Hiring a pet sitter for our vacation....have a few questions

[jagafen]

Since we're going to be gone for an extended period, I don't feel right having one of my neighbors come over to take care of the cat. We're hiring a pet sitter for the first time. She's charging us $10/day to feed/water/clean litter/play with the cat for 30 mins each day. Should we tip her upon our return, and if so, what is the standard (20%? A gift from our trip?) Or is is not necessary for a one shot deal. IF things go well, we would consider using her again, but in that case, we would add her to our "holiday tip" list. Thoughts?

 

[msmayor]

Is this something your neighbors have done in the past for free? If so, I'd actually consider offering the neighbors money to do it. Familiarity with your home and your cat can go a long way.

I do this occasionally for my neighbor with her two dogs. They are normally put in the kennel for long vacations, but when they are only gone for a few days she pays me exactly what the kennel gets: $40/day. I walk them twice, stop by 2-3 other times during the day to let them out and give them meals/snacks. The dogs know me and are therefore very comfortable with me coming/going.

I'm happy with the extra money, and my neighbor is happy to avoid a trip to/from the kennel for shorter trips and knows her dogs are well-cared for by a friend.

 

[fabfive]

We just did this. We paid $10.00 per day and brought her back a t-shirt.

 

[java]

My daughter is watching 2 neighbors cats right now. I posted on here I thought she was overpaid. She got $50 from each house- it was for one week- they said go every other day *(but she's gone everyday as she likes the cats)

But we live right in the neighborhood- you would be hiring someone that has to drive over correct? I wouldn't worry about tipping her unless you really want to be sure she'll come back. $10 a day seems fine.

 

[dvcgirl]

I own and operate a pet sitting/ dog walking business, and in all honesty, I don't typically get tips from most of my vacation clients the first time around. It's always nice, but it's unusual.

When I work for someone the second or third time as a vacation pet sitter, I sometimes get tips. My big tips come from my "regulars"....the houses I visit on a regular basis....and it's always at the holiday. Last year I got nearly $2,000 in tips/gift cards alone.

What I get a lot from first-time vacation pet sitters is a nice thank you card with a heartfelt note of thanks. I think that's fine for the first go-round.

 

[midwestdee]

If you are well satisfied with the pet sitter, I'm sure a tip is always welcome - the t shirt idea is cute too. Neighbors can be unreliable, especially for an extended period. Many pet sitters work as vet techs and at kennels, so are well schooled in noticing any problems your pet may be having. Finding a good person you trust is really hitting the jackpot. Depending on the length of your vacation, you could ask a friend to pop in periodically, or mid point - to see how things seem to be going - just let your pet sitter know - so you don't give her a heart attack if someone pops in while she is there, or if she arrives and sees someone is in the house, she may think you are being robbed.

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

We just came back from a family reunion this weekend and had our petsitter watch our dogs as all our usual sitters are family and were away with us.

She came by 3x day, fed, watered, played with the dogs in the backyard, brought in the mail, turned lights on/off, watered the garden once, and a few other minor things. She had emailed me an invoice ahead of time based on the anticipated number of visits (we pay per visit) so I left her a check on the kitchen counter as well as a cash tip that was approximately 20% of the total.

We only use our petsitter once or twice a year but it's nice knowing that we have someone we can call on as needed.

I'm a big fan of cash tips as it always fits.

 

[reagan75]

We live in a small town and a 12 year old girl posted a flyer at the post office. I contacted her to come 2x a day, feed 2 dogs and give water, water 2 plants and leave food on porch for kittens. She told me it would be $40 and I told her I would give her $50. Her mom will drive her but she lives just down the road. I figure giving her $10 more than she asked will do.

If you want to tip 20% would be generous.

 

[jagafen]

Thanks for the input! She lives around the corner from us, not a neighbor, but is a professional sitter. I actually found her by avoiding traffic on a different route from home. Her references checked out, and she sits for some of the people in our building, and they like her. I just wasn't sure what the "norm" was, as we've never hired anyone who pet sat for a living.

 

[marie1203]

I never tip our pet sitter but we get pet sitters that stay at our house. They get to use our internet, cable, eat the food, etc for free so I think that is a fair trade and no need of tip.

 

[EKW]

Wow! At that price, I'd tip her quite a bit! I paid more than that for neighbor kids to watch our cats!

 

[Mrs.Reese]

We pay $12/day for our pet-sitter. She comes to the house and will play with them a little bit. We don't tip her. I never really thought about tipping her.

 

[Cdn Gal]

We are paying $10 a day for a pet sitter to stay and look after our dog. So far for the month of July it has worked out since we have been away for business every week. She stays in the spare bedroom, she works during the day, plays with the dog at night, and spends the night. She is allowed free range of the house, and can have friends over. (but no big parties) She is in her mid 20's and is very very responsible. She'll be here for the month of August. I never thought of a tip so now I am thinking that we should bring her back something.

 

[Tina]

Wow! $10 a day is an awesome price!! I pay $20 per visit or my cats while I'm away. Due to necessary medications, I pay for 2 visits per day, so that's $40 per day! I love my petsitter. He is a fulltime, professional sitter. Its all he does and he loves it. I usually tip him equal to one visit. In addition to caring for my cats and spending 30 minutes with them, he cleans the litterboxes, gets the mail, waters the plants, rotates the lights, etc. On his last visit, he'll clean all the cat dishes and take out the trash.

If you like the sitter, I would recommend tipping at least $10.

 

[shanasbananas]

How did you all find these pet sitters? Last year we used the woman who lives behind us. They built their basement out to be a kennel for dog sitting, but since we were in the neighborhood she gave us a "discount" and charged us $20 per day. I felt that was a little steep since I asked her to let our dogs outside twice a day for a couple hours each time and then back in. I was irritated that she charged me a full days' price for our arrival and departure days b/c I specifically told her she only had to let them out once on each day b/c we could do it in the a.m. the morning we left and in the p.m. the afternoon we got home. Then she would call me to tell me she was letting them out like every 2 hours, which was nice I guess, but it got them totally out of their routine! I'd like to find someone else, like the stay at your house kind, but my DH would totally assume the person will rob us blind!!!

 

[LuLuO]

I don't tip our pet sitters (family run business) but I do bring them a small gift from the place we visited.

 

[LuLuO]

Just wanted to add that we pay $15/visit and our cat requires 2 visits a day.

 

[dvcgirl]

How did you all find these pet sitters? Last year we used the woman who lives behind us. They built their basement out to be a kennel for dog sitting, but since we were in the neighborhood she gave us a "discount" and charged us $20 per day. I felt that was a little steep since I asked her to let our dogs outside twice a day for a couple hours each time and then back in. I was irritated that she charged me a full days' price for our arrival and departure days b/c I specifically told her she only had to let them out once on each day b/c we could do it in the a.m. the morning we left and in the p.m. the afternoon we got home. Then she would call me to tell me she was letting them out like every 2 hours, which was nice I guess, but it got them totally out of their routine! I'd like to find someone else, like the stay at your house kind, but my DH would totally assume the person will rob us blind!!!

You can find a professional pet sitter (someone who is experienced, insured, bonded and can offer references) at www.petsit.com

Hiring the neighborhood kid or someone who does this "on the side" can often be fine, but as someone who does this for a living, I hear the horror stories when it doesn't work out.

Like....the neighborhood kid forgot to show up and the cat ended up dehydrated and needed to be hospitalized......or the friend of a friend had a party at your house, or the acquaintance from work stole a piece of jewelry. Trust me...I've heard it all.

 

[Tina]

We have a monthly HOA newsletter that accepts ads. I found my petsitter in one of those ads. I also see him occasionally place ads in our local newspaper, but not often. He's so busy with long-term clients, he doesn't really need to advertise anymore.

 

[Tiana]

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