Hello Fellow House Sitters, We have only been on THS for a few months and out of 4 confirmed sits, 2 have been cancelled last minute. One was bonafide (a marriage break up) and the other seemed to be simply a change of mind (work commitments were cited). Is this normal or are we just unlucky?
You might have been just unlucky. None of my 12 sits were canceled (yet). Knock on wood.
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Very unlucky. It only ever happened to us during the pandemic when everyone had to test before travelling or a place locked down without warning.
Keep trying. Things can only get better.
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I had one couple cancel on me because their daughter was coming home on the same week and gave me like three days notice. Another had a death in the family (legitimate) and another thought her dog wouldn’t get along with my youngest child despite my comprehensive application that highlighted we have taken care of dogs far more needier and demanding etc than hers and that we were experienced. She cancelled after almost one month. Life happens, I get that!
All of this was enough to take out the premium insurance. I worry what will happen if I have similar things that happen if I am abroad.
Keep trying and persevering with applying for house sits.
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I’ve been on THS since 2018 with 9 sitters so far. I had two last minute cancellations. I wouldn’t say it is rare, but I also think it has to do with how you pick your sitters. Sometimes it it clear they are not serious at all about it. I have received a number of applications with copy and paste messages, some messages in which it is clear that the applicant did not read my profile, som with not enough information, etc.
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The OP is a sitter, so these are homeowners who are canceling.
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Yes that’s correct. The home owners have canceled.
Hi @DeretaMaria
Unfortunately cancelations do happen for both sitters and homeowners. I had to recently cancel our trip near last minute because our daughter came down with a terrible virus. This is one of the reasons we have decided since COVID times to start using more local sitters…it’s just so hard to know these days with flight delays/cancelations and sickness and many other legitimate reasons that cause us to have to cancel. I personally have never cancelled as a sitter but I have also dealt with sitters that have canceled. Fortunately because we book and plan most of our travel 2-4 months in advance we were able to get another sitter in time.
If this was three years ago that you had these cancelations happening I would say you were just unlucky but so much has changed in the past few years especially in the travel realm that I am now strategizing a plan A, B & C. One of my favorite travel mottos are “blessed are the flexible for they will bend and not break.” I completely agree with the others that it also has a lot to do with who you make agreements with. I’ll now be closing this topic as our community has given you some thoughtful feedback.