I just need to vent because this has been bothering me a lot. I recently finished a sit where I was the host’s first ever sitter. I took a great care of the host’s kitty, left the house spotless, and sent regular updates with photos. By all accounts, the sit went well.
Then I received a 3-star rating for “organized,” “self-reliable,” and “reliable.” The review itself praised my work—the cat barely noticed the host was away, the house was spotless, and I communicated regularly—but she still left lower stars. She didn’t explain what went wrong, just mentioned I should check in with her regularly about expectations.
Here’s what she wrote on her review:
“Denisa gave my kitty lots of attention (snuggles, play time, brushing). Most of the time I come home after being away, my kitty is very needy— with Denisa here to take care of her she barely noticed I was gone! She was incredibly tidy and left my house looking spotless! Denisa is also very good about sending photos and checking in, but I recommend checking in with her regularly ahead of her visit and during her visit to make sure she understands expectations, like arrival/departure times, feeding procedures, house keeping, etc.”
I’m left feeling frustrated, confused, and unfairly rated. Honestly, this has made me decide not to renew my membership. It’s disheartening to pay for a platform that doesn’t protect sitters from unfair ratings or hosts who nitpick, despite all your effort. Has anyone else experienced this? How do you deal with ratings that don’t reflect the effort you put in? I’d really like to hear your perspective and any advice.
Thanks for reading.
(Post edited by the Forum Team to comply with the Terms of Service).
If she provided a homeowner’s guide, there wouldn’t be a need to do this, unless something unexpected comes up.
There are some people that don’t understand the rating system. They view it like a pain scale or bad college professors - only extreme circumstances warrant the highest grade.
I tell ya, as a sitter, I would definitely not apply for a sit at their place after reading a review like that with no explanation of the 3s. Great care of the cat and spotless house…what the heck else did they want/expect?
This is why I no longer sit for new hosts. I did once and the pet was very aggressive recently rescued. The host and I both agreed that I leave half way through. No reviews were left. They left THS after this experience. I now have to see reviews from others. Your host is extremely entitled. If I saw she was a first time host giving someone a 3 after writing good things about them and penalizing the sitter for being human and not perfect, then I would stay as far as way as possible. She will have a very hard time getting sitters now. Sitters look at both the reviews from the sitter and the host. Honestly, I would contact her about this. I did see another first time host who used a first time sitter give a 3 score. About three months later I saw it was changed to a four. I did not think that was possible. The sit is in an area I want to visit but very few listings.
@Denisa I’m sorry you had that experience. It sucks. A nitpicky host like that -dropping multiple stars for their very first sitter whilst at the same time praising them- is going to struggle to get sitters in the future. They shot themselves in the foot there.
We just received a review that was 5* and very positive but at the same time cold & impersonal and nothing positive about us as people, only as sitters. We read all the reviews of their previous sitters and for each they used words like delightful, fantastic, excellent sitters etc but not for us. We struggle to understand what went wrong (for them) as we had great contact throughout the process and they wrote a nice text when they first got back. Then this cold review. We’ll likely never know but- just know- you did your best- so don’t take it personally. You will get past this. Good luck
I do not know a single sitter who would consider this homeowner the next time she wants a sitter. This may turn out to be a bad review for her rather than you.
You do know that you can reply, so I’d certainly do that. Be open and generous say something along the lines of being genuinely puzzled by the star rating which didn’t match the written review or your experience throughout the sit, and so as a new HO you’ve assumed they maybe misunderstood the star rating system.
But for all we know, @Denisawas perfect! The HO tells us absolutely nothing, beyond one sentence of vague waffle, to explain why she docked the stars.
I agree with those who say the idiotic star-dinging says much more about the HO than about you. Please don’t be discouraged; you can easily bounce back from this.
Under THS blind review system then housesitter and pet parent each have 14 day period after end of housesit to submit a review - like the one above.
There is then a one-time opportunity for housesitter and pet parent to submit a reply. Only one reply is permitted, to avoid back-forth. There is no deadline to submit a reply.
Suggest pause to catch your breath and let emotions calm. In a while then prepare a brief, reasonable, polite reply to the review. Any aggressive reply will only harm your profile. Future pet parents will read both sides and likely assess your reasonableness, even when faced with unexpected challenges.
Then we’d encourage forget all about it. As a wise regular said in prior related thread - smother the negative past review with positive future reviews. Keep smiling
I feel your pain and frustration. Unfortunately reviews are a numbers game. The more you sit the more likely it is that you will come across a human who sees the world through a different lens than you do. All you can do is move forward, not question yourself and put it behind you. Just like physical pain this too will recede into the background. You sound like a great sitter. Good luck with your future five star sits.
I understand your issues with 1st timers - but with almost 140 sits and 110 reviews, all but 4 ‘5 star’, it is the folks who have had many, many sits who ding me a star - for ‘clean and tidy.’ I think they’ve been spoiled by sitters who leave the house spotless.
Maybe I’ve been lucky but haven’t been ‘burned’ by any first sits. And several of my first sits have gotten the best review comments.
This strikes me as an HO who does not believe in the “5 stars is the baseline” way of reviewing. I’m sorry you got caught up in this - and agree with others this will hurt her as a new HO a lot more than you! Especially if you have lots of other glowing reviews.
If/when you do decide to reply to the review, please keep it extremely brief and unemotional to keep that advantage.
Is there anything in this that rings true? Were there complications about arrival/departure? Not that that would justify 3 stars (unless something really out of whack happened), but acknowledging a small misfire always comes across better than denying, justifying or ignoring it.
Even if nothing happened, an honest “I am not sure what HO means by arrival/departure times - I was unaware of any issues about this” is far more powerful than “I did everything we agreed to and this is unfair”.
Good luck, and I hope you decide to stay - sounds like you are a great sitter who got a bum HO.
I understand your frustration. But no rating system is going to be perfect. There is a culture here where the default is five. The host’s explanation regarding “expectations” is vague. Possibly you came late or left early and it’s not clear what the story was. The review as it states your pet care is fine despite the ratings. I don’t think this review will rule you out with most homeowners (and I am one). If you have other reviews or other sits coming up it will hardly be noticed if an outlier.
Giving up is a possibility. It is not your only option.
If this isn’t your first under 5-star, then it may be worth really taking onboard what homeowners are saying. Even if it is your first, rather than labeling it “unfair” even though it may well be, it’s also worth it to take it on board.
One thing you can do is respond. But realize that any response simply labelling this as an “unfair” won’t fly well with other hosts. If there was a miscommunication regarding “expectations” tell what happened from your perspective and take responsibility for whatever you learned or could do better next time. Also be prepared in any future chat to discuss the sit and the review in a way that is NOT disdainful of the person who left the review.
If this was the homeowner’s first time using the site, they may have shot themselves in the foot.
Exactly, that’s what confused me too. She did leave a guide, and I followed everything in it, so I wasn’t sure what else she expected or where I fell short. I appreciate you saying that though—it makes me feel a lot less crazy about the whole situation.
Thank you so much for this, I really appreciate it. I’m sorry you had a similar experience too—it really does make you second guess things when the review doesn’t match how everything felt during the sit. It helps a lot hearing your perspective though, so thank you for that
Thank you, that actually gives me a different perspective on it. I was so focused on the rating itself, but you’re right—it says a lot to other sitters too.
Thank you so much, that really means a lot! You’re right. The lack of explanation is what makes it so frustrating. I’m trying not to let it get to me and just focus on the sits where the stars actually match the effort
Thank you so much, that’s really helpful advice! I did reply already, and I kept it polite, but I admit I wish I had said something about the 3-star ratings too. I regret that I did not say anything about the three stars. Now, I can’t edit or delete my response. Still, I know you’re right—staying calm and professional is what future hosts will notice, and I’ll just focus on positive future sits. It really helps hearing this perspective, I appreciate it
I wonder if it would be possible to have a rating system in which any rating 3 or below would be automatically reviews by THS personnel. More info would be requested, from both parties, and then a more realistic/rational reviews could be submitted. Like an intermediary.
Probably not realistic, but it would give a more fair review of parties in these circumstances.
She was incredibly tidy and left my house looking spotless! Denisa is also very good about sending photos and checking in, but I recommend checking in with her regularly ahead of her visit and during her visit to make sure she understands expectations, like arrival/departure times, feeding procedures, house keeping, etc.”
