Thank you for seeing how this sentence is confusing. Will you please post on this thread when the issue is corrected?
I applied for a lovely housesit for 2 weeks duration ( one cat) and have had a lovely message back from HO asking how id feel about her mum visiting daily.
She has had over 8 applications and has invited me to chat on messenger/whattsapp.
Id love the sit, but what do you think?
As @Angela_L said here (Advice please! Homeowner wants her mum to visit daily - #4 by Angela-CommunityManager) doing this breaks the rules . (And that’s a quote, not an interpretation)
Why are there rules? And is not following the rules breaking them? And who has the leeway to allow what rules get broken or bent?
If it is okay with you, I would have to ask: Why is this person coming to visit, to check on you, to socialize, to perform some kind of a task while they’re there? And why are they coming everyday if they’re not already taking care of the cat?!
It feels kind of odd that her mom is going to visit daily, and yet, not perform any of the tasks required to maintain the cat or the plants?
Are you signing up for cat sitting as well as accepting a daily obligation to have social time with a stranger? To me, it feels like it sets a bad precedent for what future sitters will be asked.
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Well, hang on, there might be a perfectly reasonable explanation, which is why I am prepared to talk with the HO first. I am assuming the HO has also posed the same Q to the other applicants.
Having said that, in the last 15 minutes, the post is showing ’ No sitter currently needed’.
I have messaged the HO again.
Hmmmm, within 30 minutes this morning of me replying positively to the HO’s suggestion that we chat on whattsapp, the sit was taken down … at least it looks that way. I’ve messaged twice and my first ‘chaser’ has been read but not the second one.
I will let you know.
It could have been paused. Perhaps the pet owner is happy with the application(s) already received (e.g. yours), doesn´t want more but needs a bit of time to make a final decision.
Yes, that’s what I thought. It might be ‘paused’ while the HO has whattsapp conversations with other applicants just as they have suggested to me. I will wait …!
The Code of Conduct third party rules cover other people residing/present in the property and can be used regarding out of home visitors.
I would like to share a personal experience.
This is about a regular sit I had in LA looking after the adorable Stella.
Eileen’s mother lived in a retirement complex in Santa Monica, Eileen used to visit her daily taking Stella with her which meant when Eileen traveled Erica not only missed her daughter but Stella, her precious “granddaughter”
When Erica was with Stella her joy was almost tangible and on each sit when Eileen left I visited Erica, not every day but at least 4 times a week. If Erica could have driven I would have happily suggested she drop by as often as she wanted to.
Erica was a Holocaust survivor and had lived a life many of us could not imagine. She was kind, forgiving, wise and so very gracious. Her stories will stay with me forever and in her company I experienced my first ever bar mitzvah.
Sadly she has passed away but has left a rich legacy of understanding, compassion and love with everyone whose life she touched … mine included.
Erica did not visit the house and only because she was not physically able, although I did take her “home” with me many times but as I said previously I would have been perfectly happy if she had. Had I not taken the time or the opportunity to get to know Erica I would have been the loser.
Eileen & Brian are now dear friends and currently in the UK visiting from CA, we spent last weekend in my home, brought together by pet sitting and a little dog called Stella.
It’s personal choices based on a particular situation and the circumstances involved. if there is little or no personal relationship in the arrangement base any decision on the prevailing situation.
It is really up to the individual to decide.
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100% no chance of accepting a daily visitor. Sounds like you’ll be expected to provide elder socalization as well as cat sitting duties.
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We wouldn’t be up to daily visits. It would cramp our style to do what we want to do when we wanted to do it and would not be comfortable with someone turning up when we weren’t there or even if we we were there. One visit would be ok to make sure we had everything we needed but not a daily visit.
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We have also seen a “grandma sit” once. Not sure if there were any animals, but the main responsibility was to have dinner and socialize with the HO’s grandma every day (in Italian). That’s actually not a bad idea by her son, not sure if there are any platforms where you “sit” grandparents (we were just asked about it recently, if we also sit people).
As a sitter, I think the key to all of this is flexibility. We arrived the night before on a sit where one of the the HO was injured and could not fly the next morning. Of course we had the option to leave, re the THS rules, but opted to stay. It turned out to be a great adventure with new friends. They greatly appreciated it and there were a couple of outings that we could stay away longer than we normally would have because someone was home. Hopefully a conversation with the HO will help you understand the situation. If this is a HO that doesn’t trust you and wants you to be checked on, then I would definitely say no. This is about trust after all. But, there may be other reasons. It will be interesting to see what they say. You never know what adventure lies ahead or what door may be opened. Again, my best advise to everyone is be flexible! Hope you keep us posted.
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I think that’s a lot to ask personally. What happens if you don’t like her Mum & why does she need to come every day? If it’s to check up on you then she doesn’t trust you even though you’re a Trusted House Sitter no less👍 My gut feeling says say no and if you’re the right person she’ll still choose you.
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Thank you all. I’m having a video call with the HO tomorrow evening (Tuesday). I will relay back to you what I find out. I agree that a visit EVERY. SNGLE. DAY is a bit much, but there MIGHT be a reason behind it.
Significant is that:
a) this is the HO’s first THS experience and
b) they have (either knowingly or unknowingly) NOT mentioned the intended mother’s visits in the main advertisement.
L.
Well! The HO chose a sitter who could do both her dates and informed me just before she and I were due to contact each other to speak.
I’m still curious though, and will watch this one as to feedback from the sitter!
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