On our sit applications we nearly always mention that we’d want to be able to:
take the dog/s to visit a local relative’s home
be able to invite that local relative to visit us at the HOs house for dinner etc (no sleepovers as they have their own homes).
To this end we have always sent details of the relative and a family photo too of ourselves with the said relative, their general address and full name. This seems reasonable to build confidence in the HO. Later we send photos of visits.
My Uncle who is 90…
I can see that this approach works well in this specific situation where you are specifically applying for sits in that location in order to visit this relative .
We’ve completed many long-term sits where hosts have clearly said that guests—including overnight visitors—are welcome, so this has generally been our standard experience.
Presumably you send full I.d details to the HO beforehand so that they know who the guests are? Or is it more casual and I’m overthinking this? When we had horses and had house sitters ourselves- we were very particular about the guest aspect as we didn’t like the idea of people visiting when we didn’t know who they were…
I think for a host it would be very reassuring you have family nearby and are already loosely knit into the community. I also think for older people who no longer have pets the interactions with the sit pet would be lovely. Win win.
I have a particular host I sit for who knows I grew up in & have family in their area. They were quick to offer to let me host visits, dinners, & even suggested I hold a full-family gathering & showed me where the extra table leaves were, all without my asking! I consider them a bit exceptional though, and over several sits they’ve met my kids & we’ve become good friends.
Otherwise, the few times I’ve asked about local friends or family members dropping in (no overnights), I’ve just generally described our relationship & the circumstances, and assured them it wouldn’t be a problem if the answer was “no.” I’ve never experienced any pushback at all, or requests for further details, although I’d certainly provide them if asked.
(I may also mention that it’s nicer if they drop in, as it means fewer trips out with Fido left on their own — which doesn’t seem to hurt my case.)
@BonnyinBrighton
Much more casual — and the expectation is always set by the host. We don’t go into applying for sits expecting to have guests. Being able to have visitors isn’t a deal breaker for us .Prior to the new update there wasn’t really any way to know if a host would even be open to it.
Our first four hosts on THS (when we had not got any reviews yet ) all invited us to have guest over if we wanted . All unprompted by us . It came up naturally in conversation on video calls before confirming (and sometimes even in the listing). Hosts have even said there’s a spare room if we wanted to have overnight visitors .
We’ve had one host, during handover, show us how to extend their dining table (it already seated 12!) and where all the extra plates and tableware were. They showed us a huge fire pit set up in the garden too — wood stacked, marshmallow forks ready — They left out 6 bottles of wine for us . They were clearly expecting we might have people over. We never planned anything big, but it showed a lot of trust, and an assumption we’d only invite responsible friends or family.
No guest list or ID has ever been requested and as I said all lead by the host , unprompted by us .
As an aside, we’re currently on a paid sit in a luxury home. When the host reached out about covering Easter, they actually said upfront they were happy for us to have guests — so I’ll be hosting a couple of friends here today
If a listing said no guests we’d be fine with that too - it’s not a deal breaker for us we can meet friends at their home or nearby restaurant/ cafe .
I love this, gorgeous pic, we love it when we sit the odd dog that is car friendly, calm, and non-stressed, because we take them to visit my partners mother, she loves dogs, and the dog always loves the extra attention too.
I like this approach and would generally agree, with the caveat that making sure everyone is safe would be your responsibility. I have a 70 lb dog who, while very well trained and typically doesn’t jump when meeting new people, may still do so if overly excited. If you were confident managing that, then I’d be fine with it.
We do similar thing when we visit my 90 year old uncle in Sherborne. It’s the sole reason we keep returning, though it is a lovely place. We always ask HO in advance if we can invite uncle round for coffee or meal. We don’t give them any more details about him and so far they’ve always been very accommodating. He loves the outings and meeting the lovely pets too. Occasionally I ask to take an adult daughter on a sit too, and so far haven’t had any refusals. Perhaps they can see from my reviews I’m trustworthy and always leave their homes pristine.
Great idea, and I will do this from now on! Homeowners have always been great about allowing us to have dinner guests; this will add a warm element to our “Thank you.”
I originally signed up for THS in order to spend time outdoors with my daughter when the pandemic started. Since it’s never gone away, we still meet up outdoors and often meet in her area four hours from me or an inviting spot to explore together where I can pet sit and she gets a hotel room. Most of the HOs have said feel free to have her over to hang out, which I really appreciate. I’ve also had a couple of more risk-adverse HOs request that my daughter not come to their house since she hasn’t been vetted. I totally respect that and in that case we meet at restaurants with outdoor seating or public parks, etc. I usually ask during the video call if the HO would be comfortable if I invited my daughter, or another relative or friend in the area to join me on the porch or in their backyard if the opportunity presents. I want to assure them in “person” (on video chat) that their comfort level is of utmost importance and that if they’re not 100% comfortable with my having a guest over that is certainly not a dealbreaker for me.
I don’t go to that extent. If it’s likely I might have friends nearby then I would ask for permission and say that I can vouch for them. I have, to date, not had any turn downs. I think being mature sitters (in age at least!) that helps, although I appreciate not all mature sitters can be trusted….
