? about asking neighbors to watch your home & take care of pets.

[jayally]

This is the first trip we will be gone for 13 days and I need to find someone to feed our cats and fish and keep an eye on our house. We last went on vacation in 2005 and I came home to our home broken into and the friend I asked to take care of the cats only came by a couple of times in 7 days as she could not unlock my door, they were only alone for a few days at a time and were ok although very angry at me when we got home. I am concerned about another robbery and I aleady plan on hiding a lot of stuff in the garage in places that no one would think of looking. I am pretty nervous about going for so long. I have never asked a neighbor to feed my animals and not sure what to expect. There is a 10 yr old girl across the street but she is very shy and her 16yr old brother seems very responsible and nice but he has had some scary looking friends hanging out with them. The Mom is not home often. My next door neighbor is older and feeds a bunch of wild cats in the neighborhood, she hasd an adult son who is mildly brain damamged due to taking drugs as a teenager. 13 days is a long time to ask someone to do this so although the fish and cats would be fine with every other day. Does anyone have any experience with this or advice? How much would you pay to give them a can of food, a little attention and maybe clean the litter boxes once or twice(I have 3 of them so they last longer between cleanings) which one do you think would be the better choice to ask? The 10yr old or the older lady? I only have 3 more obsticles to overcome before our trip- feed animals, get decent orlando rental car and a ride and pickup from the airport in Los Angeles and each of these seems to have perplexed me more than planning the entire trip.

 

[java]

Do you live near San Diego? My sister would do it.
But in your situation. I would say the old lady.
The young girl having your key means teen brother would too- now most would do nothing but that temptation of an empty house signals PARTY to others.
Why not deal with a professional cat sitter? I would think they would run about $25 a day though.

 

[dvcgirl]

Hire a professional pet sitter......

Many will visit cats every other day and so you could get away with as few as 6 visits if you are looking to save money. The fee is typically $15 or so for a 30 minute visit.

Just be sure that the person you hire has solid references and is insured and bonded.

I would never ask neighbors or friends to care for my animals when I'm away.....you just never know what will happen.

 

[karliebug]

I would put your pets in a kennel. We thought about asking a neighbor too but for us it was worth the peace of mind to kennel them. It was expensive, but with cats they sometimes will charge less if 2 can be in one kennel.

 

[Skatermom23]

I would probably ask the older lady. The 10 year old would be a good choice only if her mom was home to supervise things. I would also worry about the older brother and his friends hearing that no one is home.

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Hire a professional pet sitter......

Many will visit cats every other day and so you could get away with as few as 6 visits if you are looking to save money. The fee is typically $15 or so for a 30 minute visit.

Just be sure that the person you hire has solid references and is insured and bonded.

I would never ask neighbors or friends to care for my animals when I'm away.....you just never know what will happen.

I would definitely go with a professional. They are bonded, insured, and will take of things you didn't even think of. You can have them bring in your paper, water your plants, play with the critters. The dogsitters we have used have even asked us what to do in case of illnesses, death of animals, and even death of owners. They put everything in writing, and here they only charge $12/visit. That is a bargain for peace of mind. There's no way I would give the keys to the household with the questionable friends of the teenager and absent mom..JMO...

 

[jayally]

I would put your pets in a kennel. We thought about asking a neighbor too but for us it was worth the peace of mind to kennel them. It was expensive, but with cats they sometimes will charge less if 2 can be in one kennel.

I also have fish that need feeding every so often. My cats would be more upset out of their element as I could take them to a friends house but I think it would be too stressful for them plus the fish still need to eat. I had not thought about the party aspect of it, I was thinking more along the lines of they know we are not home and some of the shady looking friends might be tempted to break in. In 2005 I had 2 rooberies and the 2nd time they cleaned me completly out. I am probably a little more fearful of leaving than the average person. Now I have no proof this would happen again as the boy has always seemed very nice but I don't know him well and there have been more boys hanging out there recently. My last trip I did not tell anyone we were going away but someone knew and broke in through my daughter's backyard facing window. I have new doublepane windows and would padlock all my gates. I also have an alarm and who ever comes over would need to know the alarm code and set it. I have a close friend who I would trust but it would mean asking her to drive 10 minutes each way and I don't know if I want to impose on her.

 

[jayally]

where would you find out about petsitters/housesitters?

 

[dmensing]

Here is a link to the National Association of Professional Pet-Sitters:

http://www.petsitters.org/

This is how we found our current pet sitter.

HTH,
Dan.

 

[Youarehere]

I would put your pets in a kennel. We thought about asking a neighbor too but for us it was worth the peace of mind to kennel them. It was expensive, but with cats they sometimes will charge less if 2 can be in one kennel.

I would not recommend this for cats. I think it is a better option to leave them uncared for (with a big pile of food and a self watering thingy) than to take them out of their element and cage them in a strange box full of other strange animals and smells. That is almost cruel.

I have always had a friend do it, but if that is not an option I would hire a professional to come every other day. They do have tablets for fish that feed them slowly over a vacation, but last time we tried this we came home to a tank full of dead fish so I don't recommend that either. Go with someone you know and trust or hire a professional.


ETA: I would ask the friend who is 10 minutes away. Would you do it for her? If she has pets you could return the favor in the future. If she does not have pets offer to pay a small fee. If she refuses that, buy her a gas card for the gas (doing you a favor should not cost her money) and bring back a nice souvenir.

Also- look in local papers- not the newspaper, but those little local things- there are always listings for both petsitters and for general helpers. Ours are called the Yankee Flyer and the Rare Reminder. I know alot of areas get the Penny Press.

 

[ducklite]

Frankly I wouldn't hire a kid to come in and deal with it--especially because you've had a break-in in the past. I'd hire a professional pet sitter to come in each day. They generally charge $15-20 per visit. They will bring in mail, switch differnt lights on and off, and take care of the animals. One advantage is that if one of your animals gets sick they will recognize that and contact you--not going to be the case with a ten year old.

Anne

 

[jayally]

Here is a link to the National Association of Professional Pet-Sitters:

http://www.petsitters.org/

This is how we found our current pet sitter.

HTH,
Dan.

unfortunately the nearest one is over an hour away and it is the only one listed. Maybe it is not too popular in CA. I don't have a regular vet I use and I don't know anyone who has had a housesitter or petsitter. I would have felt better about asking the girl across the street before I started seeing the teenagers hanging out there and the Mom working longer hours. The Mom does not speak much english and is barely keeping her house. She was selling mexican tacos in her driveway until the city shut it down a few weeks ago so she must have gotten a 2nd job. (I am glad it was shut down but sorry she is losing the income, it started bringing a lot of people and cars into the neighborhood up until midnight on weekends and was becoming disruptive)

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Frankly I wouldn't hire a kid to come in and deal with it--especially because you've had a break-in in the past. I'd hire a professional pet sitter to come in each day. They generally charge $15-20 per visit. They will bring in mail, switch differnt lights on and off, and take care of the animals. One advantage is that if one of your animals gets sick they will recognize that and contact you--not going to be the case with a ten year old.

Anne

Yes, ducklite, I forgot about the switching lights on and off. For the OP, this might be as important as the cat sitting!

I would definitely NOT leave those kitties with a big pile of food, and enough water for two weeks. Water gets spilled, and OMG, I can't even imagine the smell you would come home to. I don't have cats, but I think if I was a cat and I had no human contact for 2 weeks, by day 4 I would be doing my best to destroy everything that I could. I think it would be cruel to leave the cats unattended for that long.

I found our petsitters in the Yellow Pages under Petsitting, or in the Kennel section.

 

[jayally]

ETA: I would ask the friend who is 10 minutes away. Would you do it for her? If she has pets you could return the favor in the future. If she does not have pets offer to pay a small fee. If she refuses that, buy her a gas card for the gas (doing you a favor should not cost her money) and bring back a nice souvenir.

Also- look in local papers- not the newspaper, but those little local things- there are always listings for both petsitters and for general helpers. Ours are called the Yankee Flyer and the Rare Reminder. I know alot of areas get the Penny Press.

I appreciate all the advice, sometimes it helps to get different perspectives. I will look into a petsitter and will gather the courage to ask my friend. I KNOW she would agree as she is that type of person and a cat and fish lover but I was going to ask her to take us to the airport and I don't want to be the friend who is always asking for things. She wouldn't accept money for it but I would insist on filling her gas tank to the airport and back even though it doesn't take a full tank. She has a very big heart and has trouble saying no, even if she doesn't really want to do it. I don't want to overuse /abuse our friendship. I would do it for her if she ever needed me to but she has lot's of family that would step in to help and has never asked me. I don't know how to ask her since it has been bothering me so much so I figured maybe it would be best to ask someone in the neighborhood but I can see now how that would make me more paranoid about leaving. Before my robberies I never considered someone stealing from me but now every time I go away for a weekend it is all I worry about. I hide valuables and lock my house like a fortress.

 

[pearlieq]

where would you find out about petsitters/housesitters?

Ask your vet. They usually have referrals.

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

There are other ways to track down a professional pet sitter:

• Look in the yellow pages of your phone book
• Call local vets (even if you're not a client they will still help or may know who covers your area)
• Call the local ASPCA as they probably also know who works in your area
• Call your church (or similar, depending on your faith) and ask if any fellow parishoners are looking to make a few extra dollars for an hour's worth of work once a day (most religious orgs have a community service type of branch and are a good source for babysitters and similar)
• Look for postings on the public bulletin boards at stores like Petco or Petsmart
• Call any local cat rescue orgs as members are always looking for ways to raise a few extra dollars and with their love of cats it's a perfect match (the ASPCA can probably point you towards rescue orgs)

I would look at this as a chance to start a long-term relationship with someone you trust to watch your pets. That way you can plan future vacations with peace of mind that the furry (and fishy) family members are well cared for.

 

[jayally]

Yes, ducklite, I forgot about the switching lights on and off. For the OP, this might be as important as the cat sitting!

I would definitely NOT leave those kitties with a big pile of food, and enough water for two weeks. Water gets spilled, and OMG, I can't even imagine the smell you would come home to. I don't have cats, but I think if I was a cat and I had no human contact for 2 weeks, by day 4 I would be doing my best to destroy everything that I could. I think it would be cruel to leave the cats unattended for that long.

I found our petsitters in the Yellow Pages under Petsitting, or in the Kennel section.

The most I have ever left the cats was for 3 days and they were fine, lot's of food and water but they were not happy with me when I came home and ignored me for a while. I have a timer to put on the only light that you can see from the street, which is my bedroom. All the other windows face the back of the house and a vacant field. I hate having to worry like this.

 

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

, it started bringing a lot of people and cars into the neighborhood up until midnight on weekends and was becoming disruptive)

Then she was probably selling more than just tacos.

Ask at the local vets around you; they'll probably have names of people they like to use. At ours, the secretary is in high demand for house sitting.

 

[lisalovesmickey]

One other idea is to ask at a local college/university if you have one near you. We live near a university and that is how we find help almost anytime we need it -- gardening, party help, dog walker, etc. That way you get the maturity of a college-age student (better than a 10yo) and someone who generally has a pretty flexible schedule and is glad for the money.

Also, I'd add another vote for asking your friend. I think on of the great gifts of life is that we are able to help one another out when we need it. If you're worried about asking her for too much, I'd prioritize the pet-sitting over the ride to the airport -- maybe you could just get an airport shuttle.

 

[ceecee]

Call your vet and ask for a referral for a pet sitter. I would think in CA there would be a lot. There are bonded ones as well, maybe you could have them come every other day. The 10 yr old is probably not able to handle it without her mom's help and it may end up the brother would help. Just stick with a professional and you won't have as much worry.