Again, I’ve had a sitter that did a good job taking care of my cats and my home, but wasn’t a great communicator.
This time, I made doubly sure to tell her that at least one daily update text a day was important to me, and, again, that didn’t happen. Why do sitter reviews not have a category for “communication” but host reviews do? It makes no sense at all. I’ve reached out to THS with the suggestion to add that as a category for sitters, but, years later, still no.
This is a recurring issue despite being clear in my listing and in my communications pre-sit.
I agree it would be a helpful category and agree it’s annoying when it happens. I hope you commented appropriately in the review.
Maybe it’s because then you’d be judging non-native speakers too… but sitters get to rate owners on communication, so you’d think THS would do it the other way around.
To me, sitters are scored on ‘organised’ and ‘reliable’, and they are pretty similar attributes when it comes to pet/home care, so you’d think THS would re-word one of those to communication instead.
Thank you, and I did note the lightness of communication in an otherwise good review.
Agreed. And isn’t sitter communication at least as important as owner communication? I understand that it’s super helpful for the owner to respond to questions the sitter has. And owners want to know that everything is ok. A daily text - clearly communicated - isn’t much to ask.
I completely agree with you that communication should be a category for reviewing sitters. It looks like your recent sit was 3 nights. Not sure if the sitter was present when you left and when you returned from your time away.
For such a short sit, perhaps you could text the sitter on the evening of day 1 and day 2, “just checking in to make sure you are settling in OK,” if you have not heard from the sitter. This should prompt the sitter to respond.
How to prevent this issue in the future? Consider choosing sitters whose reviews specifically mention “daily updates,” among other positive comments.
As a sitter, there is a lot going on at the beginning of any sit. The sitter is learning lots of brand new information. In addition to leaving a copy of your Welcome Guide for the sitter, perhaps leave a hand-written note, “Please send me a daily update. Here is my number XYZ. This is really important to me. Thank you, GardenCat”
You might note this under “reliability”. They can not be relied upon to send updates that they have agreed to send.
Also, think about how your might ‘train’ sitters to do this. Possibly by framing it as ‘sharing’ rather than updating? Perhaps this resonated better with younger folks?
Or, let them know that 1 sentence is plenty. Perhaps sitters are procrastinating because they are making it out to be harder than it is.
Be sure to send lots of thank yous after they send their updates as positive reinforcement.
You could even suggest it be part of the dinner or walk routine (and include in the Welcome Guide) so that they have a specific other activity that helps remind them to do it. For me, my memory is the only that would prevent me from doing a daily update.
Some psychological tricks may shift this behavior ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Totally, they are both just as important, for very different reasons.
I know on this occasion, you just want to see they’re happy and content, that’s totally natural, but 100% sitters should definitely be marked on communication, for serious pet welfare or real home issues.
A hand written note (in addition to the typed one) would have been a great idea! Unfortunately, the sitter was unable to get there before I left, and had to leave before I returned. In our FaceTime talk, after she applied, I did mention that Daily updates were important to me.
There were no problems, no matter of important update. I had never met her and since she was unable to be there before I left, I was a little bit nervous and a few updates would have put my mind to rest.
3 night sit. She arrived after you left and before you arrived home. Are you saying that she did not message you AT ALL during the sit? I think “normal” behavior would be to message the owner on arrival and departure, at the very least. That would leave the 2 days in between that she failed to message you.
You have not done anything wrong. The sitter failed to adhere to your request. I would feel frustrated too.
My first response is: ‘How strange.’ At the same time, I happen to know some very introverted people who are terrified of making spelling mistakes. Perhaps the sitter thought that simply sending a photo of the pet wasn’t enough and that they had to add some text, which may have made them hesitant to send anything at all.
Was this the sitter’s first sit? Did you exchange any messages beforehand, or did you only speak via FaceTime? Some people are excellent pet sitters but find written communication quite challenging.
She did message me during the sit. She arrived the day after I left (she ended up not being able to come the same day, but since I wasn’t leaving until the afternoon, I agreed, and I extended my trip by one day on the far end, and she extended her stay, as well.) When I hadn’t heard from her by mid-afternoon, I messaged & she responded that she was on her way.
I did get a few messages from her: One “everything OK here” and another asking if I had a sewing kit.
We had exchange messages and texts, had one facetime call and one telephone call. She has a public facing job, and didn’t strike me as introverted.
Just curious what you are looking for in a daily update text (aside from photos). Most pets do the same exact thing every day so I always wonder what constitutes an update vs just sending some pics.
Well, no one expects their pet will suddenly level up and begin talking walking upright while a sitter is there. It’s simply a check in that all is well. So, “Hi there. Happy Monday (or whatever day it is). Fluffy is doing great, and all else is well. Have a great day.”
That’s all I would expect, and I think that’s all most HO expect. It’s especially important for solo sitters, as otherwise they may have had a heart attack overnight, or fallen and put out their back and unable to move. Probably not likely but these things could happen, so a simple check in once a day isn’t a big ask.
Hi, I don’t necessarily need a photo (or even text). Just something to let me know that both sitter and cats are alive . “kitties are doing well. Millie eats a lot!” or “today’s update: Moishe is asleep on the couch. Again!”
Ok, I was curious because I’ve seen some threads (or possibly on facebook) where HOs complain about those types of messages. What you state is what I would consider a normal update, but it seems there are some HOs out there that complain about brief updates and want more detail.
Exactly that! I just want reassurance, especially if I haven’t even had the opportunity to meet the sitter.
This is not ok, especially because you asked it. I just wonder what the reason would be when you asked why she didn’t do this.