Just wondering what the norm is re arrival/departure time for sitters?
I’ve just had one that wasn’t arriving until 5pm on start date (was with my dog for an hour then went out for the evening) & then decided to leave at 830am on end date (having told me she was leaving at 11, turns out her train was at 11 but she just told me leaving at 11).
Does start date not mean that they need to be available to look after a dog on that day (or at least to ensure that they won’t be left for more than the max amount of acceptable time from when the owner leaves)?
And does end date not mean that they should expect to be looking after the pet for at least half that day?
Or is it reasonable that, unless specifically stated otherwise, they can arrive on the evening of the start date & leave early on the morning of the end date?
To me, someone who thinks it’s fine to leave at 830am on the end date is using it purely as a housesit not a dogsit as they haven’t considered that the dog is likely to be left on their own for far too long.
In future I will be specifying start/end time in the details of my sits but I just wanted to get a feel from others as to whether I’m being reasonable or expecting too much & that may affect the type of feedback I give the sitter I’ve just had.
There are too many variables to consider so I would say there isn’t a norm.
It is best to discuss thoroughly before the sit and to be aware that there may be modifications needed along the way
This is something that should be discussed both for host and sitters dates and times for departure/ arrival.
I would think everyone travelling often prefer - and sometimes have to, due to available transport - to start to travel early in the day to arrive at destination in reasonable time in afternoon/ evening.
For me personally, I am not willing to pay for accommodation in addition to my travel costs if to meet requirements from host. So if sitter needs to start early in the day/ stay to evening it would often be an advantage to offer accommodation from night before or to stay after host has arrived. Totally up to host to consider, ofc, but can influence pool of applicants.
(Has just seen a listing where it is required to meet up the day before host depart, stating that host will not provide accommodation. If it is their need, I will not pay for it, so decided not to apply.)
You can ask for anything. Either way it is useful to be transparent and clear early on to get a good match.
I don’t think it is ok to leave 08.30 if it is agreed staying to 11, but seems it might not have been totally clear what was agreed.
Thanks for your thoughts? What do you mean by too many variables & modifications along the way?
There’s only one variable as far as I’m concerned….i don’t want my dog being left for more than 5 hours a day. And someone changing their arrival/departure time at short notice might affect that.
There is no “normal” . This will vary with every sit .
It’s impossible for sitter to know at what time the owner is leaving or returning unless it’s in the listing or discussed before the sit is confirmed. Similarly a host won’t know what time it will be convenient for the sitters to arrive / depart unless they both discuss it .
For example our last sit the owners arrived home at 7:30 am ( after an overnight flight ) . Our current sit the owners will arrive home at 8:30 am (after an overnight flight) . For the next sit the owners will be arriving back at 7:00 am (after an overnight international flight ). All of this information was shared in discussions before we confirmed the sit
Where the hosts have left very early in the morning, they either invite us to stay with them the night before or have arranged for a dog walker or neighbours to walk the dog(s) before we arrive -taking into account the distance we are travelling and our arrival time . Similarly if they will be arriving back in the evening, they have invited us to stay on with them that night or have arranged for family member to take care of the dogs so that we can commence our journey home .
Just as hosts departure & arrival time will be dependent on their travel arrangements ( flights / trains / ferry or driving distance ) .It will be the same for sitters .
Variables such as the type of transportation the sitter is using, the distance the sitter needs to cover that day, the weather, road closures, transportation delays and/or cancellations, etc
I agree that if she had told you she’d be leaving at 11am and actually left hours before she didn’t represent reality accurately, however there isn’t a ‘normal’ in the unpaid pet sitter world. ALL Details need to be discussed in advance.
THS is a matching platform, each one of us has to find our match. This can only be achieved by being thorough with good solid listings on the HOs’ part, accurate profiles on the sitters’, asking questions and bringing up points that are important to us.
Also, to the best of my experience, most dog owners like to meet the sitter the day before or early on the date of departure to ‘introduce’ them to the dog. It is not very clear in your query whether you had actually met them, but it might be a good thing to allow time for this, time that, of course, will have to be reflected in the dates of the listing.
Times should be discussed in video chat. When we travel, we leave early in the am, so I want my sitter to arrive the evening before. We offer them to spend the night. They have their own bedroom and bathroom. Likewise when we return. We come home very late in the evening, so we want our sitter to stay the night. It has worked out very well for us.
Hi @Hmanthorpe
As a sitter when I have a video chat with a HO I confirm when I’m needed for the sit in terms of date and time. I agree when I arrive and depart. I re-confirm in writing the agreed times. I then book my travel and send details of my plane/train tickets and reconfirm my arrival.
How can there be a normal when everyone’s travel timing and logistics differ? That’s something that should automatically be discussed between host and sitter at the outset.
Communications is a key part of any sit. That’s a shared responsibility between host and sitter.
I always check with the owners what time they would like the sitter to arrive and what time to leave on the day of departure. (A sit may not work for me if they expect a very early arrival time).
I also discuss a plan just in case the owner may be delayed on the way back.
This is where communication is key in your listing and during a video call. It is perfectly fine to set and state your expectations for a sitter’s arrival and departure as per your needs, but you need to communicate this clearly and arrange this with the sitter before they accept your sit. To help you find the right match, definitely state in your listing your preferences for handover and when you’d like a sitter to arrive. If you’d prefer a sitter to arrive the day before you depart and stay the night, state this. It’s quite common that sitters arrive the evening before you depart, have a meal with you and stay the night, but it’s certainly not a given and is not what every sitter is looking for. Communication is key.
As for departure times, definitely explain that your dog cannot be left more than 5 hours, so you’re seeking somebody who can stay until your arrival, whenever that may be. If it’s going to be a rather late arrival, it’s best if you change your dates to the next day and offer for the sitter to spend the night if it makes more sense.
Again, this is never a given or what every sitter is able to do, so always communicate your needs. This will need to be communicated well in advance, as a sitter may have another sit to get to, especially if they are a back-to-back sitter. A sitter leaving in the morning certainly does not mean they are ‘using it purely as a housesit’ - it simply means that there was a lack of communication by both parties.
I have done many sits where I have needed to get to another sit or have a flight to catch etc and have needed to leave early morning or before the owner returns, but this has always been discussed in advance.
It is also always a good idea to have a plan B and some flexibility if plans change and a sitter has to leave earlier than originally agreed. Things happen.
There is no normal, and no you are not expecting too much, but also your sitter was in the right too because you/they don’t seem to have agreed any times beforehand, so neither of you is in the wrong.
Every sit is different and times needs to be discussed with your individual sitter, if you know the times you want, then as soon as you have an applicant that may be suitable, simply pop them a message to ask if they can arrive/leave at whichever times you want, before confirming them.
We’ve had a couple of 9am start times, but the majority are later in the day, and the latest leaving time we’ve had is around 7pm. There’s no rights and no wrongs, it’s between the sitter and you.
This has been discussed ad infinitum on the forum but you have received responses from experienced sitters here anyway.
It’s up to you to have a discussion with the sitter as to when you want them to arrive/ leave. If they can’t commit to what you require then don’t take them on. It looks like you didn’t have this discussion with your sitter. You learn as you go on so make it clear what you need next time and good luck!
Yup. Was also interested to hear from owners as well as sitters.
As I mentioned, on our vid call she had said she would be leaving at 11 which was fine. She messaged yesterday to say that she was leaving at 830 & it transpired she’d told me when her train was leaving as opposed to when she was leaving my dog. V unhelpful & we had to leave our holiday 2.5hrs, miss out on a last lunch with our friends & not even have the chance to say goodbye in person to one friend.
I think it would be v helpful if TH included start/end times as what’s the point in a sitter applying & an owner reviewing the application if the timings aren’t going to work from the start.
However, I’ve also added it clearly to the about me section & it will be my first thing to clarify for sitters that apply.
There is no standard time of arrival or departure. This is matching. These details have to be worked out by the parties involved. Some sits might start with the sitter’s arrival and meeting the pets with the host’s leaving the next morning. Others the sitter arrives is handed keys and the owner’s leave. Others sitter arrive after the homeowner has left and use a keypad.
Why is it necessary for THS to do anything about this when it’s entirely reasonable for a host to mention in their listing that they need a sitter from X date and time to X date and time (or to discuss such during a video call)? That’s totally within a host’s control and personally I’d not only do that, I’d confirm during a video chat, because people’s plans can change and they might forget to update their listing. Or there might be other hiccups.
Even if an app doesn’t require me to do X, I still have logic and would think, how will we mutually know exactly when a sit stops and starts? Hmm, we should discuss that, because none of us is telepathic and there’s obviously no norm for when people travel and arrive or depart.
We shouldn’t as humans need crutches or parents or overlords to tell us every little thing. Like if you and a friend discussed something such as having lunch or dinner or seeing a movie, you’d presumably discuss timing without an app or website needing to tell you that. It’s just common sense.