Any tips on how to get responses or sits? Id love to be considered for sits, as i have vast availability, and quite a lot of experience, but new to this platform.
Any ideas how to make myself more of a catch?
Hi @EmilyPavlech and welcome to the forum! I am sorry you haven’t had any responses yet, but please do give it time. I might suggest you try for something near your home that is closing in on a last minute sit where they are scurrying around trying to find someone. That way, you are close to home, possibly allowing the pet parent the opportunity to personally meet you prior to a sit. Getting that first sit will give you a review to start the process and from then on, you just keep getting great reviews! I looked at your profile and it all looks great but I am sure it is just the lack of other sit experience that does hinder some pet parents.
I would also suggest you look for sits where there are special needs situations since you have so much experience. Many sitters aren’t comfortable when there might be challenges with the pet and this is right up your alley!
Also, I don’t see you have linked your member profile to your forum profile, which will give you added exposure. To do so, just click How to add a listing or profile link to your FORUM profile and follow the easy step by step process.
Good luck, and as always, we are here for any questions or concerns you may have!
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Thanks for the response! Ive added it into my profile and am still hopeful! Just eager 
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Hi @EmilyPavlech. FYI, your profile link doesn’t work. I think you have the wrong URL, as it just goes to the generic dashboard (e.g., that link goes to my dashboard when I click on it).
Not sure where you’re based, but Thanksgiving/Christmas seem like great times to sit because everyone’s going on vacation. As Debbie noted, I’d focus on sits local to you at first. That’ll also make it easier for you to do short-term sits, last-minute sits, for example.
You can also focus on sits that don’t have many/any applicants.
Once you have your profile properly linked, people here can give feedback on it.
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Hi @EmilyPavlech,
I went ahead and fixed the link to your profile so that our members can better advise you. I briefly took a peak at your profile and it sounded really good to me…as well as the photos you chose. I’m sure some of our other members would have some more feedback for you.
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Hi @EmilyPavlech and welcome to THS and the forum. You sound enthusiastic and have experience, especially with special needs animals.
As you are just new, and therefore have no THS reviews, it is recommended you obtain references from people whose pets you have cared for or fostered. This will help you immensely. Go to the Verification section to be able to do this.
As others have said, look for local sits to get started and get your first THS reviews.
All the best!
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Welcome Emily. You’ll find this question has been asked lots of times before… if you search you’ll find lots of info
Hi @EmilyPavlech welcome to our community forum and it’s great to see other members connecting and giving you a warm welcome, we do have a very helpful and supportive community, as you will discover.
Thank you also to @Smiley who has pointed you in the direction of getting even more help and advice by searching for topics as the question “How to get started” finding a sit or a sitter is asked by many newbies, pet parents and sitters alike … you are not alone.
As a new sitter member this conversation, started by another new member will be more than helpful. https://forum.trustedhousesitters.com/t/nobody-wants-me-advice-for-a-first-time-house-sitter
The member was Andrew and he managed to get his first sit during the course of this conversation and after following advice from the community. Andrew is now booked for sits well in advance and he thought it would never happen.
Do ask your questions as you will get the help you need here or on the website from the Membership Services Team and the blog where you’ll find great articles like this latest one talking about references and how new sitters with references have a higher success rate than those without …
Even those of us with numerous reviews and experiences began our THS journey where you are … new, inspired and eager to get started.
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Welcome @EmilyPavlech.
Getting your first sit can be hard. It took me 23 applications to get mine back in June but have just completed my 6th sit. So keep applying.
As said apply for local sits and those in less popular places to begin with and build your feedback.
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@EmilyPavlech Welcome! When we started on this platform (after using Australian platforms), I would write a well-written application for the sits I’m interested in, and then write a small paragraph to outline our experience outside of TrustedHousesitters. And then I would paste 4-6 of the reviews from other sites to the bottom of my application, so that they can see there are other reviews already, although not from this platform. It seemed to have worked. But I’m not sure if you have other reviews outside this forum. Just keep writing really thoughtful applications and make it personal to the listing, e.g. name their pet names. And don’t worry, we still get heaps and heaps of declines. Probably 15 declines for every 1 win!
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Hi Emily, we have the opposite problem. Trouble finding a sitter. We are looking for 2 weeks in December including Christmas. Seems no one wants to come to the French countryside. You are a bit far away but you would be very welcome if you were to visit Europe. Good luck.
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@frenchlife I’d suggest you switch out your first photo to be relevant to the time of year. Perhaps use the one of the three cats, but crop it to a square or landscape layout, as portrait layout displays poorly at times.
One stumbling block may be your insistence that a car is essential. No doubt you’ve seen the TV program, Escape to the Country? Why not remove the need for a car and instead offer to pick up and return to the nearby train station? Many would be happy to walk 1.5 km to get the essentials needed. You could even do a grocery run with them on their arrival, or ask for a shopping list in advance and give them a head start (at their expense, unless you feel differently).
You’d then open up your sit to so many more sitters. 
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Thank you for your input Snowbird. A car is absolutely essential. We live in the countryside and there is no public transport. Even if we picked people up once they are at our house they would not be able to go anywhere. For example, there are no buses, the nearest town is around 7kms where there is a railway station. How would they go for days out or even do some shopping. We have a small supermarket in the village which is quite expensive. Taxis cost a fortune i.e. journey to Bergerac town centre around €60 each way. I have never seen Escape to the Country and don’t understand the relevance. A car is absolutely essential.
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@frenchlife I was basing my response on you having said the village has some basics and was 1.5 km away. That is a pleasant walk for some, even if carrying groceries. As for the costs you mention as being expensive, you may be shocked at pricing the cost of a rental vehicle. Many sitters are not willing to incur that expense, and so it lessens the number of available sitters for you.
There are sitters whose focus would not be to have days out, but rather to spend some quiet time in the countryside. As a sitter, I am rarely out for more than an hour or two any day, and sometimes not at all. We are all different. I hope you find a good fit for your needs.
I have had 16 sitters so far and every one of them have used my home as a base to get out and about seeing more of the Dordogne region. often doing long journeys like to Bordeaux, Bergerac, Sarlat and even if just to Ste Foy market on a Saturday it is not in walking distance. All have either been in their own car or hired one at the airport, especially if they are from abroad i.e. Australia, America, New Zealand - they are often doing more than one sit.
You say yourself you like to get out for an hour or two any day, I would ask where you would go. It is not like the UK where you can walk to a park or shops and there are only so many walks you can do. Apart from the village there is nothing else around us. Our sit is for 18 days so that is a long time to be stuck in the house and local area. Thank you for your input but your suggestion wouldn’t work for us. Imagine arriving here and finding you were stuck with only our tiny village to visit.
Looks like you already have a great profile! It’s hard for a lot of people to get their first sit, a lot of people start local or apply to not very popular sits. Our first sit was with two completely untrained large dogs in the countryside in winter in a house with poor insulation. It was still a great experience in a way and got us started on our adventure, but it was challenging! There are lots of sits that look lovely but have 0 applications, especially for the holidays.
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Hi Emily
First of all, write a nice application:
- say you would love the opportunity to sit for ???
- that you are going to give them and the home the attention they deserve
- tell the pet parents about yourself in addition to what is in your profile
- you have personal references so highlight your experience
- ask for a face to face or a whatsapp to introduce yourself
- thank them for their consideration
Totally agree on picking up. I didn’t have a car for any of my sits in Europe or the UK and my hosts were always happy to pick me up when necessary (50% of the time). One drove me over an hour when I left in order to get a bus to my next destination. Amazing people! Loved them all.
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PS. I also hitchhiked when at the sit to the nearest town - once 20 kms away
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