Hi there! I’m brand new to THS as both a sitter and an owner who lives in a great spot in San Francisco. I’m excited and nervous to use this for the first time for a very long trip this Dec/Jan. I have a senior cat who recently had some health problems and can be difficult to give meds to. More often than not, it’s simple and he just gobbles them up, but depending on how he’s feeling it can be a bit more of a struggle. One of the things, I wanted to ask about is how people find sitters other than those who have applied for the sit? I’ve had some wonderful applicants thus far who I’ll be video chatting this week, but because I’m looking for some specific traits (experience with senior cats in particular) and because I’m located in a very popular area, I was also hoping to try to reach out to people. I’ve tried the Find a Sitter feature, but it only seems to show people local to me (which doesn’t make a lot of sense for a long term sit), and I don’t see how to search keywords to find out people’s interests and skills. Am I doing this wrong or is that how the function works?
i don’t think that there is a way to search for key words. I wish that there was because I was in the same position as you last year - needing a sitter who could medicate my senior cat, including sub-Q fluids. She died last December, so it is much easier for me to find a sitter now.
As a sitter, I would love to be searchable when someone like you has specific needs. I can list all my cat medication experience in the profile (not just my senior cat, but almost 50 fosters with many medical conditions!). However, unless someone finds my profile, they wouldn’t see that experience.
I think that many experienced sitters do have experience medicating cats, and some are even vets or vet techs, but they can be hard to sort through.
One idea: Update your listing (esp. headline) noting that you really want experience with senior cats. If your application is paused because of too many apps, then keep only those apps that spark joy.
If you’re hesitant to remove apps straight out, then you could manually save their info (e.g., in a spreadsheet), send them a note to that effect, then remove them.
@Lassie I agree! I sort of just assumed that would be possible, I’m actually surprised it’s not. You sound like you have amazing experience with cats – let me know if you’re ever headed to SF 
In the meantime, I’ll keep trying to find a workaround. Do people ever share specific experience in this forum to your knowledge? And I’m so sorry to hear about your kitty.
@geoff.hom those are great tips — I’ll definitely go ahead and update the listing title. I have it in my profile as well, so if you see anything else you’d recommend I adjust please let me know. And I love that advice to save people who I don’t want to outright decline. I actually did something similar today where our dates didn’t exactly match up, but I still think he could be a good fit if my travel plans shift. So I sent a message saying as much, favorited him, and then said I’d reach back out with private dates.
I used to go to SF a lot- my brother lived in the city. He has moved to Philly now, though. If he still lived there, I’d love a chance to sit and have lots of time with my niece and nephew!
@SF_Pawrent: I’m new to TH and only a sitter, so I’m guessing others will have more experienced feedback on your profile. One thing I did notice is you mention your dog, Fauci. First I’m wondering where the name came, as we all know a Dr. Fauci, but your Fauci is 4… More to the point, it just leaves me wondering why Fauci isn’t listed as a pet. I don’t think it would stop someone from applying, but if you clarify in the listing, you won’t have to repeat yourself a million times.