Hi, we’re enjoying a lovely sit in the lower mainland of British Columbia. We drove here from Calgary. I don’t like borrowing trouble but I am curious as it looks like one of our airlines in Canada is going on strike. I’m just wondering since we have a car rental for six days, and our sit ends in two more nights I would be flexible but paying for the car rental is our only concern. Are we just stuck with that if the sit is extended due to the carrier going on strike. I haven’t asked what airline they are on but WestJet is a good chance. Cheers Tina
@TinasTV sitters are not expected to stay beyond the agreed end date of the sit . Owners should have a back up plan in mind to deal with this kind of delay / or any similar emergency if it arises .
We had this situation on our last sit - the owners return flight was cancelled so they were not able to return on the end day - the owners didn’t ask us to stay on ( although we wouldn’t have minded if they had ) When their flight was cancelled they arranged for a neighbour to take over and told us not to worry it was all sorted .
If you offer to stay on ( which you are not obliged to do ) inform THS so that they can alter the end date. If you don’t do this - the extended sit won’t be “officially “ on the books and will no longer be covered by THS and also you will no longer have access to the Welcome Guide .
Thank you 
great info!
Happy Canada Day 
Wonderful information from @Silversitters and worthy of review.
Looks like the strike is a no-go
I just had a sit, where the HO flight got delayed. This was the second time that I had a sit in a one bedroom condo, going from early in the morning to late in the evening. The first time in Toronto, and I was staying in Toronto, cross town, so it didn’t matter to me to stay in the evening. And their flight was on time. This latest sit, their flight got delayed. At mid afternoon, after I did the cleaning, washed the linens and towels, they asked if I could spend the night. I was expected to leave at 7 pm and drive to Toronto. They had offered me a hotel room but I chose to drive. I only had a day in Toronto before I had to leave for Detroit. I could have stayed but I was annoyed, a little that I had done all the cleaning etc etc. Now they got a friend to stay. I should have stayed and just did the sheets again. But this is a problem. The next sit I am going to, it was suppose to start on the 3rd, go to the 24th. I don’t need to be there the night before, so I am going the 4th. But he now changed the dates and I want to head east for Thanksgiving and not drive right before the holiday. He is getting neighbors to walk the dog, but it is hard. Did not want to give up this Detroit sit, as I have medical and dental appointments in that neighborhood. But delays, or last minute changes are annoying. Delays especially with the government shutdown.
I’m not a sitter, but I would expect as a host that sitters would be understanding of delays caused by things beyond the hosts control and do what they can to assist without having an attitude.
It goes with the territory of engaging in an activity that has its perks while at the same time has some negative aspects including being dependent on travel going as planned,
what if you have back to back sits? But you are right, I got an attitude. But it was more the unknowing. They didn’t know until 6:30 if they were going to make the next flight. And when you are in a one bedroom condo, there is no place for you to sleep if they did come back. It was a combo of factors. There are people here who will not show up at 7 am for a sit, they want to stay the night before. Or stay late, like I have done, without spending the night. And they did offer me a hotel – which for me is more of an inconvenience. I would have had to wait until 11 pm to have them check me in. I booked this long ago, it was a repeat sit. But it is tough when you have early morning arrival and late departure times in a one bedroom condo. Staying over with these conditions have been discussed extensively on this forum. I am one willing to do it. But if my schedule is tight, then delays are an issue.
Very risky. Especially if air travel is required. Again, it goes with the territory. Travel is unpredictable. But your attitude doesn’t have to be. It doesn’t help anything.
@Huronbase, sorry to hear of your challenges.
We have completed many sits, including current one, where pet parents have taken long international flights to a destination. To complete sits, we are often flying internationally ourselves. So significant inherent complexity.
During any such video call, we ask about travel preferences. As full-time sitters, we cannot simply stay one or more extra nights - unless our next housesit is credibly local.
We find that almost all distant-travelling Pet Parents expressly request that we arrive a day (or more) before the start date. During video call, we ask about return flight - most Pet Parents request that we stay an extra night at end of housesit. We agree details upfront, typically before housesit is confirmed.
In event that Pet Parent flight is late and we are not committed to stay then we would provide reasonable assistance. Say pass key to family or friend.
Re expectations of early am arrival and late pm departure, we do not apply for such sits unless we are already local to area.
Re one bedroom condo, we’ve done a few of those. But we’ve never coupled one-bedroom bedroom condo + early-am arrive + late-pm depart + international flight. Would be surprised if Pet Parents wanted that either. Way too high risk for both us and pet parents.
risky for whom? I didn’t have air travel. It is risky for the HO, who didn’t make accomodations. You are too subjective
I discuss with hosts what their emergency arrangements would be if they were delayed and I can’t stay. If I think that untenable, then I’d simply not accept the sit. For me, that sort of thing should be anticipated and discussed, not complained of after the fact.
It’s risky for both hosts and sitters when air travel is involved especially if either of them are on tight schedules. Consider leaving judgements and criticism out of your posts and stick to facts.
Sitters have to make travel plans as well as work around our own responsibilities (work, family, etc). I can’t necessarily change my travel day because the HO is delayed. Most sitters are traveling, so it’s not a matter of just going home a day or two later. I’m flexible when I can be, but I have to book flights, hotels, etc. HOs should be able to reach out to a family member or friend if they are to be significantly delayed.
Since we’re going to interject the use of the word “should” which basically means the person using it is expressing their opinion as to how others must do things, “A responsible sitter should understand that hosts or sitters may be delayed due to factors beyond their control and may not have alternative means of coverage therefore the sitter should build some flexibility into their own schedule in the case of unexpected unplanned schedule changes”,.
@idocsteve Then they should discuss that from the start and plan extra days at the end to be part of the sit dates. Obviously, I can’t just leave days open and not make any hotel reservations. Even refundable accommodations typically have to be cancelled the day before. So, I should just leave 2 days after every sit wide open with no plans and when 95% of the time HOs return on time, I should scramble to find a hotel at the last minute? I’m just curious how you think leaving days open at the end of a sit would work for sitters?
Who said anything about not making plans? Leaving a day or two in between sits for flexibility doesn’t mean you’re locked in a room and can’t do anything. Surely there’s things to see and do within reasonable distance of a house sit.
This is something that could be discussed with a host if they’re traveling by air, especially if travel conditions are questionable, such as the current situation in the US. Something along the lines of '“I’ll build some flexibility into my schedule but if you arrive home early you may have some company for a day or two”.
Oh, I see, so you are expecting that the sitter would then stay with the HOs. Not all HOs would offer that. And I don’t want to stay with the HOs extra days after they return. I didn’t sign up for a roommate situation and many HOs don’t have room for the sitter to stay after they return. The expectation that a sitter be available to stay in case of HO delay (for the convenience of the HO) and that if all goes well the sitter would just stay with the HO is something that would need to be discussed prior to sit confirmation, not something that should just be expected.
If the sitter has made themselves flexible and available to the host in case of travel delays then it would naturally follow that the hosts would provide them accommodations. This would of course be discussed prior to the sit and such details hashed out.
Not understanding your comment that many hosts don’t have room. Are the majority of sits in one bedroom apartments that lack a guest room?
You “don’t want to stay” with the host for a day or two. Certainly your choice not to be flexible and go that extra mile that others might and in the eyes of a host that can differentiate a good sitter from a great one.
Yes, I’ve done many sits that only have one bedroom. I’ve done a few that have other bedrooms, but the extra rooms are set up for other purposes (office, workout) and don’t have beds. Not all sits are in large homes.
In a situation like that, a sitter could request that if they were to open their schedule a bit to give the host some travel wiggle room, that they arrange for alternate accommodations either for themselves or the sitter if there is an overlap at the end of the sit.
It’s all about being flexible and creative to solve or prevent problems.