【Editor's note】

　　Year after year, the way of celebrating the Spring Festival changes. Since when did the family problem of "go to your house for the New Year or go to my house for the New Year" have a new solution; since when did the social relationships during the Spring Festival have been quietly reconstructed... Year after year, the same Spring Festival continues Witness new phenomena, give birth to new careers, and bring new feelings. China News Network launched the "New Spring Festival Illustrated Book" plan to record the changes in annual customs and freeze the changing China.

　　China News Service, Beijing, February 9 (Shao Meng) According to predictions from the Ministry of Transport, during this year's 40-day Spring Festival, there will be approximately 9 billion people traveling, visiting relatives, and leisurely. With the "travel boom", many people are faced with the problem of how to properly place "left-behind" pets.

　　An interview with China News Network found that during the Spring Festival holiday, in addition to sending pets to foster care, more and more people choose to hire professionals to come to feed, clean, and play with their pets. The emerging profession of pet caregivers has also become popular. Before the long holiday begins, many pet caregivers’ schedules are already full.

There is a pet nanny who makes more than 20 a day and earns over a thousand in a single day.

　　Disinfecting the whole body, wearing gloves and foot covers, feeding and watering, cleaning, observing the status of pets, playing with them... Early in the morning, Ms. Chi, a pet caregiver in Tongzhou, Beijing, started her day's work.

　　As early as two months ago, Ms. Chi had received orders for home-based feeding during the Spring Festival. By the end of January, due to the large number of orders, she had to close the order. "Based on the number of orders, there are more than 150 orders, and for several days it has been 20 orders a day." Based on the average price of 80 per order during holidays, she will earn over 10,000 yuan this Spring Festival.

  The door-to-door feeding order received by Ms. Chi, the pet caregiver. Photo provided by interviewee

　　"It's actually quite hard. Sometimes there are 20 orders a day. I have to get up at 3 o'clock in the morning and work until nearly 12 o'clock at night. It's mainly due to the sacrifice of physical strength and time." She said that door-to-door feeding has a time cycle, and the peak is on holidays. During the Spring Festival, demand is strongest during the Spring Festival.

　　Ms. Chi has more than ten years of experience in raising cats and also likes small animals. During the Spring Festival last year, she accidentally learned about "home feeding". Since the holiday was early and she had free time, she chose to post on social platforms to take orders. Later, she joined a pet service platform through interviews and assessments and became a pet nanny.

　　After working in the industry for more than a year, she discovered that pet owners have an increasing demand for pet care services. "Many people regard their 'furry babies' as their own family members and are worried about unexpected problems when they are away. They hope that someone will spend more time with them."

　　China News Service learned that in addition to relying on online pet service platforms, many individuals also use the holidays to post door-to-door feeding information on social networks. The charges range from 30 yuan to 100 yuan per time, depending on distance, pet type, service type, etc. .

There is also chaos behind the rise

　　The booming pet economy has given rise to new professions such as pet nannies. According to data from industry organizations, the scale of China's pet economy industry will reach 493.6 billion yuan in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 25.2%. The market size is expected to reach 811.4 billion yuan in 2025.

　　As a new profession in a new business format, due to the existence of force majeure factors, the uneven quality of practitioners, and the lack of more detailed industry regulations, the "pet care" service has also become popular and has also seen some disputes.

　　Lin Ye, a post-1995 girl from Chengdu, Sichuan, said that she was bitten on the leg by her employer's dog when she first started doing home-based feeding, and she never dared to try again. Ms. Chi, who is experienced, has also encountered situations where pets were scratched due to stress reactions.

　　Pet owners also have concerns. Many people have shared their experiences online about the “mistakes” of purchasing door-to-door feeding services: some service providers lacked responsibility and experience or failed to feed pets as agreed, resulting in pets getting sick or getting lost.

　　Xia Hailong, a lawyer at Shanghai Shenlun Law Firm, told China News that it is difficult for consumers to determine the integrity and ability of these emerging service providers to perform their contracts. If they fail to perform their contracts in a timely manner after payment, it may endanger the health of their pets. There are also operational difficulties when strangers enter the home alone, and consumers may face unknown risks to their home property security and personal privacy.

  Some pets that Ms. Chi came to feed. Photo provided by interviewee

　　In Ms. Chi’s view, the threshold for accepting orders for individuals on social networks is low, and security is difficult to ensure. Standardized third-party platforms will play a certain restrictive role. "Compared with 'wild orders', the trust between both parties through the platform will be higher. The platform I am on requires that you have experience in raising pets. Before taking up the job, you need to be trained, assessed, paid a deposit, uploaded ID card, and reviewed the credit score of the payment software. Before visiting the pet owner, we will also ask whether there are cameras at home and whether the pet has any infectious diseases, etc.”

Sound development requires careful regulation

　　How to avoid disputes when choosing door-to-door feeding services? Xia Hailong reminded that if consumers have smart door locks, monitoring and other equipment at home, they can use these devices flexibly to ensure that services are in place and to avoid disputes.

　　In order to protect the rights and interests of both parties, pet caregivers and pet owners usually sign a written service agreement in advance. Xia Hailong said that similar agreements are valid, and consumers should pay attention to verify the service capabilities and integrity of the other party, and clarify the performance time, method, liability for breach of contract, etc. The detailed terms must be clearly agreed upon.

　　An industry insider pointed out that there are currently no more detailed industry standards and supervision for pet nannies, which also requires practitioners to strengthen industry self-discipline.

　　The popularity of pet sitting services has made many people eager to try it, but Ms. Chi reminded that this industry is not as simple as "paid cat care". Some pets may have a stress reaction when meeting strangers, and special situations may occur. If you have no experience in raising pets, just because of the novelty, problems may easily arise.

  Ms. Chi has a cat that she has kept for more than ten years. Photo provided by interviewee

　　"I regard it as a career for long-term planning. Feeding pets at home is a healing and relaxing thing for me, and it can also help many parents of 'furry children'. I think it is quite good." Ms. Chi said, "There may be some People think that being a pet nanny makes a lot of money, but in fact it requires a lot of time, physical strength, and energy. If you want to engage in this profession for a long time, responsibility and heartfelt love are very important."

　　She hopes that the pet nanny industry can become more standardized, helping more pet owners alleviate their concerns, and pet owners can improve their safety awareness, allowing the industry to develop healthily. (over)