The Hunterdon Scoop / Hire

Pet sitters and dog walkers in Hunterdon County

The other hire with your house keys, and no license requirement behind it.

Skip to all 14 businesses filed under Boarding & Daycare in the county directory ↓

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What it costs

Care.com market data (pulled July 2026) shows an average local dog walker rate of about $16.22 an hour in Flemington and about $16.00 a walk in Lambertville, broadly consistent across the county’s Rover and Care.com listings. There is no reliable local source for standard overnight pet-sitting or farm-care rates, so ask for those directly.

Before you hire

  1. Confirm bonding AND liability insurance separately, bonded covers theft, insured covers accidents/injury to your pet or property, and some operators only carry one.
  2. Ask what happens in a medical emergency: does the sitter have a signed vet-authorization form from you, a relationship with your vet or an emergency clinic, and pet first-aid/CPR certification (Pro Pet Hero and Red Cross are the common ones to look for)?
  3. For solo operators, which is most of this trade, ask directly about backup coverage, what happens if they get sick or have a family emergency during your trip?
  4. Get the visit-verification method in writing before you book: GPS-tracked walks, timestamped photo updates via an app like Time To Pet, or a plain text/call, apps are the strongest verification, a verbal promise is the weakest.
  5. Because there's no state license for this trade, weight reviews and years-in-business more heavily than for licensed trades, ask for at least two references from clients with pets similar to yours (same species, temperament, or medical needs).

Pet sitting and dog walking are unlicensed occupations in New Jersey, there is no state license, permit, or registry through the NJ Division of Consumer Affairs or any other state body that governs this trade (unlike, say, home improvement contractors under NJ HIC or cosmetologists). The only official record that exists for most of these businesses is standard NJ business entity registration (LLC filings) through the NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services Business Records Service (accessible at njportal.com/DOR/BusinessNameSearch), which confirms a company legally exists but says nothing about quality or safety. Because there's no license to check, the meaningful verification steps are: proof of bonding/liability insurance (ask to see the certificate, don't just take "bonded and insured" on faith), trade-association membership such as NAPPS (National Association of Professional Pet Sitters) or PSI (Pet Sitters International), and pet first-aid/CPR certification from a real provider (Pro Pet Hero, American Red Cross).

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The local picture

Genuinely thin on the ground, maybe half a dozen real local operators surrounded by a much larger layer of app-based freelancers. Because the work requires no state license, the only real filters are insurance, trade-association membership, and review history, all self-reported.

Questions neighbors actually ask

Do pet sitters and dog walkers need a license in New Jersey?

No. New Jersey does not license or register pet sitters or dog walkers, it's an open trade anyone can start. That means "insured and bonded" and trade-association membership (like NAPPS or Pet Sitters International) are the closest things to a credential check, and they're all self-reported by the business, not confirmed by the state.

Is it cheaper to use an app like Rover or Wag instead of a local company?

Usually close in price, Care.com data pegs the average dog walk around $16-20/hour in Flemington and Lambertville, which is in line with what local independents charge. The real tradeoff isn't price, it's who's accountable: with Rover/Wag you're booking an individual gig sitter through the app's insurance and background-check system; with a local company you're dealing with an owner who has a reputation and a phone number in your town.

What should I do if a farm animal (horses, chickens, livestock) needs care while I'm away?

Narrow your search: most pet sitters only cover dogs, cats, and small pets. Only a couple of operators in the county advertise farm or livestock care, so confirm directly before assuming a general "pet sitter" will handle horses or chickens.

14 businesses filed under Boarding & Daycare in the county directory, A–Z

Everything filed under Boarding & Daycare in the county directory, alphabetically. It is a broad category, so it takes in neighboring lines of work as well as pet sitters and dog walkers. No ordering, no ranking, no picks.

Names, towns and numbers come from The Hunterdon Scoop business directory, pulled July 28, 2026. Want this list narrowed to your town? Browse Boarding & Daycare by town. A business appearing here is not a recommendation, and no business pays to be on it.

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