I had applied to sit for this HO a couple years ago and then she had to cancel the trip. (It was many months in advance, so no big deal). We’ve kept in touch via email, and even had a couple of calls. She’s gone on a couple of trips since the one I had applied for, and would have selected me as her sitter for those trips, but I was unavailable. HO goes away for a month at a time, and the sit is on the other side of the world, in a place I’m interested in going.
She’s going away again this fall, and we talked on the phone about six weeks ago. I have expressed that I’m interested in coming, but have not booked flights. I went to look at her listing to refresh myself on what the house looks like and some other sit details, only to find that she’s listed as “inactive,” so that info is no longer available. I emailed her to tell her that I’d noticed that, and asked if she plans to renew. She wrote back and told me she’ll only renew if I decide not to do the sit and she needs to find someone else.
I’ve never done a sit outside TH and feel safer/more supported having a third party involved, even if I’m not actually protected in any way (I guess I always thought that TH covered us somehow liability-wise and would arbitrate if necessary, but now that I look, I can’t find that info). What do you think, fellow sitters? I could write back and ask her to renew, or I could just ask her to send all the photos and other info that was originally on the website. I feel a bit skittish about doing it off-platform, but I can’t really say why.
Please do not do this sit off site.
You don’t know her, don’t owe her anything
Just look for another
Then don’t- so many posts on the forum where sitters and hosts say they regret not trusting their gut feeling / instincts/ potential red flags …
If you’re not comfortable with it don’t do it . You can say that you’ll only do the sit through the platform and she can let you know if and when she renews her membership.
Generally speaking, I wouldn’t have an issue with this. Doing a sit through THS as opposed to ‘off-site’ doesn’t offer me any particular benefits I would be forfeiting otherwise–I don’t have the premium membership. THS is not a direct party to these arrangements and there is very little they can do for the most common issues sitters and hosts seem to encounter.
Sitters are not employees or contractors of the site who are being assigned sits, meaning they have no responsibility for our experiences, or obligations towards us.
I also have a ton of reviews already so I wouldn’t care about not getting another one to add to my profile.
As I see it, the only ‘protection’ you would be giving up becomes completely moot if doing the sit off-site, which is if you are having serious issues , you would get their ‘blessing’ to leave without putting your membership in jeopardy. That you wouldn’t have to worry about that could actually be a good thing!
If you don’t feel fully comfortable with the arrangement, then don’t do it.
That sums it up. You’re already feeling uneasy about it. Just tell her you would rather stick to the THS platform.
In my opinion, doing sits outside of THS is totally fine if you’re happy to do so, but ONLY on the occasions where it feels natural to do so.
It’s the other side of the world!
I would be curious how long she’s been on the site and how many reviews she has. How often does she travel. If you see she’s been on 4 years and travels on an average once a year, is she rejoining when she needs another sitter. Is she just trying to save money because you said yes just before renew time. I personally would not be comfortable siting for someone in another country off the platform. She offered to rejoin to have you sit so I would ask her to do that.
We had this @fantinedream where they didn’t renew and we were already booked & also a bit spooked by the prospect of no THS support. We stayed with the sit (it was a repeat) as it was short and they are nice people. It was 3 days which is a pain but they usually leave us food & wine so hey, fair exchange. It sort of backfired though as they left the house grubby, no food, lots of washing to bring in, house to get ready for a “paid” sitter after us (we don’t do split sits and leaving it for a paid sitter seriously grated as they had left THS for cost reasons!!) and beds to be made etc. And of course, three full on dogs to look after. It’s not a terrible idea to go off platform, you just have to go with whatever feels comfortable. For us they asked us back and we said no as there was no care & no review for feedback and they need to think about the exchange element. #youdoyou
Thanks for your response. Sorry if I wasn’t clear–she didn’t offer to rejoin in order for me to come sit, she said she’d only rejoin if I decline the sit and she has to find someone else. Unfortunately, since she’s not currently a member, I can’t go back and look at how many reviews she may have had, and I originally applied long enough ago that I can’t remember that detail. Obviously I liked the look of the sit enough to apply in the first place and to keep in touch with her, but I just feel weird about the off-platform part.
You bring up a good point–off-platform, there’s no accountability because there are no reviews. This is a month-long sit, so that’s a long time if something goes wrong!
Certainly I’ve regretted not going with my gut on other occasions, but I hadn’t felt weird about this particular sit until now–which is why I wanted to get some other perspectives. Thank you.
I agree with others that it’s all about what you are comfortable with. It might be a wonderful exchange, or it might be a disaster. It sounds like the HO is probably so seasoned on THS that she’s simply trying to save some money by delaying her subscription renewal.
If you’re still on the fence and want to give the sit a shot, one option might be to ask for a video call – have a (virtual) in-person conversation and talk through any concerns and expectations. The face-to-face might help alleviate some fears. Or you could simply inform the HO that you’re uncomfortable going off-platform and let her know that if she returns to THS, you’d be happy to move forward with the sit, but otherwise you respectfully decline.
It’s all about your gut + communication!
How strange that she will only rejoin if you won’t do the sit to find someone else. I still think she is trying to save money and will rejoin when she needs another sitter. Probably travels infrequently. I don’t know what country she is in but maybe in that country what TH charges is expensive to standard prices in her country. As someone mentioned if you take the sit and don’t like it, it is easier to leave. You can even look for another TH sit while you are there if things don’t feel right.
Before making any decision @fantinedream, I would be asking her for up-to-date information (in writing) on the pets she has and the house details as these could be different, especially for the pets as they’ll be older, since you were confirmed as her sitter several years ago. She may even have more or different pets.
If this owner is willing to renew her membership for another sitter, she should be willing to renew it for you.
That is so shady, and flat out disrespectful. She does not deserve you!