@chatsetchiens
love the French name, btw. C’est mignon! 
I think people put on sharper glasses (metaphorically speaking) when they return home after an absence, especially if someone else has been in the home.
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@carpediem16 , it’s over. You can take a deep breath. You did the right thing by posting an honest review to alert future sitters. The important thing is that you have a 5-star review on your profile. Whatever they write by way of a reply to your review will appear on their listing, not your profile. You were also smart to block them. The other thing I would suggest is to notify Membership Services in the event they file a complaint. Then put it out of your mind.
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Quite possibly, yes! I suppose it’s only natural to scrutinize the place more closely once someone else has been in it.
However, I think this person felt very emboldened initially but oh so quickly dropped it when I sent over my photograph where everything looked perfectly fine. I’d taken pictures of every single room in the property. I even took one of the inside of the fridge. Yes, maybe that’s a bit OTT but I leave no stone unturned as I’ve seen some less than pristine fridges in my time, let me tell you!
Funny how not quite so emboldened after I said I’d taken photographs of each room as evidence of how clean I’d left it. I spent literally most of the day before I left making sure the place looked absolutely spotless and immaculate so was pretty irked to get that message. It definitely left a bit of a sour taste as overall, the whole sit experience had been fairly good up until that point.
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They can recover from a not 5-star review. It shouldn’t prevent them from getting any sitters and if they respond to your review saying they will address the points you raised for the next sitter that would actually be better. For me I find 4 star reviews to be more helpful than 5 when looking at anything as they often detail why the sit (or restaurant or product) wasn’t perfect. Similarly for bad reviews 2-star carries more weight with me than 1. 1-star is often just the person had a bad experience so they wanted to slag off the restaurant or product and the 2-star will provide some level of detail of what the issue was.
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@andrealovesanimals
I get it. I get why you didn’t leave reviews at all for the other less-than-ideal sits. I’ll be tempted to do the same next time. It’s very rattling to be unfairly accused and mistreated (via texting) when we not only did our best to care for the animals and the place but walked into a living space that was very uninviting and uncomfortable and left it many times cleaner than we found it. And then to be called selfish and short-sighted and “I demand you remove the review”.
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It’s bullying.
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This sounds like an instant replay of our experience last summer. We contacted THS admin and they said it was a “he said, she said” and did not help or support us in any way. The only solution offered was to remove the reviews. We refused to remove our review because, like you, we wrote it carefully and truthfully so others would be aware.
All I can say is I still get angered that they were not reprimanded or warned. That they got away with personal insults about our home and us which were all lies.
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The supply of a Welcome Guide would not have precluded arriving to a pile of dirty laundry, nor would the home photos have shown this, probably.
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This is the reason I am not keen at all on this “blind” new review system. I think there will be a lot of retaliation and animosity between homeowners and sitters. My husband and I are very easygoing sitters. We’ve never had a really bad experience but have had minor little issues but have overlooked these and given all the homeowners a good review. In return, we have also received excellent reviews apart from one neutral type of review. There’s no exchange of money here - we’ve stayed in lovely places and the homeowners have also had us look after their pets for free. I don’t see the need to give people a bad review unless something terrible happened on a sit which would jeopardize another sitter’s safety.
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Globetrotter, you just haven’t hit the “jackpot” yet. After years of great sitters, and 5* reviews for myself, I had a terrible one. There are many things besides jeopardizing another sitter’s safety that can be very troublesome. Like complaining to me via text for days about everything while I am traveling for 14 hours and on a tour; like being rude to my housekeeper and my friend with cancer who wanted to drop off a bag, like breaking things in my house, like rearranging my house, like sleeping in every bedroom including mine and leaving the bedding all over the place, and there is so much more. No, she didn’t burn my house down or kill my pets. I think future HOs might want to know. But because of the terrible bite back that people experience, I did not leave a review.
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I am so sorry that you are going through this, it is so unfair because it is so great of you to leave an honest review for future house sitters, I think this is something that a lot of people are afraid to do.
I think you sound so reasonable and fair that I can’t imagine there is anything they can say that would discredit you.
In absolute agreement with you here.
@sledgejoyce
No, there was nothing in written form (and while as CatStaff mentions, this would not have changed the untidiness of the house, it is always very useful to have it, I agree).
When we visited a week before the sit began and the HO was explaining the routine, the food recipe which was a mix of 3 things plus some natural meds, etc I asked if anything was written down anywhere. I received a look of surprise by my question. HO said s/he would try (am trying to conceal identity in case they are on here) to do this and in the meantime I went on the site and sent the Welcome Guide request electronically.
But nothing was ever put in writing. All we had was the contact number of a friend.
If a host wouldn’t share a welcome guide or other form of documented guidance, I’d cancel a sit, because I’m not walking in blind. The other thing I do if their documentation is poor: I make myself a checklist and send it to them to review. It gives them a chance to correct anything off and forces a written acknowledgment from them. I do all of that in a friendly way.
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Gosh this is so stressful.
My first nightmare experience went like this:
- HO calls me 3 days before sit to let me know that big dog bit little dog’s head, little dog’s eye ball popped out & had to be surgically replaced; would I still like to sit and can I administer meds 5 x a day to little dog
- I said YES! of course, but big dog has to go to kennel because HOs cannot ask sitters to sit animals who have a history of attacking people or pets, per code of conduct (link below)
- HO refused to pick me up yet demanded that I drop them off at the airport
- Arrive to filthy house (my feet were pure black the first day)
- Took photos of the filth before I cleaned it, and sent them to THS, launching an enquiry
- Exchanged 150 messaged with neurotic HO traumatised about leaving injured pet during the month
I also fell in love with this little guy, Cadillac as he recovered and simultaneously fell in love with me
- When sit was over, HO asked me not to write a review.
- HO left me a glowing review.
- Followed up with THS letting them know I was asked not to write a review; they said that is not allowed
- I wrote a fact-based review (carefully stripping out the drama & emotion from the text)
- HO sent a sent me a private message attacking my character, THS continued the enquiry
- HO is no longer on the platform
There are all sorts of people and personalities on THS, and some circumstanced bring out the worst in people.
I was shaken up, but I processed the emotions over a couple of days and was able to move on.
I trust you will too.
Big love 
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Oh that’s a Great idea! 
I am so sorry you went through this! I think there should be more protection for the sitter with these situations because we are actually the ones dealing with risk when traveling and caring for someone’s home and pets. We are unable to leave a bad situation or defend ourselves in the moment if being treated poorly and we wouldn’t leave anyway out of concern and responsibility for the pets. I’ve met some wonderful people over the years but I am in the same boat now debating how to handle the end of a bizarrely good/bad situation with wonderful pets but not great HOs. I am considering going back to just paid pet sitting because I’ve seen some odd entitlement with owners who have treated my friends like staff— not this as the wonderful trade opportunity it is. Hang in there. You know when you’re right and your review helps the rest of us avoid them, too :)!
Hello the OP has requested this post be closed now as they have received lots of help and advice. They want to thank everyone who took the time to comment, but feel that they have got the required help they needed. Thank you.
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