Hello, I am hoping for some advice. We had a HS finish a sit and all went well. Months later I received a text from them asking to help them with funds because they were out of work and no place to live and they attached a go fund me link.
I feel for this individual who is in a hard place and if reaching out to us (we have never met) for help to pay bills etc. But this action does make me a bit unsure about opening our home to those we do not know.
Hoping to hear ideas and thoughts from those well versed in THS.
Well, that’s a first!
I assume they must be in dire straits to ask people they barely know, and while I understand that you feel sorry for them, I would thread very carefully.
I’d just like to ad that this is certainly not common in the housesitting world ( I had never ever heard of any similar occasions), so don’t let this very weird encounter put you off!
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I wonder if it was something that simply went out to everyone in their contact list regardless of who they are. Personally, I’d just ignore it unless it persisted or block them,
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There’s all sorts of people who housesit. Not everyone is lacking funding and for some, it’s just a lifestyle choice. We have been traveling via THS all summer but the second I felt like buying a house, I could buy it cash. And even for the ones who are lacking funding, it doesn’t mean they are bad people or will take advantage of others. Some people just go through a rut sometimes. 35 years ago, a highschool teacher said everyone is just 4 situations away from being homeless. Feel free to make a donation to your sitter if you feel like it but please don’t categorize or be fearful that all sitters live paycheck to paycheck or even if they do that they will take from others. This is TrustedHouseSitters after all, not SuspiciousHouseSitters
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@RavenR - proceed with caution. There is a possibility their phone has been hacked. We sometimes get random requests for help from people in our contacts and it is usually the case.
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Never heard of this before, I would just ignore it.
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That is sad.
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Wow - way to really kick people when they’re down trying to get them kicked off the site too 
Just ignore the message
I hear you, and understand the variety of individuals who housesit and they do for many reasons. I do not have judgement, however, I would not personally ask for money from more or less a stranger. And having not met the individual except through messages I do not really know their character and opening one’s home and care of our pet family is a vulnerable position.
I do appreciate the person who mentioned they may have been hacked, that is an option I had not thought of and this is why I did ask in the forum so I could see the ask from different perspectives.
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Or, as someone suggested above they may have been hacked and it’s a good way for THS to let them know. I have worked with THS before with an issue and they
Or, as someone suggested above they may have been hacked and it’s a good way for THS to let them know.
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Thank you, I had not considered their phone was hacked. That may be a possibility.
Hacking seems less likely when they made a go-fund-me page.
I could not imagine wanting to report them to THS. Yes, it may be uncomfortable to get such requests, and it is probably against THS rules and terms of service if they used the THS messaging service for that.
But I agree with @Enjaybee
So you would report them?
No, certainly not.
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I really think it’s like @jcvbva said: the message just went to everyone in their contact list. Feel free to ignore or block them.
I have never come across this situation before, so it’s definitely not a recurring topic.
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