We are also mature experienced sitters with 50+ reviews.
You won’t find us on social media and Googling us may bring up the wrong person (but I am no expert).
Your restrictions will limit the pool of sitters you consider suitable but of course that is your choice.
If I was a homeowner I personally would give more priority to reviews from other homeowners rather than postings on Facebook, Instagram etc.
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This is great to know, thanks! I’ve only used it for airport transportation, and that was my understanding.
For an upcoming sit, we planned to use U/L instead of renting a car, until we buy one, to drive up and down the California coast.
Hmmm…. Wondering how many HOs would agree to pay for car rental?
@Itchyfeet I do all of the phone and video calls as well. For the ones who request to have both of us on the video, Mr. iHeartAnimals pops in, says hello, and then pops out. I joke that I’m showing him so that they know he is a real person and then I do the call myself. My husband is not my THS co-partner. It’s actually my 14 year old daughter. I take the call while she types the notes, we review the welcome guide together, and then tell the boys what their duties are. Then I inform my husband where to drive.
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Hi @MissChef. For an up-coming sit in Melbourne, Australia we did a little digging and found the pet transport services at the links below are available. So there may be other options in different cities/areas for sitters without cars should they need to take a pet to the vet. (Note: We aren’t affiliated with any of these services, nor have we used them.)
Research prior to confirming the sit is key. That way the PP and Sitter can ensure they’re on the same page in terms of what the plan would be if a vet visit was needed (PP’s friends/family/neighbors drive you there, Sitter arranges with a pet transportation service and gets reimbursed by the PP, etc.)
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@IHeartAnimals we are similar. I do all the applications and phone or video calls. Applications are written in the plural.
My two sons accompany me on all the sits, my husband only joins us on some sits (I work in a school so have school holidays free, husband has limited holiday).
I make clear if my husband will or won’t be joining us or whether he might be there for just part of the sit.
I discuss the sits and pets with my sons and we agree what to apply for, unless I need to act quickly when I’ll apply and tell them later.
I tell my husband which sits he might like to join us on and supply the postcode for him to put into the sat nav!
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@Debbie in the beginning when I approached my husband about petsitting in the pacific northwest, he said "why would we watch people’s pets when we can just stay in AirBnb’s with no responsibilities? " Then I told him how expensive those AirBnb’s were for the 4 months we would be out here and then he said “petsitting sounds brilliant!” I cannot even tell you how much we have saved plus the kids are having a ton of fun. We’re on a sit now that requires that the dogs be walked 3-5 miles a day so maybe I’ll lose a little weight.
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I agree with all of your list but #3 - I don’t think it’s a bad idea at all, I actually fully support it but as others have mentioned is going to be really hard for you to find sitters maybe. I can respect the level of privacy some people (mainly sitters) want to keep from the internet. At the same time, I also understand your concern - trust. Unfortunately when we’ve been let down it’s hard to have that back, and welcome people into our space easily, but at the same time, it helps us make better judgement for future guest sitters.
I find out people’s last name pretty quickly though because in order to give them my entry code for the apartment normally need a last name. I’ve been fortunate that all my sitters have been comfortable with providing last names, and most have shared their LinkedIn, Airbnb and/or Rover profiles. I had one sitter that even shared her Twitter handle with me for vetting which I didn’t even request. If they’re traveling with someone we always interview them together. I had a family of 3 here once and they were all on the video call with us. We also make sure they meet our little dog as well.
I think as you said, following your gut or using your best judgement is the best. Whenever I’ve been to hasty to confirm someone or give them the benefit of the doubt after no response for more than 2 days, I’ve found to be disappointed.
There’s a lot of great advice here and I hope that you have better experiences from here on.
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AMEN! SKoda. Sitter not disclosing a partner, that may not be a member of TH? Hmmm. Next! My wife and I do sits together, and any interviews together. And pictures posted of both of us. I’m afraid if things go down the loosey goosey trail, pet sitting will be ruined for all.
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I live in Seattle. Perfect example 
As for partners joining, I understand the concern from a PP point of view. If I was considering coming as a couple or a family for the entire sit, I’d want everyone involved to be part of a video call, and any adults to be part of the whole call*. Partially for everyone to have a sense of the real people involved in the exchange, partially to make sure any important needs or questions are communicated directly rather than passed along (either direction), but also to ensure that all the mental labor of the sit isn’t falling to only one person. I get that some couples/families may organize sits that way and be fine with it, but for me personally I’d rather have a couple that is equally invested in the sit.
OTOH, my last sitter asked if their partner could come join them for a weekend during the month-long sit and I said sure. In that case, my sitter was clearly the one person responsible for the whole sit, and I did not need to meet the other person.
- I like the way iheartanimals manages this, although my place is waaaaaaaay too small for a family of their size, so I’ll leave it as I stated.
Re interviewing everyone. We sit as a couple and are always both present at any video call. However, during the summer holidays I sometimes have grandchildren in tow, very responsible dog loving children who are polite and very aware of their surroundings. If the sit is during holiday time I always bring up the possibility of them being present. So far, the hosts have never had a problem and as long as they have room the reply is “no problem”. We have booked a sit for the Easter holidays and we are being accommodated in the Gate House of the hosts property which is ideal. I won’t have to move every breakable thing! And I’ve checked, the dogs are very comfortable being there. A win win I think.