The HO requests that the sitter can go out only in the afternoon, while the cat sleeps. Therefore no going out in the morning or evening/night.
Also, food in the house cannot be eaten. If done so, it has to be repurchased.
The applications went very quickly. I guess either, not everyone read the very long list of instructions or they are happy with those.
I would like to ask as well (for another sitting), is it just me being annoyed when I’m not greeted with my name in a message or conversation? I’m not expecting to be considered as a guest or being invited for dinner by any HO, but a minimum of consideration I think that would be appreciated.
It is always good to share here in the Forum and hearing other points of view from you guys.
Certainly an unusual request , but if it’s in the listing then the host has been upfront and there is nothing wrong with that . It’s up to sitters if they want to apply or not .
This is a usual request and in line with the code of conduct .
agreed with @Silversitters – every sit is unique, and it’s up to the parties involved to communicate, pay attention to the details, and decide whether it’s a good fit or not based on personal preferences and needs. but as long as particulars like these were communicated in advance, then there’s nothing to fault in the HO.
personally, I don’t give this any mind, but it’s also totally ok to walk away from these sits if it’s something that matters to you. when an HO uses my name in their message, it does show that they’ve given my profile/application some specific attention and are thinking about me personally as they write. but it’s totally normal for someone to just write a message without a name – I do it all the time in text messages or emails – so it isn’t something that bugs me when it happens in THS messaging.
I left a sit where I fed the cat, medicated the cat plus all the laundry, bed remade, cleaning done and was 3 miles away, moving my daughter into her grad housing. And she made the claim I left early. Also booked a sit and almost had to cancel because she didn’t want her cat left alone for the last 6 hours. I made the post that people take cat sits because they have the whole day….not always.
And usually never touch the food, even if told to help myself, unless there are berries etc that will have to be thrown out.
Do not care if they use my name, or misspell my name. If I want the sit and they offer to me, I am not big on salutations.
By your posting about this and what you called out, it sounds like you can find hosts who are better matches for you.
I look for listings and hosts who are more generous sounding, even though I buy my own food and sundries. That’s because I think that hosts who are generous in spirit make better partners in sits, especially if anything were to go sideways.
On one housesit I was on I became “House Sitter” on a WhatsApp profile. No photo . Yes it’s my job but I do have a name. It doesn’t take much to be friendly and personable. Some people sure skipped Charm School!
Luckily I always have a warm time with the pets who love cuddles and attention.. hopefully it will rub off on the owners, eventually!
I’ve had some lovely warm friendly home owners so this gripe is rarely voiced.
Coldness isn’t appropriate when one is looking after their nearest and dearest for any length of time.. frankly some highly privileged Home Owners shock me. One squabbled about the pen I was using to amend their flimsy welcome guide print off and I thought .. you have three homes and you’re worried, after looking after your home and pets for three weeks in the summer holiday period, if I mistakenly leave with a mass produced biro? Seriously?
I felt like cancelling there and then whilst on the sit but hey I’m there for the animals, so I just glared at the owner and bit my tongue. How insulting! Yes dear reader I left the pen and a present for the Home Owners. Every day is a school day.
Fortunately this was a one off. Replacing toilet paper used would also infuriate me. Where are we heading? Disgraceful!
At the end of the day a sarcastic comment damages me and the pet’s chances. It was something minor and I looked at the big picture- I was clearly appreciated as the weeks progressed and got an excellent review for my efforts. It might be considered a petty thing to mention even here but I have been trusted with way more than a biro in my lifetime! I have earned my reputation for reliability and honesty! In fairness the other Home Owner was much more thoughtful and thanked me for the gift I left, wanting me back and offering to accommodate my family too.
Trusted should mean TRUSTED!
Soon I will be able to laugh about it.
The Home owners tried to book me for a second sit before physically meeting me for a first so I said,” let’s just see if you like what I do.” ( I had agreed to extend the sit period by a week to help with direct flights).
I look after dogs. I’m not a dog’s body! Yes I can bite back!
They’ve used our names 100% of the time, so maybe you’re applying to different countries in comparison to us.
It’s only natural you replace items you ate, other than herbs, spices, tea, coffee, etc, unless you are told to help yourself to anything at all.
The request about not going out on an evening may be to put off those that like partying, & heavy drinking, we’d be fine with that. But not being able to go out in a morning wouldn’t suit us, but there’s bound to be a sitter out there that it does suit. There’s someone for everyone with THS.
How are you addressed in emails? I’ve never had anyone not address me by my name. And yes you are a guest in their home. Your a sitter who is welcomed in a homeowners home to sit . As far as the food goes I always ask when the homeowners are showing me around if there is anything in the house they prefer me not to eat, drink, or use. Going out only when cat naps sounds like child care to me. I myself would not take the sit because I like cat sits because I can go out an adventure more they are more self sufficient.
You said the HO said, do not go out in the morning but in the afternoon while the cat slept. It sounds like you are the one that added, therefore not in the morning or evening, not something the HO actually said. I understand the morning request. Cats have a lot of energy and she wants you to play with her or him I would assume. To me morning means 6am to 10:30am Therefore you leave after 10:30am and get back for evening feeding time. If this is 6 pm it gives you lots of time to sightsee. I did not hear her say anything about evening. Ask her if you spend a few hours with the cat in the evening, does she feel comfortable with going out some evenings. The cat will probably be asleep once they had dinner and play time.
I agree that generally the most generous of hosts tend to make the best sits, though I preface that with also the nicest homes I have stayed in have been the best hosts. This host that was upset I left the cat early was very generous in her offerings, but not a great house. I took the sit because my repeat sit was canceled last minute. This was a cat sit in the same area, for the same dates. The pictures of the home made me wary due to my experience of “not the nicest” of homes. My theory so far proves right.
@Mokina, we have never before heard of such a restriction. Seems bizarre. Can only but guess, perhaps wrongly, that restriction reflects a highly intensive relationship between owner and pet. Would be curious to know if owner applies same restriction to themselves or if it simply reflects elevated expectations of housesitter but ultimately it does not matter. We’ve come across pet parents that apply atypical care/exercise/diet expectations during housesit. From our experience, we find that such matters negatively impact our lives and our experience so we decline such applications. Choices.
Poor greeting simply seems rude. Potentially a signal that pet parent has an “employer mindset” with you being [volunteer] ‘staff’ … another decline for us.
@Seniorsitter The cat is indoors/outdoors. He is outside in the morning entertaining himself, no need to play with him. He is also a grown up cat.
As far as I know morning goes until midday, but anyway it’s later than that. Without giving a specific time for the moment (I’ve just seen the post, so no communication with the HO), the time for going out is after lunch and then have to back in the late afternoon, so I guess between 2 and 5/6 pm?
The HO wants the sitter to spend every evening at home.
If I read a comment like that in an actual listing I would immediately scroll on! It sounds so direct & unfriendly! Providing food for sitters is not part of the housesitting exchange - that’s clear- and should not be expected. However many HOs do offer use of certain basics, or even access to everything and that is very welcome. Most sitters are sensitive and would not abuse that generosity. But to have this requirement spelled out so bluntly could indicate the HO may be ungenerous, or restrictive, in other ways too.
Regarding being addressed by name-I understand how you feel. I find most HOs do tend to address me by name (though not always) but they rarely address my husband! This has bugged me since the beginning!! I am the official account holder (and only one person can be, even if both are named on the profile.) Therefore the HO gets a prompt that I have sent a message. They will read our application or message- where I sign off with both names- and they will (usually) reply back only addressing me! Its the same with the WhatsApp msgs during the sit too. I am the one who writes the updates but I always sign off with both names and they mostly write back just to me! Grrr..
I would rather they write “Hi Guys” than just my name alone!
One HO even left my husband out of the review! So it sounded like I did the sit alone even though she’d met him both before & after the sit!! I really don’t understand some people!
@Lokstar That’s very strange, I don’t understand why they don’t give the credits also to your husband for the work in taking care of the pets and the house.
As a sitter, when I send an application I scan all the information in the post and if I see a spouse or a partner or whoever he or she is, I address the message to them all.
I really don’t understand some people! 
