Things to consider when finding a pet & house sitter

Have you found a potential house sitter but still have some concerns as to whether they are the right one – even after making your due diligence checks such as contacting references and requesting a police check? It’s completely normal and most home owners will experience this!

As a home owner there are a range of thing you can do to make sure that your chosen house sitter is the perfect fit for your house sitting assignment. Below we’ll mention our top tips and some.

Get Familiar First

It’s important to get acquainted with a new pet/house sitter and therefore it’s a good idea to invite your sitter to your home for a meet and greet. Try to get to know each other as as much as you can, observe behavior.

It’s quite obvious that if you’re hiring a house sitter and there is pet care involved, it’s going to be a bit hectic for all involved. Pet sitting is rewarding only if you get sincere pet owners. On the other hand, pet sitters need to be sincere, as well as know how to care for and engage with pets.

If you have any pets, see how the potential sitter builds a relationship with your pets. If the sitter makes them comfortable and you can see a bond developing between the pet/s and sitter, your on the right track.

Make Your Expectations Clear

Your initial meeting with the potential pet sitter is of immense importance where you need to make clear your expectations as a home and pet owner. Make sure to cover the following topics:

Live-in vs. Commuting

Sometimes home owners want their house sitter to stay at home the whole day. Then, there are others who are fine for their pet & house sitter to visit their place maybe twice a day, check the house, do some cleaning and maintenance, feed the pets, spend a little time with them and that’s it.
Therefore, it is of utmost importance to tell your sitter what exactly your expectation are.

Payment

Most house sitters are happy to look after your place in exchange for free accommodation.

House Rules

Make your sitter very clear about the house rules upfront, this will avoid any confusions later down the track.

Detailed Job Description

Pet Care

As a pet owner, it is your responsibility to make it clear to your pet & house sitter how to feed and care for your pets. For example, what are the things to be considered while feeding them and at what time. Below are a few examples of the kind of information you should give to your sitter/s:

Feeding: Provide detailed feeding instructions to your sitter, i.e. what time you normally feed your pets, where the food is placed, should your sitter wait while pets are having their meals and then wash their bowls?
Medication: If your pet is on any special medication/s, it’s essential that you inform your sitter about the medication/s, where are they stored, how much to administer and how to administer it.
Exercise: Provide complete instructions about exercising your pets, i.e. how many times your dog should be taken out for a walk, or how much time they should spend playing with them?

Household Tasks

Provide complete details about household tasks, such as how often they need to clean the floor, mow the lawn, clean the swimming pool, if they can answer the phone, collect your mail etc.

Sign up for a home owner membership and get access to our home owner checklist and guide for more detailed information about the things you need to prepare/make your house sitter away of.

Whilst your away

Contact Information

It’s essential to leave your contact information with your house sitter whilst you are away!
Let your sitter know the following:

Your Whereabouts: Always let your sitter know about your contact information which includes the name of the hotel, your mobile numbers etc.
Local Contacts: You must provide a local contact number to your sitter in case they are unable to reach you at times of emergency. This local contact can be of a neighbor, relative or a friend.
Veterinarian: Make sure to provide your sitter the details about your veterinarian like their name, address, and phone number.

Need not to be bothered!

Once you follow the above mentioned guiding principles, you need not to be bothered about your home and pets while you are away. Thinking of going away? List your assignment on our website, it’s completely FREE!

Sign up for a home owner membership and get access to our home owner checklist and guide for more detailed information about the things you need to prepare/make your house sitter away of.