Companies That Give Employees Pawternity Leave

What is pawternity leave? 

Yes, that’s right ‘pawternity leave’ (also known as furturnity leave) is a real thing, but what is it? It’s similar to maternity and paternity leave, hence the name - essentially it’s paid time off to take care of a new pet. Although not a legal obligation, it’s a unique perk that employers can add to their offering. And there is demand, with on average between 6-8% of candidates on the Flexa platform searching for roles that offer pawternity leave as an employee benefit. 

Companies that give employees pawternity leave

Employee perks have always been used as a way to create a unique offering that helps retain and attract talent. Benefits such as pawternity leave may not have always made the cut, but now there are plenty of workplaces offering it as an additional perk (including some big names); to name a few:

• Mars 
• Juro
• Juno 
• Unplugged
• Howells
• Primary PPA Cover
• Contingent

Pawternity leave at Boom

Boom is a remote-first company, but also offers a dog-friendly office/co-working space where employees can bring their dogs to work. 

At BOOM, “We give employees two days of pawternity leave per year. Being a fully remote company, one of our key principles is empowering individuals to be autonomous in making personal decisions which means they have a good work-life balance, and we quickly identified that pets formed a huge part of this!

Flexible working as a pet owner 

Flexible working itself is a fantastic employee benefit that enables pet owners to give their pets the time and care they need - not to mention save on expenses relating to care. 

Being able to work at home or take your dog / pet to work means that owners can feel reassured they are in good care and are getting the regular exercise and social interaction that they need. 

Flexible working doesn’t just help pet owners, it helps our pets. Having spoken to the team here at Flexa, here is what they had to say about the benefits of flexible working as a pet owner. 

Maurice - Co-founder 

“When we first got our dog, I was primarily working in an office which was not dog-friendly, so I didn’t get to spend much time with him for the first 6 months. Flexible working has completely changed that, as I now work from home regularly, plus our optional office is dog-friendly. Thankfully, I now get to spend almost every day with the hound.”

Aqua - Operations & Partnerships Lead

“I get to go out for walks throughout the day with Leila, helping both of our physical and mental health; she also makes a great sofa cuddle buddy when working. Because she's not left home alone all day, this means myself and my partner can happily go out during the evening. It also allows extra time for dog training, meaning we can take her everywhere with us, even travelling and working from anywhere! If I'm working alone at home, she makes it feel a lot less lonely and she honestly warms my heart so much.”

Fliss - Design Lead

“If I couldn't work flexibly I would never have been able to adopt our two high-maintenance rescues - sometimes they’re a pain, but I love them to bits.”

Shannen - Social Media Lead

“Getting a dog is something my boyfriend and I had talked about for a while, but we wanted to make sure we were in a position to provide a loving and stable home with dog-friendly schedules.

Heidi is my first-ever dog and I was desperate to spend as much time with her as possible before having to return to the office. My employer at the time allowed me to work from home for 2 weeks after we brought her home, and I’m so grateful! My boyfriend has always worked remotely, but puppies are hard work and it would have been unfair to leave him to deal with the chaos alone. Those two weeks at home allowed me to settle Heidi in and make her feel at home. I was able to train her a lot quicker and we formed an excellent bond.