I didn’t suggest that you tell them that they’re blockheads. It probably would help you to tell prospective sitters that the house is 200-years-old and needs a couple to take care of. That would probably help normal solo sitters self-select out, saving you time.
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Thanks Maggie and tempting though it might be to let them know they are blockheads … I don’t.
Here are two quotes from my Listing:
“need a couple (it would be too much to ask of one person to be here on their own) to stay here and mind my two, very placid and quiet Rescue dogs.”
and
“NB: I have to stress again that I will only consider a couple for this sit - it is too much for one person to take on.”
I don’t think I can make it any more clear than that really. At least, when I get solo applications, I always reply politely pointing out the above (again).
But you don’t really explain WHY. You have 2 placid and quiet rescue dogs. That doesn’t require 2 people. So unless you’ve outlined elsewhere how much work is involved in caring for the house, I don’t actually think you’re being clear about why a couple is needed, outside of it being your personal opinion.
And, of course, even if your house ran like clockwork it’s always your choice who you want to have, but that quote would not indicate to me in any way that a couple is physically required.
ETA: FWIW, you should also make it very clear in the listing how much physical work is required even for couples because not all couples may be able to manage it.
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Agreed. Doesn’t seem clear to sitters.
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@Lady_Sue -We sit as a couple and generally only one of us takes on the main responsibilities of the sit while the other works .
There are many couples on THS who do the same .
So a sit with responsibilities so onerous and time consuming that it needs two people would not be a good fit for us .
That’s why the responsibilities section of a listing needs to clearly state all the tasks expected and give an indication of the time it would take someone or two people (not as experienced as you) to do it .
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@Lady_Sue I think your wording still isn’t clear why no solos - I could easily think, well I don’t mind doing it to the ‘too much to ask’ comment. Especially as you directly link it to looking after two placid dogs - that sounds nonsensical. I would recommend being more specific. In addition, if the heating system is a lot of work even for two people, you should be specific about that in the listing as fair warning for couples who may not be willing or able to do it. Eg. Our wood fired heating system takes approx 3 hours a day to keep it running, including carrying around 50lb of logs daily from the woodpile 50 feet from the house, feeding the woodburner every 4 hours and daily removal of ash. There is also unreliable mobile signal in case of emergency. Therefore we will consider applications from active couples only.
I found a listing this week that I would absolutely love to do; stunning unusual period property. I’m very experienced with old and quirky buildings. Hidden away in a wonderfully detailed listing was the couples only requirement. My first response was annoyance as so far from the info, I could definitely do it. Then they explained exactly why, with examples, and I immediately thought ‘fair enough, I can’t do that’. I’m sad I can’t apply but now I understand it’s for a good reason and not just a HO whim.
I agree with a previous poster than sometimes HO’s project their own anxieties on to solo sitters. I’m perfectly happy in big old rural houses on my own, but there are HOs who worry about my getting scared. I’m quite sure the owners of one of my sits think their house is haunted (and their cleaner) but I don’t believe in such things, and expect an old house with modern heating to make some odd noises.
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Thanks CC, that is a valid point and perhaps I should expand it a bit. However, I don’t want to put people completely off before we’ve had a chance to chat and get to know each other and what is required here! I do stress at the end that “it is too much for one person to take on”.
It’s mostly that it is a VERY big house, there is no central heating, so fires have to be lit and the Listing is entitled, “Hardy Types Required for Cabin in the Wilderness”. Fortunately I have had amazing sitters to date and hoping for some more for November.
Thanks for your observations and input. Much appreciated.
“Onerous and time consuming that it needs two people” is not what this sit is about. What I do is to ensure that folk who are accustomed to ‘push button central heating’ (which is most folk), know that this place doesn’t have that. If you were to read ALL the reviews, each and every one of them says how much trouble I go to, to prepare Sitters for what being/living here is like, not to mention spending time emailing an ‘zooming’ to ensure whoever applies to sit here knows, inasmuch as they can, what it is like. No point putting that much detail in a Listing.
I want Sitters to enjoy the experience - and ALL of them, to date, have.
Re HOs asking for couples: I wish they WOULD if that’s actually what they want. I applied for a sit recently, a few months ahead. I got a rather rude response saying the two dogs were big, and needed a couple to walk them, one of whom should be a man. Why didn’t the original listing say that? Go figure. Also, I only noticed afterwards that they’d had a previous sitter who hadn’t left a review, red flag.
I had to smile at a sit i saw a few days ago The HO wrote that they didn’t want a couple because the only bed available was theirs and they didn’t want a couple making love in their bed.
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Not gonna lie, when I start receiving house sitters, they will have a bed that isn’t mine to use. I don’t want other people in my bed and that’s just one reason why. lol
So many naughty comments to be made on this one @Newt but shall resist (for now) #themindboggles 
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As a newbie who has not welcome our first sitter yet, I’m reading all these stories slack-jawed. I can’t imagine these scenarios! We put our first two dates on THS having already reserved a campsite for the first dates, and already booked airfare for the second. If, for some reason, I had not booked airfare yet, you’d best believe that I would do so within minutes of hiring a sitter. I can’t imagine leaving someone hanging like that, changing dates, etc. I mean, I can see asking a sitter, “hey, we have an opportunity to extend our trip, IF you are able to extend your stay,” but if the sitter says no, the trip doesn’t get extended.
THS seems to have been founded as a system of mutual satisfaction … I get someone I can trust to care for my dog, and they get a clean, well-appointed home in a nice location for a little getaway. Instead of me paying for a kennel (cringe!), I pay the sitter by providing said clean, appointed home to stay in. Instead of the sitter paying for lodging, they repay us by keeping our dog happy, fed, and safe. This is what I want my experience to be like! (Golden Rule 101: Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you.)
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Welcome! It seems like you have the right mindset, so I think you’ll do well. And reading the forum postings will help you a lot to prepare to have the best experience. I just want to point out that you’re not “hiring” anyone and that kind of language would cause some people to turn away from your sit, because we’re not employees, we’re guests in your home who will care for it and your doggo while you’re gone. I’m sure you didn’t mean anything by it as it can be hard to learn the ‘lingo’ but I wanted to point it out in case you have anything similar in your listing that might ruffle feathers. 
I just got offered a sit but they haven’t booked their flights. I cannot accept when I don’t have an arrival time and I am traveling cross country. I can understand local sitters have more flexibility for arrival and departure times, but harder when you need to figure out logistics of hotels, how far you can travel etc.
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“Hiring a sitter”? No. We are not hired help
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“Flexible” indicates that the actual Sit Dates might vary from the initially posted Sit Dates on the website.
“Flexible” does NOT mean that the Owner and Sitter should have complete flexibility to change the dates to suit whatever might happen from day to day.
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Completely agree. I use “flexible” on my listing as an aside, really. Dates are fixed when the sitters and my travel dates are fixed- long before the actual sit. And I have changed the dates in the listing when that happens
According to Websters: Hire: to engage the temporary use of for a fixed sum; to grant the personal services of or temporary use of for a fixed sum.
I engage a sitter to care for my house and pet. I give the sitter instructions that I expect will be followed. In exchange for this, I pay the sitter with a place to eat, shower, sleep, including eating any food in my kitchen. I also pay to add you to my insurance so that you can use my car. It is, indeed, a “hire.”
Rubbish. And if the sitter has no wish to use your car and you still think you are hiring someone you are very much mistaken.
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