I get it. My previous professional experiences have left me with the skill of shamelessly asking uncomfortable questions as though it’s the most natural thing.
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I’m a teacher and yes we are all learning, life long! I’m learning faster because I read about the experiences of others who kindly share what has happened to them! Hindsight is 20/20 vision!
One home owner lent me a car. I could use it as a run around, shopping but not long trips. Fair enough. It was a one bus a day village setting.
Not for use with the dogs.
Please don’t take them out in it. I don’t want them ever left in the car. They are valuable and could be stolen. If you leave the house and the dogs are left inside you don’t need to put the alarm on.
Doberman? Alsatians? Rottweilers?
No two fiercesome Daschunds!
No messin’!
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I just posted about one of those pranks and THS in action to deal with it, it’s disgraceful to inform sitters hours before the start of a sit about some serious changes in the arrangement
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Nearly every sit I’ve been on, the HO has left money for ‘incidentals’. It’s a pity the HOs here didn’t do that - as you may have felt able to take some of this cash for petrol, car cleaning, and left them with receipts. . . . I would mention in the review, the expectation with regards your own car, and lack of reimbursement.
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Yikes, that’s quite a surprise.
We’d not frame this as a question about petrol costs but rather expectation appropriateness. Personally, we don’t take pet parent dogs - nevermind very big dogs - in our vehicle. Nope. Early on, we had a situation of a modest sized pet parent dog in our car - it got muddy and we reflected ‘why on earth are we doing this?!’
In regards petrol costs, the time to clarify terms is before sit commenced. During or after sit then you are reliant on goodwill. But no harm in a polite question.
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Aha yes being assertive at the point of boundary infringement is one of my ‘talents’ 
whereas hubby avoids conflict I’m the opposite I suppose I’m not afraid of asserting and protecting my own needs. Only you know the full context and balance of pros/cons in the situation which I know you’ll have weighed up fully so no judgement from me.
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that is nasty. though permit may be affixed to their car.
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@Smiley, that sounds like such an unfair expectation, especially springing the “you’ll need your car for walks” message on you just before the sit. Owners really should be upfront about any requirement to use a sitter’s own vehicle and either contribute to petrol or offer alternatives.
Reading your post really resonated because we once had a cat suddenly get sick during a sit and ended up doing three vet trips a week, about 15 minutes’ drive each way. The owners were incredibly grateful and kind, but they never offered to cover petrol, and we felt awkward raising it because they were already providing the house and a car, so we just absorbed the cost and it left us unsure what was “normal.”
It might help future sitters if you mention your experience in a calm, factual way in your review – including that you were expected to use your own car for walks without any reimbursement – so people understand the true conditions of the sit and can decide if it’s right for them.
And for any homeowners reading this: How do you feel about that – do you see it as fair to reimburse your sitter for this kind of expense, or is it not something you’re concerned about?
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I do want to mention it in the review but do you think I should say something to the owners first? They’re such lovely people and, although I doubt I’ll housesit again for them, I’d hate to upset them.
Personally, I just think it really bizarre that it didn’t occur to them it was cheeky expecting me to use my car and petrol when they left two cars on the drive.
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Yes, I thought probably it gives the registration.
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@Smiley more than once you’ve mentioned that they’re ‘such lovely people’ but from what you’ve written, I can’t agree. At the very least they were inconsiderate and disrespectful. Lovely people don’t do what they’ve done.
I would not mention it in advance. You seem to be more concerned about not upsetting them, but they didn’t show similar consideration for you. Please keep in mind that you deserve respect and I’m not sure they showed you that.
I am someone who thinks owners should be leery of having a sitter use their car. I think there are too many variables, such as concern over a possible collision, the amount of the deductible and who would pay it, and how a claim might affect their insurance premium. For that reason, I wouldn’t mention that they had cars they could have offered for use. For all you know, they may be leased vehicles linked to their employment where no one else is allowed to drive them, for example.
I think the fact they sprung it on you is something that should be mentioned, along with no offer of reimbursement for use of your vehicle.
Once you submit the review, put it behind you and mentally move on. Easy for me to say, I know, but you have a great track record so focus on the positives of the great sits you’ve provided. 
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You could keep it very gentle and frame it as feedback for “future sitters,” not a complaint about them as people. For example, you might say something like: “I also wanted to mention one small thing for future sits: because I was asked to use my own car, I had some unexpected petrol and cleaning costs. In future it might be helpful to either provide a car for dog outings or offer a bit of contribution towards petrol.” That keeps it factual, non‑accusatory, and gives them a chance to reflect. However since I am also a sitter I asked above if homeowners can chime in. It will be helpful to hear owners’ perspective and whether they see petrol reimbursement as fair or something they don’t really think about. I know you mentioned they were super nice people, but nice people can still have blind spots about what’s fair for sitters – that’s exactly why it’s important we talk about this stuff openly.
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@Smiley As others have stated, no need to mention this to the HOs before both reviews are written. Please make your review strictly factual. Do not mention how it made you feel or other emotional aspects. Mention facts:
– Sprung it on you last minute.
– Expected you to use your own car.
- Did not offer to reimburse you.
Sandwich these facts in between positive attributes about the sit.
In the future, your review will be so helpful to sitters. We should know this very important info!
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We specifically look for sits with good hiking around and always ask in our initial conversation how the dogs travel in a car and how long they can walk. No, I wouldn’t look for petrol/diesel money as hiking is a huge attraction for us.
I ask for any reimbursement for pet food we buy but nothing else. But, as usual, we are all different so have different opinions.
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I have rarely been given any type of gift by homeowners. I don’t feel the need to leave a gift either. Once was given a bottle of wine, another was a spa like bath products. . If the homeowner allows you to depart before they return, there isn’t a gift if not given up on arrival.
My last sit I had to use my car to take the dog to a dog park a few times well as neighborhood walking. No offer was made to give me $ for gas. Plus putting the dog in my car!
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It could be a financial situation. If the HO’s are ok they may think nothing of £50-100 in petrol. Not necessarily mean towards @Smiley, possibly just thoughtless. If that’s the case maybe it’s worth asking about it before putting in a review. They may be mortified at not considering reimbursement, especially if they are as nice as you say.
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I have many times taken dogs in my car in order to explore areas with them, but that has been my choice and I wouldn’t expect petrol money from the owners. However, this was an expectation of using my car as I could not take the dog for walks straight from the house and they wanted me to take him on his regular walks, understandably.
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I think they were thoughtless and am sure they would be mortified if I mentioned the lack of petrol money. I don’t want future sitters to be put in the same position.
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How about “A day before the sit started, the hosts asked that I take the dogs for daily walks in my own car. I accommodated their request & paid my own fuel costs for the trips.” Somewhere in the review? It’s factual info for the future sitter and they can’t argue with any of it. #sittersupport
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Yes, I like that. Thank you #You’reastar
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