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To care for animals is a rewarding job, and you don't need to be a vet to do it. Animal care isn't just medical, and you can do it as a hobbyist with care, love, and attention. If you have some spare land, you can use it for boarding pets or even offer specialist care for exotic animals.
Become a Responsible Breeder
Breeding animals like dogs and cats is like full-time work when you do it responsibly as they deserve. There are far too many inconsiderate and even cruel people out there who use pets like breeding machines to make as much money as possible. This is immoral and illegal. You need a good amount of land and a special breeding area that can provide warmth, shelter, and exercise for any animals you raise to make a living. But money should not be the overall goal.
When you offer puppies for sale, they must be raised in a loving and adequate environment. Often your home is not the best place for this. It can help to build a care area for any dogs and cats you want to breed. Treating them like members of the family is essential, and no breeding should be forced; this needs to happen naturally, and in-breeding is not recommended. Dogs need a lot of land to roam and exercise, where they can be themselves for breeding chances.
Care for Animals with Boarding
There are times when people simply need somewhere to put their animals when they are away. For example, a family holiday for a week means the dog needs to stay at home. But it is cruel to leave a dog alone for this long, even if someone comes around to feed it. If you have a fair amount of land, you can build a kennel or cattery for boarding animals when needed. This is a great way to indulge your passion for pets and make some money while doing it. It's a win-win.
Of course, you can't just become an animal boarder, though, and your plans will probably need to be approved by your local governing bodies. Accommodation will take up a lot of space, and then there are the environmental concerns of it all. Cats and dogs can be loud, and anyone who lives near an animal boarding home will tell you about the smell. So even though you have private property, it helps to always check about the right licenses and permits for boarding.
Build Bunny and Rabbit Runs
It's not only cats and dogs that people might want to use your land for. Common house pets like rabbits, bunnies, and even guinea pigs need some land. And often, people don't have enough land for the exercise they need, if at all. So if you don't like the idea of barking dogs and meowing cats all day, you can build exercise runs for small house pets. An enclosed run is necessary so they don't run away, and you don't want to be trying to catch rabbits all day long.
Depending on where you live, you may need to apply for permission to build rabbit runs, especially for commercial purposes. The smallest a run should be is three meters by two meters. It should also be strong enough to prevent predators like foxes from getting inside. Small pets like this also love things to play with, like tunnels, boxes, and soil for digging. The aim should be to simulate the things that they would naturally do if they were in the wild.
Make a Playground for Dogs
Dogs love to play. And they enjoy playgrounds just like children. You can open up your land to the public by building a dog playground where they can visit with their adopted canine friends. Provided you have permission, some things you can include in a dog playground are:
- Poop bins and bag dispensers to encourage people to pick after their dogs.
- Water fountains where dogs can get a drink after all the playing around.
- Shaded areas to keep them from getting too hot after running around.
- Benches and tables for dog owners to sit and watch their dogs.
- Fenced areas for different dog sizes and for keeping dogs within limits.
- Tunnels, slides, and platforms for dogs to explore as they play.
- Stands or stalls where you can sell dog essentials to cover the costs.
Because of the bringing of dogs and foot and vehicle traffic, you will need permission to build a dog park. This can also be easily rejected. So include what you plan to do in your submission, and be honest. This will help your chances of successfully getting the permits your park needs.
Convert Barns into Stables
If you have bought a farm with land, it may also come with barns. And barns are great for doing almost anything because they are like a blank canvas. However, like most other things on this list, you will also need permission to convert old barns into workable stables. This is because you are changing what the building is used for. You will also need permission for any outdoor activities for horses and other large animals that will use the stables like manages and jumps.
Once you have permission, converting a barn into stables is a relatively simple affair, but you should use experts for this. They can wire in the lights, attend to plumbing, and take care of carpentry and paddocks. You also need to consider the livery type, such as a DIY livery, part livery, and full livery. DIY liveries are when the owner uses a stable but does everything themselves. A full livery means you handle the day-to-day care of the animals in the stables.
Care for Animals with Specialized Housing
Mammals are relatively easy to care for but require a lot of time and dedication. Of course, your idea of something cute and cuddly might be way different than most people's. Maybe you love scaly reptiles, birds of prey, or even, dare we say it? Tarantulas. Dear Lord! Of course, any of these require specialist knowledge, a bit more than most traditional pets. You can capitalize on this and use your knowledge wisely by offering specialized housing and care for exotic pets.
All pets, no matter what someone thinks of them, deserve love and care. But for someone going on holiday, it is probably pretty hard to get a friend to come around and feed their Mexican Red Knee Tarantula. And that's where you come in. It might be best to focus on one niche or species. But if you have the land or space, you could set up different units. You can then provide what they need, such as a large-scale vivarium for looking after different types of reptiles.
Raise Livestock for Free Food
Caring for animals doesn't only relate to pets. You can raise livestock if you have land and use them for self-sufficiency, such as slaughtering pigs, lamb, and chickens. Killing an animal purely for survival isn't seen as cruel if it is done correctly and responsibly. And this is where your land comes in. Before slaughter, your livestock must have the best life you can possibly give them, such as pasturing them well. This also helps with the quality and flavor of the resulting product.
But of course, if slaughtering animals yourself isn't something you think you can do, you can still raise livestock for free food and other uses. Cows will help keep your land in good shape by grazing all day, and you can milk them for organic milk. You can then use this to make cheese, butter, and yogurt. Keeping chickens is also relatively easy when you have proper coops. And these provide around one egg per day from each hen you have, which is nutrient-rich.
Summary
You can become a responsible breeder to care for animals such as cats and dogs that require a good amount of land. You can also consider using your land as a doggy playground. And even raising livestock in the right way ensures that these animals are cared for in a responsible way.
