Oh I’m sorry I’ve somehow got the impression this was your first experience of THS. I’ll track back to see why I got this impression…
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Ok I think I understand now. It’s quite challenging to understand exactly what happened but I’ve got it now: the sitter who was expected to be sensible mature self sufficient etc (your expectations based on age/profession/their profile) and who had previously agreed to a somewhat unusual schedule (but ok that’s what you asked for), they positively agreed to it but then didn’t do the schedule.
They also made some rather strange decisions about laundry which added up to incompetence and a big mess.
Both the dishonesty about agreeing to a schedule and then failing to do this plus the high risk of a fire from poor decision making has been rather shocking for you. I can see now that this is scarey and has spoilt your memories of a trip away but also you maybe feel guilty for the vulnerability of your pets. It’s a mess. It was shocking because with experience of 5 previous sitters you didn’t expect or imagine the possibility of a sitter doing this to you or your pets. I think I’d open a member dispute tbh as this sitter needs to be challenged by a THS agent.
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You are right to the poin! This is exactly how I feel.
I am not sure about the member dispute. I need more participants oppinions on that.
I felt my feelings on what happened to me had been a bit belittle and unvalidated by some housitter in this threat and made me insecure about stronger measurements than an honest review.
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I dont get the impression that this forum nor countless forums just like it on various topics are about validating feelings, they’re more about providing helpful advice.
That much said I do get where you’re coming from. As a homeowner we experienced a similar situation with only our second sitter from this site who completely disregarded the detailed instructions in the Welcome Guide and reinforced during the handoff when we went through everything. We came back to a filthy house that stunk of pet urjne and found feces under the beds and that wasn’t all of it.
I’m not looking to have my feelings validated as you are, however I feel betrayed not only by the sitter but especially by the host membership base who inaccurately described this sitter with multiple stellar 5 star reviews which left our home and pets vulnerable. When I left a review I considered how it would reflect on me, with only one prior review, to be the only negative reviewer in a slew of positive reviews, and opted to go with the flow and left 5 stars.
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It’s a language/tone/phrasing/emphasis thing. So I’m hoping my précis adds clarity for others too, as it certainly wasn’t clear to me anyway.
The point is no HO needs to have this sitter tricking them in the future…
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Perhaps don’t be so reactive to the comments by one or more individuals whose perspective and opinions may not align with yours. I have learned to embrace disagreement and even conflict. It gives fresh perspective and allows me to view a situation as others might, even though I rarely agree with them.
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And, yet you gave that sitter a good review (unless it was a different sitter whose behaviour/actions/etc. did not meet your standards) in order to keep your listing favourable.
It is exactly that type of benaviour (selfishness above responsibilty) that throws the rotten apple into the barrel and potentially contributes to poor experiences for others.
You’ve contributed to that betrayal and in that, have done just the opposite of what you say this forum is about - “providing helpful advice”.
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No everyone face conflicts the same way.
How I said in my introduction, I wanted to see if I was overreacting with my feelings and hoping for someone to calm my fears about the potencial of “what could have happened ” like someone did and I deeply appreciate it, and may be some advice about how to respond to this sitter, not to a future one.
The “ how to have avoid it” only emphasize my gilty feeling of have let my babies exposed to a vulnerable situation, because we chose her with what we had (unaccurated or may be to “protect themselfs” reviews) and false assumptions, and didn’t think in all the “if’s” or “in case of’s”.
Obviously I learn from each experience; and I do appreciate some of the “next time” advices, but the forum was focusing more in the “preventing for the next applicant” than in the next step for this one
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That’s exactly right. I did the same as numerous hosts did before me. I’m not responsible to or for such other hosts nor am I inclined to do them any favors.
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A few house owners left me videos of every appliance was so good as I’m terrible with new gadgets . And lovely detailed print outs at other house sits about how to work all appliances.so helpful.
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You did your homework and chose a sitter based on the false statements of others. As with my situation which is similar to yours, there was no reason to initially believe that members would do such a nefarious thing, especially because this platform claims to vet sitters and suggests they can be trusted to properly care for your home and pets.. It’s not your fault that dishonest hosts false positively reviewed this sitter to protect themselves. Redirect the anger towards them rather than blaming yourself.
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Good to know for the “next time”
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What am I missing here about a sitter living in a car? I genuinely don’t understand? Is it because they have no fixed abode so couldn’t be traced after the sit maybe? Is it to do with house insurance? Is it a practical consideration or is this snobbery? What were the specific concerns about the sitters possessions? Were neighbours net curtains twitching as maybe a roll up mattress was brought in? Or maybe the sitter used the time to spring clean the car-home? Would a Motorhome have been more acceptable? I’m puzzled…..
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I asked HOs with an elderly dog that required a daily set of procedures to keep his eyes/ears/mouth healthy to create a video of how they did it and what words they used. This proved useful as I knew exactly what to do and what approach to take ie a firm hand on the back of his head.
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As a sitter I always clean before I leave and run the bed sheets or towels to finish before I leave. I would never leave the machine running. That’s because I do not like to leave the homeowner with my bedding and my towels to wash when they get back from their holidays. However, I would discuss it with them beforehand to make sure that this was okay. Maybe that’s something you could put in your guide to say please do not leave any machines or anything running when you leave the property. And I would give her an honest review to protect any other homeowners.
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