Hi Everyone! 
I’m newer to sitting full-time and currently relying on it for housing. I’ve been sending out applications for overlapping sits, since I have had a few that did not go through. My goal is to avoid gaps, but I also want to stay respectful to pet parents and avoid negative reviews. I’m wondering: how do others handle applying to multiple sits with overlapping dates, especially when one comes through after you accepted another? How do you stay professional and kind while protecting yourself from being left without a sit? I would love any tips or scripts you’ve used! TIA!
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If you accept one sit that has overlapping dates to another sit you applied for then you have to cancel that sit you have an application out for. I would send a note with your decline that says something like, have to cancel because I just accepted a sit that overlaps yours by two days. I really wanted to stay with ( insert the name of their pet here) and by any chance your trip changes to start on May 20 instead of May 18, I would really be interested in sitting for you. Who knows, maybe if they don’t find a sitter they feel comfortable with and feel comfortable with you and they have an easy pet like a cat, a neighbor can come in for two days and feed and spend some time with the cat.
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I meant you say, have to withdraw application not decline as you didn’t get the sit yet.
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As you get more “reps” in, you’ll find the right cadence for you… but part of the solution here is to prioritize longer-term sits over shorter-term ones. (Then, use short-term to fill in the gaps.) Additionally, longer-term sits tend to become available further in advance, which makes it easier to plan further ahead so you don’t feel like you’re scrambling all the time.
However, short-term sits are a great way at the beginning to quickly build a track record of five-star reviews, which makes it more likely that you’ll be offered the sits you apply for.
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We sit full time, focus on longer duration of sits, because you’ll have less voids, and less time travelling around.
Also, we ‘try’ to focus on the next set of sit dates each time, ie we accept a sit for a certain set of dates, and then we focus on a sit that starts either later the same end date, or the very next day. That way, your head has less to think about, you already know the start date you want, and then you only have 1 start date in your mind at any one time. There are only 2-3 times a year when we go rogue, and select a date that’s out-of-sync, but that’s fine, because you don’t need many sits if they are longer term to fill up your whole year anyway.
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I’m not sure if this makes a difference w the advice from ya all, the other part of this scenario is since I’m doing local sits and my background is owning a pet sitting company for 15 years. I only take on assignments after doing a “Meet and Greet” to make sure it’s a mutual fit. There have been a few people that I have been communicating w 2 overlapping hosts organizing a “meet and greet” picking a date and time. I will know after Tuesday if I have to decline the request due to the right booking being a fit. Does this change your answer?
If you accept a confirmed sit on the THS platform and you have other applications that are still open and overlap you won’t be able to accept them so the decision is made for you. #thatmightdoit
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