How odd.
Here I am, fat, dumb and happy in SW England, with 26 5-star sits on my rap-sheet… And gagging for invitations. Why didn’t they invite someone like me?
I’m a sitter, not an HO. I no longer have a dog and I miss him greatly, so I sit dogs from time to time. I look for types of dogs that I think I’d get on with, then the home and then the location. I like to hike so a dog that enjoys longer walks is a good match for me. I’m selective because I can afford to be. I might go somewhere for a 1 week sit and stay on for another 3. It’s not about free accommodation for me.
Many retirees are more open minded and mellow than you might think. Working pet owners aren’t necessarily more relaxed. I’ve many more sits than you and much more experience. I’ve sat for young couples with no children, families, older couples whose children have grown up and left home and octogenarians. I think I’m reasonably adept at sussing out people from their profile and a WhatsApp video call. I’m quite capable of making adjustments to suit their requirements and I haven’t had a single poor or worse sit.
It could be something as simple as alphabetical order, because there are so many profiles to look through. Or maybe there are lots of sitters based where you are.
There are many possible reasons, including your profile. Like I used to get many more unsolicited invites, but I increasingly added elements to my profile, so potential hosts would better understand that mutual matching is needed and that I have preferences. I also added a friendly heads up about THS dealbreakers (for newer hosts, as well as ones who might be looking to take advantage of sitters, feigning ignorance or outright trying to lie).
For me, that works well, because I’m interested in quality over quantity — better that iffy or bad hosts self-select out and avoid me. I would much rather be upfront than waste time doing unnecessary vetting or take needless risks on mismatches.
As things have unfolded, I’ve had great sits and hosts, ones who understand reciprocity and hospitality. To me, better to not sit at all than to do it for iffy or bad hosts.
Open-minded and mellow response 
I will send you the link, you can apply for it, just don’t tell them I sent you their way
Similarly, I’ve sat for 20-somethings to 70-somethings, none rigid or uptight.
Knowing how to vet takes time and experience to do better and better. It also helps if you’ve done a lot of hiring professionally or maybe worked in sales or such, because essentially we’re all trying to get a read on strangers with limited time and visibility.
Personally, I’ve done tons of hiring, so that helped me vet hosts from the start. I’ve sat for a good number of retirees and they’ve been among my best sits.
2 weeks I think?
Spot on. Once they meet us and realise we are normal people, who love animals, it breaks down initial misconceptions. Like you I hand over business cards often. Have yet to receive a direct invite back (well there was one but dates didn’t suit) but I am getting lots of sits through personal recommendations, from friends of previous pet owners. In fact I have become the “go to sitter” for dog owners in one particular Perthshire village, just over 30 miles from home, where I now have 5 contacts. 4 of them know each other. I secured one the other day who it transpired had played golf previous day with one of the others who knew me. Their 2 sons had went to school together. The world of pet sitting can really be quite small.
Yes, I’ve received referrals for sits as well. It’s really not hard to land sits once you have a track record, I’ve found.
Don’t get me started. 
Without context of what else was said, I’m not offended by that. Can you enlighten? Use of the word ‘bribe’ is perhaps hyperbole but warm cinnamon bread sounds good to me.
That’s the wrong response. I regularly receive invites for sits around the corner or across town. Since I generally choose sits based on great areas to explore, I decline most in my own backyard. I then counsel the newish HOs (it seems they usually are) to have a different perspective: we live in a beautiful area and there are many sitters willing to travel to watch a great animal and explore a nice place. That’s the profound beauty of the trust exchange theory.
If that’s not thing, ok. But to be so rude about the invite doesn’t make sense to me.
I flew to London last year from the US at my expense to sit for three weeks (and I know others have, too). Best money I’ve ever spent!
I hope you come to see it as a compliment that you were invited!
You know my post was literally on how to change the community for the better and all you do is try and prove to me how you are a superior house sitter.
haha, you make me laugh. Just continue with your house sitting journey and I will with mine.
Ciao
That reads like lighthearted banter to me
Your post was about how you want to change the community and I don’t think what you suggested is at all necessary, or for the better.
Than what is your suggestion. How could you fix this issue with new house sitters not knowing the basic etiquette, that would not single out anyone in particular and would be fair to all?
How is it the wrong response? The woman expected me to travel hundreds of miles at my own expense to sit for her.
Your example of you travelling to London is not comparable, as you wanted to go there.
Perhaps a video, but whatever it is I don’t think it can be mandatory. As has been already stated, THS won’t do anything to add friction for potential new members. It’s all about increasing the numbers.
I think a video would be a great idea, giving basic etiquette information, with a deeper dive option if people wanted it. I think that’s a great idea
This is very true. I often do cat drop ins and some dog walking for neighbors for pay. In some cases even though it doesn’t benefit me, I’ve talked to them about Trusted Houses. They think it’s a crazy idea.
That may be in part why the advertising toward homeowners seems to have pivoted more toward the “service” idea for one low price and mentions of sitters that make them sound (not explicitly but implied) like employees being sent to help, yet somehow not motivated by money, just the love of pets.
Of course as someone who relies on finding sitters and takes at least a few sits a year, I don’t view it as crazy. I view it as a fair exchange and a kind of asymetrical home exchange. But I also think with the sudden growth, extreme advertising, high profile incidents etc, I may be vetting my sitters even more carefully than I already do in terms of real-world information. People do the same on other matching sites all the time when there is a lot less at stake.