Pets are People too.

First time you are introduced to peoples’ pets, take full advantage of the opportunity. Do it right and you will be accepted.

You’re busy setting up but try making it a point to slow down, drop everything and kneel down to their level, keeping your distance. Speak light and gentle; ask the owner for their name and genuinely repeat it like it’s a question. Don’t stare into their eyes, stare at the ground in front of them and up at their owner and smile like it is a privilege that they let you say hi to their family member, the pet. Keep your hands below their neck level and move slowly. It only takes 30 seconds to break the ice. They want to be your friend generally. Commit their names to memory and each time you come, say hi to the pets first, even before you say hi to the client. Make friends with them and you are automatically part of the family.

Remember, pets are people too.

Great videos on Amazon – a guy who became family with a herd of mule deer, Touching the Wild, and Cougar, Ghost of the Rockies.