Hi… Have recently joined THS This will be our first experience as a HO, and although initially we had some nervousness about offer our home and moggies up for sitters, I have been pleasantly surprise how smoothly the process has run. within just a couple of days of our initial posting requesting interest , we had several ‘saves’ and 3 applications, which in itself was a surprise to us. Having chosen our preferred sitter , we have had an ongoing message conversations with our sitter, which has added to our confidence with this. We are now looking forward to meeting our sitter in September and should it all go well (and I have no reason to think that it wont) we will certainly be looking to use THS for future sits
Following that we may also be interested, as retirement is approaching , in contemplating the sitting side of the community,any advice to make this step change would be amazing.
Thanks in advance
Hi @PaulnLou
Welcome to the THS forum.
That’s absolutely wonderful to read. I always say to people that once you’ve let a sitter in to your home for the first time, that you will wonder why you didn’t do it years ago.
I often ask the people that I’ve sat for, how they finally took the plunge to let strangers in, most have been recommend the site by friends who already use it and have reassurance from them.
I hope you have a wonderful holiday in September.
All the best, Louise.
Welcome to THS and the forum! You’ll find plenty of advice and suggestions here, many scenarios of “normal” and not so normal situations.
Something that has come up recently is the importance of making sure that a sit is officially confirmed/accepted on both sides. Sometimes new HO’s and HS’s aren’t very familiar with the entire process and skip this vital detail.
Welcome to the THS family.
Doing the sitting side of things will be just as easy for you I am sure and you will love the idea of being in a home away from home. You will miss your own pets but looking after someone else’s special family member/s will be rewarding as well.
My most recent sit was for a first time home owner, who felt quite nervous (understandably) about trusting his beloved dog and home to a stranger. Like I said to him - the trust goes both ways, as sitters we are also vulnerable to things not being what we hope for/agreed and we have no idea what we are really getting into until we turn up. Recognising it’s a trust thing on both sides made him feel more comfortable with it.
So from a sitter’s side of things, as you are considering this, grab any sits you can get for the first couple to build your reviews, then be very fussy about where you apply, and ask loads of questions before agreeing a sit. I’ve found it very helpful to have firm boundaries about what I will and won’t do in terms of responsibilities, what breeds of dog I’ll sit for, and checking house owners previous reviews with careful reading between the lines, before I even apply.
I’m sure everything will go well and you’ll wonder why you didn’t do this before