This must already exist as a suggestion post, but I can’t find any in the search…
As a sitter, a game-changing feature would be a “flexible dates” option. If this box is checked, messaging should be open-ended, without the sitter being blocked by existing sit commitments. (I realize that the checkbox does exist on the HO side… but since it doesn’t translate to the Sitter side, it’s currently useless.)
There are some other nice-to-have fields that could go along with this, such as…
- HO’s preferred duration (min - max)
- HO’s preferred date range (start - end)
…but these features aren’t necessary to launch. In the meantime, it would be totally fine if HOs simply wrote these preferences somewhere in the listing’s description.
As it is, it’s extremely frustrating how regularly I see flexible listings posted… but I have no way of messaging the HO to tell them I’m available, interested, and would love to coordinate something!
Side note to HOs who post flexible listings:
Until a flexible listing option has been created, here are some tips to reduce some of the above-named issues:
- Don’t set the listing’s dates for the very near future. Push the dates out several months - probably at least 6 months out from today. Why? Because if a sitter has already booked a sit that conflicts with your listed date range at all, then that sitter is prevented from contacting you. For example, if your listing ranges from May 1 - Dec 31, but I have a sit booked from May 3-8, then I cannot contact you even if I’m interested and available from April through October. (And it’s more likely that a sitter will have a conflicting sit booked in the near future than in the more distant future.)
- Your listing should reflect the approximate sit duration that you want. For example, if you’re looking for a 3-week getaway, don’t post a 6-month listing. Why? Because your 6-month listing will only be found by sitters looking for 6-month stays. Those sitters are less likely to be interested in a 3-week sit, so the listing will be a disappointment to both them and you, because the right kinds of sitters won’t be able to find your listing. This rule applies even if you want to take several getaways over many months. To be discovered by the right sitters, your listing’s duration should reflect the actual target duration of the sit(s).
- As @Jmcrae previously posted, please invite sitters who have favorited your listing if it is flexible. Some of those sitters may only be favoriting for the future, but many are likely interested in it now! But we can’t contact you, so this is the best way to open up communication… plus it comes with the added benefit that you can vet us beforehand and only reach out to those sitters who you prefer
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I agree, more options for communication would be great! Perhaps not as a default setting, but as an option you “opt into” 
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I would think «flexible» often means it can start/ end a day or two before/ after. Not that a sitter can’t do part of the sit mid-sit.
I think some suggestions can open up to more conflicts if there are other sitters or friends/ family doing handovers during the sit. That is something THS should not make more options for IMO, as many members aren’t aware of the pitfalls.
As for opening up for more communication, I think the host could get a lot of «keep me in mind in the future»-messages and maybe not those that can’t apply for the published dates because a couple of days overlap - overall. Ofc with exceptions.
@one-eyed_scallywag
I agree that having an option for hosts to opt into being able to receive messages from sitters could be advantageous to hosts that are in the less popular locations that don’t receive applications.
I saw a listing that we could only 2 weeks out of a 19 day sit (because we had a confirmed sit that overlapped at the start ) It’s a rural location, car required .
Having sat for these hosts before I was able to send them a WhatsApp with the dates that we were available. They made alternative arrangements for first 4 days , sent us a private invitation with amended dates . Sit confirmed , hosts , sitters and dogs happy . This arrangement was only possible because I could message them .
On another point when a listing says “flexible dates” I always thought that it meant that the host was flexible and could work around the sitters availability .
That was until I read a thread on the forum where several hosts said that in their listing dates flexible meant that they didn’t have set dates yet and the sitter would need to be able to be flexible to fit in with the host .
Apologies for the terminology confusion. I’m actually referring to a particular type of listing that I regularly see HOs put up. (It doesn’t involve handing off a sit mid-way.) What the HO wants is to go on one or more trips in the near-ish future, but they’re agnostic to the exact dates and essentially are asking sitters “who’s interested in sitting here sometime this season/year?”
They describe their request clearly enough in the description… but the app just isn’t set up to accommodate responses from sitters who might be interested.
For example, here’s a listing that’s up right now:
The listings like this that I’ve come across tend to give a very wide date range, with the start date in the very near future. It seems like they’re trying to indicate the dates when they would be open to making arrangements… but as stated above, that creates a technical block for many potential sitters.
We don’t need to open all the floodgates on communication between owners and sitters. But at least on this type of listing, it would be nice if sitters don’t get blocked from applying when they have a “conflicting” sit already booked.
