@Mark_B Here is my feedback, since you mentioned that this is not set in stone and improvements can be still made.
Clearly label whose timing is being captured, for example rename the field “Expected sitter arrival/departure window,” so both sides immediately understand what the times refer to.
Add brief helper text next to the fields reminding everyone that the times are guidelines to be confirmed in conversation, not fixed contract terms, and that flexibility on both sides is encouraged.
Where times are set to “to be arranged later,” consider prompting hosts to update them as their travel plans firm up, and highlight those updates to sitters with a small, non‑intrusive alert.
Consider limiting selectable arrival/departure windows to clearly reasonable daytime and evening hours (for example, 7am–8pm), and require hosts who truly need outside‑hours handovers to discuss this directly with sitters rather than selecting 2–3am in the listing. Alternatively small legend (e.g., green = typical hours, amber = early/late but potentially reasonable, red = extreme hours) would let sitters assess timing at a glance, similar to how availability calendars already use multiple colors but with a clearer key.
I am sure from a safety perspective THS doesn’t want the sitters arriving and departing at these times.
But I think for this “starter” to be effective there should be clarifications and warnings such as the ones suggested by @BunnyCat, otherwise the effect can be worse than having no field at all, as I think is the case right now.
It would be a really good idea for THS to look into why these conversations were not happening.
When I first started sitting, I didn’t need to be prompted to ask about arrival times. It was something I naturally did because I understood that it was a necessary part of the sit. It was just common sense.
I remember seeing forum posts from new members asking when sits start, seemingly expecting there to be a standard “check in” time that is the same for every sit. This would suggest that they have misunderstood the true nature of THS, and are expecting an AirBnB type arrangement with a few pets. The new arrival and departure times fields only serve to reinforce this impression - and perhaps even make conversations less likely to happen. This could result in mismatched expectations, and poor sit experiences for both parties.
A sitter needs to be self sufficient and able to problem solve. The addition of fields to the website can’t teach them this, and not everyone has this ability. Some people are not equipped to be good sitters, or even good communicators. No amount of “scaffolding” via the website / app is going to change this, and may actually result in less communication between host and sitter. Ultimately this could lead to more problem sits and damage THS reputation.
I couldn’t agree more with your analysis and would like to highlight that rather than work as
It could, as @Debbie points out make conversations less likely to happen, reinforce the idea that HOs may set whatever time they choose from a choice of 24 hours, (I think they can even choose half an hour fractions) and, ultimately result in more problems based on poor communication and unreasonable expectations.
But some people expect you to arrive by 7 am and stay on departure day well into the evening because they have a late flight. I recently agreed to leave at 5 pm, they were arriving 8:30, but then their flight was delayed, changed etc. And they arrived midnight. The dog had a door to go out and was contained in one room, had been walked and fed, but in some cases the dog would be stranded. These are considerations when you have a late flight and the sitter is leaving.
Honestly if hosts have late returning flights they need to have sitters for that last night. If pets were in a kennel situation you would be collecting them the next day as that is when they are open. Mutually beneficial exchange people!
Then perhaps a solution would be that the arrival & departure time be added during the agreement process; Host adds when making the offer and Guest agrees when accepting. It would show the agreement between both parties. The way THS has “corrected” this is by skewing what is supposed to be an equitable exchange. It sets a tone that unpaid Guests are on call.
Not a bad idea, although I believe the new feature is meant to be more informational than “contractual,” as it were:
Unfortunately, most sits I’ve seen since implementation just leave it as ‘to be determined,’ or whatever the wording is…so no useful info for the Sitter, ergo rather annoying (and undoubtedly there’ll be threads complaining about “inconsiderate” hosts not filling it out at some point. )
But I guess theoretically it prompts the conversation — assuming the experienced sitter doesn’t already know to ask “what time do you need me?” and the newer sitter doesn’t forget to ask in spite of the unpopulated listing field.
Well I think “to be determined” is being chosen by those Hosts/HO’s who realize this is an exchange and the time should be discussed and agreed by both parties. I’m seeing this used by members who have been on the site for some time. I’m seeing specific times, often with very narrow time frames, being used by new members, who have often never booked previously.
I understand the thought process as to why it was implemented and my reply was a direct response to that theory. If this was to simply prompt a conversation they can have a downloadable checklist.
My discussions with Hosts/HO’ have are a mutual discussion about arrival and departure. We would discuss when they are leaving as well as my schedule so we could work together to determine a time that works for both parties. Same with departure.
We don’t disagree. I think it’s a bit of micro-managing the process, where dev resources could have been better spent in areas where users have reported concrete issues & proposed solutions to fix very real problems with the platform.
I also think the response defaults to “tbd,” making it essentially a “zombie” field for most listings. Almost no one is using it.
Thank you! I cannot tell you how many times we have asked for arrival/departure times and gotten vague answers right up to the day of. It has always seemed odd to me that someone who is going on a trip & thus must make their own arrangements doesn’t naturaly understand the Sitter is trying to do the same thing!
Yes, we’re in agreement that it was totally unnecessary. Where we might not align is if the arrival/departure times in the listings are bing utilized. After being mostly off the site for about 10-months, I’m seeing a big difference in Host/HO tone, particularly from brand new members. I’m traveling to a specific large U.S. city next month and I would say 90% of the listings have a specific time for both arrival and departure and at least half with a narrow 1-2 hour window. I would add that I’ve had other requests/demands/behavior in communication with Hosts/HO’s over the last month that I have never encountered prior. The tone is definitely that of service user and service provider, not exchange. And this is of course in the U.S., which already has difficulty understanding the concept of equitable exchange and barter.
I’m sorry you’re experiencing that; it’s unfortunate. The US certainly seems to be experiencing a culture shift in general over the past few years. Insofar as THS, though, I’m not sure I’d attribute it to this feature in particular…I believe it’s only been rolled out in the past couple months.
Agree with @Happypets I am seeing listings that state the departure time is late in the evening. I will not want to be sent out into the night, and not sure if I should apply to these in the hopes it is negotiable. It does seem to reinforce some hosts ideas that we are at their beck and call to meet their needs, with no regards to ours.
So they change their travel plans after you’ve accepted the sit… great now what are we supposed to do??? Yes you’ll send us an alert.. how helpful NOT!! So we’ve made travel plans at whatever cost … who pays for the changes, inconvenience?? Rushed addition without any thought .. yet again loaded towards pet parents and not sitters. Get a grip THS
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