I am learning something here. This is new to me.
Where I live we just keep everything in the fridge. Even if it doesnāt require refrigeration itās probably in the fridge. We donāt want to attract 6 legged visitors.
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A lot of sweet recipes in the US calls for room temperature butter. Some may leave it out only when preparing a recipe that requires this the next day. Others may want to leave it out as they have bread with butter each morning and want a butter that can spread easily. It is usually in a butter dish so bugs would not smell it to appear.
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Wow 
The only time Iāve ever put the butter Iām currently using in the fridge has been if I was going away. Otherwise it lives on the counter under a clear plastic thingie. Done it this way all my life, I guess because my mom did it.
Iām still alive! 
Iām not organized enough to wait overnight. If I need baking butter Iāll get it out of the fridge and warm it up quick with a hair dryer 
Now yāall have me wondering if I should put it in the fridge since weāre having a heat wave.
Iām amused how this thread has morphed into the nuances of butter management 
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Well, do what works for you. No oneās going to make you refrigerate unless youāre maybe operating a restaurant or selling butter.
Our household doesnāt use much butter ā maybe a stick a month, if that, and thatās mostly my husband. Weāve always refrigerated it, but his mom used a butter bell.
I have a sibling in-law whose family comes from a developing nation and they donāt refrigerate many things. Like takeout food, leftovers or even stuff theyāve cooked thatās stewed or such. They leave it on the range or kitchen counter overnight, for instance, and theyāre still alive. I just make sure I donāt eat at their house unless we order fresh food or bring it. Maybe theyāre hardier than I am, their having grown up eating things left out.
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Maybe you could share your documents with some of us!? Your guidelines might remind us of something that we have forgotten to include.
Another thought I had was, as a sitter, if I found a fridge full of outdated items, I would just assume, that like me, when getting ready for a holiday I have been packing, arranging travel, doing loads of laundry, finding many travel items, repacking so I am not overpacking, making sure I have enough dog and chicken food on hand and a myriad of other things running through my mind and cleaning out my fridge was on my list but I had to decide what my priorities and health and sanity was worth, so what was left was hopefully not offensive and can be tossed or ignored anyone staying at my homeā¦..
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Ok, so a couple of things here:
- Did you advise them prior to the sit of your expectations? Or did you simply expect them to āknowā?
I have had many sits where owners paid for food for the entire period (expensive meats and everything you can imagine) and allowed me and my then partner to enjoy anything from their fridge and cupboard without limit or replacement.
This is not uncommon as owners appreciate they donāt need to pay the regular day rate of up to 100USD for a paid pet sitter or a kennel/cat hotel, in particular if they have multiple animals and additional tasks.
- Did you store the goods you did not want them to use away safely so it would be clear that they were out of bounds? A good solution is simply placing those items in their own area and locking the cupboard or labelling it as āNot for useā. It is reasonable to expect that you supply basics like olive oil and condiments during their stay ā at the very least.
Itās all a matter of clear communication and values. Make sure the sitter knows yours and decide whether you both share the same vision for a fair exchange or not.
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I am always Iām very grateful for anything that cuts my grocery bill, and I donāt really mind sorting out a fridge. I completely ignore use by dates because I have a nose.
I do often wonder however, if some people ever clean out their fridges. According to THS the fridge is supposed to be clean but recently I have found brown liquid in the bottom of the veggie drawer (presumably from the rotting lettuce), and dried up incrusted milk on the base of the fridge, and lots of dead flies in another.
My first task on arrival is to clean the fridge, unless a putrid bathroom takes first preference 
The blind reviews are definitely not working as far as cleanliness goes. 
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We leave butter in a covered container on our counter in Florida all time, have done so for years. It is rarely used up in 1-2 days and it weāve never encountered ranciness.
Cool, as I mentioned above:
Iād swear you sat at one of the same places as meā¦ yep, liquid, and some literally green hamā¦ I think it was hamā¦ once upon a time. Fridge & pantry full of years-expired food. I mean, I donāt think I ever use up salad dressing by the expiry date, but I donāt have 5 open bottles all 2+ years expired
I took EVERYTHING out of the stuffed-full fridge and bleach-washed the entire interior before cramming my food into it.
The people were so nice though; I kinda let that one slide.
Things that actually do say ārefrigerate after openingā like mayoā¦ I was a fishery observer a few summers & was appalled to find a jar of mayo in the boat cuddy, totally unrefrigerated, goodness knows how long it had been there. I never saw anyone make a sandwich with it. They survived too! Maybe there is indeed some acclimation to eating such things
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I refrigerate mayo, but have read that it can be left out, depending on how and what it was made out of. Maybe with some processed foods, because theyāre made out of so many chemicals and such, it might be more tolerant to no refrigeration?
Tangentially, have you seen those experiments on social media where people have left out some processed foods for ages and thereās no visual sign of spoilage, which leads people to wonder whether weāre actually eating real foods?
weāre clearly all different. I will happily eat any food the HO leaves that would be off by their return. Iāll use some of their condiments, oil, vinegar etc, but will replace anything I use all of. Iāll use their washing machine, and tumble drier if necessary, as often as I want to, but will use my own detergent. Iāll set their heating to what is comfortable for me. Other than that, Iāll only eat or drink what they specifically tell me I can. One HO had two cupboards with wine racks inside. He said I could drink what I wanted from one, but was not to touch the other. Fine. Another HO had a lot of alcohol, and said I wasnāt to drink any of it. Also fine. I always provide my own tea and coffee. The important thing is to be clear about expectations. One HO had a āchocolate cupboardā and said I could help myself. I did.
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A HELP YOURSELF CHOCOLATE CUPBOARD. 
Yet another way HOs can get more applicants to their sits! 
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Well I have survived into my 70s. I do draw the line at eating liquifying lettuce though.
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Oh, dear. I just realized I probably have dressing that expired by a couple years. I better check when I get home!
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That would depend on the length of the sitā¦ if itās a long one, itās not really possible to ignore food thatās going off in the fridge. And, whilst HOs surely do have lots of things to think about when preparing for their interesting/relaxing/wonderful holidays, please donāt letās use that as an excuse for not leaving a clean fridge - with some space - for sitters. Think about the health and sanity of your sitters as well as your own, and donāt leave grotty fridges boasting rotting vegetables, black mould and radio active pĆ¢tĆ© which is turning green at the edges. We want to spend our first day getting to know your pets, not cleaning out your fridges!
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I honestly never would have thought this was a thing! I just thought my sitter had a Oops! moment.
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This is one of the things I love most about this Forum - we all have such different backgrounds and experiences. And often we find out that what we thought was crazy in our world turns out to be completely normal in another world!
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Yes! Margarine!
That mayo was good olā Miracle Whip, most definitely labelled ārefrigerateā.
But these were guys who habitually lived on cola & white bread through a whole dayās fishing, soā¦ 
Or your microwave! Man, some of them are gross!!
I agree with you, and I think when food has reached that state, itās not something that slipped their mind in the 2 or 3 days they spent on imminent departure preparations. When your fridge is full of ex-food, and your pantry has stuff in it thatās 8 years old, thatās not didnāt-have-time-yesterday, thatās a lifestyle.
Yeah, but YOU GOTTA PUT IT IN YOUR LISTING!!
We have sure digressed. Sorry, OP!
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