I saw in another thread someone new to THS is looking for a sitter, but not getting any applications (well only one so far). I have my own views on the dog types that I won’t sit, do other sitters?
The dog type is a term I want to be able to search on. I’m big, strong, fit and able, I don’t care how lovely a pit bull might be described as being I’m not going anywhere near that sit. The first thing I look at when searching for sits is the type of dog, lap dogs, those described as fur babies, dogs with a poor reputation (deserved or otherwise) are immediately filed as no further action.
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I would not be in favor of this.
Many of us have favorite breeds. While it might be nice to be able to search on those, such a feature might also be used to strike out certain breeds based on current myths and misunderstandings, and unfairly disadvantage many hosts in being able to find a sitter. It also gives a certain credence to the idea that there are “bad” dog breeds.
Practically speaking, there are also so many breeds that I’m not sure it would really be helpful. I certainly don’t want to wade through 50 checkboxes to list which breeds I’m interested in sitting, or not sitting.
Every listing requires photos of the animals. I think that should be enough for potential sitters to rule out a type of dog they don’t care for — or to be persuaded to apply for a sit because “OMG a Golden…where do I sign up?!?” 
What I would find more useful is the ability to filter on number of pets, and potentially the size of pets - small/medium/large.
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I think our differing perspectives highlight the inadequacy of the search function, whether that’s saved or otherwise.
I get too many saved search notifications that are of no interest to mem. I don’t want to click the link to open the app then scroll through a listing to see the type of dog, that’s a tad frustrating and a waste of my time.
It need not be mandatory to either exclude, or include, any dog types or breeds. But, having the option to select, or delesect would be an enhancement for me.
An optional key word search is something that could greatly improve searching.
These are all just pipe dreams though, profit, profit, profit is all that seems to matter.
Meanwhile I’ll continue looking for doodle sits.
I think the photos of dogs are sufficient. Also how would you cater for cross breeds.? If the pet’s looks like a doberman, pit bull, German shepherd or lurcher type I don’t apply.
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The American Kennel Club recognizes 200+ distinct dog breeds. I think it would be difficult to have check boxes.
A keyword search would be nice, eg ‘London+Doodle’ to see if that matches anything in the listing. But unlikely to be implemented would be my guess.
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I don’t want to look at photos and try and work out the type/breed, just include the information in the listing. It’s not difficult.
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Plus, looks can be deceiving. I have a friend who rescued a dog. The prior owners said it was a golden retriever. The rescue said it was a golden retriever. The vet said it was a golden retriever. It looked exactly like a golden retriever.
My friend decided to do a DNA test just for fun (she didn’t care what the breed was, only that it got along with her other dog).
The results surprised us all: Mostly chow-chow and terrier, with 5 percent Labrador Retriever. We thought it had to be a lab error so she retested with a different company. Same results. We still don’t know how that combination of dogs produces something that looks exactly like a golden retriever, but there you go…
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Check boxes aren’t necessary, it can be as easy as a word search e.g. include Labradors, exclude Malinois. It doesn’t need to be obligatory. The same facility could be used to find rural/urban/city locations. Most of the time this data is present in the listing, but can only be accessed by reading profiles. That’s inefficient and time consuming.
I do have golden retriever in the title of my listing. Most of my sitters said they were they loved the breed.
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I need to know the breed, gender, age of a dog and if it has been spayed/neutrred before confirming.
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I’m in, never met a bad ‘un.
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I just need a box for the “well behaved, well trained” breed 
And I wish owners were more honest about their dogs…like the ones that pull constantly on the lead or bark at everything they spot out the window. We have had some that are near impossible to walk without pulling a muscle.
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I avoid certain breeds and dogs that I can’t easily pick up. That’s so I can control them, if needed, like if they’re triggered. Better for bystanders, the dog and me. Plus, if they have an emergency and can’t walk (especially if there are stairs), I want to be able to pick them up, especially as a solo sitter.
With my own dog, he once was stung by a bee, vomited, evacuated his bowels and went totally limp. Turns out he was allergic. Luckily, he was small enough so I could lift him. Similarly with an elderly, sickly sit dog who had back to back seizures. I had to rush both to urgent care. The latter took two flights of stairs, across sidewalks and a parking lot. No chance I could’ve done that with say a 70-pound unconscious dog.
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is that a typo? Most of my sitters said they were they loved the breed.
Yes typo. They said it was a big reason they applied, because they love the breed.
Sorry tired and jet-lagged 
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I have a wonderful doodle. You can sit for me. 
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I’m sitting a doodle right now and three of the next four sits I have lined up are with doodles and in great locations. That’s peak sitting for me.
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@MerryPuppins We would also love to filter on number of pets.
Would save time bypassing 7 cats and 4 dogs scenarios!
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Put Labrador or retriever in your title and I will look. I have many saved. Sometimes I don’t even care where they are I just want to love that dog for a while.
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@Cathie time for you to go house sit for my oldies I reckon….
#lovealab
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