Hello! I’ve done quite a few sits this year, but I recently completed an 18 day sit where I felt I needed to be truly honest in my review for the first time (as it wouldn’t be fair to the owners who take it very seriously to provide great sits and for future sitters too). Unfortunately, the owner’s reaction wasn’t great, and I’m wondering if anyone has been through something similar or has advice on how to handle it.
The owner had three past sitters (two 5-star reviews from previous years and one missing review from May). The listing described his whippet, as a friendly, affectionate boy who gets along with all dogs/people, has never been aggressive, loves sleeping, and needs just a 1-hour walk a day. It noted he is “long” and counter-surfs, can open door handles, and knows to use a doorbell to go outside.
During handover, the owner mentioned he feeds the dog at irregular times (sometimes late morning or forgetting until 6pm), so I made sure to stick to a strict 7:30am and 6:30pm routine.
There were a few issues during the sit:
• During week one, I left a bag of treats on the dining table where the dog reached them, completely my fault. I messaged the owner immediately about calling a vet. He told me he’s done it before and to just withhold dinner as punishment. The dog threw up hours later, so I put him on a plain chicken and rice diet for a couple of days. The owner said I needed to walk him for two hours before leaving the house to prevent this, which left me too paranoid to leave except for quick supermarket trips.
• On walks, the dog pulled heavily, jumped on passersby (scaring a toddler), and lunged, growled, and nipped at other dogs. I brought this up via text during, and again on the last day of, my sit, but the owner brushed it off with jokes or changed the subject. This made it difficult to even complete one hour walks.
• While I was eating, the dog would continuously whine and ring his potty bell, even right after being let out. Because he opens door handles, I had to block the door shut with a chair just to eat.
• The home was quite filthy, sticky surfaces, old dried food on the table, dirty floors, completely stained carpets, and slime behind stacked chopping boards near the sink which I had to clean to make my stay comfortable.
I left a 4-star review (which was generous in my opinion), docking stars for cleanliness, pet behavior, and listing accuracy. Before reviews were posted, the owner offered to let me preview his review to “help my profile” (I already have 14 five-star reviews). I politely declined, saying I trusted his judgment and would submit mine soon. He gave me 5 stars.
A few days later, he messaged me asking why I docked stars. When I explained that the house needed cleaning upon arrival and that the dogs reactivity didn’t match the “never aggressive” listing, he sent a long response:
• Suggested the reactivity was just because the dog recognised dogs from his regular group/dog-walker outings (they were dogs he didn’t know and I told him this multiple times).
• Claimed the slime was just standing water from chopping boards he washed before I arrived, blaming black spots in the grout on previous owners (he voluntarily brought that up as I didnt event notice or bring up the black spots to be honest). He also noted I arrived a day early before he could fully prep (though this arrival time was explicitly part of the sit dates he advertised, as I arrived at 4pm because he had to leave at 6am for his flight the next morning).
• Expressed disappointment over losing his perfect 5-star streak, claiming I should have given him a chance to justify things privately first (when I had messaged him various times about his dogs behaviour on walks).
• Pointed out that he deliberately chose not to mention my treat mistake or potential emergency vet visits in his 5-star review of me to protect my profile and chances of getting future sits, accusing me of not extending him the same courtesy.
I decided not to respond to his message, but I’m curious, how would you handle this? I can also see why many people are hesitant to leave honest reviews.
