Dog walker or daycare? It’s one of the questions Hampstead owners ask us most, especially now that so many people split the week between the office and working from home. Both give your dog company, exercise and a proper break in a long day, but they’re very different days out. Here’s an honest look at how our £25 group walks on Hampstead Heath compare with a £55 day in the Secret Woodland, which dogs tend to suit each, and how to mix the two across your week.
Start with how long your dog would be on their own
The RSPCA advises that dogs shouldn’t be left alone for more than four hours at a time, and for puppies much less. So the most useful first question isn’t really walker or daycare. It’s how long your dog would otherwise spend at home alone, and on which days.
If you’re home for most of the day, or out for a morning, a walk is usually all your dog needs: an hour of real exercise and company in the middle of the day, then home to snooze while you work. If you’re out from breakfast until the evening, a walk still breaks the day up, but daycare covers most of it.
A group walk on Hampstead Heath: what £25 gets you
Our walks are group walks, made for friendly dogs who love being around other dogs, and for nervous dogs who just need a little time to find their feet. In Hampstead you can choose a morning or an afternoon walk:
- Morning walk: your walker collects from home around 9:30, and your dog is back, settled, about an hour and a half later.
- Afternoon walk: collection around midday, and home again around 1:30.
- A full hour of walking: never less, and the drive isn’t counted in it.
- A small group: no more than four dogs on Hampstead Heath, where every one of our walkers holds a Hampstead Heath licence and stays within the limit of four dogs per walker.
- The same walker every time: someone who knows your dog, their friends in the group and their favourite spots.
- A WhatsApp from your walker: a video of your dog in action, and who they’ve been running around with today.
Stephanie, Jack and Ashley walk Hampstead Heath, from the West Heath woodland to the open Hampstead Heath Extension, and Nick and Emma collect in Hampstead and drive to Arrandene Open Space in Mill Hill, where groups of six are allowed. We hold your key, so you don’t need to be in. You can read why the licence matters in why every one of our walkers holds a Hampstead Heath licence, and how a walk runs from door to door on our dog walking page.
A daycare day in the Secret Woodland: what £55 gets you
Daycare is a whole day out, and it’s run 100% by Warren. He collects, looks after and drops home every daycare dog himself, so your dog has the same person every time.
- 8:30 to 9:30: Warren collects from home in Hampstead. It’s a round, so collection runs across the hour.
- About 40 minutes: the drive out. Dogs settle on the way and arrive calm.
- Four hours in real woodland: ferns, bracken, streams and deer paths, in a group of six.
- During the day: WhatsApp videos, so you can see who your dog is playing with.
- 3:00 to 4:00: home again, properly tired and ready for a quiet evening.
Pickup and drop-off are included in the £55. Daycare dogs don’t go to Hampstead Heath at all. We love Hampstead Heath, and it’s fantastic, but it can get very busy, so for daycare we prefer the quiet, untouched Secret Woodland, which we’re lucky enough to use. There’s more on the day itself in what a good day of dog daycare in Hampstead looks like, and on the woodland in doggy daycare without a building.
Dog walker or daycare: how to decide for your Hampstead dog
Every dog is different, but these are the things we talk through with owners when they ask us to help them choose:
- Your working day. On a long office day, daycare keeps your dog busy and in company from the morning round until mid-afternoon. On a shorter day out, or a day at home, a walk is usually plenty.
- Your dog’s energy. Young, busy dogs often need more than an hour. Wrufo, a spaniel we’ve walked for seven years, now comes to daycare every day: left at home without a proper outlet he howls, and after a day in the woodland he comes home and sleeps.
- Your dog’s temperament. Not every dog needs a full day. Calm, steady dogs can be just as happy on a walk, and a quieter dog like Rum, a red Labrador, shows the daycare group works for gentle dogs too.
- Who your dog sees. On walks it’s the same walker on the same days; in daycare it’s always Warren. Either way, your dog gets to know one familiar face.
- Where they go. Walks happen on Hampstead Heath or at Arrandene. Daycare happens in the Secret Woodland.
- Your budget. A walk is £25 and a daycare day is £55, so many weeks work best as a mix.
Working from home: a walk in the middle of the day
For owners working from home, a midday walk often fits best. Your walker collects around 12:00, your dog gets a full hour on Hampstead Heath with their group, and they’re home around 1:30, ready to sleep through your afternoon calls. You get your lunch break back, and your dog gets proper exercise and time with other dogs, which a quick lap of the block can’t give them.
If you’re at home but flat out on a busy day, a daycare day can help too. Your dog is out from the morning round until mid-afternoon, so you can concentrate, and you’ll still get the WhatsApp videos.
Mixing walks and daycare across the week
You don’t have to choose one or the other. We ask for a minimum of two bookings a week on average, and walks and daycare days both count towards it. It doesn’t need to be the same every week, as long as it’s regular and balances out. A few examples of how Hampstead weeks can look:
- Working from home all week: walks on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, £75 a week.
- Two office days: daycare on both office days, £110 a week.
- Three office days and two at home: daycare on the office days and an afternoon walk on the home days, £215 a week.
Everything is booked through our own app, Appy Dog. You can book one-off walks or daycare days, or set up a recurring order that runs every week until you pause it. Your walker or Warren marks each booking complete when your dog is home, and you get a notification.
Whichever you choose, we’re fully insured, with £2m insurance, every walker is police checked and trained personally by Warren, and keys carry your dog’s name, never your address. The same choices apply in the areas around Hampstead too, including Hampstead Garden Suburb.
Still not sure? Start with a meet and greet
The easiest way to decide is to let us meet your dog. Every dog meets us first, the meet and greet is free, and Warren will tell you honestly whether your dog would enjoy daycare, which walker and group would suit them, or whether a mix would work best. You’ll find the walkers, times and daycare details on our Hampstead dog walking and daycare page, and more about daycare on the doggy daycare page.
To talk it through, call Warren on 020 8442 0520 or send us a WhatsApp message.