It wasn’t really a ‘false’ profile picture then, just an out of date one. I thought from the posting someone had managed to get a sit posing as someone else!
As a HO I’m just as keen to get the review system improved. In fact, even more so as it’s my Pets and Home that are open to potential abuse by irresponsible sitters slipping through the system.
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This really happens a lot! We try to hoover the day before and fast the day the HO returns so we don’t need to use the kitchen anymore. Sometimes a HO will notify me 30-60 min. before they arrive (sometimes 3-4 hours early!).
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Why does THS not operate like Airbnb? What’s the advantage? With all due respect, Airbnb has far more users, and they’ve probably tested this policy far more than THS. Is it that THS didn’t get around to it (we know the dev team is small and swamped etc.), or is it a matter of policy?
PS: sorry if this has been answered. I don’t have time right now to read through the almost 300 replies in this topic. My interest in it stems from the fact that my HO’s home has a bunch of objectively negative aspects that I’d like to warn other sitters about, but I’ve never seen anything negative about HOs on this site, and never anything but 5-star ratings, so I have to always read between the lines.
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Yep. It is almost impossible to trust that reviews are 100% honest bc they are not blind reviews. It is really sad and frustrating. Lots of ppl complaining about it but I have no idea if there’s a plan to improve.
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How can I contact previous sitters when
I cannot find a review of a homeowner when there’s no feedback from previous sitters?
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You can’t. This is exactly why I make my negative reviews detailed. I want to provide clarity where things are answered.
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I’ve been requesting this on every survey I get from THS. Sitters are reviewed for multiple categories and we should be able to review owners similarly- for cleanliness, accuracy of description of home, description of pets, communication. If they could implement the Airbnb review system, that would be ideal.
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I am really happy to read you all, we never had a bad experience so far. I will like to believe that all the reviews we have recieved are true as we are doing our best to do everything as HO ask us. And the most important always explain asap if something happen.
We read the reviews, but also love to have a video chat to know the HO beforehand.
We had a bad feeling about a HO as what she explain by phone and what it was in the profile it was totally different. That feeling is more important for us than the reviews.
All the improvements on the review system will be more than welcome!
(Sorry about the english)
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Hi @Esthereus. Welcome to the community forum. I’m glad your pet sitting experiences have all been good. Mine have been, too. You’re right, timely and full communication is key to a great pet sitting relationship, as is trusting your gut. I, like you, once got a very different feel for a pet parent in our video call than I’d gotten from the listing and our messages back and forth, and therefore stepped away from the sit. No major issue, it just didn’t feel quite right for me.
Thanks for jumping in and contributing to the community discussions. 
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I search for sits on the computer, and look for reviews and feedback via the app. I tap on the past sitters’ profiles to see if the HO/“pet parent” has reviewed sitters, and how.
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Best info I have ever gotten from this forum. Thank you!! 
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I don’t think so. You should tell the truth in your review. You’re not a house cleaner. It’s awful to arrive to a filthy house. Warn other sitters.
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I feel the same about the disparity between the two.
I would love to see your car exchange form. Please Direct Message Thanks,
Admin Notice: Post Moderated
Hi all,
I’m really glad I have found this thread. I have been a member of MTH as a sitter since 2015 and have experienced a huge range of positive and negative sits with similar frustrations as to those already mentioned.
I used to live in Brighton and was actually approached by MTH management to give in-person feedback (as they are based in Brighton) way back in 2018 about the website and app.
At that time one of my main constructive criticisms was the review process and fear of leaving a negative review especially when the homeowner had failed to leave me a review in the first place.
I suggested something more along the lines of Air BnB - where feedback needs to be left first before you can read the review of the other. Also a time based review system could help this issue. There are still some pet owners who I would love to leave negative feedback for but the fact that they never left me feedback (which was actually something that really irritated me after dealing with their high maintenance pets for 2 weeks) means I still fear a negative feedback ruining my current 5 star profile years after the sit was actually completed.
Over the years I have found that housesits can range from the most lovely clean welcoming homes, well-behaved pets and thoughtful gestures (such as food, chocolates, wine etc.), to incredibly dirty unkempt houses were not even clean sheets have been left on the bed for me before my arrival.
I have also found that often the most dirty houses have also come with the most high maintenance pets and owners who seem to be too lazy to even leave a review despite several requests. In these circumstances I have asked if there was anything they were unhappy about that might be stopping them from leaving a review but nothing was fed back to me at all…
I can only speak from my own experience as a sitter and can sympathise with pet owners who have had disrespectful and neglectful sitters. I always leave houses as clean, if not cleaner then I find them (if they were dirty to start with!) and treat all pets like my own. In these circumstances I have been left feeling very used and disrespected when I am aware of how much it would cost to pay someone to do the same thing (and would actually be spending less time with the animals).
I would love to be able to easily leave some honest feedback directly to the owner without feeling awkward about it or fearing retribution in the form of a reactive negative review.
As an honest person, I wish there was an easier way to communicate openly with the home owner as a standard part of the process and I hope that MTH will make these changes a priority in the future. A feedback email seems to be sent after most sits asking me to review them on Trustpilot so I’m not sure why the same can’t be done (as a private internal review, not public) regarding the sits.
The current review system is deeply flawed and since I brought this to their attention directly in 2018 I think 4 years is more than enough time to do something about it @TrustedHousesitters please take note!
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What does MTH stand for?
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I’ve just told a home owner I was withdrawing my application to sit for him due to him not having given reviews to any of his previous sitters and none of these sitters having left him feedback.
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@Kittylitter what is MTH?
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@Debjm59 It makes me sad to read this and I agree with @Colin that this is a rare experience. I am on the last day of a house sit and have actively been looking for things to clean! I want the HO to arrive home to a clean and tidy house, happy dog and be able to relax and put her feet up after a long journey. I try to ensure there is nothing for her to do, other than unpack. My priority during a sit is looking after the animals and home above exploring the surroundings. I think that probably applies to the majority of HS.
It sounds like you were quite unlucky and encountered a sitter who didn’t approach the sit with the respect and care it required. Hopefully these sitters are in the minority. I think the same applies to HOs. The majority of sits I have done have been in exceptionally clean and tidy homes, but there was one that was a total mess and made me feel quite uncomfortable. There appeared to have been no effort put into making the place welcoming, and there was clutter and mess on the floors. The HO’s circumstances meant that this was understandable, as she had a lot on her plate, but it wasn’t a nice environment to be in. I believe the majority of owners and sitters will be very conscientious about the environment they are leaving for someone else and the majority of sitters care very much about the animals they are looking after.
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