I don’t understand how abandoning dogs inside a closed house without food or needed meds was either appropriate or reasonable. That’s a very disturbing way to retaliate against fools at the expense of their pets.
They were right to be outraged (as were you with their hidden cameras).
Seems like you’ll do what you want, so you’re risking that another sitter might decide as you did, to stop feeding your dog, stop walking, etc., and just quit the sit if they have a problem with the tracker.
If I were in your shoes, I’d declare the tracker upfront and not risk it. That way, folks who want to opt in can. There are sitters who won’t care. It’s in your and your dog’s interest to match with them.
Certainly your choice but you may want to consider at mentioning the brand so sitters can at least look it up ahead of time.
Most people assume dogs wear trackers for off leash hikes but would be surprised to learn when arriving to the sit that it was worn all the time.
I will, and if they ask for access to it, I would happily give it to them so they could see his insights and track him too.
I agree with others that this should clearly be disclosed in your listing. I don’t mind the kind of information that device gives just as I don’t mind outside cameras when they are disclosed. I always keep my part of the agreement thoroughly.
Whether I would apply or accept a sit with such device would depend on the tone of the listing, previous reviews both ways and how the video chat goes if I get that far.
If I had a similar, equally desirable sit, I probably wouldn’t apply even if the tone is nice.
The problem for me is that I don’t really trust all the info those devices provide. Should there be some kind of misfunction, I could be held accountable for something that I am not responsible for.
I was recently given a smart watch and I accepted it out of politeness. I tried it for a week. The info about sleeping times and other info was wrong quite often.
A friend of mine laughs that I immediately turned off or removed all the health tracking features when I got a smart watch. I didn’t get it for that.
I’ve only encountered a GPS tracker once, on an outdoor cat which lived next to a very busy arterial road. Quite apart from the fact I had a daily heart-attack seeing on the app how near he was getting to the traffic, the tracker was a vast box slung round his neck. I failed to see how it was worth stressing him and risking his physical safety that way, just so the HO, two continents away, could know that he was about to go under a juggernaut.
Nope. Don’t like ‘em. At least, for cats.
I understand that trackers can have inconsistencies. I used a FitBark tracker on my dog before switching to Tractive, which has been far more reliable. When I was away, FitBark frequently sent inaccurate notifications. I’ve had the Tractive device on my dog for 5 weeks now and have experienced very few inaccuracies. It even tracks his heart rate accurately, which I confirmed with my vet when I took my dog in. I can also see exactly where he is in the house when he’s wearing it. I’m seeing that most sitters responding to this thread want to know whether devices like this are on dogs. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND ASKING HOMEOWNERS BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO SIT. These trackers are the next up-and-coming thing, and homeowners (myself included at first) will not always disclose them unless directly asked.
Hi, @GoodHomeOwner ; I’m glad it’s working well for you. That said, I just came from a sit where they used Tractive. I can’t tell you the number of times it gave false warnings that the dog had left the fence perimeter when it hadn’t. At least once or twice a day, even when the dog was sitting in front of me in the living room! I was starting to worry the owners would think I wasn’t keeping an eye of her, but then they told me they experience periodic false reports as well, & thought it was due to comms issues since they live on the side of a mountain with spotty cell & satellite service.
So, just something for sitters & owners to be aware of. 
I did think it was entertaining to view the pup’s histograph and watch his yard-zoomies for the day, though! 
That’s good to know, especially with me leaving soon. I’m pretty hands-off with my sitters and don’t check in unless they message me first, even if the tracker shows brief inaccuracies (but I’ve only experienced this 4 times in the past 5 weeks). I appreciate you sharing your experience! Do you know which Tractive version was on that dog? Mine is the DOG 6, and the battery seems to last about 4-5 days which isn’t long. My incoming sitter said she’d charge it when it gets low. Hopefully you didn’t have to charge the Tractive to often!
Good question about the version! I didn’t notice, tbh, but I think it must have been a much older one…I had to charge it at least every 2 days. (Same with another on a different sit, but that one didn’t use the fencing boundaries; the Host only wanted it in case their newer dog got off-leash, so we could track & find him.)
Sounds like yours is working a bit better.
I’m currently on a Sit with the cats air tagged and GPS tracked w/ collar, along with the Neighbors’ cats!
In specific, this gated community of Cat carers, have a system setup where the Neighbor releases their cats in the evening and then the other House is notified and has their cats released in the mornings. This system has helped prevent cat break outs and aggression, and has enabled the cats to freely roam the backyard and inner gated community courtyard with low friction.
The Pros..:
On one hand- it’s innovative, where the AI tracking app. will sound a Christmas jingle and Branch, has actually picked up on the GPS Tracking’s sound, and will be notified to / come home.
The app.’s GPS map also has the ability to show you how far the cats are roaming and at what hour they were potentially fence hopping.
The Cons..
As a Sitter and also as someone growing in Animal Knowledge and training, it DOES take a lot of preparation beforehand. And it is Best to have all this communicated and setup for the Sitter beforehand. Aka: have clearly typed instructions, demonstration of how the tracker is charged, what the app. is and how to have that properly setup and installed, when the tracker should be charged and taken off the cat, what routes and areas are okay for the cats and sitter to roam.
My current experience on THS:
When I first arrived to the house, I immediately thought it was ok to take off the tracker cuz I noticed it was not charged.
The home owner immediately panicked and instructed I only take off the tracker when the cats were back home at a certain hour.
I felt some kind of friction in the air as the Neighbor also seemed a bit panicked and was instructing different areas of the house where I should make sure windows are locked so cats wouldn’t slip out.
Overtime- we worked it out.
As someone who has been now growing on her 3rd year in professional pet sitting and also gaining certification in animal knowledge & training., I def. have GRown over time to air on the side of TRUSTING cats to come home. And InSTILLING the Belief that if I am building a loving, force-free bond to an animal - it is MUCH more likely to warm up to me- and want to come home.
(Vs. picking up a cat when it clearly looks agitated or forcing a cat to come to you)..
As a sitter, I have witnessed and grown accustomed to both sides of the “Anxious Pet Parent” and the more “Assured/Trusting Pet Parent” - where one is less trusting that their cat will come home and while the other— KNOWS & TRUST that their cat will come back home— and isn’t fretting.
Of course this can only happen, with experience over time. And this goes for the sitter as well.
At my last sit in Orinda— it was proved to me- that when a cat is conditioned to be able to freely roam far— yet still be able to come home to a loving, safe environment- provided with feed, warmth, shelter, and love — it BUILDS their internal & instinctive trust muscle AND adventurous side, as well.
(I was able to walk a cat named Ziggy, offleash and freely, alongside a Senior dog, Roxy). (Isn’t that so Cool?!)
I feel geography also matters a lot here for the safety of certain pets and Pet Parents.
That last sit with Ziggy, Raven, and Roxy had an expansive backyard / nature-like area in the hills of Orinda (we’re talking farmlike areas, lush forest areas, and wine vineyards) vs. at my current sit - in SF - it’s an urban environment with more busy streets, cars, and tourists. There is much less a “free roaming” friendly environment for the cats and for the ease of mind of pet parents.
Def. at the end of day tho— it’s about building bonds with the animals, and with the communication & Trust between home owners and the Sitters
Cheers to the New Year!
Gosh, what an interesting thread. Missed this one earlier. Lots great comments re disclosure.
We’ve come across quite a few pets - dogs and outdoor cats - that have AirTags on collar. None were mentioned in listing. Given THS policy fuzziness, this seems a grey area so we have applied various tactics. After couple days Apple anti-stalker functionality means that AirTag emits loud beeping sound, to warn us that we’re being tracked. Kind of says it all. But no Pet Parent has reflected on privacy impact. In some cases, we’ve been added to AirTag. In some cases, we have removed Pet Parent AirTag and installed one of our own (we carry them for own use).
Solution seems very simple - clear expectations for both pet parents and housesitters.
@Mark_B, as @Silversitters rightly noted then it would seem fabulous - and frankly appropriate - if THS updated its Camera and Recording Devices Policy. This could reflect pet/human tracker devices (e.g. host AirTags on pet collars); pet health trackers (seeming very extensive functions, including AI, as per OP); and internal devices such as Amazon Echo, Google Home, etc. (some of which can record audio and/video). Technology moves forward, so should related THS policy.
THS’s Camera and Recording Devices Policy technically prohibits home thermostats and smoke detectors. Fact. I very much doubt there’s any practicality in THS attempting to regulate Echos, AirTags or GPS Trackers.
@OnTheRoadAgain, related THS policy includes both disclosures and prohibitions. External cameras are required to be disclosed in listing and welcome guide. Internal camera are prohibited. At this stage then THS policy does not stipulate any disclosures or prohibitions for evolving devices that are capable of recording audio, video or movement. It seems credible to think that further technology advancements will evolve. Whether THS approach is greater transparency/disclosure or regulation/prohibition is beyond my pay grade, but something seems better than nothing.
The challenge is that so many devices are already capable of recording video or audio as to make simplistic policies impractical and practical policies too complex to craft. And that’s before trying to encompass movement tracking devices including, but hardly limited to, AirTags, Tiles, today’s pet trackers and tomorrow’s wearable pet devices, LoJacks, garage door openers, perimeter monitors.
THS cannot provide sitters with a policy cocoon that insulates them from evolving technology. Like everyone else today, sitters need to keep up with developments.
I still don’t think it should be a requirement that homeowners tell sitters about tracker/health monitors attached to THEIR OWN ANIMAL. If it were attached to the sitter, then YES. But right now, you don’t have to tell sitters and I think that’s more than fair.
My current sitter found out just yesterday that I have a tracker/monitor on my dog. I already told them it was a health monitor. They learned it was also a tracker because they took my pup to the vet without telling me, so I inquired about why he had been there. The sitter didn’t like it, but if I didn’t have this device on my pup, I wouldn’t have known he had another back tweak and was having trouble moving & wasn’t eating because he was in so much pain (This is a recurring thing that happens about once a year & pain meds for a few days usually do the trick). The sitter claims they were planning to tell me after the vet appointment. Baloney! So they were just going to use my card for a vet bill that I didn’t approve of or even know about?
I’ll be home in three days so I’m not too worried, but lesson learned. I can’t fully trust new sitters and am NOT HAPPY with this one. Kenneling isn’t an option for my dog - he is most comfortable in his own home.
I don’t ask much as a homeowner and always make myself available if sitters have questions. I leave gift baskets for them upon their arrival and only request that my dog is walked daily for an hour + his feedings. I don’t bother my sitters for updates because I have the device to check in on my pup. I leave sitters with a VERY CLEAN HOME and do what I can to help them feel comfortable minus the device on my dog. That won’t change and clearly they can’t be fully “trusted” as this is now the third time something has happened without my approval. That device is to monitor my dog and his location. If sitters want to bring him with them, or can’t walk him for a day, that’s on them. Communication on their end is expected as I have written in the care documents, along with the fact that my dog has a health monitor on him.
You hide information from sitters and track, some would say obsessively, what they’re doing but the sitter is the dishonest one. Got it.
Not necessarily baloney at all. As a sitter I would certainly consider letting the HO know ahead of time but if that wasn’t practical for whatever reason I would act first and discuss later.
Were you not providing a form of preapproval when you provided your credit card info in advance?
Any type of tracking or surveillance device should be disclosed in the profile in my opinion.
Additionally, I think it’s also a show of good will to at least offer temporary permissions to the HS if it truly is about your pet and shared care and not just you monitoring what someone is doing. That positioning would change things for me.
I think additionally. Calling out what’s a hard rule in pet care vs. a guideline can be helpful…separate post shared about an HO complaining because a dog missed one walk and they tracked it but the dog was the one who didn’t want to go and the other dogs clearly went out.
Ultimately, transparency goes a long way and gives folks a chance to opt into what they’re comfortable with. If you feel the need to hide something, that would already be telling to me.