Quick answer
Pet groomers, boarding kennels, catteries and doggy day-care operators borrow for mobile grooming vans, salon fit-outs, hydrobaths and dryers, kennel upgrades, play yards and buying an established business. Lenders look at banked income, rebooking rates, the holiday-driven seasonality of boarding, council approvals and land or lease terms. Smaller needs often suit unsecured options; buying a kennel property leans on property security.
Key points
- Grooming is repeat business; rebooking rates matter.
- Boarding income peaks in school holidays and around Christmas.
- Kennels and catteries usually need council approval for the site.
- Many boarding businesses sit on rural land that can secure borrowing.
- Common uses
- Vans, kennels, fit-outs, purchases
- Lenders focus on
- Rebookings, seasonality, approvals
- Unsecured options
- Typically $5k – $500k
- Property-secured
- $20k – $5m
Australians spend generously on their pets, and the businesses that wash, clip, mind and board them have grown with that spending. Pet care finance comes in two quite different shapes. Grooming is a steady, repeat-visit trade where the big costs are a van or a salon. Boarding is property-heavy and seasonal, with kennels full to bursting at Christmas and quiet in between. Lenders treat each on its own terms.
What do pet care businesses borrow for?
Groomers
- A fitted-out mobile grooming van or trailer, with water, power and a hydrobath
- A salon fit-out: tubs, tables, dryers, ventilation and non-slip flooring
- A second van and groomer to cover a new area
Boarding kennels, catteries and day care
- New kennel blocks, cattery suites or climate control
- Play yards, fencing, shade and drainage
- Buying an established boarding business, often with land
- Working capital to get through quiet months
How do lenders read a grooming business?
Rebookings. Dogs need grooming every few weeks, so a groomer’s client list is a reliable engine. Booking software that shows rebooking rates and regular clients is strong evidence.
Banked income. Card and online payments make income easy to verify. Cash takings that never reach the bank can’t support a loan.
The van itself. A fitted grooming van is part vehicle, part custom equipment. The vehicle has a clear resale value; the fit-out less so. That shapes whether vehicle finance or a general facility suits better.
How do lenders read a boarding business?
Seasonality. Boarding income follows school holidays, Easter and especially Christmas. A lender wants a full year of statements so it can see peak and trough. Forward bookings for the next holiday period make the case even stronger.
Approvals and site. Boarding kennels and catteries generally need council approval for the land use and may face conditions on numbers, noise and waste. Lenders check that the business operates within its approval, because an issue with the site affects everything else.
Land and buildings. Many boarding businesses sit on rural or semi-rural blocks owned by the operator. That property can secure a larger loan for upgrades or a purchase.
Planning a second van or a kennel upgrade? Find out what your pet business could access — your credit file isn’t touched just for asking.
Matching the need to the finance
| Need | Common structure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Grooming van | Vehicle or equipment finance | Fit-out may be funded separately |
| Salon fit-out | Unsecured loan | Sized on turnover and statements |
| Kennel or cattery upgrade | Unsecured or property-secured | Depends on size and land ownership |
| Buying a boarding business | Property-secured loan | Land, approvals and trading history assessed |
| Quiet-month buffer | Line of credit | Drawn in the trough, repaid in the peak |
Seasonal businesses often do best with a facility that flexes. Our page on seasonal business loans explains how lenders handle uneven income.
A closer look: the Christmas cash curve
A boarding kennel’s year has a distinctive shape. Bookings for December and January are taken months in advance, often with deposits. The weeks themselves are frantic: extra staff, more food, more cleaning. Then February arrives and occupancy can fall sharply.
Owners who manage this well treat the summer peak as the year’s savings season. They set aside enough to cover wages, feed and maintenance through the quieter months, and they schedule upgrades for the trough when kennels are empty. The business.gov.au guide to managing cash flow recommends planning for exactly these known swings. A line of credit arranged in advance can bridge any gap without a scramble.
Documents that help
- Twelve months of business bank statements
- Booking reports: rebookings, occupancy, forward holiday bookings
- Council approval or permit details for boarding premises
- Lease or land title
- Van, fit-out or building quotes
- BAS and financial statements
Red flags lenders notice
- Cash takings not deposited.
- Boarding approvals that don’t match how the site operates.
- Ageing kennels with no maintenance plan.
- Peak-season deposits spent before the season arrives.
- One groomer carrying the whole client list.
Illustrative example
Illustrative example: a mobile grooming business with a full book in one region wants $75k for a second fitted van so a new groomer can cover a neighbouring area. Twelve months of card income and strong rebooking data support vehicle finance for the van and a small unsecured loan for the fit-out. Separately, a boarding kennel owner on a rural block wants $250k to add a climate-controlled cattery and new play yards before summer, secured with a mortgage over the property.
Buying an established pet business
Buying a kennel or a grooming salon gives you clients from day one. Lenders focus on how much of the business depends on the seller, whether the approvals transfer and the condition of the facilities. The business.gov.au checklist on buying an existing business covers due diligence step by step, and our page on business acquisition loans explains how purchases are structured. If your business is closer to animal health, the vet clinic guide is the better fit.
Starting out versus scaling up
A groomer moving from a home-based setup to a shopfront salon, or a kennel owner adding a day-care service, is changing the business model, not just spending money. Lenders look at what has been proven so far. A home groomer with eighteen months of steady card income and a waiting list has evidence that demand exists; a brand-new operator with no client base has a plan but no proof.
If you’re early in your journey, it can be worth building trading history first, depositing all takings and keeping business and personal accounts separate. If you’re scaling, gather the numbers that show demand is already there: rebooking rates, waitlists, enquiries you’ve had to turn away and forward holiday bookings. Those details help a lender size the facility around what the business can genuinely repay.
Questions a lender may ask
- How many regular clients do you have, and how often do they rebook?
- What share of boarding income falls in school holidays?
- Does your council approval cover the number of animals you take?
- Who owns the land, and is there existing debt on it?
Secured or unsecured?
Vans, salon fit-outs and smaller upgrades often suit unsecured lending of $5k to $500k, sized on turnover and bank statements. Kennel purchases and major building works usually suit secured business loans from $20k to $5m.
Let’s find the right fit for your pet business
Whether it’s another van on the road or new runs before the holidays, finding out where you stand takes about sixty seconds. It won’t affect your credit score, and we won’t send your details to a pile of lenders. A real person who understands seasonal and repeat-visit businesses will review your situation and call you. Please complete the form accurately so the first option we raise matches your business.
Frequently asked questions
Can a mobile dog groomer finance a van?
Yes. A fitted-out grooming van can be funded through vehicle or equipment finance, or an unsecured loan if the fit-out is custom. Lenders like to see an established client list and steady banked income.
How do lenders handle boarding seasonality?
They look at a full year of statements so the holiday peaks and quieter months are both visible. Showing forward bookings for the next peak helps.
Can I buy a boarding kennel with a loan?
Yes. Kennel purchases often include land, so property-secured lending is common. Lenders look at trading history, approvals and the condition of the facilities.
Does doggy day care count as steady income?
Regular weekday clients on packages or memberships can look very steady to a lender, especially when payments come by direct debit.
What if my grooming salon takes a lot of cash?
Lenders can only rely on income that reaches the bank. Depositing takings and using card and online payments makes your application much stronger.