I agree. I think it’s fair (and not entitled) to expect good communication from a home owner/ sitter from the start, since communication is so pivotal to a successful sit for both parties. If someone posts an ad, it is not unreasonable to assume they are actively looking for a sitter during those dates. If they read your application and don’t get back to you, especially if their ad remains live with no other applicants, it begs the question, why did they post the ad in the first place if they are not going to be proactive about getting what they appear to be looking for?!
There are so many such home owners on this site that it seems to be the rule and not the exception.
Then again, there are others, like the one I met with yesterday. I applied for a sit and heard back within hours to arrange a video chat for the following day. We met and had an amazing chat for an hour. Within minutes of the call ending, they’d sent an invite to the sit. It was THAT simple.
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I’m entitled to choose whom I partner with (or not). That’s how choosing works — mutually. Hosts are entitled to go at their own pace, but no one is obligated to accommodate them.
THS is a matching platform. No reason to expect that everyone will match. All any of us needs is to find people we actually want to partner with.
Personally, I find enough hosts who match my pace, so cheers. No need to wait on others. And if there are hosts who don’t want to choose me, because I won’t wait, shrug, I’ll live.
Yesterday, I accepted a sit with hosts who replied within an hour of my applying. We video chatted promptly. They quickly offered the sit and I confirmed.
This morning, they sent me their flight times and I bought tickets to match. And they’ve already been appreciative and said they hoped that I’d do repeat sits for their cats, because they travel a lot and they think I’m a great fit. They’re new to THS and I’ll be their first sitter via the platform. Looks like they have a lovely home in San Francisco.
Personally, I’ll continue to be selective about whom to partner with. From what I’ve experienced, hosts who reply promptly and decide quickly have been hospitable and communicative; have provided clear welcome guides; and are quick to write reviews without nudging. Works for me!
That doesn’t mean other people can’t be good hosts, but I’ll just cherry pick the best for me. If that’s entitled, I totally own it.
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Who knows? This is just my take on this subject.
That’s exactly what we are entitled to.
If I were to use the term entitlement in this context, I would apply it to a HO posting dates and then not communicating promptly. I feel this is a communication process where the HO starts a “conversation” and then just ignores the answer. Still, “entitlement” on the part of the owner is just one of the possible reasons for not answering promptly. They may feel they are hiring a sitter and have a huge, inexhaustible pool of applications to choose from, so no need to be polite, they may also have a different pace from mine or a more “happy go lucky” attitude and would probably not be a good match either. They may even be uncertain regarding dates and such, again, not a good match. But the strongest reason I withdraw after a while is that they don’t seem to have good communication skills, which for me are really important for a smooth sit.
In fact, IMO, the only acceptable reason for not answering a message in a timely manner is that something unexpected happens after listing.
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To be honest, I don’t actually care why the delay. With so many sits available, it’s easy to move on.
If I don’t find good matches, I can stay home comfortably or do non-sit travel. I don’t have a calendar to fill, unlike full-time nomads. I also don’t get wedded to listings or have a bucket list.
In a number of cases, once I withdraw, I quickly hear back from hosts. The funny thing is, they’ll sometimes say I’m their ideal type of sitter. I don’t mention that they’re not my ideal kind of host. 
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