Don’t sit for people who expect more than you are ready to give. I think that is simple.
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I agree that it isn’t a HO’s duty to recommend local attractions. As a HO, I provide suggestions, but I don’t know the sitters’ interests. Is it sports, museums, theater, hiking, restaurants, music, etc, etc? As a sitter, I appreciate suggestions from a local, but sometimes it is for activities that don’t interest me.
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With almost 6 years as happy full-time sitters on THS we also noticed that there are more and more “work-away” kind of housesits offered. There have been a couple of housesits without pets and very detailed chore lists, clearly off the balance. Obviously we try to skip them, but it has happened to us a couple of times now that we only found out during the interview.
@Junior - interesting observation, which we can relate to. Obviously, by taking care of pets, we want to serve. That’s what we believe in doing anyways. We are not retired, we are running a business in a pretty high-brow industry. It hasn’t happened often luckily, but there were a couple of times where homeowners clearly showed us they felt superior, and it was a bit hurtful. Thank you for adressing this!
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I visited a home locally last week and the HO was very friendly and welcoming. Everything was perfect about the sit. Pet wonderful …check. House great …check. Family lovely …check.
Then near the end of my visit, the HO asks if (as well as for holiday cover) they can contact me any time just for the day, when they need to go out on business. I said as dipomatically as I could that sitters need to stay over for it to be a fair exchange. We had also discussed how great THS is for this fair exchange and how no money needs to change hands.
But she was now wanting free doggy daycare.
I didn’t say that full phrase. I just mentioned the word daycare. And her face changed.
The next day she said her “friend” is now looking after the dog instead, but the listing is still up on THS wanting sitters! (SMH!)
I looked at my notes and I don’t THINK I messed up any other way. Happy previous HOs and all 5star reviews. Pretty sure either they think I am unreasonable for not sitting during the day. Or they’re embarrassed they asked. No need to be. It was a fair question I suppose, if you don’t already know.
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You dodged a bullet.
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I don’t think there is a danger of them being the “new normal” because they are sitll pretty rare and the HOs aren’t likely to find many takers.
I think the way things are set up and with the reviewing system, there’s some idea of an “invisible hand” creating norms. Sitters with weird profiles and iffy reviews are unlikely to get many sits and will fade away. HOs with little offer sitters will find few sitters offering.
I actually wish, however, that THS was stricter about setting standards for both.
Hey @BillyBonnieBenji sounds like you handled that well and with integrity for all THsitters and the spirit of THS.
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We’ve been very lucky with our sits: I can only think of one truly bad one.
However, as others have written, whenever the red flags go up that a HO is unrealistic in their expectations? I pass it by.
Ironically when a HO is overly demanding they are more likely to get less considerate sitters.
This is now a HUGE community with thousands of members.
I think the sheer volume of people, HOs and Sitters, inevitably means there will be some “difficult” personalities.
Just as there are in any social environment.
What would be good is if THS had a better feedback system to report issues.
We did a sit that went wrong from the moment we came for a pre-sit chat.
The HO didn’t really want us to walk around the home, kept the dog from interacting with us, then said he was busy & cut the visit short…
Turned out to be worse than we could have imagined.
Given how many wonderful experiences we’ve had? Odds were it would happen eventually.
Just be sure to “read between the lines” and ask direct, clear questions.
Good luck to all!
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BINGO! What works for one person would be unacceptable to another!
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I agree there’s a subtle shift in culture and expectations, occasionally prompting surprises. Surprisingly, one pet owner wants their dog not to be left alone beyond 45 minutes! In a 7-week sit, the homeowners didn’t disclose pervasive black mould and damp from the groud floor to the first floor of the house. THS must uphold its ethos to prevent unintended imbalances, prioritising well-being and safety for sitters. Communication and clear guidelines are crucial for a harmonious THS community and discouraging the underlying servitude that some pet owners do not describe in their bios.
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That works as long as the HO’s don’t add/alter after the sit is agreed to and are not hiding their animals behavior issues.
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“Left alone in the car” …
Here in Australia, that would generate a call to the police, or the RSPCA, or have someone smash a car window.
Leaving pets in a car is a big no-no here, as temperatures inside can get to 50°C within minutes.
I’m guessing that must have been a much cooler place.
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Hey! Home owner here. I currently have a higher need pup that has separation anxiety so can’t be left alone for long periods of time – we’re working through it and are up to 2 hours, but unfortunately while we do so, if he’s left alone longer than this he essentially “regresses” and loses months of us painstakingly training him to be okay being alone.
So – tough thing to request of a sitter, which I acknowledge. Generally, I mention that I’m happy to get a sitter for my sitter to provide relief (weekends free etc), and plan for two 3 hour weekly walks where he’s out of the house and the sitter can have more time free.
I honestly don’t think THS is going to work for my upcoming sit, despite me trying to accommodate making it a fair exchange so we’re looking at paid sitters. But genuinely curious if what I’m offering seems reasonable or not. I’d suspect that the homeowners who don’t want their animals to be left alone for a couple of hours are dealing with similar issues.
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It was Fall in England. And a small town where it is perfectly fine to leave windows well open. I live in California. I understand warm days and when not to leave an animal in a car.
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I actually think you’re very accommodating trying to make it work for sitters. There are plenty of HOs who post listings on THS along the lines of ‘dog can’t be left alone at any time’. They still seem to get applicants…
So your efforts to give the sitters some ‘dog free’ time for sure will be much appreciated and give you more applicants
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@junior I hope you somehow politely referred to this in your review as this is something I would want to be warned of as a sitter when reading reviews and considering applying. No one wants to be condescended to.
Interesting discussion.
Personally, I don’t need a list of tourist attractions nearby, though the distance to the nearest grocery store is good to know. I can look up what there is to see and do on my own and usually only apply for sits in areas that interest me already.
I would MUCH prefer knowing things that are often left out such as:
Where do the pets sleep (is it required they sleep with the sitter), details about the home such as; can the sitters choose among more than one bedroom to sleep in?
Sleep is a very important issue especially for a sit that lasts more than a few days.
Some lucky people can sleep anywhere but not all of us. A super soft mattress with a deep imprint in it can mean days of backaches and headaches and poor sleep - leading to a miserable stay. If there is more than one bedroom you’d allow us access to, this would be very helpful information (and we leave everything as nice or nicer than we found it).
It may seem high maintenance to want to know this but sleep is vital for good physical and mental health.
So listings that just say “cozy home with all amenities” is not enough information. I would much prefer very detailed info AND CLEAR PHOTOS on the home and bedrooms than what there is to do in the area.
Just my 2 cents.
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Totally agree, most people want to tell you local pubs and restaurants and as a couple that don’t drink or eat out it’s not relevant. I research the area before applying to see what would be interesting to us. And I agree, where the pets sleep and bed comfort is very important, I never apply if animals sleep in your room!
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@Stmarys
Same. We don’t apply to those either. We are both super light sleepers so a snoring dog or fidgety cat isn’t going to work for us.
I love showering them with affection but not when I’m trying to sleep.
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Thank you for sharing your experience. It was refreshing to hear a positive reflection !
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