Hi @Catin88. None of my business really, but just curious as to why the two “qualified” sitters may be your “last option”? Have you had any communication with them? Or js it just a gut feeling? I am a full-time sitter and always curious to hear a HO’s perspective as to what makes a sitter attractive to them.
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Guess I read that as she received 6 applicants total and 4 were couples and 2 were ones that she didn’t want to decline yet. Probably misunderstood. Oh well, still curious.
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I wonder too if sometimes people politely say ‘they are not available’ when they feel a sit is not the best match for them but they do actually have availability for the ‘right’ sit.
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Hi @Catin88 … just had a look at your listing, and I wonder if it might help to put “experienced solo sitters only please” at the top of your profile rather than in the second paragraph? There’s no excuse for people not reading listings properly when applying, but as we all know there is a short online reading attention span these days. Just a thought to try and filter out some of the applicants who clearly don’t meet your criteria.
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Oh, agreed! I found it very confusing to have three options (green = available; crossed out = not available; neither green nor crossed out = what’s that mean??). It’s only from being on the forum that I’ve learnt that neither = not available. So I may have annoyed a few people inadvertently…
Also from a homeowner’s perspective, it’d be helpful to be able to filter more: availability, type of pet, solo/couple/family, interest in a particular country. (No point me inviting UK sitters if they’re only interested in sits abroad.)
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So I had a total of 4 applicants. All couples - despite my listing saying solo applicants only 
. That’s a bit off-putting in itself as if they aren’t paying attention to that major detail, how can I expect them to follow instructions or guidelines about my pets or apt?
For the 2 applications that aren’t qualified, they have zero petsitting experience on TH and also don’t have experience with dogs. My pets are seniors. My dog is a rescue that has separation anxiety and takes meds twice a day.
I need someone who has experience with dogs as a long-time care taker or a dog owner themselves (Mind you, this is in my profile as well 
). With my last sitter, I can’t afford to take a chance on someone because they seem “nice”. I need that experience there to avoid headaches.
With one of the couples that are qualified, I replied back if they saw my request for solo sitters only. He replied back that he wants to know why I want only solo sitters and he can convince otherwise. That was an obnoxious response and honestly left a bad taste in my mouth. It’s not what he wrote, but how he said it. I’m not vibing it. Now thinking about all of this, I’m going to decline that application
So with that last qualified application, the sitter applied and I responded. I told her how everything looks great (She has the reviews, love for animals, and experience with senior dogs there) and we should set up a video chat. A few minutes later, she emails me again saying that she apologizes for overlooking my solo sitter request. She is actually going to be traveling with her boyfriend for the sit…Disappointing, but I’m still considering the application.
So yeah, I’m definitely talking to all of the applicants despite things
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@Vanessa_A Yeah, it’s eyebrow raising how many people skip over this. It’s not even buried in my profile. It’s in the second paragraph surrounded by asterisks lol. As I said in another post, if they aren’t paying attention to that, how can they be expected to pay attention to directions for the pets?! Kinda shows me they aren’t reading the profile really
I will take your suggestion and move it to the first line of my profile. Thanks for the insight!
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Hi everyone, I’ve recently invited two prospective sitters because their calendar dates show up green therefore I believe they are available. In both cases they replied stating that they are on holiday and one sitter said she didn’t know why her calendar showed up green. This is very frustrating! Has anyone else experienced issues with the calendar when inviting sitters?
Hello @Sunny15 and just a quick note to say I’ve moved your topic to this current thread where you’ll find an ongoing discussion about the calendar 
I need to change my profile to stipulate only single sitters. Thanks for this. Hopefully prospective sitters will take note!
Thank you. i missed that.
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I tried this last time I needed a sitter. Most never responded and those that did said they weren’t available.
Now I only I invite those with green spaces but even so two have come back to say they are on holiday or not available after all.
I don’t like to open invite because I don’t want couples to apply. Should I include this in my own profile?
This is really weird, but I no longer have the ability to vote on a topic. I saw it yesterday as I did vote on a couple. I know we have limited votes and I’m not near the limit.
Apologies all if I’ve missed it but can’t see the answer to one of the original questions. I realise now that if I’ve confirmed sits the dates appear in the calendar as crossed through. However I’ve got dates when I’m not available as I’m volunteering at the Hay Festival in May and housesitting for friends in August, not via THS for instance. I see that I can add the dates when I am available but how do I delete the dates when I’m not for other reasons….? Thanks in advance
I also want to add that the availability filter is off then…If I’m putting in the dates for the sit and then go searching for sitters, I shouldn’t be getting sitters who are “unavailable” meaning the dates for my sit are marked in white on their calendar. I should only be getting sitters whose dates are marked in green.
I suspect that you are correct @Kootenaigirl
I receive many invitations that I don’t want to accept. I always politely tell them the reasons why: too long a sit, too far to travel, too rural, or it is just not the right one for us.
If a sitter says that they are not available then there is a chance that the HO will invite again the following year and so it goes on…
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@Itchyfeet Thank you, Itchyfeet. I feel like honesty is best. If a sitter doesn’t like my sit for any particular reason, my feelings won’t be hurt. I would rather they tell the truth, so I know not to have them on my potential list
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How extremely frustrating for you! Unfortunately, I think some people skim listings or read them and think they can convince a HO that they meet the minimum requirements that a HO is seeking, even if they don’t.
The same goes for HOs that don’t read a housesitter’s profile thoroughly. Our profile clearly states that we are an American couple, how many sits we have completed, and how many and what type animals we have cared for. I can’t tell you how many times we have gotten on a video call with a HO and they say, quite surprisingly, “Oh you’re Americans”, because of our accents, and find the number of sits and animals we’ve cared for quite surprising. It’s all there in black and white! Some people just don’t read 
!
THIS!
I cannot count the number of times that I have re-read a listing, and it’s only then that I’ve remembered why it isn’t suitable for some reason. The ability to hide from future searches and sit listings would be incredibly helpful.
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Right? Especially the long ones with a ton of info (which I like to see tbh.)