I think this is a bit harsh, to be honest. Now the owner realises quicker communication would have been the solution, but if I were in their shoes, I would have worried too if I didn’t ever see them leave the house with my puppy.
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Seems to me that these sitters just don’t walk dogs. Otherwise the OP likely would have stated that she observed them walking their dog but not her dog.
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If ONLY the homeowner who gave me so much grief would have been a BETTER communicator. She kept adding new people to my sit. New rules. New needs–daily almost. She didn’t even remember half of the changes until I sent her a screenshot of the text message. None of the new editions were on the listing or guide. I began to drown in bewilderment and disbelief. I called THS distraught!
Sometimes we do these things because we’re not accustomed to strangers. Takes getting used to for some people. After close to 100 sits I have a few not so nice reviews. The rest are stellar 5 Stars with many saying 5 stars aren’t enough for everything I put into a sit.
I just received my first declined application because of that review I mentioned above. I was happy they declined. Everyone I asked to read that review has said there was something wrong with the lady and not me. I’ve asked both previous homeowners, and Future homeowners on my schedule. I don’t want to sit for someone who thinks like the lady.
Bottom line is we all have to be discerning, and remember if we choose to do this, we must be kind, communicative, responsible, and respectful. I am so happy you resolved your situation with the sitter. It was actually a very cute story with that ending. It could have gone South.
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I agree with @kitty2 that’s it’s odd the sitters didn’t communicate with the HO and ask for tips around getting the harness on. @MaggieUU may be right that they just prefer in-house play to walking. But in the end, the puppy is getting exercise, HO is happy, and it sounds like the HO learned something for future sits, which is great - I’ve had 5 sits so far and every time I learn something for the next one.
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I’m surprised that they didn’t contact you asking for advice in the first place.
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We watched a big puppy last year who shook and peed in fear every time we tried putting the leash on the collar. They didn’t have a fenced yard so we had no choice but to take him for a walk. The strategy we used was for one person to pet and play with him to keep him calm while the other person quickly put the leash on. After a few days, he didn’t care if he saw us coming to him with the leash. It just took some patience so that he felt safe
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It does seem as if the sitter gave up too fast. The sitter should at least have a few tricks in their sitter-bag. The issue may not be on the listing because it’s NEVER happened for the owner. Pets are like people in the adjustment arena. Some take well to strangers. Others quite the opposite.
I try to love on the pet the first day. Nothing else. Just gain confidence and security in them. With cats you know because they hold they’re tails straight up and walk like they own their domain. Dogs wag their tails and stay right up under you. I wouldn’t try anything like walking a dog without making them comfortable. Some dogs and cats don’t care about anything except food treats. That lets them know you’re ok.
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I sat a year-old dog who ran from me on the first day when I tried to leash her. So I lured her into the laundry room, behind a door, with food. Worked fine.
Another dog would run away when you tried to put her jumper on during really cold, rainy weather. It was winter in Scotland, so that was frequent. I’d get her into the entry vestibule first, which gave her little room to run. That worked.
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My little dog is something of a puppy whisperer. She loves them and will play with them as much as they want. The result is less need for long walks as they get their energy out playing. My dog loves walks but doesn’t like having her leash put on. When another dog models proper behavior (come, sit), she does it too, until we are back at home. Then she reverts. I wouldn’t worry about it as long as she’s getting lots of love and exercise.
Not if you didn’t obsess over your doorbell camera. Which is my point. The home and pets are being well taken care of. It’s the surveillance obsession that is causing the anxiety.
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‘What you don’t know won’t hurt you’? A dubious maxim: sometimes ‘what you don’t know’ can ‘hurt you’ very much.’
If the dog is not being cared for in the way agreed upon, the homeowners need to know sooner rather than later. The anxiety is the result of a lack of communication on the part of the sitter.
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No the anxiety is as a result of the owner’s excessive surveillance of the sitter. It’s extremely creepy.
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Pets behave differently with HS that Owners, Dog Walker or Neighbour, it’s like other people’s Toddlers you say “don’t touch that, they don’t touch it” being a Puppy too, is hard as if they are just getting used to the whole process with their Owners, it’s new people, sure they might be fun, but it’s not their owners, they don’t know if their owner is coming back etc, Puppies even what Owners consider “well trained” are quite often very different when it’s someone else looking after them, we encountered this problem in our early days of sitting, I would take the lead role, leave the kids in another room and take the Pup into a smaller area and get the hardness and lead on, get it calmed down, usually with a treat and then we would take the Pup out for a walk. We have older Dogs who they have days where they are NOT going for a walk, they have decided not even a short walk, they having none of it! I send in my am/pm update so the HO knows.
Glad you got it sorted, you can enjoy the rest of your time away and know that your Pup is having a great “staycation” even if a bit different from the usual routine.