We are on a month long sit, a day into the sit I noticed the dog was scratching more than I deemed acceptable, I looked at the dogs skin as much as the dog would allow me to, and found nothing, but reported it to the owners anyway, the reply came back, the vet says there’s nothing wrong, but the dog continued scratching, and it was, in my opinion getting worse, by this time the dog was showing signs of distress, I again reported to the owners, a day later, I found the little blighters fleas and lice, found some Frontline in a cupboard and decided to put it on her the last time she had been treated was Christmas 23, we are now back end of March, sent message to owners or ring ASAP, they did, I told them the situation, and the action I had taken, with the frontline, but they had 2 cats also so they needed treatment too, and the house and the furniture too, pet bedding, and so on, they ordered stuff from Amazon and got it delivered, but then the really hard work started for my husband and I, and it has been a nightmare cleaning carpet’s furniture and simply everything, we are knackered…
WHAT SHOULD I PUT IN MY REVIEW
Oh so sorry you are going through this. For the review you’re best advised to be honest but tactful. After explaining the situation you could say something along the lines of : "The situation required extensive cleaning efforts to ensure a healthy environment for the pets. This was undoubtedly physically challenging, but it highlighted the importance of being prepared for unforeseen issues in pet sitting. We appreciated the pet owners’ responsiveness and have learned much about handling such situations. For future sittings, it may be beneficial for pet owners to provide a detailed health and treatment history of their pets, along with instructions and supplies for emergency care.
Sorry this is happening to you, Dreamypetcare. Fleas and lice both? Does it seem odd to anyone else that you’d end up with both without the homeowner having been aware? Maybe a doggy daycare thing, or the dog rolled in something that was hosting both? Trying to give the benefit of the doubt for this homeowner, maybe this isn’t as likely to indicate a long-term issue as it sounds like to me?
For the review, just be factual. Describe what happened and what was needed from the sitter. If the HO was suitably appalled and apologetic and did all they could to help, note that. Although frankly if I were that HO, I’d have offered to have a professional service come in rather than ordering supplies from Amazon and expecting you to do the work.
Thank you for your advice, it has given me some insight on what I should put in my review. It has definitely been hard work for my husband and I over a long period of time, other than the flea/lice fiasco the sit was ok.
Hi Val
Thank you for your reply.
The HO was not appalled, the response was “sorry the dog is scratching” but they did say they appreciated what we were doing, I too, think they should have got someone in to do the heavy works, I kept it clean as I was also worried that these little interloper’s would hitch a ride back home with us! and that scarred me very much, we also had to do our car as the dog had been all over with us.
The problem was fleas and/or lice. That is why also the furniture, carpet, etc needed treatment, not because the home was “just dirty”. This is much worse than grime.
The sitter noticed a day into the sit. The HOs should have been aware.
Not a place where any sitter would want to be. Please leave clear warnings.
Yes, I would just be honest in your review. This issue that has caused you so much effort and work is the very reason that in my homeowner listing, I state that my pets are on monthly preventative heartworm and flea medication so that the sitter knows there will be no issues like what you’ve had to deal with. And, as a sitter, I always ask if the pets are on the preventative medication and if it is administered consistently.
I would not want to be tracking fleas and/or lice (!) into another home, my own home, a hotel/Airbnb, or public transportation. That is disgusting and unhealthy.
Honestly, I’ve made it five+ decades without getting lice, ever. And the one time my home had a flea infestation, I went full tilt into “Get Rid” mode.
These are not mindful/thoughtful people, to put it mildly.
“it has been a nightmare cleaning carpet’s furniture and simply everything, we are knackered…”
The sit was ok?
This is not an ok sit.
And if your review glosses over this then you do a disservice to future THsitters.
What @HelloOutThere times 
- this needs making clear in your review please. No sitter needs a repeat of the flea/lice issue because it’s been glossed over @Dreamypetcare . #toughbuttrue
Please mention the fleas and lice in yourr eview. Don’t just say that you needed to clean extensively, because that could “just” be dirt. It is important to say why you needed to clean. Apart from the discomfort of dealing with the fleas on this sit, I would hate the idea of bringing fleas into another house, including your own.
Hello out there,
I will NOT gloss over the fact that this sit had its challenges, and we struggled with the serious amount of cleaning required, but I do not like to sound confrontational in my review, I shy away from confrontation, but I suppose I should just ‘toughen up’. Thank you
Of course when I mentioned explaining the situation I meant detailing the lice/ fleas and owner response, in case it wasn’t clear. Again sorry you had to go through this.
And that’s fine @Dreamypetcare - just make your language and tone of voice factual, honest, non emotional and you’re off to a good start 
#andhappyfuturesitters
Make it clear that it was you who did the extensive cleaning, rather than someone brought in to do the job.
@Dreamypetcare, you needn’t sound confrontational. You can simply report the facts.
Like:
Fido and Fluffy were great, and Tracy and Dan communicated promptly and have a lovely home. Unfortunately one day into the sit we discovered both fleas and lice on Fido. Tracy and Dan ordered treatment supplies from Amazon and had them delivered, and for much of the rest of the sit we were quite busy treating the animals, the furniture, carpets, bedding, etc., which was a lot of very hard work and quite exhausting. We think this would have been a good sit if it hadn’t been for this occurrence, but unfortunately we would not risk returning.
You should tell the truth in the review. Personally, I get pretty reactive to flea bites and would probably need to leave. They probably should’ve hired a cleaning service, but I doubt people have one lined up or would know what to do in those circumstances. Flea treatments probably should be something sitters should be able to filter for and asked/listed on homeowner listings.
I’m not sure how calling it like it is is being confrontational and what it is is fleas and lice on a sit that caused you an exponential amount of more work.
Additionally,
I straight up would have said, “I think best course of action is for this place to be professionally cleaned, can you let me know who you’d like to use for that and then do you want me to get it scheduled or just let me know when they’re coming?”
Tell the people what happened in your review and be honest about the good and the bad and what it cost as well as how the HOs responded and followed up. Anything short of them being fully accountable and handling that issue would be a dealbreaker for me and as an HO, I would have sent someone over to overhaul the entire house, had you quarantine my dog to one room with no furniture save his bed and made sure we followed all guidance from the vet. But I also would not have allowed his flea/tick/worm to lapse before someone came for a sit. I get that a lot of people don’t “treat” their dogs regularly, but I personally feel if you’re going to be using a service like this or for instance a day care, your pets should be up to date on treatments as well as shots. I mean come on!
Yes I’m super allergic to flea bites too. Wouldn’t work for me.
Agree with the great advice already provided about being straight-forward in your review. You shouldn’t have dealt with this and future Guests should be allowed to be informed. However, it’s also negligent to the animals. It’s a red flag to me when people aren’t taking proper care of their own pets.