My assessment is this: the HO is fastidious and controlling to the point of possibly having serious OCD traits. It’s who they are. It’s a bit like reactive dogs, this is a reactive HO. Now we know that within the THS community a few very rare sitters manage to sit reactive dogs, and a few very rare sitters can manage a relationship with a HO who exhibits these traits you’re describing. Now consider what level of experience you have with developing a good working relationship with somebody like this. If you’re a Mental Health Nurse or a trained Therapist or a Psychologist it might be within your skill set. If not then you risk having a pretty horrible time and a poor review.
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@KC1102 you are exactly right! I did a sit in a beautiful area of France in 2024, thinking my dream of being in a hilltop village in France, waltzing around picking wildflowers singing Edith Piaf songs, would be like something out of a movie set. It did turn out to be like out of a movie set but more like a horror movie! I was blinded by the image of it all and regret it to this day. Highlighting your words….
“Don’t let your attachment to the location cloud your judgement”
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You need to cancel that sit asap and run away fast! It has red flags 
all over it and you’re six months out. #runlikethewind
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if you’re really keen then ask open questions to Pet Parent about prior housesits and past housesitter reviews. suspect that responses - either nothing or unreasonable - may be enlightening.
gotta laugh. as others have noted, there are multiple red flags here.
would need a truly compelling reason to progress. most times we’ve confirmed sits on which we had concerns then we regretted the decision. as we have gained experience then we have become more comfortable with saying no to questionable listings and unreasonable expectations.
Wow, we would not describe ‘2 dogs and 4 cats’ as ‘minimal pets’.
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I can make your decision for you. Don’t touch this sit with a barge pole.
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It looks like there’s a fair chance that @atpillow ’s host is the same host being discussed in the Beyond Unacceptable thread started by @proflangley You could simply message @proflangley to ask if the sit they experienced was in the south of France. If so, take it from there.
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I agree with @Silversitters @ziggy @Cuttlefish who are all very experienced well travelled sitters. Get out now. Tell the owner to cancel your sit, she has 6 months to find another sitter. Too many red flags, which you have already identified. You know what the likely outcome will be. Also, ignore other people on the forum who are telling you to toughen up & do the sit because it’s a desirable location. I once did that & it was an epic fail with a demanding owner. No way did the desirable location come close to compensating for that. Never, ever again will I fall for that error of judgement.
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Comes a time in life, which is where I have arrived, that I no longer seek challenges in insofar as trying to change people, places or things or situations. I do what is right for me and live with that.
My own life has been challenging enough and I have certainly reached an age where I am happy with the choices, decisions, friendships, interactions I have made and walk away from those that don’t make me happy or are detrimental to such happiness. I need to be at peace with life choices. I am at peace with what I choose to do - where I travel/live, who I choose to be around or connect with etc and decisions that I make through life experience itself. The old adage “you never stop learning” is true to a certain extent e.g. learning new ways to cook, or how to find a cheaper flight, or basically how to live in a more productive and meaningful way to benefit the life I have chosen. Wanting/needing/trying to please or win others over I have no need to do, my own self respect and dignity is enough. I have pleased far too many people in life who ended up treating me as though I never existed which isn’t uncommon as you age, I think it happens to all of us at some point.
I choose, and have lived long enough, to have the RIGHT to choose, the life that is good for me. I sit because I love to travel but I also love all animals (yes, I really do) so it’s a win win. I DON’T sit to try to win over someone or get them to like me, people can like me for who I am or not at all, it’s that simple.
With over 100 sits to my name on THS and two other sites, I’ve had the good the bad and the ugly but wouldn’t have changed a thing. Sitting is not always about a personal connection, it is about the experience that you have with the location, the pets and hopefully with the homeowners. If not then “that’s life", on to the next one! Not here to make empty friendships if effort is needed, I have friends, personal and homeowners, just by being ” me”. I don’t want to be a people pleaser for someone I will never meet again, just for their vanity or mine
I choose me.
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I have not read any of the other responses because I just want to tell you straight away to CANCEL this sit immediately! The HO sounds like a micromanaging psycho! And the fact she gave other sitters poor reviews is a huge red flag. Also I can tell you that 2 dogs & 4 cats (the same as we have on our current sit) is NOT minimal pets. And walking at 5.30am is an unreasonable expectation. There is absolutely no need, even in the south of France in summer. Etc etc etc
Run a mile would be my advice. Do not fly in especially for such a sit & only 2 weeks too…!!!
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You don’t need to contact the sitters. They clearly didn’t leave reviews because the sit was not good. A couple of missing review might not mean much, but a pattern is a pattern. If these are sitters who have truly problem free 5-star reviews except for this sit, then likely you will not get a 5-star review.
There really isn’t a way to contact the sitters unless one happens to see this on the forum and DMs you.
It would be nice if everyone left honest reviews even if they are critical, but many people choose to stay nothing if they have nothing good to say. In your shoes, you couldn’t pay me to take this sit.
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This home owner should be removed from THS to prevent any future sitters, who don’t do their homework, from such a terrible experience. However, I guess ain’t gonna happen any time soon, they’ll miss out on the booking fees!
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But remember @Smiley the booking fees will be going to improving Trust and Safety!!
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@atpillow, welcome to the forum.
I think there’s virtual unanimity in advising you to cancel this sit. To be honest, I have never seen so many red flags put together.
I agree with others that you don’t need to contact the sitter who was “fired” but I do believe she must be @proflangley, you can DM her or she might even have messaged you already.
I’m really curious, you’re not allowed to add salt when boiling pasta for yourself?
Please let us know how it goes.
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I have done a sit like that, a month in southern France (but not this one). Halfway through the sit, I offered to resign because their messenging was getting too much. But they needed me, so I stayed on and the HO stopped criticizing.
At the end, of course I got a bad review. It did not matter much, I found other nice sits after that.
All in all, I don’t regret doing this. It was a nice little town. The dog was very well behaved on sidewalk cafés and restaurants. There were some excellent cycling paths. Some aggravation, but it was worth it.
She’s not spoofing. That is the woman I sat for, and there’s a lot more than that. I’ve been notified that she’s left me a review, and I have no choice but to go into detail in my own review of her. Even if it means I get dinged, I think it’s only fair that other sitters know what they’re going into. I personally saw a red flag in her review when she discussed having to put in cameras outside.
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It is. Now you can all see that what I’ve said is true. I’m out of there now and can breathe again. The animals are wonderful, but there’s no way you’re going to please the owner. I’m also curious how she can know all the details. She states she talks to a “pet communicator” all the time and that the dog told said communicator that one of the sitters was drinking and watching football. What animal could possibly know whether a drink is alcoholic or not? I’m sorry, but that’s just impossible.
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I’d be pulling out of this one! There’s loads of sits available in Europe if that’s where you want to travel to but this home owner sounds like a control freak!
Drinking and watching football is very popular in the US. We even have sports bars. We want no judgy dogs in the US, ha.
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Your review of the host won’t get you dinged. Now that the host has submitted their review, you’ve already been dinged (or not) and THS won’t change that. An honest, unemotional review by you unaffected by what the host has already submitted is your best first chance at self defense. Once the reviews are both published, you’ll have one chance to respond as your second defense. There is no time limit on submitting that response.
In sum, you do yourself and potential future sitters a good turn with an honest review.
if you’re inclined, you and @atpillow can now direct message. It’s not too often that past sitters and future sitters have a chance on THS to connect over the same host.
What a wild situation. Glad to hear you’re out of there (though probably nothing close to as glad as you must be).
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