I find it odd when a home owner requests you to review them but they don’t review you after you have done what was asked and now they are inactive.
I noticed the home owner didn’t review the last sitter (even though the sitter reviewed them!) so I feel a bit better. Lesson learnt. Check both sets of feedback!
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Omigoodness, I had to read this twice as I thought I might have missed something. The owner has told you about the dog’s marking…Is cleaning up a little puddle of pee every day or every other day such a challenge? Would knowing about this beforehand have made you decide against the sit? Was the house and sit, otherwise, nice enough? I’m not trying to be a jerk but with the all the big issues you could be dealing with (aggressive animals, medically needy pets, house with a leaky toilet, etc.) is cleaning up a marking puddle so bad? You are after all, enjoying free lodging and possibly other perks. Makes us home owners worry about that our pets aren’t perfect in every way. Thoughts?
Oh @Tourmalinequeen, I hear you loud and clear! But this housesit was terrible from the moment we walked in to find a house that has not been cleaned, and us not wanting to touch anything without cleaning it first and then no hot water in the kitchen! Not new dirt, caked on dirt in appliances that clearly has come a few years. There were so many things wrong with this sit, I can’t start telling you, so this definitely tainted our experience regarding the marking doggy. It didn’t feel like a fair exchange at all, certainly not enjoyable for us. We thought it would never end, and it was one of our longer sits. The funny thing is, the house is not unsightly, it’s actually quite pretty, but neglected by a young couple who clearly doesn’t value deep cleaning (yet).
Of course we have to clean up the occasional vomit or accident, that is always to be expected. But since this housesit, my husband has made it clear that a ‘marking dog’ is a no-go for future housesits, that’s why I would prefer to know. When the pee seeps into a shaggy rug that has clearly not been vacuumed with a good suction vacuum cleaner, it is gross. I had to clean their vacuum filter too, because have you any idea how upsetting it is to try and vacuum a house when the vacuum cleaner is so clogged that it no longer does anything? No wonder the house feels dirty. This is just one example and I’d rather stop here, 'm getting upset again. I took photos, it’s unbelievable. After opening the microwave, I just closed it again and decided, no way I’m cleaning that.
Funny thing is, HO said the house has been professionally cleaned before they left. Fat chance. But as others have mentioned, the poor cleaners can only do so much when the tools aren’t good quality.
PS. I have left an honest review but obviously didn’t mention all the little things/issues. We gave them 4 stars but mentioned in our review that we would have appreciated a cleaner home. They haven’t left a review yet. Not sure if we shall push for one or not. Probably just call it a loss and move on. They are actually really nice people!
But we were very happy to be away from there.
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Cleaning up occasional puddles is not a big deal but a house where the dog habitually marks often has a bad smell. This would be enough to put me off.
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I don’t think THS should aspire to be like AirBnB at all. That platform is a disaster and most people are really unhappy with it. Review wars exist there, but you have less control over your reviews and host communications.
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The part I like about the airbnb review system is that the review is held in limbo until the other person reviews as well, or until 30 (?) days. Every system has issues, but that would help IMO.
I disagree - I have used it as a guest and as a host for many years and think the platform is great.
What do you mean by ‘most’ people ?- I’m not sure where you would find that data.
Also, I don’t understand your final comment -
What do you mean by this?
No review system is perfect but I think the Airbnb system is as good as it is possible to get
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Hi 
I have suggested this rating system of a house sit to member manager several times. Hope they take this up soon!
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The problem nowadays is everyone is offended by everything so freedom of speech is very difficult . I like to think I’m a kind empathetic person. But I suppose it would be a boring world if we all think the same.an eclectic mix.
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@Colin - I thought your review was perfect. I definitely would have been able to read between the lines and it would have put me off applying for the sit but it was still a pleasant review.
l’m currently on a sit that has very loud traffic noise that wasn’t mentioned in the description at all, as a light sleeper this has been a real challenge the apartment is situated very close to a busy freeway If it had been mentioned by another reviewer I never would have applied for the sit. I will definitely mention this in my review but like Colin, I will be waiting for them to leave me a review first so I feel I can be more honest.
What I’m wondering is why doesn’t THS change the review system to an eBay type model where the homeowners can’t leave negative reviews but the sittera can? This may seem unfair, but as a previous post mentioned the homeowners are in a position of greater power than the sitters. An option for homeowners who endure a negative experience with a sitter could be to report them and the sitter could be removed from THS if they get more than one bad report.
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I am in a difficult position in that I am on a pet-sit at the moment which had over 10 5* reviews. That is one of the reasons that I am here.
The pets and location are great but the house falls way down the level of what I would call acceptable.
In all fairness to future sitters I will give a balanced review but I cannot give a 5*
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yes we had similar sits when we started out . We also left review but sorry to say we kept it short like we enjoyed the pet. Looking back we were worried about getting bad review back. we were nomads and really needed sits for our travels. A bad review would have killed our life style. We have left bad reviews on Airbnb as there is no chance of retaliation.
However we always travel with our own bedding ,pillows, house cleaning materials. The sit always get a good hoovering/dusting and a top to bottom clean. i am asthmatic so even if the house looks clean as soon as they leave its clean clean clean.
After building up good reviews over the years we are now very picky on sits. its got to have loads of photos and reviews.
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I would agree with speaking with the pet owners privately. We have a “marking” terrier/dachs mix and belly bands have saved his life. He came from an animal shelter. We love the “Pet Parents” brand. You might want to mention this to the owners. Not only is the smell terrible but the destruction to rugs and furnishings takes a toll.
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Yes…I’ve had a couple of experiences where there have been strangers in house (A friend popping over on multiple occasions with own key ) & also the usual building work the owner conveniently forgot to mention…which I’d love to honestly feedback on so others have full disclosure of the reality behind a sit.
As I WFH these things can be really detrimental to my experience, and would love to feedback but probably won’t due to fear of reprisals.
On one recent occasion I was told a gentleman friend stores his possessions on site in the lounge and will be popping over throughout the week with his own key…as a lone female I found this very anxiety inducing. Why can’t everyone just be reasonable haha!
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Hi @Briany what you describe is against TrustedHousesitters terms of use there are no third parties allowed in the home when a sitter is in situ.
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I would never expect a sitter to do the deep cleaning I expect of a professional housecleaner (dusting baseboards, ceiling fans, etc) and fortunately my dog doesn’t shed, so most of what would need cleaning, is based on how the sitter impacted the house. If their “footprint” is no longer there, I’m likely happy.
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@Angela_L, what happens when a sitter is reported to have violated the third party policy agreement? Is there an investigation and if so, what are the possible repercussions?
I’m curious as to whether it’s a slap-on-the-wrist situation, or a site ban.
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Hi @Pips the Membership Services Team look into any complaints/reports about members for whatever reason there may be. You can contact them at support@trustedhousesitters.com
When an infraction or incident happens and it is reported to the team they will thoroughly investigate and if the member had breached the Code Of Conduct or Terms of Use depending on the severity there could be an official warning issued or a member could lose their membership status, either way any infraction is noted on the member’s profile/account details.
Please connect with the team.
Thank you.
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Thanks for the reply, @Angela_L. I was just curious about the process as, unlike the rules, the THS grievance procedure isn’t detailed anywhere.