Hi there! I am currently on my first trip leaving my cats and house with a THS sitter. I searched in the forum but could not quite find exactly what I am looking for.
My question to you is what type of updates is expected from the sitter? I left today very early in the morning and left my cats with the sitters (as expected hiding) after a handover. I did not hear at all from the sitters in the whole day, and to be honest I expected a bit more proactive communication. Not the type of updates and pictures every 30 min, but just a quick confirmations whether the cats came out of under the bed or similar, and if everything was fine (we left a very nice breakfast for them, so also a thanks would have been appreciated). In my ad I clearly stated that we wanted to receive pictures and/or videos. My question is basically what are your experiences and what is ânormalâ. Also I do not want to be the type of annoying owner, but just to be clear they are there to take care of the cats⌠just donât know how to handle the situation appropriately. Thanks in advance for the replies.
This needs to be discussed! Iâve done everything from multiple times a day to âonly if something is wrong or you have a questionâ depending on preference of owner. It varies so much and expectations without communication are a recipe for disappointment. As a sitter I always ask. But if there was no discussionâŚwell, maybe shoot a friendly text asking how thing are and say âI realize we forgot to cover this but do you think you could shoot me a text every (your preferred interval)days just checking in?â
I also donât see anything in your ad about thisâŚ
Just send a quick friendly note asking how the first day went and if the kitties came out to say hi. My experience has been that no news is good news, but if youâre nervous thereâs no harm in checking in. Then you can confess to missing your kitties more than expected and ask them to shoot you a quick note or photo daily if youâd like.
Will do! Thanks for the reply. I think this is a good idea. Just was wondering since I do not want to be âover-reactingâ.
Thanks for the note! I will definitely will communicate this to them and in the future. Just notice it is indeed not in the ad itself but I did mention it inthe welcome guide. But it helps me for the future as well.
I donât think the frequency of communication needs to be in the listing, unless you want updated every hour.
For my last trip, I asked the sitter to update me every 3 days (I have an easy cat). I had to remind her about this initially. I want the updates to reassure me that the sitter is still alive and hasnât been hit by a bus as much as to hear about the cat.
When I sit, I give updates every day or more often if the HO seems receptive. I would certainly update within an hour or so of arriving at the house for the first time.
The HOs always tell me how many updates they want during the sit. Iâve had the "as many as you can give me (Iâll give daily), every other day, only if you have questions, and âI donât need updatesâ So really, itâs up to you as the HO to communicate what you want during the interview process. Sometimes itâs crazy getting to a new house, re -reading through the welcome guide, bonding with the animals, and getting all your stuff inside the house. Iâm sure your sitter will give you the update you need along with the âthank you for the breakfast.â Have you thanked the sitter for spending time, money, and energy and coming to your home to watch your cats for free? If you havenât yet, maybe start with that and maybe theyâll respond with a quick update as they are settling in
I think itâs best to just send a âis everything okay, is kitty happy?â
On my very first sit, we hadnât discussed it and I got a message after the first week asking if everything was okay (in this poor guys defence - the only messages heâd had from me was âthe dog knocked me over, whereâs the first aid kit? Donât worry I donât think itâs bad enough to go to A&Eâ and âweâve had a power cut, whereâs the fuse box?â Under the kitchen sink, who knew?) Everything was great, other than a newly scarred knee - so I sent him loads of photos and he was delighted, so I continued with updates every three/four days. I learnt from this and now just do it regardless, and also to give some context if asking where the first aid kit is.
Now I discuss it, but you get the rhythm for what people would like, I had a cat owner who said just something midway through the week would be fine, but after she messaged to check under 24 hours after leaving and I sent photos every day as that is what she actually wanted (I think she didnât want to seem pushy).
What makes me giggle is when I send photos of the animals and the HO replies with a photo of themselves drunk in Bordeaux or similar!
This is a great question and in my experience, there is a huge variation in the level of contact and communication that is desired from a home owner. One of my regulars over many years explicitly doesnât actually like any communication whatsoever as she wants to completely unwind and get immersed into holiday mode. Only under emergency circumstances would she want any contact and fortunately, that has never happened. This is more unusual in my experience though I have to say.
Another regular of mine is perfectly happy with a photo every couple of days and that has always been the level of communication weâve had and that works really well for us. There are of course those who prefer daily contact as well.
I now make a point of asking during the initial introductory online conversation what level of updates the HO would prefer. Going forwards, Iâd definitely bring this up during the pre-sit discussion and ask if the sitter would be happy to give updates at whichever level youâre comfortable with so the expectation about this is quite clear from the very start. Youâve every right to have that peace of mind and reassurance that all is well back home with your precious pets.
You have received lots of great advice here! Keeping communication positive and upbeat would be nice. Remember that the Sitter might also be getting settled into your home, maybe going grocery shopping, so sending you updates within a few hours of leaving might not be the first priority for the Sitter on day 1.
I usually try to send a daily update with photo unless the Owner has given me other instructions. On a recent sit, we asked for help deciphering the dogâs strange behavior, and we really needed some guidance. The Owner gave us 4/5 stars for âself-sufficient.â We are still laughing about it! HmmmâŚ
There is no ânormalâ and, as a sitter, I always ask the HO before the sit or during handover how often and in what way theyâd like me to update them. Iâve had various responses, the most usual being every 2-3 days and the occasional pic to my last sit where they didnât want me to message them at all (a 3 week sit) although after a week I just had to send them a nice pic of the dog which they appreciated.
So donât blame the sitters for not updating you as soon as youâve left, itâs something that should have been discussed and before posting on the forum I would hope you messaged them to explain how often youâd like updates as they could possibly see your post here and be upset about it.
I wouldnât dream of messaging the owner on the day theyâve left unless theyâd asked me to or there was an emergency.
Try not to worry and enjoy your holiday, Iâm sure your cats are in very safe hands. You no doubt carefully selected your sitters.
I think there is something to be said for both homeowners and sitters respecting one anothers need for a certain amount of personal space in consideration of how much to contact another as both parties are having entirely different adventures at different ends of the country or the world . A home owner may be travelling visiting family thy havent seen in years attending weddings funerals and other important family celebratons experiencing a new culture for the first time having medical procedures attending conferences etc all of which require them to be present in the moment with what they are experiencing at their end of the world and they probably dont need to be bothered bombarded with trivial info about the colour of their pets poo that day ( unless it really is an emergency ) Also for the sitter as one sitter put it by the name you arrive in a new and often unfamiliar location bond with the animals unpack your bags read through the welcome guide etc you often need the personal space to just get grounded and orientated in your new environment and establish a bond and ryhthm and routine with the critters before feeling like there is really any value or need to contact the owner for any reason The sitter/homeowner relationship works best where there is trust and good will and I think for the owner there is value and graciousness in trusting the sitter to do a good job and a certain amount of letting go of micromanaging of the sit from often 1000s of miles away .
I recently had a homeowner ask me for photos of his pets he had seen the previous evening before setting out on his trip when I had only just arrived at the house had not even unpacked or had a chance to really bond with the animals or observe any particularly photo worthy moments unfolding which I thought was a bit much and I said I would be happy to send some photos in the next couple of days which I duly did do The best photo moments happen I reckon when you are actively and happily engaged in activities with the critters even if its only sitting on the sofa spending quality time with them and you feel moved to share the moment with the owner .
I will happily contact an owner if there is an emergency or I need information and gladly send updates with photos every few days if the owner would like that but no not everyday that would be an impingement on my personal time and space and freedom and experience as a sitter I have actually never been asked to supply the same and home owners have generally been happy with the amount of communication I have provided . . I also had one homeowner try to micromanage the sit from another state in Aust (drove me nuts ) so I suggested he detach and focus on enjoying where he was and being in present time with the purpose for his visit as time was flying by and soon he would be home again and he happily accepted my suggestion and even gave me a lovely review so its possible to negotiate from both sides and as a sitter what amount of contact you feel you can happily offer and engage with and what works for you
If I get to a sit without mtg the HO for a handoff, Iâll let them know right away I got there and the pets are fine. Personally, Iâd want the same if the roles were reversed. No one needs to ask me for that.
Then I usually play by ear, depending on the HOâs response to updates and photos. You can tell the ones that love them and the ones that are meh.
To me, not everything has to be spelled out. But thatâs me and Iâve had no trouble with the PPs Iâve worked with so far.
If a HO had specific requests, Iâd do that, assuming theyâre reasonable. If theyâd made requests Iâd considered unreasonable, I wouldâve told them what I could reasonably do instead.
I miss my dog while Iâm traveling and love updates, which my husband knows. I donât care if I saw my dog only hours ago; Iâll still ask after him when my husband and I chat.
Iâm always taking photos of my dog and pets I sit. I have many more animal photos than people photos. For me to send updates to HOs is easy and Iâm happy to do it.
Well you kind of have to communicate that first. Some homeowners we had needed twice daily updates (which is a bit much I think personally) some wanted once a week. Usually we do once a day or every other day especially with cats as they tend to take longer to relax into the new routine.
Please try to relax and not be panicking or demanding thank yous straight away. Thereâs a lot to settle into when you move into a new home which I donât think you are seeing the other side of. Itâs hard enough locating a mug, sometimes end up having to clean the whole house so itâs at a standard we are comfortable with to live in, trying to get to know the cats, locate light switches and go to the supermarket to get food, find all the keys etc. itâs a lot at first.
Just message and see how things are if youâre worried. There kind of has to be enough time for the sitters to settle in before there is anything to even report back on.
Thank you everyone for the responses! This definitely has helped a lot and Iâm less worried haha. Btw I did message them last night and they confirmed both cats were interacting. So all good. But it was great to hear experiences from sitters! Thanks!
For my most recent sit, the HO (with whom I share an odd sense of humor) jokingly said, âAll I need is âproof of lifeâ, at least once per day.â
I sent this photo with the caption
âProof of Life and Proof of Lumpâ
as the black cat likes to snuggle under the blanket frequently during the day.
Gratefully not all day though!
I always send an email/text the same day/night just to let the owners know that the cat/dog is alive and well and that everything is just fine. Before starting a sit, I ALWAYS ask the homeowners how often and what type of communication they would like to receive. Some say every day, most say once or twice a week or some say whatever suits, they arenât bothered either way as they are comfortable with the sitter. I always send photos but not every time, some owners donât actually like âoverkillâ with daily messages or pics. Just need to communicate whatever is required from the owner and follow through accordingly, though I definitely think at least a message at the end of the first day just to make them feel less anxious. A sitter should do what they themselves would expect as a home/pet owner.
If I arrive at a sit where the owners have already left I let them know within an hour of my arrival that I am there and the pets are accounted for. Well, unless it is kitties and they are good at hiding in which case I ask for their typical hiding places. I try to get a feel for what a HO wants for regular contact and if they are not explicit and it is a long sit I sent an update every 3 days or so. I had a sit where the HO wanted pictures/updates twice a day, in addition to having cameras in the barn and on the screened porch (I unplugged the one in the house). I felt this was a bit much, that I was being constantly monitored and would not repeat that sit.
As sitters, I always send a message on our first day to let the HO know everything is ok. After that, I regularly send updates and nice photos/videos of what the pets are up to so that they can see they are happy. I have never waited to hear from the HO first.