Hi there,
Sounds like you leave your self an okay amount of time to find a sitter, but it certainly help to post earlier.
There’s no guidelines for when to post, and usually it just comes down to each individual’s needs and (sometimes) how organised they are with leaving enough time to find a sitter. Most hosts post a few months in advance (2 - 6 months or so), though some have cancellations or situations in life where they post last minute (and sometimes still mange to find a sitter)and others post a whole year or more in advance. It really just depends on their needs and circumstances. In general though, the earlier the better.
In terms of gaining less applicants, your listing link is currently not working, so I can’t see your listing. Here’s how to add it:
Please add a profile link to your forum profile
There can be many reasons why you received less applicants, from time of year, to sit length & location, to what your responsibilities are. In general, the narrower your needs and who you’re looking for, then the narrower the pool of interested sitters will be. But in the end, it’s not about how many applicants you have, it’s about finding the right match (and it sounds like you have 
).
As sitters, we’ve confirmed sits for up to a year in advance, and we’ve also had sits confirmed only 2 - 3 weeks in advance! It really just depends what date & location we’re looking for and what’s available that we’re interested in.