I’m seeing so many sits where the pet can’t be left for any more than 3hrs or so, yet on the post asking for a sitter they say they are close to theatres, restaurants, maybe a 30 minutes drive to several castles etc! But how can they expect you to have time to be able to visit these places if you can’t leave the pet for any more than 3hrs?
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@Redlady, this seems a question of fit between listing, pet parent and housesitter. The housesitting community is surprisingly diverse - some housesitters work full-time remotely so presumably don’t leave the property very often.
That said, we decline any listing where pets cannot be left for at least 4 hours. We housesit for pleasure. While we do enjoy time with pets the we also seek a reasonable balance.
Also, if we’re very keen on a listing that states something marginal then we sometimes apply to clarify a specific fact (e.g. duration time pet left). Surprisingly often on video calls pet parents confess that pet care per listing is different to real-life pet care by pet parents - e.g. they leave pets for longer duration.
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That is one of the first things we confirm in our zoom call. For dogs, I think 4 -5 hours is reasonable and for cats - at least that long. We expect to be able to explore the local country a bit and just won’t accept a sit that doesn’t allow us 4 hours away from the home. If the listing says less than 4, we don’t apply.
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We too will not apply less than 4 hours. Did a wonderful sit in Wales, 4 hours allowed for a number of drives to visit castles and suprisingly we even fit two in one day. We no longer want to sightsee for 8 hours a day so it works ok. But you do need a minimum of four if you adding in travel time to sites. Also did a lot of sightseeing with a great Scottish dog in tow.
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Hi @Redlady, you’ve raised a really good point — it can feel a bit contradictory when a listing talks about nearby theatres, restaurants or castles, but the pets can only be left for short periods.
One thing that’s easy to forget is how diverse our sitter community actually is. Not everyone travels in “holiday mode”. Lots of sitters work from home, are retired, or use house sitting as a quiet base between bigger trips. For them, a 3-hour window is more than enough because they’re at the property most of the day anyway.
For those of us who like to get out and explore a little more, the key is simply matching with the right sits. Some pets genuinely need the company, and some homeowners are super flexible — it’s just about finding the balance that suits your rhythm.
Great topic to raise — it’s always helpful when expectations on both sides are talked about openly.
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I’ve done sits where the dog and I were never apart at all, because I work remotely and take them everywhere possible, as long as their humans are OK with it and the dogs can ride comfortably. That’s included taking them on tour buses, ferries, Ferris wheels, ride shares, taxis and driving them in my own car or rentals. I also usually order groceries and meals delivered, so I don’t even need to leave pets for that.
And yet I will skip any listing that has what I consider unreasonable expectations (such as tight windows for leaving pets alone), simply because I figure that such hosts will tend to be generally unreasonable, and things would be more likely to go sideways with them.
I appreciate such hosts essentially raising what I consider a red flag, so sitters can avoid them if they wish.
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Sorry I just had a visual of a dog on a ferris wheel, tongue out with a huge doggie smile. Awesome!!
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That dog was such a charming and well-behaved fellow. He automatically knew to wait in line like a Brit. 
And he was a happy camper on every form of transportation we hopped on. He seemed especially happy on a double-decker tour bus, open top, as we passed by fields of sheep. 
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Love it! Good dog
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This is why, we no longer apply for sits, where the HO has a dog, because of this ridiculous time limit. What I think the HO has forgotten, is that, as sitters, we are actually travelling around the places we are sitting at, so we want to explore those places, we are not there, primarily to sit for them and look after their homes, and pets, we have a purpose for our travels, so time limits are unrealistic, and also very unattainable for most people, and looking after dogs, has been a crucial barrier for us now, because of that time limit, so we only look after cats now, where there is so much more freedom, and no time limits.
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I saw a listing last week that said the goldfish had to be fed three times a day!
Yesterday I saw a listing for a two week sit with two cats where the sitter cannot leave the home at all ( one cat is diabetic and needs their blood sugar levels monitored ) That’s not a mutual exchange in my books and seems more suitable for a paid sit. Maybe it will be perfect for someone ?!
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Being a solo sitter, I see and treat pets (especially dogs) as my friends and companions, and I like to take them with me wherever I go. The exception is grocery stores, unless, of course, they are small enough to fit in my shopping bag.
I do not care much for landmarks or sightseeing. (Been there, done that 
What I enjoy the most is a walk in town, get a feel of the local vibe and having coffee (or a glass of red) at local establishments, especially the ones with outdoor seating. (The latter is primarily for me, not for the dog. )
From that point of view, I believe I am an ideal sitter. Yet, I never apply for sits where nearly 24/7 sitting is required, as I see such requests as an indication of other problems
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I am seeing more and more of this too. It isn’t really fair. There needs to be a limit on the minimum a pet can be left alone set by THS as a policy. These kinds of sits should be a paid job… although most pet sit companies would not agree to it either unless you pay more!
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Although I agree sits with lots of pets to look after, too many tasks and too little time to explore the area or simply to have some freedom with no pets should be paid jobs and don’t really belong in THS, I think it’s up to sitters and hosts to decide what is a fair exchange for them. If no one applies, these sits will just disappear from the platform.
Why would THS invest time and resources in order to narrow the number of clients?
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Disagree. Sitters are free to choose any sit they want. Some sitters rarely leave the home as they’re doing remote work. It’s not up to you, me or anyone else to make those decisions for them.
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I think it entirely depends on the sitter’s situation – for some people, not being able to leave the pet for any length of time is absolutely fine. Not being able to leave the pet does not mean not being able to leave the house. I posted a 4-week sit earlier this year, stating clearly that my dog could not be left alone at all. And yes I listed all the nearby cafe’s, restaurants and scenic attractions because I’m in a very dog-friendly city and you can pretty much take your dog everywhere! I received several applications, and the wonderful sitter who came had a fantastic time with my dog and left a wonderful review. The sit suited her because she was looking to relocate, and was keen to experience living in my neighbourhood. So there is absolutely no reason why it can’t work out for both parties. And also, just because that aspect of the sit was restrictive, does not make me an unreasonable host, on the contrary!
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I stand by my belief that pet owners can ask anything they want (except for the illegal and the egregious).
And , sitters have the freedom to walk/scroll to the next offering.
While some (sitters) may believe that short alone times impinge on our tourism, our plans, etc. it is irrelevant.
If you don’t like the contingencies, it is the same as not liking anything about the offering : Look for another sit which meets your needs, experience, etc.
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Please explain how it is “unfair” for pet owners to define their pets’ needs.
Just because you want “x” and a pet requires “y” doesn’t make it unfair. It simply means that you’re not a match. As with so much else in life, there are options in all of these situations.
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Because it is taking advantage of people and creating unfair free labor situations. These are barter arrangements and barter needs limits too otherwise without confined value people get taken advantage of. Sometimes very badly especially if they are young and inexperienced. There are many, many, many posts outlining this problem.
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IMO…. It’s entirely fair for a homeowner to stipulate any (legal) requests they choose. Either apply or not - up to you.
That said - if a sitter seems like a great fit overall and they ask about leaving them for longer, I consider several things… Do I have a neighbor who could go to my house and let him out mid-day so the sitter could “visit a castle” or whatever if it’s pre-arranged? I’d consider the time of day that the sitter wants to be gone (are meal times affected by more than an hour or two?)… can they take the dog with them? (my dog LOVES outings!) Am I sure there be no garden or pool service people at the home that day - maybe could leave the back door open a little for the dog to go out to pee.
An owner, like me, who is home a lot might have a dog that’s used to being able to go in and out all day but the home needs to be locked up at all times when nobody’s there - in that case, can’t leave any doors open.
If an animal is being potty trained, perhaps it’s vital for them to be afforded MANY opportunities to go out (with deserved rewards for “going potty”) in which case one wants to minimize occasions that might precipitate them just going in the house. Or maybe they have a medical issue like diabetes that can cause PU/PD and there simply is a LOT more water that goes through them.
My dog is fully potty trained (has NEVER peed in the house and only had a BM when he’s been sick with diarrhea two times in eight years) and he’s healthy, but I STILL prefer him to have access to the outdoors every four hours or so. I don’t want sitters for whom that could be an issue as a general rule - I would NOT want sitters to apply if they have an issue with that. Fact is, during our in-person “lay of the land” thing on the first day of the sit, I tell them and “in a pinch” he can be left for six hours, but he’s used to more time out. If/when I’ve been hospitalized and needed to scramble for care I have a hard minimum of being let out four times a day. Have you ever really, really, really had to pee? I imagine that for my poor guy, so I try to be very very clear that I do not want that to happen. Sitters can eat my food, drink my wine. sometimes drive my car, or stay in my guest house before/after the sit if it makes their travel easier… but DO NOT leave my dog alone all day long. I’ve made my expectations clear in my bio - don’t like it? Don’t apply.
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