I didn’t know that THS gives Premium HOs a list of locally based suitable ‘available’ sitters if their sitter cancels last minute… I’m assuming this supposed availability is based on the calendar which of course like other sitters we don’t use. I felt sorry to decline the request this morning as the HOs seemed like nice people, I hope they find someone who can sit their lovely little doggy in Uckfield as it’s only a short sit. If I didn’t have social events lined up I might’ve said yes.
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Oh do they? I didn’t know either.
I know HO can search sitters theirself based on their given residence.
And I hear that it rarely has success.
I am wondering if they find some one local:
- The dates have to fit.
- A lot of sitters maybe won’t sit (for free) to close by their own neighbourhood.
(But maybe “local” is in a radius of 200 km?) - What you say, the availability calendar isn’t up to date.
- The place they life/ have residence and where they currently really are maybe isn’t up to date also…
But I hope that they find somebody.
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News to me as well. I would think that the chance of securing a sitter who actually uses their calendar and sits locally is quite slim.
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Feel like this is a misleading function on THS’s behalf, as most sitters don’t manually update them because who wants to do that kind of admin on an unpaid sitting site. Hate to think about the amount of time HO waste going through them with with hope of finding a sitter 
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Every Sitter deserves to be paid whether short or long sitting , sitting has to align with your schedule, this is one thing i learnt from you @BonnyinBrighton . I know how heartbreaking it feels getting a call about a cancelled sitting.
If sitters are being cherished with favourable conditions. Finding a sitter for HO wouldn’t be challenging
@Hartz1414
Just to be sure:
You do know that this site doesn’t allow petsitters to be paid?
It is free petsitting for free accomodation on TrustedHouseSitters. (If this is what you mean with “getting payed” then ignore this post)
Not that you make an account on THS, apply for a sit and ask a certain amount of money and then get reported for not following the rules.
That would be a pity for the time you spend in making an account, paying the annual fee and searching/ applying for the sit.
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Not sure why you mention me- we definitely do not expect to be paid as this is not the purpose of THS. I’m a bit puzzled by your comment tbh.
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I think you are on the wrong site.
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If you think sitters deserve to be paid then what are you doing on THS, where it is strictly non-payment?
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I always thought it was “local” sitters that they got a list of, too. But I am in eastern Canada and once got an invitation in San Francisco! 
No idea how that happened. Unfortunately had to turn it down.
I did recently accept an invitation about 150 km away; they said they hadn’t had a lot of response to their invitations.
I don’t use my calendar either; when I’m not really available I still don’t want to turn it off because something might come up that I do want to do.
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I suppose in these last minute circumstances even a slight chance of finding somebody is worth making the effort to contact sitters…and it makes Premium membership more justifiable I suppose for HOs.
I’ve received invites from near and far, but that’s probably because of multiple paths — hosts can search, get names from favorites, etc. Like I was living on the East Coast of the U.S. and was invited to sit on the West Coast and in Hawaii. And that was even early in my sitting membership.
Unsolicited invites haven’t worked for me interest or timing wise, though. Plus, I got annoyed by notifications, so I unfavorited everything and turned off notifications. I’m now happily getting many fewer invites and notifications.
At one point, I was even asked by a THS executive to help by sitting for someone new and skeptical of THS. They knew I was sitting in the area at the time. I wasn’t able to make that timing wise, either.
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I didn’t know this, but I don’t think a “local” list is necessarily helpful. Here’s why:
- In my experience local sitters near me, who have a great reviews tend to be super picky and sometimes charge for local sits if invitied.
- In my experience unexperienced local sitters who seem desperate for sits sometimes apply and these might not be the most suitable sitters.
Depending on where one lives there may be a sweet spot. For instance for a last minute NYC sits, people who live in Boston, Philly, Albany, or DC and could get to NYC easily by train or bus within a few hours and might want a “city week” or “weekend” to explore, might be a good choice. Possibly people who live a short flight away in places where there could be cheap flights even at the last minute, might also be a good choice.
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Yes, two or three hours away might work if you happen to catch someone who happens to be free.
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I too didn’t know this but now makes sense with some of the invites I’ve had. I also don’t use the calendar it just seems too difficult. Why can’t they make it so that we just put in the dates we can’t do! At present I think it’s the other way round. I just don’t get it.