, Instagram DMs, phone calls, and her trusty diary. Things got written down in the wrong place. Things got deleted by accident from the notes app. Things got forgotten entirely.
"I missed dogs," she admitted. "I would forget them, get all the way to our location, think 'I didn't pick up Huxley,' get everyone back in the car and drive back into town."
A diary is not a system. It is a piece of paper that has no backup, no reminders, no accountability, and no way to talk to your calendar, your invoicing, or your team. If you are still running your business out of a diary (or worse, your memory), this is your sign.
This is exactly why we built Petboost as a single system of record. Your bookings, payments, client records, pet profiles, team schedules, and communications all live in one place. When a booking comes in, your calendar updates, your client's pet profile is right there, and the payment is handled. No double-handling. No sticky notes. No "was that in a text or an email?"
3. Your Clients Should Never Have to Chase You
This one stung. Chenelle put it perfectly:
"If you're someone that has clients chasing you up saying 'hey, I'm just checking, are we still good to go for next week?' that to me screams there's no systems in place."
Think about that. If your clients feel the need to double-check that their booking is actually happening, something is broken. They have either had a bad experience before, or they simply do not trust that your business has its act together.
A system that sends automatic confirmations and reminders eliminates this entirely. The client books. They get a confirmation. They get a reminder. They show up. Nobody has to chase anyone.
With Petboost, this happens out of the box. Automated SMS and email notifications go out at every stage: booking confirmed, reminder the day before, visit completed, invoice sent. Your client never has to wonder. And you never have to send a single manual message. That is what professionalising your business looks like in practice.
If clients are reaching out to verify bookings, it is not them being annoying. It is them protecting themselves because your system (or lack of one) has given them reason to worry.
4. Most Burnout Has Nothing to Do With Animals
We hear this constantly, and Chenelle confirmed it from her own mentoring experience:
"The most common thing I see is burnout, and it's never from the animals."
The burnout is not from grooming too many dogs. It is not from long walks in the rain. It is not from difficult pets.
It is from chasing invoices at 10pm. It is from trying to remember whether that medication note was in a text message or an Instagram DM. It is from doing your own BAS statement because you think you cannot afford an accountant. It is from decision fatigue, admin overload, and the constant feeling that something is slipping through the cracks.
When you systemise the admin, it stops eating your life. Payments get collected automatically at the time of booking. Invoices are generated and sent without you touching them. Reminders go out on their own. Your cash flow improves because you are not chasing people for money weeks after the service. You are getting paid upfront or on the day, every time, like clockwork. That is what a healthy business looks like.
Chenelle said she has seen people ready to shut down their entire business, and the fix was almost always the same: put a few systems in place, do one price rise, and get some professional support.
"Their entire business is fixed," she said. "And five minutes earlier, they were like 'we've got to shut it down.'"
5. Being Easy to Book Is Your Biggest Competitive Advantage
This is the one that surprises people. Chenelle said it plainly:
"It's not even always about being the most skilled, being the most aesthetic business, being the most popular. Sometimes it's literally being the most efficient."
If a pet owner can book with you in 30 seconds using one hand on their phone, you win. If they have to text you, wait for a reply, go back and forth on dates, and then hope you remember, you lose. Even if your grooming skills are objectively better.
People's lives are busy. The first reason they are hiring you is because they are time-poor. They just want to get their chores done. Booking the dog groomer, organising the walker for next week, locking in daycare for a busy Thursday: these are tasks on their to-do list. If you make those tasks painless, they will keep coming back. If it is a hassle, they will find someone easier.
This is where self-service booking changes everything. With Petboost, a returning client types in their phone number, picks their service, chooses a time, and they are booked. That is it. No phone call. No text exchange. No waiting for you to reply. Their chore is done and your diary just got fuller, without you lifting a finger.
Think about what that means for your business. While you are mid-groom, mid-walk, or mid-training session, bookings are landing in your calendar and payments are being collected. Your diary fills itself. Your revenue grows while you are doing the thing you actually love. That is not a pipe dream. That is what happens when you make it easy for pet owners to spend money with you.
6. Your Rules Should Live on a Page, Not in Your Head
This was one of the most practical insights from the conversation. When a client pushes back on pricing or cancellation fees, it is uncomfortable. Nobody likes confrontation. So what do you do?
You point to the page.
Whether it is your booking system, your website, or your terms and conditions, having your rules written down and visible means you are not the one saying "no." The page is. The system is. The agreement they already signed is.
"It's deflecting the attention from the person to the page," Frazer explained. "It's like when you're in a pool: no running, no jumping. The sign is up."
This applies to everything: pricing, cancellation policies, weight limits, service descriptions, add-on charges. If it is on a page, in a system, in an agreement box that they ticked before booking, the awkward conversation never needs to happen.
In Petboost, this is built into the flow. When a client books for the first time, they see your pricing upfront, agree to your terms and conditions, and put their card on file. It is time-stamped against their profile. Your cancellation policy, your weight limits, your service descriptions: all visible, all agreed to, all locked away before a single paw crosses your threshold. No surprises for them, no confrontation for you.
Chenelle added that she used to struggle enforcing her own cancellation policy because she "felt bad." But once clients had agreed to the terms digitally, it was no longer personal. It was just business.
7. An Accountant Will Literally Pay for Themselves
Chenelle was emphatic about this. Her accountant cost roughly two thousand dollars a year. He saved and made her approximately twenty thousand.
He flagged expenses that were not worth it. He identified invoicing errors. He called her proactively when revenue patterns shifted. And he landed her a $15,000 government grant she did not even know existed.
"He rang me and said, 'hey, I've just flagged that you're actually eligible for this. Do you want me to go ahead?'" she recalled. "Bang, 15 grand in my account minus his fee."
The same logic applies to lawyers. Spend an hour of their time reviewing your terms and conditions and waivers. Use ChatGPT to draft 80% of it, then pay a professional to make sure it is legally sound in your state and your country.
If you think your business is too small for professional help, that is exactly when you need it most. These are not luxury expenses. They are investments that protect your business and make you money.
8. Systems Are an Animal Welfare Issue
This one reframes the entire conversation. Chenelle made the point that having proper systems is not just about efficiency or professionalism. It is about keeping animals safe.
"Why would you put yourself in a position where you could potentially forget to medicate a pet because you didn't realise you had them booked in that evening? Or you fed them wrong and they've got an allergy. Or you missed them completely but you were their only way to access the backyard."
When you are overbooked, rushed, and stressed, mistakes happen. Allergies get missed. Medications get forgotten. Dogs get left without toilet breaks. These are not hypothetical scenarios. They happen when there is no system keeping track.
A system that shows you exactly what each pet needs, reminds you when you need to be somewhere, and ticks things off as you go is not just convenient. It is a safety net.
Petboost stores everything in the pet's profile: allergies, medications, feeding instructions, behavioural notes, vaccination certificates, vet details. It is all there, visible to you and your team at the point of care. Not buried in a text thread. Not scribbled on a Post-it. Right there, every single time.
If you care about animal welfare (which, if you are in this industry, you absolutely do), then having systems in place is part of that commitment.
9. You Are Closer to a Breakthrough Than You Think
This was the most powerful takeaway from the entire conversation. Chenelle shared that she regularly works with pet business owners who are on the verge of quitting. They are burnt out, overwhelmed, and convinced their business is beyond repair.
"And it's honestly just the fact that if we put a couple of policies in place, if we do one price rise and we add a system, their entire business is fixed."
That is worth reading again. Not a complete overhaul. Not thousands of dollars in consulting. A few policies. A price adjustment. A system.
If you are feeling overwhelmed right now, you are probably not in the wrong industry. You are probably just running your business the hard way. And the fix is likely much simpler than you think.
A proper system gives you a fuller diary because clients can book themselves around the clock. It gives you better cash flow because payments are collected automatically and prepaid packages mean money in your account before the work even starts. It gives you professional credibility because your clients receive confirmations, reminders, report cards, and clean itemised invoices. And it gives you your evenings back because the admin is handled.
That is not a fantasy. That is what systemising your business actually delivers.
Start Here
Before you even think about software, do this: write down the three things about your week that drive you mad. The recurring headaches. The tasks you dread. The things that eat up your time.
If those things involve scheduling, chasing payments, remembering details, or managing client communication, then a system will change your life.
Here is what that looks like when it all comes together:
- Your diary fills itself. Pet owners book online, 24/7, without needing to call or text you. You wake up to new bookings that landed overnight.
- Your cash flow is predictable. Payments are collected at the time of booking. Prepaid packages mean revenue hits your account before the service even happens. No more chasing. No more awkward reminders.
- Your business looks and feels professional. Branded confirmations, automated reminders, GPS-tracked visits, photo report cards, and clean itemised invoices. Clients treat you like a professional because you are operating like one.
- Your team is empowered. Multiple logins, individual schedules, and clear visibility of what needs to happen each day. You are not the bottleneck anymore.
- Your clients' lives are easier. Booking you is a 30-second task they can do from their phone while making dinner. Their chore is done, their pet is sorted, and they did not have to send a single message. That is why they keep coming back.
- Your evenings are yours again. The system handles the housekeeping. You do the work you actually started this business for.
If you want to hear the full conversation, listen to the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or podcast.app.
And if you are ready to explore what a proper system looks like, book a free demo or start with our free checklist and go from there.
