Hello! Brand new to this just trying to get familiar with posting here and the app. Do most people have their sits come a couple of days in advance to meet their pets? Any pearl of wisdom that you can share? Thank you!
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As sitters, we have on occasion met the homeowners and their pet(s) prior to the sit if it’s a local sit. Otherwise, we usually have a phone or video chat prior to accepting the sit. We’ve also on occasion sat for homeowners who we haven’t even met.
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Same here, I’ve dropped in for an advance meet and greet for a few local sits. For sits requiring more travel time, I have sometimes booked a room near the sit the night before, allowing me to meet the family or pets before the handoff. On a couple of occasions, I have stayed with the host the evening before an early departure. I would only be comfortable staying with the family if we had a nice video chat beforehand, and if the guest quarters offered a fair amount of separation and privacy.
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Some sitters will like this, but I think most will be very put off by it. Its not the usual approach, some sits start the day before the HO leaves, but a couple of days seems excessive. Can I ask what benefit you think you’d get from this?
You have to remember sitters would be giving up their time and it’s not really part of the mutual exchange of sitters’ time and work for accomodation. Ask yourself what benefit it would have for the sitters.
Personally it would be a firm no from me. I very occasionally agree to a shared overnight before the HO leaves if it makes sense for travel plans for them or me (eg they’ll be leaving at 7am), but I don’t especially enjoy the hanging around with them, I just want to get settled in, unpack, rest after my journey, get into my pajamas, spend some time getting to know the pets, and start to relax and feel at home. I don’t want to make small talk and be worrying about making a good impression for hours. I also work remotely on sits - great company for the pets - but one time I did an overlap the owner kept interrupting my work until they finally left at lunchtime.
In any case, ensure you include the full date range on your sit posting and explain that you’ll be there for the first 2 nights, and be very clear about whether you will be hosting/feeding them for that time or not.
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Welcome to forum @Islandgirlvi !
So far I’ve never arrived to the sit the day before.
On a couple of occasions I was in the area ahead of sit and used the opportunity to meet the host/pet -other than that I arrived an hour or two before the departure of the host for handover.
For a long travel - to have a buffer for delays, if the host is to leave early in the morning or if there are special circumstances that require more time for handover it might be necessary. In that case, the accommodation should be the responsibility of the party that needs the early arrival, in my opinion. But I haven’t done it so far, and must admit I try to avoid it.
Welcome, I’m also a relatively newbie and on my first sit. I arrived yesterday midday and the HO left this morning. I actually really appreciated being here the day before. The HO showed me around the home, took me on a tour of the local area, introduced me to her daughter who lives about 5 mins away, and also showed me the favourite local walks. It was a great intro and I felt super confident when they left today. I’d support arriving the day before but definitely wouldn’t need more than that.
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Mostly seen this with dog owners in the UK, and if it’s a requirement from the host, it’s a no from me too.
A quick video call and, if there’s time, a coffee beforehand usually do the trick. The key? A solid welcome guide.
If there’s shared accommodation/overnights while the host is present, that should be clearly communicated in the listing and dates—otherwise, it clashes with the terms.
I think it totally depends. If I am in the area of an upcoming sit, I like to swing by and get the lay of the land, especially if the Hosts will be leaving before we arrive.
Each situation is unique.
I don’t prefer sharing accommodations with Hosts, especially one’s I’ve never met, but we’ve done it a few times now and it has been fine. Not ideal but fine. I happen to be a person who needs my privacy, so it’s a challenge but so far it’s only been a few times and it’s worked out.
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We have only had a couple of hosts who asked us come the day before to stay with them. Thank goodness because this makes me feel uncomfortable. I’ve also had a couple of video chats where they would like us to come 2 days before and then I will decline those invites. 1 is my limit and even then, I will now have to think about it. The best ones meet me, show me a around, and then they head to a hotel so that they can take a flight out the next day.
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Most of the sits I go to, I’m flying in for them, so a couple days in advance isnt the best. I would certainly come one day prior and have stayed overnight with folks the day before they leave for their trip. As someone else mentioned, I enjoy meeting the hosts and them showing me all the ins and outs of their home, pets and area. I’ve also been on quite a few sits where I never meet the host. Everyone has their own comfort level of what works for them. I would suggest if you do want someone to come a day before to make sure to put that in your profile and whether they would stay at your home or not.
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