The host of my next sit sent me a video of their home, gorgeously decorated for the holiday, and one of their three kitties, whom I’ll be sitting after Christmas. First-time THS host. We got along immediately, starting from when she replied within an hour of my applying.
Meanwhile, I was coordinating my air travel with the host of another 2025 sit. She offered to pick me up at the airport, unasked. Plus, she mentioned that I was welcome to stay beyond the sit, if I wanted extra time. Also unasked. She voluntarily offered me her car, too, even though I’ll be sitting two cats, not dogs.
Thankful for welcoming, sane hosts — in contrast to the terrible ones we often hear about in the forum. They’re definitely out there.
I think good sits are a given and most of us have had many. I see the forum more for people who need to vent or have a question they would like some opinions on. I personally would rather read about the difficult sits to see how people handled it and suggestions from others. I find that helpful if I ever find myself in a similar situation.
We have just received a text from the host of an upcoming sit offering to order us a joint of meat from their local butcher as our sit will be over the holidays .
Today we wrap up our 25th sit with THS . The hosts are brand new to THS - it’s been a great sit, a beautiful clean home with a comfortable guest suite , two cats , no unreasonable expectations , welcoming and appreciative hosts.
Being a great host or sitter does not require a checklist from THS , it’s about being someone who can put yourselves in the shoes of the other person . ( Not literally we wouldn’t wear our hosts shoes or boots or any other item of clothing )
It doesn’t have to be one or the other. They are compatible. I agree that sharing difficult experiences is useful and can be an eye opener for others but I also think that it is not only nice to read about good experiences, it’s also useful to help new members get a more accurate picture. Sometimes reading just about all the negative experiences make people act too defensively and approach the other party more as a potential enemy than as a trusted partner and potential friend.
This… I try to keep in mind that, as @Garfield said, people come to the forum for help with problems. You are reading a skewed subset of TH experiences.
Exactly why I dropped out of a support forum for something completely different years ago – it was all the people seeking help for complications, which made the whole enterprise seem rather scary, and was definitely not what I needed to hear at the time.
It’s good to have these things in mind in case you also have a bad experience, but if I had found the forum before joining and having some good sits, I might have been reluctant to try.
I think we should have more random little “I just had a great sit” posts!
I’ll make a contribution to the “randomly sweet” HO actions…
One couple set up a spare phone for me to use so I didn’t have to wrangle with buying a sim and plan with my Canadian phone. Same couple took me sightseeing for a day when they returned.
Another couple drove me around a bit to see the area before they left.
Inlaws of another lady invited me for dinner, a day of sightseeing, and to a hobby club meeting. (I think they did want to ‘evaluate’ this stranger their sister had staying in her home, but we hit it off and had a great time.)
Yes, saw yesterday on the Facebook unofficial group that someone commented about being scared off by all the sits-gone-wrong posts. Such posts and comments come from potential sitters and hosts.
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