@Snowbird I obviously have not explained myself very well as most people seem to be continuing to give reasons for me as a HO needing to post photos, when my post is actually me saying that thanks to this thread I see the need for posting photos other than the ones that I already have posted (which is a lot). With the things you raise, all of them are addressed upfront in writing in my listing and could be addressed without seeing a visual, but now they will be backed up with evidence.
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I just saw listing a few minutes ago in Vancouver, Canada with one photo of a cat. No pics of the home at all and it’s in a desirable area of Vancouver. Without having to scroll through the comments here I thought I recalled THS indicating there had to be a minimum of five photos posted - is that correct? it’s a shame for a listing in such a desirable area to be posted without any photos of the home. I don’t quite understand why homeowners wouldn’t think of postings pics of their home.
Found it & have passed it over to memb services 
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@Globetrotter the minimum photo rule is for new members. That listing has reviews, so it would not be screened by THS. As @TheMapleKiwi has done, if you see others like this you can pass along the info to member services and they will follow up with the owners.
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I had read new members were obliged to publish indoor photos.
A new advert today (with no feedbacks, no previous sitters) publishes only 1 photo, upside down of the lawn. That’s all , very strange…
Notify support if you are so inclined when you see something that needs attention.
There are new homeowners as well as new sitters who are having first time experiences as we all do. This is not the place to bring this out nor does it offer any assistance to others, except perhaps someone looking to spend time with Goldies.
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Hi @Candide this is not a new member but an existing member publishing new dates.
As @Amparo says when anyone comes across a listings which might need help either pass by as there is no absolutely no obligation to take any action, what is helpful though is to forward the link to Forum Admin via a Direct Message.
I have located the listing and referred it to the Membership Services Team who will help the owner, thank you.
I did not see any feedback so i thought it was a new advert. I read once Vanessa 's explanation about publishing 5 photos minimum, just 1 does not seem normal to me.
I don’t understand the harsh comment made by Amparo
Hi @Candide you are absolutely right there is a minimum image requirement now for listings, in fact owners cannot publish unless this has been reached but existing members with listings before the changes were made may have less and until they publish new dates this isn’t noticed.
Thank you again for bringing it to our notice you’ve helped that member as the Membership Services Team will reach out and advise them to add more images giving them the opportunity to enhance their listing and attract more sitter applicants.
Publicly naming and shaming a listing is pretty rude. How would you like it if a HO found your sitter profile and posted it here and talked about how bad it was? If you’re concerned, share the link PRIVATELY with an admin.
I don’t think writing i was amazed by the lack of photo (only 1 published upside down) is rude
i think rude the fact an owner does not even pay attention to his advert, to his sitters to show them where they will live, look of kitchen, bedroom, bathroom
Mentioning the town would have been hypocrit, you would have clicked…
We all have to learn from our mistakes
You prefer vague critics with no examples? I don’t
Admin Notice: Let’s bring the conversation back to a general discussion about images and provide owners with a helpful and informative thread to view when creating their listings … thank you.
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The town was in the screenshot you posted - until you decided to edit it so you didn’t look as bad.
“as bad” ???
This add does not show any former feed backs, at least on the web site
now there are some more photos : only of the dogs. None of where the sitter(s) would live.
I may be naïve, but I thought owners and sitters were obliged to follow THS rules…
Other question: why ONLY new members are told they must publish 5 photos minimum?
When it’s time to renew our membership, THS manages to contact us ALL.
It could be a nice opportunity to remind the rules, send the new ones (and add the code of conduct link, i had a hard time to find it on the web site this morning)
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Many listings have photos that weren’t taken on the owner’s property. This is fine since it can give ideas for what’s available to do in the area or the kind of activities a pet enjoys, but it may either misrepresent the property, or make it hard for sitters to tell what’s what.
For every photo the owner uploads, it would be helpful to sitters if they have choose from options like these:
- This photo was taken at my home or property.
- This photo was taken at an associated common area, such as the apartment building’s swimming pool or gym that is not accessible to the general public.
- This photo was not taken at my home, property, or associated common areas.
Photos of type 3 should probably not be allowed as the listing’s first photo, since a photo of a great view of the beach that’s a 10 minute drive away isn’t helpful.
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I can usually tell which photos are of the HO’s property and which are common areas. However, I would like if photos from realtor/estate agent listings were not permitted.
I’m an outdoorsy person, so I like photos of scenery. Having this as the primary photo could attract me to a listing more than a photo of the house or pet.
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I spotted a listing that has only 2 photos, both of the pets, it has a large number of applicants. I’m curious as to why sitters respond to such a listing, when they have absolutely no idea what the accommodation is like.
I’m also curious to know why an owner would post such a listing.
My first thought was that the sitters who have applied are interested largely because of the location rather than focusing on the care of the pets. If I were the owner this would raise alarm bells for me.
I know many of us enjoy the travel aspect of house sitting but should we be so ‘desperate’ to visit a popular location that we go in blind?
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Location / dates are probably the first thing sitters look at. The large number of applicants can also be misleading, a lot of them might have more than a few questions before actually accepting the sit. It sounds like a lazy approach to listing a sit, but in the end I think it will be more work for the HO!
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For me it’s all about the pets, I would rather see two of the pets than two of the house.
Yes you’ve then got to do your due diligence, but this obsession with the bathroom I’m going to use us quite beyond me!
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