It’s a problem is all areas which is why narcotics and opioids are strictly controlled.
I do know from experience with a parents illness that changes can be made but must be initiated by the prescribing doctor’s office.
I assume with the car break in that the sitter filed a police report, where they could have easily listed medications as stolen items (and they would need a police report to file an insurance claim anyway). The sitter did have all week (Monday - Thursday) to contact the doctor for a replacement prescription with said police report in hand.
Possibly it was an uncommon medication along but most major pharmacies can order those from their central warehouses quickly. A quick Google search near Sandy Oregon shows quite a few major retail pharmacies nearby.
Also doesn’t make any sense that sitter did not want to drive on unfamiliar roads if he drove himself there. HO’s suggestion that he give it a try before deciding was also reasonable but this sitter was clearly too afraid to even do that. Hence needing to clarify upfront.
Lots of inconsistencies on both reviews.
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Yes, we’ll never know all the details.
For all we know, the person could be neurodivergent or have other challenges. Some people also are more timid by nature.
The key thing for hosts and sitters is to have a solid Plan B. Without such, and without financial resources, sitting can be dicey. Travel is that way anyway generally, because any of us could be far from home or safety net and run into problems. Best to have money, but not everyone has such.
BTW, a host’s Plan B should not rely on a sitter doing transporting, because what if the sitter is incapacitated, dies, leaves early, doesn’t show up or whatever?
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That’s actually a great point about the sitter being incapacitated and therefore unable to drive the pets.
And yes we’ll never know all the details here for sure.
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BTW, many people don’t file police reports for car break-ins, because many people don’t have insurance that covers stuff stolen from cars. And they don’t realistically have good odds of things being recovered in such break-ins. Some homeowner’s and renter’s insurance, or umbrella coverage, will address such, but if someone has no permanent address, they’re not likely to have such coverages.
I think if someone travels in urban areas like Portland and leaves everything that the sitter described in their car, they are pretty naive or have lived sheltered or haven’t paid attention to news or warning signs in many public areas (about not leaving valuables in cars). Unfortunate.
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Even without insurance, a police report should be filed for the stolen medications. In many areas a police report can be filed online without the need for an officer to be present. You simply lost x item as stolen and you have a document you can provide the doctor’s office and medical insurance to re-issue the medications.
Yes this sitter does come across as naive.
Yes indeed. In his response he spells out that the dogs would only be on their own on Friday afternoon as owner was returning on Friday night.
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I missed that point. That’s definitely a huge difference and I would be fine with that scenario. OP definitely gave a different rendition.
Yes, the OP’s accounts leave out details and seem to intentionally make the sitter look bad with missing context. That then casts the host in a negative light.
The OP also never disputes that the Doberman was adopted only five weeks earlier and that that wasn’t revealed to the sitter till after arrival. That’s not right.
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The 5 weeks is not correct, it’s a typo. Later on he writes in at least two other places that the dog was adopted 5 MONTHS before his sit, not 5 weeks.
I think 5 months is a long enough ownership window to not think to mention it specifically.
Again, I think this sitter is terribly inexperienced. And probably shouldn’t be sitting dogs.
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Sounds like it ended up being more than he could handle, given the car break-in. It’s too bad, because if that hadn’t have happened, the sit might have gone fine.
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The dog was owned for 5 months not 5 weeks (there seems to be a typo in one spot but in 2 others he mentions 5 months).
(Edited in line with the Community Rules)
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Maybe true but travelling does involve dealing with unexpected setbacks.
Yes. We all live and learn, so here’s hoping that the sitter will have better luck and better experiences going forward. The experiences he described — both before the sit and as the sit turned out — are tough starts.
Maybe some kind hosts will give him a shot with simpler sits.
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When you travel out of state, it’s close to the same thing as traveling internationally: depending on the medication, your personal physician cannot write scripts to be filled out of state. As @Katie explained, getting prescriptions filled can be a real hassle. Major pharmacy chains can transfer prescriptions across state boundaries but that comes with its own headaches. I would accept that the sitter’s account needing to get to a pharmacy 5 hours away is a good faith explanation.
Also, the OP seems to have missed explaining that the sitter left a day and a half early BUT that included 1 day’s overlap with the host. So not really a day and a half of the animals being left alone.
But, yes, the first time, eager sitter tried too hard.
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Yes that is a big issue with OP’s rendition.
It was completely reasonable for the sitter to assume the dogs could be left for the one afternoon, definitely. I would not have had an issue with this at all.
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She also claimed here she didn’t know what the reason was for his leaving early, while in the review she does mention that he needed to get prescription medication.
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You know, I was thinking about this comment.
The break in stole his medication, hence his desire to get the refill on the meds as soon as possible.
Poor guy, it does seem like he wanted to ‘try hard’, like my young nephew likes to say.
(Edited to align with the Forum guidelines)
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Lots can go wrong on sits, so it’s good if both sitter and host can show grace when things hiccup or go sideways.
Personally, whenever I decide whether to accept a sit, I consider whether the hosts seem like the kind who’d show grace if things went wrong. Only if they do would I accept a sit. Otherwise, not worth it, IMO.
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True. It is important to understand it’s hard for hosts to leave their home and pets, but also hard for sitters who may be far from home and away from comfort and support of things go wrong. As HO if something goes sideways at least we know people and the area. If things go sideways for sitters, they may be in an unfamiliar place with no one to help.
Grace is always a good mindset!
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