Have you/ would you ever hire....

[Disneyland1084]

An in-home pet sitter that you don't know as long as they had good references? I'm having a little issue. My family and I are going to Disneyland in August. My parents live next door, and usually they watch my dog, but they're coming on the trip with us. My BFF lives a couple blocks away, but she's gone the same week as us. There's an elderly lady around the corner who's so good with animals and even offered to have my dog stay at her house, but I told her it wouldn't work since she has cats. If I don't go with a house sitter, I'll have her come every day to give my dog TLC. But I really don't want my dog left alone at night. She's a little maltipoo. I'm going through people in my mind close by who I can completely trust. The few I do either travel a lot or might not be a good fit due to health problems. Like the lady on the other side of my mom's house. She has severe back trouble and wouldn't be able to sleep in my bed. So now I'm thinking of an in home pet sitter. What are your thoughts?

 

[TippyThomas]

Have you asked for someone your vet might know? Some of the vet assistants around here do pet sitting on the side for extra income.

 

[dizneegirl]

I'd rather use a kennel than have an in-home sitter I didn't know.

 

[nw6675]

We found a FABULOUS person through Rover. We don't use stay the night services and board our dog, but he comes to take care of our cats. I have no qualms with him being inside. He sends videos, pics, memes and the app sends me notification when he gets there and when he leaves. Plus, I have security cams.

He came to meet us before we ever used him. We were desperate for coverage and he was just a God send for us. He had all 5 star reviews, plus many repeat verified customers. I've already begged him to let us get on the schedule for our 2 week Nov/Dec trip

 

[bobbiwoz]

We found a FABULOUS person through Rover. We don't use stay the night services and board our dog, but he comes to take care of our cats. I have no qualms with him being inside. He sends videos, pics, memes and the app sends me notification when he gets there and when he leaves. Plus, I have security cams.

He came to meet us before we ever used him. We were desperate for coverage and he was just a God send for us. He had all 5 star reviews, plus many repeat verified customers. I've already begged him to let us get on the schedule for our 2 week Nov/Dec trip

This! Have found a wonderful pet person through Rover.com. Heartily recommend their services.

We don’t use the overnight service, but I would. We primarily use dog walker, and we get this type of report!

 

[Meriweather]

We always used people we knew.
Usually a older teenager and they stayed at the house.
Our dog always got sick and got fleas at a boarding place

 

[nw6675]

This! Have found a wonderful pet person through Rover.com. Heartily recommend their services.

We don’t use the overnight service, but I would. We primarily use dog walker, and we get this type of report!

View attachment 756125

Not to be outdone...

 

[margareton27]

We use a Pet Nanny. All the workers have police checks and are bonded (Canada). We used the overnight service for our dog and my daughter now uses it for hers if we can’t watch him.

 

[easyas123]

We have two dogs. We are fortunate that we have a niece who is both a vet tech and going to vet school - we trust her 110% in our house and with our dogs. BUT if she was ever not available - and lets face it, that's going to happen at some point as she becomes busier and busier - I would explore the idea of having a house sitter come to the house.

Is there a reason you have not considered a quality, decent boarding facility? We have one dog we can't really board, it stresses him out and fouls his whole system up, but if we HAD to go out of town I know he'd at least be well cared for and safe there.

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

I've had really good luck with Rover sitters as well. Both for drop in and overnight stays. Currently I just have 2 cats so I just need drop ins and I have a local person who is fantastic that we found originally on Rover but just book with directly now since she's off Rover and has her own business. She was a godsend when my dad had some health challenges last year and we needed a lot of last minute help. I've always met the person ahead of time and wouldn't book if I didn't feel comfortable with them. Of course the only time I had a problem was when a friend was supposed to be cat sitting for us and just decided not to show up for a few days with zero communication. It took a big toll on the friendship.

Long story short (I know, too late), I wouldn't hesitate as long as I met the person ahead of time and they had some recommendations.

 

[unrequited23]

We used Rover to find a dog sitter that would keep our dog in their home. We searched for someone with no other pets, as our elderly dog would get very anxious around dogs she did not know, especially if they were barking. (That's why we didn't board--we tried once.) It was a very good experience.

It is much harder to find a cat sitter to bring the cat to their house.

 

[tvguy]

I'd rather use a kennel than have an in-home sitter I didn't know.

Same here. Actually, we used a "Pet Resort" when we could, although our cat clearly questioned if it was a resort. She had health issues that required daily medication so boarding at the vet was the only option during the last 4 years of her life.

 

[_19disnA]

I would use a kennel. Having some stranger stay alone in your home who you found on the internet isn't something I would feel comfortable doing regardless of whatever references they might have.

 

[PAsFab5]

We have 3 dogs and a garden variety of small animals so we need a in home sitter because we just can’t move everyone.

We have found a sitter through Facebook-insured businesses and we interviewed a few and used the same company/sitter for years. She does not sleep over, she comes 3 times a day each day.

She had all types of paperwork-what to do in a emergency with our dogs, where to take them and we had to keep a credit card on file at our vet for her in case of emergency.

 

[CynBeth]

We always board our dog at a kennel. We feel better when we are on vacation knowing she is with people who are trustworthy and someone is there 24/7 plus during the day she gets to play with the other dogs that are there.

 

[RamblingMad]

I’ve used vet techs that moonlight as pet sitters without any problems. They have worked at my past vet.

 

[Disneyland1084]

Is there a reason you have not considered a quality, decent boarding facility? We have one dog we can't really board, it stresses him out and fouls his whole system up, but if we HAD to go out of town I know he'd at least be well cared for and safe ththere.

I might consider that. With my parents being next door and coming on the trip, there won't be any activity going on at either house. If I can't find anyone, I may go that route, then just have a neighbor take care of my garden and bring in the mail, etc..

 

[Disneyland1084]

Have you asked for someone your vet might know? Some of the vet assistants around here do pet sitting on the side for extra income.

No, but I will.

 

[JLTraveling]

Ask if your vet does overnight boarding. We stumbled onto it by accident, because my grandmother offered to keep our very spirited German shepherd, but the first time she took him for a walk, he walked her lol. She called and said he was safely boarded at his regular vet.

It turned out to be the best thing ever! Trapper LOVED his vacations at the vet. He'd bound into the car, and as soon as we got there he would jump up and put his front paws on the counter, tail wagging wildly. They said he was incredibly well behaved (better than he was at home lol).

I don't remember the cost, but it was pretty low compared to pet resort type places and WAY cheaper than in home pet sitting. And it was convenient, because they could go ahead and give him a checkup if one was due, grooming if he needed it, just one stop service. And we trusted our vet implicitly, so no worries while we were gone.

 

[LoveSpringsteen]

I struggle with this, too! Our dog is very anxious and very attached to us. I don’t have anyone nearby to ask. In the past, we boarded him at a deluxe resort and he hid underneath the play apparatus most of the time. The workers told us they thought they lost him because he was hiding. He also came down with kennel cough after that stay.

I need to board him in June for a few days this summer and need to figure this out. I’m probably going to go with a kennel again.