I love THS however I’m discovering that some sitters just take things from us without asking. Yesterday I went into the pantry to grab a pair of latex gloves. Almost 100 gloves were gone from the box but they left the empty box. !! This discovery made me sick to my stomach. Thieves!! And since I use the gloves irregularly, the thief could have been any of 5 sitters.
Another time, our entire box of Emergen-C supplements were gone. They took the box this time.
Has anyone else run into this? How did you deal with it? Do I have to take photos of every cupboard, freezer and pantry before we leave? I appreciate any insights you might have. Thanks.
Hi @hello,
Have you contacted the sitters to ask for an explanation perhaps?
As @Silversitters mentioned there’s a thread “suspicious minds” that might help you to have a different point of view of the situation.
I’m sorry that your stomach is sick. Perhaps your sitters (or any other guest) used those items without informing you (what I found disrespectful) but calling them thieves is a strong allegation. In that case you can: HELP
Communication is key!
Btw are those the gloves that criminals use to avoid leaving fingerprints? Just kidding
I fully support this suggestion. @hello I recently emptied all my cupboards in my kitchen, dining and living room and found things i did not even know i had bought. It was like Christmas presents to me…
I was asked after a sit last summer if I knew where car keys and a walking stick were. I wasn’t being accused of taking them, per se, but there was that implication it seemed to me. After they’d looked properly, they told me they’d found the car keys, put in a ‘safe’ place that they’d forgotten about. Haven’t heard about the walking stick but, thankfully, I don’t need one yet!
As you use the gloves irregularly it may well not have been any of the 5 sitters which must have been over a longish period.
I really don’t think this is theft. If someone were really going to nab an entire boxworth of latex gloves with malice aforethought, they’d hardly leave the box. That just flags up that the items are missing. As for half-inching Vitamin C supplements.. On my planet - nah. They’ll turn up.
Is it possible that multiple sitters used the gloves while cleaning up after your pets? I can also imagine a sitter becoming ill or developing leg cramps and reaching for your Emergen-C, only to forget to replace it or place the new package in the wrong spot. Especially if you had a couple sitting, one used the product; the other replaced it. Theft is a big leap. I would hope for the sake of future sitters that you disclose your level of distrust in your listing.
Amen to this! I’m dismayed by recent threads in which home owners have implied or openly stated that sitters have stolen items. Why on earth would trusted sitters steal vitamin tablets or disposable gloves? For the tiny minority who are light-fingered there are surely much richer pickings to be had!
Honestly, this seems a bit ridiculous, or was it meant as a joke? I don’t know what a box of disposable gloves costs where you live, but here at Lidl it’s maybe 3 euros at most. Surely that can’t be the reason to call someone a thief?
Maybe you should also consider whether your place was in such a state that five sitters felt the need to go through 100 gloves, 50 pairs, meaning just 10 each? And maybe they took some vitamins not to steal them, but just to brace their immune system? That seems more plausible than theft, doesn’t it?
I can see a sitter taking them. Meaning 1 sitter. Things are expensive today and ppl are trying to save anyway they can. Its sad to have someone take things from you. Its something that actually hits you hard when you trust ppl, it feels like an invasion of yourself . Some ppl are cleptomaniacts. My grandmother used to take all the sugar, creamer packets at tables in restaurants. When she past her drawers were filled with tons of them. And thats not bad , she was wealthy and never used them.
Thanks for all this great feedback. We have come up with a solution.
Put masking tape over the shelves that are off-limits or put a lock on the pantry door. Thanks for stimulating my creative mind.
Hmmm, masking tape and locks to emphasise that sitters can’t be trusted. I would hate to do a sit like that. Definitely wouldn’t return and my review would hint at the lack of trust, which creates a downward spiral imho.
I don’t think she cares about that. She cares about those $10.00 gloves she either used up and forgot
or 5 sitters thought it was part
of cleaning supplies and used so she could come home to a clean house.
