Suggestions for a Successful Handoff

[Ellen1]

Question for sitters:
What are the things you most want Homeowners address during the handoff to prepare you for a successful sit?

[Crookie]

What’s the best way to contact you when you are away
Pet feeding, walking, medicine, sleep time instructions
How long pets can be left alone and how to prepare them for this
Where the electricity and water mains are
What is ok to be used in the pantry / fridge
What not to touch / use
How to use the washing machine / dishwasher / oven & stove
How to operate the TV & streaming services
What’s the wifi password
What day do the bins go out and which bins
Recycling instructions
Car use instructions
Plant watering instructions
When should we expect the gardener / cleaner (if this has previously been agreed to)
How often do you want text / email updates
What to do with the used linen and towels on the last day
Where do you want us to leave the keys on the last day (if we leave before you get home)

All of this should be in your Welcome Guide but it’s good to discuss these points.

[HappyDeb]

I’d prefer everything to be covered in the Welcome Pack, as it’s harder to remember things after travelling, and then in a new space. But pointing in the right direction for the below helps too:-

Where the pet food and pet equipment live.
A little more about any medications they are on and how they are given.
Where the hoover and mop live.

[Smiley]

If you put ‘handover’ in the search field you will find lots of discussion around your question. Here’s one of several:

What Are Your Tips For The Sit Handover?

Handover questions for sitters and owner/pet parents What is a sit handover? When members talk about a sit handover, they are referring to a dedicated period of time before the pet parent sets off in which they will welcome the sitter into their home. Why is the sit handover so important? What are some of your tips for making sure the handover goes smoothly? What do you do if there is no “in-person” handover?

[pietkuip]

I have been suspected to suffer from dementia by the HO because I did not remember everything that I had been told and shown!

Instructions etc should be written out in the welcome guide (or similar document). Also things like where the sitter can find more pet food, also when you have shown them. Two weeks later, one does not necessarily have a diagnosis when one has forgotten that.

Guided tours are better than lectures. Best thing may be to let the sitter practice hands-on, for example how to switch on the laundry machine (not evident when the most-frequently used buttons lost all markings).

[Silversitters]

If the pet “disappears “ where are they likely to be found - do they have a place that they often hide in ? Invaluable information for a sitter when a pet hasn’t yet got to know the sitter hides away from a stranger in the house .

Confirm the arrangements for paying for emergency vet bills and or property emergencies ( burst pipes etc ) during the stay- (Ideally these arrangements should have been discussed before handover )

If there is a local walk that you do with the dog - show the sitter the route .

Tricky locks / show the sitter the knack for locking/ opening .

Where is the spare key kept ?

[Smiley]

And most of this should be written in the Welcome Guide if owners take the trouble