We’ve put the following on our website about the procedures we’ll need to implement while the Coronavirus outbreak continues,but thought we would also send it out in an email.
We’re trying to find a balance between taking safe and sensible precautions and continuing to provide all of our services as usual.
https://www.happyhounds.co.uk/coronavirus-policy-6-march-2020/
We are obviously hopeful that Coronavirus has as little impact on everyone as possible, but we hope you’ll appreciate that we have to be mindful of the fact that a reduced need for our services will affect sitters’ jobs, so we are trying to be as fair to them and yourselves as possible.
Thank you for your patience and understanding during this tricky time, and though it’s only very few clients so far, we’d especially like to thank everyone who has continued to use our services after being required to work at home as a precautionary measure.
Happy Hounds & Cooler Cats Coronavirus Policy
Happy Hounds will continue to operate as usual and our procedures will evolve as required.
The procedures we will apply will be similar to those we use during a kennel cough outbreak, while also increasing the use of barrier protection for humans.
Compulsory actions for sitters to carry out
- Wash hands thoroughly 5-10 times a day with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
- Do not touch clients or other people as much as possible. Avoid shaking hands, hugging and other unnecessary forms of contact
- Do not kiss or cuddle or be licked by animals.
- Avoid touching your face
- Use gloves when entering homes (get from HH)
- Use hand sanitiser
- Ensure vehicle is kept sanitised using Safe4 disinfectant (get refills from HH)
- Spray yourself with diluted (1:50 safe 4 disinfectant) as you would after contact with a dog during a kennel cough outbreak (soles of shoes, spritz your clothes, spray down inside of vehicle)
Info for sitters
- Please inform HH if you have been in a high-risk area and/or come into contact with someone who has been in a high-risk area.
- If you are going to be in busy places, then please avoid those coughing or with signs of colds.
- If you have been exposed to someone coughing wash hands immediately.
- You may need to self-isolate – if you feel you have been exposed to/may have the symptoms of the virus, check with the NHS 111 online Coronavirus service or a medical professional ASAP. Please inform HH.
Info for clients
- Please inform HH if you have been in a high-risk area and/or come into contact with someone who has been in a high-risk area**(see below)
- Please inform HH immediately if you are having to self-isolate.
- If you do need to self-isolate (not the same as working at home), we will need to be cautious about providing animal care to you as currently it isn’t clear whether animals may contract or spread the virus.
- Please note that our cancellation policy will continue to apply in order to try as be as fair as possible to all concerned.
- In order to maintain hygiene and safety, sitters will need to wash hands at client’s homes.
Extra precautions for specific services:
We ask you to please bear with us while we have to use these additional precautions – we hope you appreciate the need to minimise contact as much as possible in these circumstances.
For boarding and daycare we may minimise the items that we’ll take from you and use our own bedding, equipment, toys and so forth.
We may do handovers at the door rather than invite you in / coming in for a cuppa after you collect or we drop off a dog.
These policies may evolve and we’ll keep you up to date with any changes.
Additional information:
Symptoms are:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath
**High risk areas (as at 6/3/20)
- China
- Cambodia
- Hong Kong
- Iran
- Singapore
- Italy
- Japan
- Laos
- Macau
- Malaysia
- Myanmar
- Taiwan
- Tenerife (especially anyone who staying at the Adeje Costa Palace Hotel)
- Thailand
- Vietnam
● South Korea