What to you pay housesitters?

[kmk1180]

So when we go on vacation for a week, we leave behind the 3 dogs, 1 cat and fish. We're having trusted 24 year old neighbor girl stay at our house when we are gone to take care of the animals.
We're pretty easy on instructions..food water, make sure they don't leave the fenced in yard.
Basically that they are still here and not dead when we return. Beyond sleeping here, she's free to come and go at her pleasing and live her normal life.
Our question is what's a fair price to pay for a week of watching them?
Your opinions please.

 

[Mich Mouse]

We pay our sitter $30.00 per day. I also leave the house stocked with lots of prepared homemade foods...Lasagna, Soups, etc. Plenty for the entire week. It is crazy trying to pack for the family and prepare all the food, but....

It is well worth it to leave our Lab with a trusted friend and not in a kennel.

 

[Disneycrazy!!]

We pay our neighbor $100 for a whole week and that is just her coming by the house once a day to feed and water the outside dogs and make sure they are ok.
If I were to board the 2 dogs for a week , I would pay over 250 for a week.

 

[brendaziz]

I wouldn't pay less than $200 for a week, but that's just me.
Maybe I'd give like $100 if I were providing all the food like someone else said- or maybe i'd give $100 adn then a few gift cards to the nearest restaurants with togo.

I'd also though- not nail down a figure until after I got home to make sure nothign was destroyed or anything I'd prob "tip" a little extra if the place is spotless and what not. For above and beyond kidn of stuff.

 

[wild4dis]

Just spent 9 nights at OKW in April, thats 11 nights worth of 2 dogs in the kennel because of flight schedule, that with grooming, "playtime" etc would cost me about $1000.
We payed friend who lives with her parents who is in law school $400 to stay at our house and feed the dogs...no realwork,they stay in yard with invisible fence, and are pretty laid back ( 2 labs). She got her ownplace to stay, hot tub, big screen tv, stocked fridge.... a pretty good deal for her and a great deal for us...saved lots of money.

Problem is how many people do you really know who could move into your house for a week like that? this was our first time doing this and will do it again this summer when we haed to the beach

 

[Arkansan]

We found a wonderful woman in our neighborhood to watch our dog while we were in Disney in May. She didn't sleep here (but offered to, as our dog was the only one she was watching that week) but did come over 4-5 times per day between 6:30 am and 10:30 pm. She walked the dog and fed/watered her for $205 for the week. (Friday evening to next Saturday late afternoon)

It was a bargain for us! Even though she charged a little more than kennels in our area, our dog is 15 yrs old and doesn't do well in them. She is a "people" dog and needs some TLC and company. She checked in with us twice during the week and even took in our mail! She also made the house look "lived in" to an outsider. As she was coming and going at different times, she would turn on lights, etc. We would use her again. Our dog was happier and so were we. She was also more flexible than kennels would be. We left a little later than we intended (of course) and she was ok with that plus we could see our dog right away when we got back. Some of the places I called didn't have Sunday pickup, so we would have had to pay for another day and couldn't have picked up the dog until Monday.

Have a fun trip!

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

I have had friends house sit and wathc my animals for free.!! No paymet necessary. Isnt that what friedns are for?

 

[ms*mountaineer]

I also have a friend that house-sits for free. She is 22 and lives with her parents - so she enjoys the opportunity to live on her own for a week! I bring her gifts as a thank-you.

 

[jwhtewolfd]

Hey guys. I'm glad you all were able to find someone you trust so that your babies could stay in the comfort of their homes. Just a reminder though to be sure to leave your vet's info for the sitter and a dollar amount up to which you are authorizing/willing to spend "just in case" something happens. I'm sure a trusted sitter would contact you if something would arise, but you don't want them to delay getting help if you are unreachable for whatever reason.

My mom watches my two for me when we go. I have complete faith in my co-workers at the vet, but I choose not to inflict my "angels" upon them.

 

[mc'smommy]

I wish some of you lived closer, I would house sit for you...Some of youpay really well...lol

 

[mcraige]

If we get someone to actually house-sit, we pay $30/day. That's to take care of our dog, cat, and saltwater aquarium. We also leave the fridge and pantry stocked with food, and cash for more.

The alternative is a friend that stops by several times a day to let the dog out / in, plays with it, feeds the pets, etc. She refuses to accept any money, but we always bring her and her family presents.

 

[Disnsyncey]

he refuses to accept any money, but we always bring her and her family presents.

paying with presents is the most fun way I think! That's what we do!

 

[im4pacers1]

Geez, I did it for a week with practically no food in the house and all I got was a keychain or something. LOL. Oh well, like someone else said, that's what friends are for, right?

Oh and the dog had some kind of separation anxiety so when I would leave he would go and pee in the bed in the spare bedroom. I had to wash those sheets like everynight. LOL

 

[shellybaxter]

I have no idea what to pay as we have friends who live right next door that take care of our kitties. When they are gone we take care of their cats and dog. We actually consider them "communal pets".

When I read this post I remember a post on the community board a while ago about a house sitter that was being charged rent - LOL. That would be a deal for the homeowner.

Hey guys. I'm glad you all were able to find someone you trust so that your babies could stay in the comfort of their homes. Just a reminder though to be sure to leave your vet's info for the sitter and a dollar amount up to which you are authorizing/willing to spend "just in case" something happens. I'm sure a trusted sitter would contact you if something would arise, but you don't want them to delay getting help if you are unreachable for whatever reason.

:

This is really good advice. We left for Disney on Thanksgiving last year. We had one eight year old cat and a kitten we adopted in June. She was seven months. On Saturday we were at the Beatles tribute band at Epcot when we got a call from our neighbor. The kitten somehow broke her front leg in four differnt places. She ended up needing a cat othropedic surgeon - and cost $2,000 before we were finished. Luckily they had a credit card they could use until we got home and could pay them back (we were gone 17 days total). It didn't matter how much money it took - we wanted our Paris fixed. But they did call and ask before they drove her 90 miles to the emergency animal hospital. They had to take time off work and everything. We gave them a big thank you and bought them a new camera as a gift.

 

[ptrbryant]

$30 a day for our dog & 2 cats to our wonderful petsitter...plus, I always have some of her favorite foods on hand for her: pizza, ice cream, Dorito's, Coke, etc.

Karla B.

 

[Ashton7]

We pay $20 a day for taking care of our cats and watering the plants and bringing in the mail. A friend is currently doing it for us although we have, in the past, had a professional petsitter we knew doing it. She charged us $20 a day to start and then had gone up to $25. We ended up firing her eventually and my next door neighbor did it until she, sadly, passed away (we also paid her $20 a day). Her boyfriend who not only helped her petsit for us but also did a lot of odd jobs for us, moved away. We were lucky to eventually find a good friend who now lives near us and is willing to do it. They don't stay at our house, just come by and take care of things once a day. We also usually bring her a gift of some kind from our trip.

 

[Dawn68PA]

We have our foster-neice stay at our place. She offers to do so for free but we always bring her something back and give her some money plus we leave money when we leave and a fully stocked fridge & pantry. She and her daughter actually live with my SisIL and she said she just appreciates having a house to herself and daughter for a week. It's great never having to worry about my baby (who is an 11 year old beagle) while I'm in DW. Plus she'll call me once a day to tell me the dog says "Hi!"

 

[Tara922c]

I paid my cousin 100 bucks for 5 days when I went to Mexico a few years ago. All I asked is for her to come by in the evening, make sure the cats have food, and feed my sugar gliders. She also was supposed to clean the litter box nightly, and spend some time with the cats. We came home to no A/C, and a litter box that needed to be thrown away because it was so full! I think my cousin turned the A/C way down, and it freezed up because it was as low as it could go. Never again. I have since given away the sugar gliders, and gained a dog. Now we have automatic feeders for the cats, and board the dog. My neighbor comes by to make sure the cats are okay, and we bring her a souviner. Anyway, if I had a 24 year old house sit for me for a week, I would pay her at least 150 bucks, and bring her back a nice souvie. I wouldn't worry about having prepared meals because she may decide to go out to eat, or not like what you could. I would just make sure you have plenty of drinks, snacks, milk, bread, and things of that nature. Hope you have a fun trip!!!

 

[natnelliesmom]

We leave one of our dogs with friends who love to have his company. He gets a little vacation time too, as they spoil him rotten!

Our other little dog stays with our neighbor, who also stops in twice a day to check the cats, feed the turtles and turn lights off and on. He also gets our mail for us.
We don't have to pay him, since we watch his cats and house for him when he travels on business.

It's a win/win for both of us! Plus the animals know him well as they see him around the neighborhood.
Maybe you could find someone to switch vacation dates with? I'm sure someone in your neighborhood will be traveling at some point.
-Sarah

 

[MadgeatMU]

I'm usually the one that gets called on to house-sit. I don't have a set rate because as many other people have said, I'd live by myself with a few animals for free! But, as I'm a poor college (now grad school) student, people usually pay me anyway. Typically, to stay in a house with pets (whether it's a high-maintenance puppy, or several chilled out cats, or a combination), I get $20-$25/day. I'm usually on my own for food, but am invited to eat whatever's in the house. HTH!! (Oh and if anyone in the Boston area is going to Disney and needs a house-sitter... haha)