@Jenny The terms of the sit cancellation plan, both owner and sitter, seem to define a pet as only a cat or a dog. Does the plan really not apply to sits with horses, chickens, birds, bunnies, etc?
If so, that will change the sits I accept going forward. If not, perhaps the wording should be improved.
Interesting question. We have completed sits with pets other than dogs and cats - it did not cross our mind that Sit Cancellation insurance did not apply. Huh, good catch.
If THS is upgrading terms of Sit Cancellation Insurance then would be fabulous if other terms were also changed … $MaxTotal+$MaxDay (inflation, cost of living); cancellation effect period (more than 14 days) and ideally removal of obligation to accept ANY alternative housesit (effectively nullifies policy in US, UK); removal/extension of geography limitations of alternative accommodation; maybe tiering of benefits depending on #days of housesit (higher benefits if longer housesit, e.g. over one month) or if housesit location is in different country to housesitter home country.
Is this a new clause ? I’ve not noticed it before .
I wonder if this if for the owners side . So that if a sitter cancelled a host can’t claim for boarding pets other than cats or dogs 
The archived pages from 2021 to 2024 don’t even have a definition for pet, so it was added sometime after Feb 2024.
@Jenny Following up on my question to you from a week ago. Does the sit cancellation plan only cover cat and dog sits?
Sorry I didn’t get back to you when you asked this @meow - I checked with MS and they confirmed that we wouldn’t cover a pet that wasn’t a domestic dog or cat.
I passed your feedback over so they have a note of your comment about improving the wording.
Jenny 
@Jenny I am currently on a sit in France caring for a frog, a tortoise and a cockatiel. So that means if the homeowner came home early or had cancelled the sit, I wouldn’t be covered??? Wow! It would cost a fortune in accommodation in this very popular location.
@Jenny, would THS Sit Cancellation Insurance apply if there were dog/cat pets plus also at least one non-dog/cat pet?
For example, a while ago we completed a housesit with two dogs and one rabbit. Assuming coverage otherwise eligible then would the presence of the rabbit have wholly invalidated THS Sit Cancellation Insurance coverage?
So shady. Thx for alerting us @meow. Since I have ducks and sheep I can now renew in Nov at a lower tier. Thx for saving me some $$.
@Jenny, followup on second related topic.
In context of THS Sit Cancellation Insurance, what is the definition of ‘domestic’?
In our experience, many THS listings in southern Europe include animals that were formerly (maybe even current) strays. These may be fed mostly (but not exclusively) by Pet Parent. These may sleep mostly (but not exclusively) at Pet Parent property - arguably akin to a domestic outdoor cat.
We have completed multiple housesits for Pet Parents in southern Europe that included one or more former stray animals. Indeed one Pet Parent thoughtfully framed them as ‘animals that choose to live with us’ rather than as ‘pets’.
Does this mean that any such housesits are expressly excluded from eligibility from THS Sit Cancellation Insurance?
In foreseeable future, we have a confirmed sit for one cat. During video call, Pet Parent noted that their child recently got a pet fish and asked if we could feed fish every couple of days. As reasonable housesitters, we said yes of course.
Does presence of fish void eligibility for THS Sit Cancellation Insurance? Should we have said that we’d care for cat and property but require that another person periodically visit the property to feed the fish? Or require that Pet Parent remove fish from property and give it to someone else to look after during housesit?
We can understand why THS insurance may not want to cover the vet bills of a large non-domestic animal, say horses or a flock of sheep.
But applying this pet definition to Sit Cancellation Insurance strikes us as pragmatically silly; probably deceptive to impacted pet parents and housesitters; and may cause negative expectations in event of an otherwise reasonable insurance claim.
Hi @GotYourBack and @Brightlight
I’ve asked MS if they can let me know more.
If you’ve any more in-depth questions about this, it might be quicker to speak to MS directly, but I’ll definitely follow up here once I’ve heard back from them.
Jenny
@Jenny, I have a confession. I reached out to THS MS as directly impacts one of our foreseable confirmed sits. I asked clarification of two topics, a) whether presence of an animal other than domestic dog/cat voids THS Sit Cancellation Insurance, b) what is definition of ‘domestic’ in regards former/current stray animals. THS discussed with claims team and their guidance is noted below. While this language represents an interpretation rather than legal term from THS insurance policy then it does provide useful guidance.
"In terms of the ‘dogs and cats only’ question - if you do a sit where there are no cats or dogs present (eg a rabbit and a horse) you would not be able to make a claim under the Sit Cancellation Policy as our insurer would not cover this under our terms. If a dog or cat is present (eg a dog and a rabbit) you would be able to submit a claim as the sit was primarily for the care of a dog (or cat). Therefore, the presence of another animal (in your example, a fish) would not void your ability to submit a claim, so long as at least one dog or cat was included in the listing.
“Domestic” would refer to any animal that was under the ownership of the Pet Parent (this does not have to be documented). We have separate rules for Pet Parents where forster animals are concerned and do not allow dangerous animals on our platform at all - for example any animal with any type of bite history. We do not differentiate between indoor/outdoor cats in terms of what would be considered ‘domestic’. If the cat or dog is listed on the listing, we would be able to proceed with a claim."
Thanks @GotYourBack for including the response from THS. Good for both owners and sitters to know.
@rosearthur92 If you read @GotYourBack’s response from THS, you will see it mentions there are separate rules for Pet Parents where foster animals are concerned which may impact an insurance claim. It would be worth you contacting THS to find out what these rules are.
Ooh thanks! I’ll have a look at that. I should find out about Cats Protection insurance as well.
