That being said if you felt intuitively not to move forward. You are completely right. The one time I did something similar was when the pet parent seem quite distrusting during the video call and asked me some very odd questions. They also wanted to see my ID which isn’t necessarily a problem but the way they kept asking and the tone made it seem like they didn’t trust me at all. Not only that but they said they want me to come visit a couple time before the sit. That way I can get familiar and the pet feels more comfortable. Everything seemed a bit much and energy wise seemed off. I ended up declining
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Raccoons acclimated to humans quickly lose their cuteness when expected feedings are not forthcoming. Additionally, raccoon scat has some “interesting” bacteria and parasites that humans need to avoid.
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It’s great that this has worked out well for you. Sometimes I also stay overnight ahead of time if I feel comfortable & it’s feasible. That said, I don’t consider it “discrimination” for a solo female traveler to choose not to stay overnight with an unknown male (or a couple, or any stranger), particularly if the HO is new to the platform & has no reviews.
I call it being cautious — or alternatively: “better safe than sorry.” Ultimately, each person needs to do what feels comfortable & safe for themselves.
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Besides withdrawing for finding another sit, I’ve also withdrawn because the hosts ghosted me on our appointed interview dates. That happened twice! Another time the host talked to me about public transportation options (or lack thereof, despite checking the “pub transit available” option) and it seemed best to withdraw that application, too.
I agree with the other that if you felt intuitively like this isn’t a good fit then it’s fine to withdraw-- even if if only makes sense to you and nobody else. I’m also a solo female sitter and I wouldn’t want to stay overnight with a single male host (though I’ve stayed an extra night or two with couples and been fine).
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- If I apply and don’t hear back in a couple of days, I withdraw with no message.
- A Hawaiian host wanted to confirm me and we discussed use of her car because the dog likes to ride to certain places. She kept referring to her “luxury car” and wanted me to be ultra careful. That annoyed me so I told her I was withdrawing.
- A host wanted to confirm me but then wanted me to come and stay overnight two days on the front end and two days on the back end. I don’t even like one night overlap let alone 4. I rejected.
- A host family who were new told me towards the end of the conversation that they are planning on having sitters duke it out until there was a clear winner over the course of a month month and a half. Sorry, I will never want a sit bad enough. After hosts speak to me, if they are not convinced that we are the perfect fit, I’m not interested because it takes some of the joy away
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Not if they were the last sit on Earth.
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A violent serial rapist in my country also had some victims staying for accommodation with him - can’t remember whether it was couchsurfing or AirBnB. The really grave actions against girlfriends, as it often is. I would think given the numbers that there were more victims than he was convicted of, that might have been especially true if from other countries, I would assume. So always follow your gut feeling. The gut feeling might be wrong, but why take the chance. Most people are nice, so just be cautious.
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We cancelled a 2nd sit after we’d completed the 1st sit…. lesson learnt: don’t agree to a 2nd sit before you’ve done the 1st sit!
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Now I’ve had advice from other pet parents to ask questions like that ( what was a difficult sit). Other questions they ( not me ) have asked how the sitter would handle a certain situation. I have not personally asked questions like that, as I feel that is too much like a job interview.
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Raccoons are definitely cute, but it’s important to consider the local laws—especially when petsitting. Here is California, for example, feeding wild predatory mammals like raccoons is actually illegal. The law treats it as wildlife harassment, and penalties can go up to $1,000 or more. 
If the petsit is in a place where raccoons are frequent visitors and you’re expected to feed them, that could put you in a tough legal spot. I wouldn’t risk it either—better safe than sorry.
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There was a sit offered in California, which was a rare opportunity on a large, elegant houseboat overlooking the San Francisco skyline. As you can imagine, this kind of sit doesn’t come up often, and it definitely caught my attention.
The HO was a pair of busy professionals with a blended dog family, two dogs in total. One of them, as I understood it, didn’t permanently live there. I’ve had similar sits where a homeowner asks if it’s okay to add a second or third pet to the sit to accommodate an extended family trip. Sometimes it’s seamless, especially if the animals already know each other well. But when there’s vagueness about the animal’s background and needs, things can go sideways.
In this case, though, the pet dynamic didn’t raise red flags. We discussed it in detail on our video call, and they assured me that the dogs got along well, spent time together often, and were both lovely animals. That piece made me feel pretty comfortable.
What ultimately led me to turn down the sit was a practical concern: the location and time demands. The boat was docked quite a ways from any dog-friendly walking area. I was looking at roughly a mile just to get to a spot where they could relieve themselves or explore, which, while not ideal, wasn’t a complete dealbreaker.
The real concern came when they mentioned that each dog might need to be walked separately, and that both typically got four walks a day! That meant I’d be walking for six to eight hours per day, every day. No exaggeration.
I had to ask myself: was this truly a fair sit, or was I being recruited as a free full-time dog walker while they vacationed?
What made it harder to accept was the feeling that this walking routine didn’t reflect their actual life. From everything I gathered, these two were incredibly busy professionals, and on a schedule that doesn’t allow for 6–8 hours of walking dogs daily themselves. It felt less like a request based on the dogs’ genuine needs and more like an opportunity for them to take advantage of people.
They were new to the THS platform, and I do try to offer grace and guidance when that’s the case. But this request felt disconnected from the spirit of the mutual benefit and fair exchange that THS is built on. The level of entitlement, whether intentional or not, was off-putting. I didn’t feel respected as a person, or that my time and energy were being valued in the exchange.
So I didn’t take the gig.
(Post edited by the Forum Team to comply with the Terms of Service).
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I withdrew after a phone conversation with the HO when 1) after confirming a date and time for a phone conversation, set based on his availability, he emailed me the day before saying he had to speak to me right away because he had other people interested in the sit that he had to get back to, and 2) during the conversation he declared that the sit was contingent on me taking him to the airport and picking him up and 3) after stating in his profile and in our conversation that his 100 lb dog got along well with other dogs that sometimes his dog would engage in a aggressive manner with other dogs that he didn’t like.
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What country?
Sorry to hear about your experience!
In the past year or so, I’ve only withdrawn applications for one reason: The HO has taken weeks to even respond to my application, and I’ve decided not to wait around any longer. Anyone else noticing this trend of no response?
At most, I waited more than 30 days for a response before withdrawing, most recently, two weeks. And these HOs were not new to the site either.
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You ask this question at the end of you post and it’s a different question from the headline in the post which is, “What Made You Withdraw Your Application?”
So I will answer both. I very rarely do video calls so the only occasion that I withdrew after one was because I discovered that the dogs had to be prevented from barking, because they annoy the neighbours, and one of the dogs was aggressive with other dogs when out walking. I can certainly see the value of having a video call when dogs are involved. I mainly do sits with other animals so I don’t really see the need.
As for your original question, I withdraw my application if I haven’t had an acknowledgement within 72 hours, prompt communication is important to me. I withdraw if another application with overlapping dates is confirmed. I withdraw if I get an unsatisfactory answer to a question I have asked or if it shows that the responsibilities are beyond my capabilities. I withdraw if, by the time the owner offers me the sit, prices for flights or trains have increased significantly (I always check costs before applying but if the owner is not speedy enough in making a decision process may have gone up).
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We withdrew from a sit when we received the house guide and it mentioned that the elderly dog would bark nonstop if you didn’t lift it onto the bed but to be very careful how you approached and lifted it because it might snap…
We withdrew after a video interview where the house appeared overly cluttered and messy for us
We withdrew the day of the video chat when we both realized we didn’t really want to go to that town but we were thinking the other person really did and we were being nice…lesson learned on communication!
We withdrew after no response for 5 days but then when it was still listed a week later we reapplied and immediately had a video chat and did the sit!
It’s the discussion that has been had before on the forum, we don’t consider the application to be any sort of commitment but rather the start of a conversation and we will withdraw from a agreed upon sit if the house guide has new information that is a deal breaker for us like a barking and potentially biting dog…
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If I were a sitter I’d ask them exactly how they fit in the 2x4 walks when they both work full-time. Oh, they hire a dog walker? So this will continue while you’re there?
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This was only one of the red flags that turned me off to this sit, but if it was the only issue, I would have gone down that path with more information. It just stood out as an important issue that comes up for many sitters: the expectation of doing paid work in a mutual exchange situation and how to avoid it.
Despite requesting a WG on many occasions, there was always an excuse. Finally, I insisted on it - stating we could not attend the sit without it - and received an incomplete document, detailing only the needs of the older dog. That was enough, since it stated she was double-incontinent, blind, peed on the beds and needed (I quote) ‘moving with your foot’. This was not included in the listing. We requested cancellation of the sit but the HO blanked us, leaving us no option but to contact MS. We provided screenshots of the original listing and the WG and, thankfully, they cancelled the sit, allowing us to apply for others (albeit at the eleventh hour!).
We also cancelled a sit after reading in the WG that the Husky had always to be kept on the lead as was particularly aggressive towards black dogs, and that bedroom doors should be kept closed because otherwise she pooped in those rooms. Er, no thanks!
Both of these instances illustrate the importance of receiving a comprehensive WG in good time. It seeems there will always be some HOs who neglect to mention pertinent facts in their listings or during the video chat.
We routinely withdraw applications when the HO fails to make response within 48 hours and if, after a video chat, we don’t both feel positive vibes (it’s rare but does happen occasionally).
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Absolutely! 
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