The red flags
These are not good people. Be warned sitters. There is a reason their previous 2 sitters have not left a referral. Utter unconscionable behaviour.
Less than 24 hours prior to the sit, HO tried to change terms of sit asking me to go elsewhere for 3 extra nights, because they decided to change their travel plans. I screenshot the message twice with time stamp to ask the HO to clarify and that I was flying out in less than 5 hours of seeing the message. I assured them I was still coming to Alaska but with concerns, and then the HO tried to gaslight me in replies saying I was overreacting and that nothing had changed. Lies
After my arrival I was taken to an unkempt home to be greeted by a dog WAY SICKER than informed and my questioning this was met with more lies.
As the elderly dog was way sicker and frail with a meditation regime of over 7 different types per day. I had to ask repeatedly that the medications/dosage be in hard copy and easily accessible while on sit. When arrived and it wasnāt done, HO said sheād written it on the bottles. I again asked (in writing) for the meditation to be in a hard copy. It was done upon my return.
I was bullied into leaving the premises for 3 nights put up in alternative accommodation adding to my own costs of traveling. HO paid for accommodation but not the amenities which were at extra cost to myself.
Upon returning for the actual sit, HO lied to my face two times regarding communication and sit arrangements and I told her āThatās not true, I donāt know why you would say that since I have it all in our chats, in written documentation, would you like to see?.ā She said no. The home was cleaned up and presented well for my sit.
HO had two of their 3 cameras facing into the house but technically outside the house. They were watching me go about my daily activities and sending messages if and when something wasnāt done according to their welcome pack. Since Iād read the welcome pack multiple times prior to sit I was very familiar with the expectations and the concern raised (no booties on dogs feet) was not ever mention at all in all my prior readings online. Upon opening hard copy of HO guide of which I hadnāt needed to refer to, a hand written amendment was found. This was a purposeful act of manipulation to find fault and have proof on camera, that I didnāt follow their rules. I assured the HO dog was well cared for and was in no way harmed nor injured.
The HO weāre watching me in their home remotely.
I faced the cameras away from myself and was asked to leave.
Prior to starting this sit I was in communication with THS and was informed I was in my right to not do this sit as they changed the agreement but because I wanted to do a good job and I wanted to be with the lovely Ole and Charlie I ignored all the red flags at my own detriment. In addition Iād come a very long way to do this sit and it was booked many months in advance. I also have people relying on me to sit after this allotted time in the same remote city.
These are not good people. Their pattern of behaviour is unlike anything Iāve ever come across on this platform and Iāve also used other housesitting platforms in the past (MMH) and currently use couchsurfing with exemplary references to myself on all of them. Please look for yourself. Which these HO cannot say. They have no prior references. But hereās one now.
The gaslighting, the lies, the surveillance of my person activity and the sheer lack
of self awareness to the actual effort a HS has to go to to get to a sit, especially somewhere as remote as Alaska is a good reason to pass up on this home.
So sorry you had this experience! It sounds terrible.
I would recommend removing some of the emotive wording, and being really specific about some of the exchanges. Youāre absolutely right to feel the way you feel, but keep what you write absolutely factual (readers will form their own opinions!).
For example āunkemptā - how? Was the bed unmade? Kitchen dirty? Be specific.
You talk about lies a few times, what were these? Use direct quotes.
Item number 4. is written in a way that is a bit confusing to me. Use direct quotes instead of ābulliedā (to be clear: I believe you! But how were you bullied?)
Put item 7. As the opening line of item 6.
Expand on point 8. E.g. ābecause cameras are against THS Ts&Cās, I turned them away from myself. The HO sent me a message to say āā¦āā.
PS. Check spelling - you use meditation a few times instead of medication, and weāre vs. were.
Reading again - I think your last two paragraphs could be abridged to - āI had personal reasons for continuing this sit, but regret it nowā. Let the reader fill in the gaps.
Also, Iām not sure how recent all of this is, but take a week (or up to 13 days after the sit) to cool off before posting.
Definitely slim down the content @Gabba, remove any emotion & stick to absolute facts. There are so many broken Ts & Cs on their end that weād raise a member dispute and report them asap. The whole thing sounds hideous and looking at the sit details (& past sitters) there were lies & red flags that you unfortunately paid the price for. There are more good HOs out there waiting for you. #tomorrowisanewday
THS do not (routinely) read reviews so no action will be taken by THS based on your review .
As @Cuttlefish has suggested - Itās not too late to raise a member dispute - stating facts - the breaches of the T&Cs and the evidence (take screenshots of listing ( now - before HO changes it ) , Welcome Guide ( if you still have access to it) medicine bottles / cameras and the messages .
When you raise a member dispute THS investigate and if a member has seriously breached the T&Cs they can be removed from THS platform.
From your description of the sit the specific T&Cs broken by the owner are :
**5.2.5.**notify a Sitter of any special requirements or behaviours relating to your pet(s) in your Home Listing
**5.2.7.**ensure that the details of your Home Listing are accurate and up to date;
[/quote]
There is also the camera policy which states
ā What we donāt allowAny active devices monitoring the interior of a property during a sit.āā¦.
So regardless of where it is situated it shouldnāt be monitoring the inside of the property
They also were unreasonable in changing the dates of the sit and which breaks
ā5.2.13. ensure your home is vacated for a Sitter throughout the duration of the Sitā
but could argue that they resolved that by paying for alternative accommodation.
Please can others check this as it maybe is simply an app techie glitch but when I click on your @Gabba forum THS profile link it takes me to my own profileā¦.please can you edit your profile to remove my TSH profile link from your forum profile. @Carla please can you check this is even possible?
Like others have said, you need to make it a lot shorterāa lot of issues could be stated without as much detail or specific examples. For example, the dog being sicker than you led to believe is important but the story about the medication labeling isnāt really necessary.
Some of the language used sounds a bit too emotional and dramaticāgas lighting, unconscionable, ālying to your faceā,etcā¦which makes the feedback sound less credible.
The primary reason I think it is so important to make these tweaks is how the feedback people leave, and/or the way they respond to feedback could affect future sits. Just like sitters often check the feedback a HO has left for past sitters, HOs may check the feedback sitters have left for past HOs. Your review as it is written now would probably work against you.
I am sorry you had a bad experience and if you still have time before the review needs to be submitted, it would probably be good to cool down a bit before you write it.
@BonnyinBrighton - it doesnāt link to your profile, unless you are the one clicking on the URL. When I click, it links to my sitter profile. OP needs to reformat the URL.
@BonnyinBrighton Thank you for spotting this. @Gabba link was the generic preview one so that takes the viewer to their own profile. I have updated it now and added @Gabba personal one. Thank you for helping
Thanks for the feedback
It happened yesterday so I was emotional about the whole ordeal and Iāll give it a good edit, take out the emotion and just speak plainly.
Itās very upsetting to be on the end of such bad behaviour but with all your kind support Iām positive Iāll bounce back.
@Gabba - I just want to applaud you for using this forum in its best possible way ā as a neutral space for honest feedback and as a place to recover and reflect. You explained where you were at, took pause, and then adjusted based on the support you received. Plus, you are showing your resilience in adopting a positive mindset that is focused on those who have been quick to offer help rather than the one bad apple. Also, thanks for taking necessary action for yourself and to protect other sitters from an unfortunate experience. Most importantly your thoughtful process and time spent to gather feedback will ensure that your follow-up is more effective. Bravo!
Lastly, I want to acknowledge the community here who provided speedy and specific assistance and in a way that was both productive and sensitive. Cheers!
that you unfortunately paid the price for. There are more good HOs out there waiting for you. 
