Free template · 2026

Price increase letter to dog walking clients

Copy it, replace the bracketed bits, send it. Below the letter: the text-message version, how much notice to give, and what to say when they push back.

Subject: Walks for [DOG NAME] from [DATE]

Hi [NAME],

[DOG NAME] is doing brilliantly — [ONE REAL LINE, e.g. "she's finally stopped chasing the geese"].

From [DATE], a [GROUP / SOLO] walk will be [NEW PRICE], up from [OLD PRICE]. It's the first change since [YEAR].

The main reason is that I now take smaller groups — [N] dogs at most — because that's where the rules are going and, honestly, it's safer and calmer for the dogs. Fewer dogs per walk means the price per dog has to move a bit. Fuel and insurance make up the rest.

Same pickup time, same route, same photos in your phone.

If it's easier on the budget, I can do [N] days a week instead of [N], or switch [DOG NAME] to a shorter [30]-minute walk at [PRICE].

[YOUR NAME]
[BUSINESS NAME]

Before you pick a number

How many customers can this price rise lose?

Gross margin%Price rise%

20%You can lose up to 20% of customers and still make the same profit.

10% ÷ (40% + 10%) = 20%

Open the full calculator, with your prices and customer count →

How much notice

two to four weeks, by text and in person at the door

Typical increase

5–10% per walk, often a small round step

The text-message version

For the customers whose entire relationship with you lives in a phone. Send it before the visit, never on the invoice.

Text message

Hi [NAME]! Quick one — from [DATE] [DOG NAME]'s walks will be [NEW PRICE] (first change since [YEAR]). Smaller groups now, which [DOG NAME] will love. Same pickup, same photos. Any questions just text me.

Why it is going up, in words you can use

“Rising costs” persuades nobody because everyone says it. Name the actual driver in dog walking instead:

fuel and van costs to get to the walking spots and back
insurance, and council licences where they apply
group size limits: many parks and councils now cap how many dogs one walker can take, so fewer dogs per trip
the drive between pickups is unpaid time that grows as the round spreads out

When they push back

You will hear these within a week. Having the answer ready is the difference between holding the price and folding on the phone.

"Can he just go in a bigger group to keep it cheaper?": "I have capped all my groups at [N], so there isn't a bigger one." Having one rule for everyone is what makes this easy — it is not a price you can negotiate, it is how you walk.
"We'll cut down to three days.": Fine — and fill the gap. Keep a waitlist so dropped slots go to someone new. Losing two walks a week from one client is not a crisis if the slot is already spoken for.
"There's an app that does it cheaper.": "There is, and you might get a different walker each week." Say it once. Owners who have used you for a year have a dog that runs to the door for you, and they know it.

Before you send it

Is a price rise even the right move for you?

Sometimes it is not. Sometimes the money is in a service plan for customers you already have, or in the job you are quoting below cost without realising. Describe your business in one sentence and you will get three specific moves back — priced per month, with the arithmetic written out so you can put your own numbers in.

Free, no signup, about thirty seconds. If one of them is a price rise, you will get the number to put in the brackets above.

Give me three moves

More letters: pets

dog grooming clients

A template, not legal advice. If you have a written contract with these dog walking clients, check what it says about notice periods and price changes before you send anything — the contract wins over any template, including this one.