I have also met up with the owners pre-sit on a few occasions.
In our first year of pet-sitting on another site, I applied for a 3 week sitting by the sea about
300 miles away. The owners were new to pet-sitting and apprehensive. We have friends that lived quite close to them so I asked the owner if she would like to meet our friends to discuss us!!
Off our friends went to view the house and it was a strange experience knowing that we were being discussed in our absence. Our friends did a grand job, they reported back to us that the cat, house and people were fabulous, they told the owners we would be ideal so the sitting was confirmed.
What a great sitting that was!
Hi @Vanessa_A Yes I think your are right : people are not aware of pet-sitting generally speaking here (kennel is very commun in France) and not at all about dog-sitting âfor freeâ, as an exchange.
And also, when it is french people, speaking not so good english : it is sometimes hard for them to make sure they understood properly how it works, just by visiting the website.
As you say : when we meet french people as we walk dogs, we say âThey are not our dogs, we are just taking care of themâ, we are very often asked : how does it work ? For free ? Give me your address (we need to print a card with our THS profile) !
Since weâve been house-sitting a lots in France recently (because of Covid, not going abroad) we did meet lots of our HO in advance. Next month we gonna sit Alpacas (!!! yeah) 2 h away from home and weâve already met.
So yes I think meeting in advance can be a good thing for new member.
We do it when we have time, when it is not too far away, taking opportunity when we are staying in the area. But when it worth doing it we donât hesitate. It can be rewardable !
Schan this QR Code with a smartphone camera and it will lead to my listing.
I simply copied the link and created the code with Qrafter, which is an app (free).
You can save it to your camera roll and have it printed on a business card. Like this nobody has to write down that lenghty link.
I just changed my header picture on my forum profile page and inserted the code, because I didnât want to go against THS forum rules about posting the link directly, which a QR code actually is.
I use it for my jewelry website. I have it on brochures, business cards and on the back window of my car
You can create a code for any website link you like.
I house sit primarily in San Francisco, CA - and itâs not unusual for the owners to want to do either a video chat or meet in person - but the in person meeting is only if itâs convenience for me i.e. I donât have to travel a long distance. Most owners are usually satisfied with a video chat, however.
I have had an in-person interview, after the phone call and I see nothing wrong with it⌠I would prefer to meet the pets, house and homeowners prior to my sit⌠This shouldnât stop you for putting in more sits just in case it doesnât work outâŚ
I can speak on phone but hate video calls my last call she said do you want to do a video call I said not keen but I can do it if you .wAnt. but she said doesnât matter and was accepted right awayâŚsometimes itâs a gut feeling you know when someone just fits.
