Helpful content based on feedback and learnings from you, our Forum Community …
“Whether you’re a seasoned pet parent with multiple sits under your belt or you’re new to the community and are looking for your first sitter, there’s always room for improvement when it comes to your listing. And who better to tell us what makes a good listing great than our sitters themselves?”
@Angela_L this is a very informative and interesting topic that I also feel can help members create the best listing.
I would say that the bedroom, kitchen, and sitting room photos are ALMOST more important than pet photos. Most sitters have a soft spot for ALL pets but are worried about ending up on a blowup bed in the hallway 
If you have dogs, the more detail the better about their routines and behavior. My biggest consideration when deciding on a sit is what my day to day routine will look like, and with dogs, there are lots of things that are important to know to help determine that
Some specific things I like to see upfront…
2.What time do they need to be fed and/or walked
How many walks a day and how long they should be. Do you need to drive them to where they need to be walked? Also, if there are any issues that make walking them challenging–leash aggression,etc…
Any behavioral issues–separation anxiety not getting along with other animals in the home, excessive barking, habits that may disrupt your sleep, going to the bathroom in the house, etc…
Any health issues
Where they sleep
This is such a great blog post! It is fantastic information for owners but also a great reminder for me as a sitter of what to look out for on listings and what to ask about if it is not there.
Thank you to our awesome forum members for the input into this, sharing your daily experiences really helps our community. I personally learn so much here that helps with my own sitter’s journey. 
I am more interested in photos of the pets in the home setting than the house itself. I’m chuckling because I recently applied for a sit based on the pet’s photo and then realized I’d never looked at photos of the home! (It was lovely once I looked). I’m fairly new to TH but I have yet to see pics of a home that made me say “no way could I sleep there”. However, I’ve seen pets I thought I could not handle due to size/activity so I want to see that up front before digging deeper into house amenities. To me it’s all about the pets. If a home looks like an absolute dream home but I don’t think the pets are a good match for me…I won’t apply.
I actually wrote a post about this:
It would beneficial if the listings stated if their pets were neutered.
I agree - we e been shocked before!
I totally agree! We did a sit a while back where the pets weren’t, and nothing was mentioned by the homeowners and it never entered our mind to ask.
Hi @Hallt64 @Csovig @Globetrotter I’ve had pets who have not been spayed or neutered and now, especially if it’s a younger pet I do ask.
While it would be very helpful if pet parents/owners included/addressed this in the pre-sit discussions and listings, for some the fact that their pet is “entire” is normal and just as the sitter may not think to ask the owner is coming from the same place and may not feel this makes a difference to their pet’s needs, care or their own expectations. The fact is that sitters do need to be aware of this for a number of reasons.
@Hallt64 @Csovig @Globetrotter, having nearly sat a young pup have her first cycle, (I prayed it would not happen!) I now state in my profile pets have to be spayed/neutered and always raise it with HOs if it’s not mentioned in their listing and not all HO thoroughly read our profiles.
Honesty is always best! We recently competed a sit where we looked at the photos of the home and pets, only to discover that the photos carefully avoided showing some aspects of the home that would have deterred us from applying if we had known about them. It is hard to give you a great review/feedback if we are unpleasantly surprised upon arrival!
Can you ask a question before actually applying for the sit?
@Hallt64 Angela is currently not online, but I am more than happy to assist.
If you have not connected with the owner previously then to message an owner and ask questions you will still need to apply.
But you can state in your initial message that you have some questions and write them there. The initial applications stage is to make sure it is a great fit for both you and the owner, so asking questions, and telephone or video calls are all part of the norm before either party officially agrees to the sit.
There has been feedback about wanting another way to connect with the owner without applying, you can also leave suggestions on this thread:
Thanks for the reply Carla, I don’t feel comfortable with applying for the sit and then possibly having to cancel my application if my questions aren’t answered to my liking.
It would feel like I have wasted the HO time, that’s how I feel about it anyway
@Hallt64 You are most welcome and that is so considerate of you.
What you could do in that case is apply and ask your questions, then just decline your application straight away, this frees up the spot for another applicant, but the owner still has your message and profile details. If they like you and you are happy with the answers to their questions then you can re-apply and they can choose you.
I know it’s a bit of a workaround, but I would not want you to miss out on any amazing opportunities. After all, not all listings contain that much information and we quite often have further questions before we can decide that it is the right sit for us.
Sitters can also apply and then the owner asks more questions and find out that the sitter is not suitable for them and decline them, so in a way it works both ways.
Don’t do anything that makes you uncomfortable, I just don’t want you to miss out on any great sits or connecting with owners 
Hi @Hallt64, if I like a listing but it’s missing some vital information I would like to know, I use “expression of interest” rather than “application” when contacting an owner. Most owners respond to my questions and we progress from there, one way or the other.
Yeah, but you have to click ‘Apply to sit’ which to me means you are applying regardless. Going forward, TS should advise new HO applicants to state if their pets are neutered or not, in my opinion anyway. Not sure what, if anything, they could do with the thousands of already registered HO though
