Travel Nurses & Techs: Caring for Pets While Traveling on Assignment

As a traveling healthcare professional, if you have a pet, of course they’ll need to come with you from assignment to assignment. No matter what new and unfamiliar city is on your horizon, you can take comfort in knowing someone will always be there, waiting for you to get home from your long day’s shift.

However, with the decision to take your pet along for your journey, comes the responsibility of finding ways to care for your pet while keeping your busy schedule in mind. Also, having a pet will add extra expense to your housing, typically around $150 more per month. A deposit is often required for having a pet and may limit housing options. So, even though there are some extra hurdles to traveling with your furry friend, here are some solutions for taking your pet along successfully.

Vet Check-Up & Referral

Before leaving your current location to embark on your new journey, you may want to consider taking Fido to your vet to make sure he is up-to-date on his check-up and vaccinations. Additionally, it may be a good idea to ask your current vet for a referral to a new vet located in the future area or city you are preparing to move to. After relocating, it may be a good idea to familiarize yourself with the route to your new vet, just in case an emergency should ever take place.

Pet Insurance

As previously discussed, health emergencies with your pet may unfortunately arise. Due to the travel insurance some travelers opt to buy for themselves, many traveling healthcare professionals decide to purchase pet insurance. Some of the most popular pet insurance carriers include: Embrace, Trupanion, and Fetch.

Dog Walking Services

Oftentimes, because of changes to a pet’s environment and everyday structure, they may misbehave, act out and show signs of anxiety. This is especially common in cats. This makes it important to make sure your pet is receiving the proper attention it needs. However, this may be easier said than done for a busy traveler.

One option to consider is hiring a licensed, bonded professional dog walker to play with your pet while you are away. Some great resources for finding dog walkers include Rover, Wag, and Fetch. It is suggested that you meet and ask for previous references before hiring an individual.

Dog Park Location Services

When you do have some time in-between your busy schedule and want to explore your new surroundings, you may want to consider roaming around different dog parks with your furry friend. Two excellent dog park finder resources are Nylabone’s Dog Park Finder and Bring Fido.

Pet Sitting Services

Whether you’re traveling out of your new town or simply want someone to watch your pet while you’re at work for the day, pet sitting services may be something that you want to consider. Nowadays, pet sitting services are becoming increasingly popular and more preferred compared to kennels or boarding. Pet sitting services can provide convenience, peace of mind, one-on-one attention and more personalized service for your pet. Two websites you may utilize are: Rover and Care.com. Many of these suggestions conveniently let you search by cost and geographical area, as well as provide background checks, allowing you to narrow down which individual best meets your needs.

If you’re looking for a healthcare staffing agency that can connect you with a healthcare institution (and who offers great advice on traveling with your pet!), please consider Springboard Healthcare. We staff traveling healthcare professionals all over the United States and offers great benefits to our traveling healthcare workers. To speak with one of our awesome relationship managers and find out what high-paying career opportunities are available to you, call (866) 465-6286.