I recently confirmed a pet sit which is set to begin on 2/9…the issue is the owner never disclosed that they are a smoking household, and when I went to do a quick walk-through with them, the smoke inside the home was not bearable for me since I’m sensitive to smoke.
I am supposed to be at this home for 9 days! After leaving the home, I called the homeowner back and let her know that I am not a smoker and that the smoke was a bit much for me. I asked her to please air out the home prior to me getting there which she agreed to do. But the more that I think about it, I am getting anxious because the thought of being in the home for 9 days and having smoke embedded in the home is going to be difficult, and it will not be an enjoyable stay. I don’t want to cancel, but at the same time, I don’t want to put myself in the position to have to “deal with it”. That me dealing with the headaches, smoke in my clothes, hair, etc…. What would you do???
You’re comparing the short term discomfort of the cancelling process (texts informing the HO they need to cancel and relist the dates with smoking house in the listing) with 9 days of discomfort…. it’d be an easy choice for me.
That happened to me on my first sit. I never thought to ask if they were smokers. I only discovered it when the sit started though, so I dealt with it as best as I could.
I think the more caring thing towards yourself would be to cancel this, or at least suggest it. Who knows, the owner might know someone else who would be available at short notice.
You can cancel based on this .
Your health matters—and if you don’t treat it as a priority, the host definitely won’t. .
If you start the sit and have to leave mid way or spend a lot of time outside away from the home it will do the host and pets no favours .
If you are going to cancel do this asap .
Going forward you may want to add to your profile and applications that you will only sit in a non-smoking home.
A big no no, we have it in our profile too, a smokers home is not for us.
I would not entertain it.
Are owners now obliged by THS to declare whether they are smoker-households, regardless of whether the potential sitter asks?
Why would they not disclose it? It’s important to be transparent about the home as well as the pets. Not disclosing important information puts a host at risk of losing the sitter as has happened in this case.
Thanks for your response @systaran. I had asked if HOs were “obliged” to declare this under the THS rules. For example - similar to declaring external cameras at the property.
The OP sitter does not say whether they themselves asked the HO if it was a smoker-household, prior to accepting the sit.
Do you have it in your profile that you only sit in none smoking houses? This should really have been discussed at the video call stage.
@StTherese considering this is a matching site where everyone is looking for a good fit, withholding important info is never a good idea. I don’t think it matters if someone is obliged or required to disclose certain information. Sitters are not obliged to accept any sit. It’s always best to be clear about the condition of the home.
Cancel as soon as possible so that they have time to find someone else and moving forward, make sure that you aren’t making assumptions about smoking/non smoking households.
We call this out in our profile explicitly now and also ask on the video call.
I’m afraid it does.
If the homeowner acts against THS T&Cs, then the sitter is entitled to cancel and THS will (or should) help the sitter in the process of cancellation.
I do agree that all information considered relevant by one or both parties should be discussed before confirming the sit; this is helpful for both parties, as it’s important to guarantee a smooth sit.
However, it’s impossible to think of all possible scenarios that might be important for the other party so, more often than not it is the party having dealbreakers the one raising the issue.
@Newpetlover Yes, outwith the T&Cs, the onus of responsibility is on the sitter to query/disclose issues that are deal-breakers for them, not for the HO to guess what these are.
I am unclear the exact circumstances of the OP. The sitter says that the HO did not ‘disclose’ a smoking household. Not sure if this means the sitter asked prior to accepting, and then later discovered this was not true. If that is the case, they will have a smoother transition with THS in the cancellation process.
Most smokers don’t think it is an issue. But this should now be in the profile, just like what kind of pets are there. Though in 50 sits, never had a smoker’s home. Never came up. Less and less people smoke.
I disagree that the onus is on the sitter. Hosts have a responsibility too and they are the ones who know their home and should be honest and transparent. Sure sitters should ask about dealbreakers but they can’t possibly ask about every possible scenario.
I’ll just give an example. I showed up at a home and it reeked of cannabis because they were growing large amounts in the basement. The design of the house was very open and the basement vent went directly to the living room so the smell was extremely strong throughout the house. The hosts did not mention it in the listing or the video chat. So, you say the onus was on me to have asked? Should I ask every homeowner if they are growing large amounts of cannabis in the house?
Of course regular smoking is more straightforward and is something many sitters would ask about, but I do feel hosts have a responsibility to be transparent about all aspects of the sit. Saying the onus is on the sitter to drag info out of the hosts implies that hosts have no responsibility.
@rjfitness Would you stay in an Airbnb with smoke and tobacco smell during your holiday? If the answer’s no, there’s your answer.
What a host “should” do is irrelevant.
Hosts don’t always do what’s reasonable and fair, in fact they may be prone not to disclose something that would put off a sitter.
Agreed, and that’s unfortunate. What bothers me is when people blame sitters for not asking as if it’s fine that the HO didn’t disclose something important that impacts the sit. Both sitters and HOs have a responsibility here.
Smoking vs not smoking is a very big deal for most non-smokers. Most non-smoking hosts are going to mention the home is non-smoking because sitters who smoke could be @ problem. If a host’s profile does not mention anything about smoking, I’d expect anti-smoking sitters would ask.
That said, people who smoke know how objectionable non-smokers find cigarette smoke. Light smokers might convince themselves that their Febreze air freshens conceal their habit. Heavy smokers know better and failure to mention it is an active omission.
I’ve used HEPA filters in heavy smoke and smog conditions with good relief. Condition going forward with the sit on the hosts’ providing a good quality HEPA filter is one possibility. Not quite as drastic as canceling last minute.
Hey Sitters, I appreciate all of the helpful input! And yes, as much as I hated to cancel I did cancel the sit and felt so relieved about not placing myself in an uncomfortable situation for that length of time. Health does come first. I’ve been on TH for about 3.5 years and NEVER had a smoking household, so never thought to ask. Trust and believe I will ask now and will place it on my profile as well as ask when speaking to the pet parent. But I do believe TH should require it to be disclosed as well. Thanks again!