Cat spraying

Sitter Questions, Advice & Chat
1

Hi all, I’ve done a number of sits with no problems and perfect reviews.

We’re now on a sit where it turns out that 1 of the 4 cats here has a spraying problem.

It was mentioned in the listing that one of the cats had that problem in the past but that they solved it.

The welcome guide mentioned he had sprayed in the past but downplayed it saying medicine has helped.

Now that the cat has started spraying multiple times every day they’re saying in private messages that they’ve never found anything to stop it.

So we have a week left here and they’re just at sort of telling us how to use all their cleaning products, and we’ve had to clean up 3 times in the last 24 hours. The cat in question seems very anxious to me and we give him a 1/4 of a Prozac every evening per the owners instruction.

It doesn’t help that I’ve caught a bad cold and feel terrible. Plus the owners ask us to do lots of extra stuff (rinse out birdbaths in the morning, bring wild bird food in and out, water plants in the garden every day, water lots of plants in the house every day (including moving heavy plants into bathtubs and then we have to clean out the tub after it gets dirt in it, feeding cats 3x a day, litter boxes multiple times).

It’s easily the most work I’ve ever had to do on a sit, but it was manageable until the cat started spraying. Now suddenly the unexplained 4* review and a couple housesitters that didn’t review at all are making more sense. They also told us a housesitter once left unexpectedly, but it was stated to sounded like the housesitter was unreliable, and we just assumed it was someone who changed plans and left them in the lurch. Now we wonder.

Should a pet owner need to disclose that a cat has a persistent, unsolvable spraying problem before they offer you a sit?

I feel like I was just barely coping and now I feel I have a week of cleaning up cat urine and in my heart I just want to bolt.

The family is very nice but I’m starting to think they mention the spraying to broach the subject and they just sort of hope it doesn’t happen. Maybe it doesn’t on some sits, but I feel they should have told us.

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2

They should’ve declared it and in your place I’d give 24 hours written notice to them and THS and leave. Ideally, you’ve documented that they’ve since revealed that they’ve never figured out how to stop the spraying and their listing, which didn’t reveal that. If you have such documentation, send to THS.

In your place, I would’ve considered the missing reviews and separate four-star rating as a red flag and would’ve never applied.

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3

In your place I would give 24 hours notice and leave the sit. Say that due to the circumstances they would need to get in touch with their emergency contact to take over.

I would secure the listing and conversations (for instance by screenshots) to document that these things were not disclosed before you confirmed. They might otherwise change the listing and/ or delete messages, for instance in Whats App.

I would make sure that the dates of the sit is changed, not that the sit is cancelled. That way I could give an honest and factual review of the sit so that the host get an informed sitter next time. If you get the dates changed (it could be by THS member service also) you are able to apply for other sits. But given the health situation and tasks I would prefer to get away now, also if the alternative is a hotel room. What a bliss that would be.

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4

Hi @TomLisa. Welcome to the forum.
I’m sorry you’re going through this. You have already received good advice I would just add that the agent you talk to in THS may not be very helpful and you may have to push a bit. As you are not feeling in good health, I don’t know what option will be less energy consuming for you. Try to figure that out and good luck with whatever you decide.
I hope you get well soon.
We would appreciate some update.

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5

@TomLisa sorry to hear of your situation.
This previously undisclosed pet behaviour is not acceptable for any sitter to deal with so should be reported to THS either now or after you have left the sit.

If you decided to follow the advice of @Maggie8K and @Garfield and leave for your own health , please do what they have already recommended :

  • take screenshots of the messages where the owner has admitted that the cat spraying problem is not a new one and has not been resolved .
  • Take screenshots of original listing that doesn’t include this information.
  • Take photos / video next time cats sprays and of the urine that you have to clean up .
    .
    You can Contact the Urgent Support Phone Line which is a 24/7 phone line - the number is on your dashboard.

Explain about the previously undisclosed behaviour which is impacting your health.
This is not you cancelling the sit … it’s the host not providing a safe clean habitable environment for the sitter. Give THS the photo evidence and screenshots .

You may be covered by the sit cancellation plan if you are Premium members but you would need THS to confirm whether you are covered in this instance.

You may wish to raise a member dispute about this situation but prioritise your health first .

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No, they are not. They lied to you. They are overburdening you with tasks.

When they don’t, it is up to the sitters to mention it in their reviews.

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Totally unacceptable. Please leave a factual review if you do finish the sit. These aren’t nice people, nice people dont try to trick people into looking after so much. Good luck. Hope you feel better soon and let us all know how you get on. By the way, what country are you currently sitting in? @TomLisa :hugs: :hugs: :hugs: :hugs:

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8

In a word: YES!

Suggest to the HOs that they get a couple of Feliway diffusers (can get next day delivery from Amazon). Clean up the spray using a bio washing liquid or white vinegar and I’d suggest restricting this anxious cat to one room (if he’s an indoor cat) because he’s spraying to make himself feel more secure. Poor boy (and poor you!).

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9

Or this, depending on what you want to happen next!

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Agreed that we have learned a big lesson and now are looking at profiles much more critically. Live and learn. :disappointed:

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11

Also that has previous sitters given an honest and factual review you would have been able to make an informed decision before confirming.

Best of luck, no matter how you decide to proceed.

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12

I agree with you. I meant they are taking pains to try to help and be supportive - in the situation they put us in which was dishonest, or at the most kind, where they thought they wouldn’t have a problem as they might not have with the couple of shorter sits.

I looked back over their reviews and I noticed several of them (5 stars) were for 2-3 day sits (this one we are on is two weeks). I suspect the cats can cope with a couple of days (two of the cats are so anxious they will not come near us, even though we have been here for 9 days already - and then there is the spraying cat, and one cat that is perfectly friendly and fine). A couple of repeat sitters seem to be people that are based 10 minutes away from here, which always seems a bit odd to me, but maybe people have personal reasons to want to not stay at home.

I presume people don’t complain about issues because owners retaliate and leave negative reviews for them. If I complain to THS will that prevent these HOs from saying whatever negative things they want about us? I imagine not because in the interest of fairness someone should be able to respond, but of course we are all concerned about putting off potential new sits. I believe I have only seen one negative review in all the profiles I have looked at on THS.

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13

We are in the US on this sit.

When we arrived we went over the welcome pack in detail (having quickly perused it ahead of time) and saw that there are plastic drop cloths over two ends of sofas and over a chair in the master bedroom to discourage spraying that we are supposed to remove and check every day. They don’t seem to work.

After we reported the spraying they told us this cat wants constant entertainment and to go outside (they told us not to let him outside because he jumps up on the roof and may not come down, and I sure don’t want to end up with pneumonia spending hours outside trying to get the cat down). We tried playing with him yt again, but he’s so nervous that the toy wands etc. startle and scare him.

The family responded by sending us photos of them cuddling the cats (that won’t come anywhere near us) - presumably to prove that they’re actually friendly cats?

I have never seen three cats that are so terrified of strangers after this long, but I think they are very stressed.

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14

… and still they have plastic covers several places that needed to be checked? It doesn’t quite add up.

Reviews are now blind. One is not able to see the review of the other until both have written reviews or the 14 day period is up and one can no longer write a review. Both are able to answer one time to the review of the other party.

A factual and honest review needn’t be «negative». Just write it like the sit is. «The host had put plastic covers on the sofa and bed to help us with one of the cats spraying. The cats needed their space which we respected. The bed was comfy and the kitchen well equipped». Just making things up to make an example - there are so many ways to word a review, and one can give a realistic impression without critizising.

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15

At this point, given the unexpected and very unfair manner they hid the cat’s spraying, I would tell them that the monitoring and clean up after the cat is so exhausting and time-consuming that you will curtail some of the other “chores” that they left for you to do, especially the one of putting the plants in the bathtub and watering them there.

The operating word for this to work is “fair exchange.”.

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16

Yep, we were surprised to see that the plastic covers were for deterrence and they wanted us to take them off every morning and check and then put them on again in the evening. We honestly have enough to do here without putting plastic on and taking it off three pieces of furniture. We checked the plastic a couple times in the first couple of days then stopped looking, thinking it wasn’t an issue and then after a week we spotted some spray/urine.

Thanks for the very helpful comment that a review doesn’t have to be negative - it can just be factual. That is very helpful. I have calmed down and although I am not happy to have been put in this position, it’s easier to imagine writing a factual review that states what happened.

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17

The plastic covers were not for deterrence, they were to minimize damage for this chronic reoccurring problem behaviour.
It wasn’t ‘in the past’. You wouldn’t have been advised to check the furniture daily unless it was still happening. Shameful homeowners.

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