new doggie sitter how much to pay?

[pocomom]

I used to pay $50 +tip a day for someone to come and stay in my home to take care of my dogs, I used to have three but the oldest passed away so now we have two and one low maintanence cat . My friend told me I was crazy and she pays only $25 with no tip for someone to take care of her dog. We both have similar requirements, the dogs get walked a couple times, played with and the dog sitter can eat anything in the house, make themselves comfy, etc. and aren't tied to the house. No other responsibilites other than the dogs. I have a new person coming in. I would like to be fair and generous but not ridiculously so. What should I offer?

 

[JeRmS]

wow 50+ Tip per day!!

I pay my neighbor $25 per day for two dogs ... the dogs stay at their house though and I bring all the food, toys, cages etc.

 

[Gigi22]

OP, I use a bonded cat/house sitter when we are away. She charges $25 plus a gas surcharge and taxes per visit and comes twice a day to take care of one elderly cat. Should our cat become sick in our absence, we have authorized the sitter to take her to our vet. We fax our permission to our vet, so they are aware (we have been dealing with our vet about 30 years). The cat sitter also takes in our mail, waters our plants, and makes our house look lived-in by turning on different lights, the t.v. and radio, changing which window blinds are open, etc. We are responsible for making sure that external household maintenance is carried out (shovelling, raking, etc.), so we have a service hired. Our housekeeper comes in during our absence to clean and check on things, she will also feed the cat, so the sitter only comes in once that day. Our house insurance requires us to have someone in the house every 3 days, checking to make sure that there are no problems, so our cat sitter covers us off there too. Pricy, but money well spent IMO.

 

[ssawka]

We have a teenage girl that stops by a few times a day when we are out of town for a few days. We pay her $5 per visit. On full days, she stops by 4 times. If we are out of town for more than a few days, we put the dog in a kennel.

 

[rewardsinlife]

Well we don't have a dog sitter, but took my dog to a pet 'resort' when we went on vacation. Cost 100 for 5 days..so basically 20 dollars a day. That included them playing with her, walks, and a place to sleep. We provided her food.

I would gladly pay that again. $20 to your pet sitter daily seems reasonable to me. ( plus even if it seems a bit much..,remember the are watching your house too...and you can always add that to list. ..pick up paper, mail, water plants...etc.)

 

[TaraCavin]

If your paying $50 a day in the Kansas City area, sign me up! I pay my cousin $100 for the week and she stays at my house and takes care of my two labs.

 

[pocomom]

Well we don't have a dog sitter, but took my dog to a pet 'resort' when we went on vacation. Cost 100 for 5 days..so basically 20 dollars a day. That included them playing with her, walks, and a place to sleep. We provided her food.

I would gladly pay that again. $20 to your pet sitter daily seems reasonable to me. ( plus even if it seems a bit much..,remember the are watching your house too...and you can always add that to list. ..pick up paper, mail, water plants...etc.)

our kennel/resort here is 30 per dog per day - which is why I though $50 was about right for onsite, still cheaper than the resort.. but it looks like my friend was right!

 

[okeydokey]

We pay my teen daughters friend $5 a day to let the dog in at night and out in the am and put food in the dogs bowl. She lives on the street and walks over. We have the same arrangement with them when they go out of town and my DD feeds theirs.

If she is unavailable, we have a friend in the neighborhood who does it for free. We trade favors with him all the time.

 

[Jridou]

so just over $20 a day for a community college student to stay in my house & watch my 1 dog. She's thrilled to have her own space since she lives at home with her parents.

 

[jojo9610]

We pay $50 per day to have a licensed/bonded pet sitter come 3x per day. I would gladly pay $50 a day to have someone stay at my house.

 

[Ladcassidy]

Here in the DC area, pet care is big business and more expensive. Our dog walker comes twice a week when we are in town, and 4 times a day when we are gone. We pay $18 per visit, which includes walking the dog, feeding him, bringing in the mail and paper, etc. we have used the same company for years. Sometimes we ask our nanny or neighborhood babysitter to take on one or more of the visits. We pay her at about the same rates.

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

I pay our pet sitter $30/day to come stay here with our cats and dogs. I always add a little extra for a tip.

 

[aubriee]

My groomer does boarding and has a very nice set up where each dog has individual runs, but doggie doors where they can come in and out into the air conditioning into their individual inside areas anytime they want. During the day the smaller dogs that get along well with other small dogs, she lets run loose together in a big indoor center play area that also has a doggie door that leads outside to a big play yard that runs alongside and around the other runs. She then puts them into their individual areas at night where their padded beds are. Those areas also have a doggie door that leads outside to individual runs. Both my dogs love it there and get so excited as soon as we pull up. My akita has to stay in his own individual area/run, but can still see and interact with the other dogs. My shih tzu gets the run of the place, playing with other small dogs all day, and then sleeps with my akita at night in their own area. She also gives them a bath and brushes them the day you pick them up. She gives a discount for more than one dog, so charges me $25.00 per day, which is not bad for two dogs, (with me supplying the food and treats). There is a big, clear, plexiglass between where she does her grooming and the big indoor play area, so she can see the dogs that are loose in the play area while she's working. The only problem is she is always pretty full, so you have to schedule with her in advance.

 

[Mama Who]

My vet will board my dog for $15 a day which includes 2 one on one play sessions daily.

 

[Rosiekins]

I get $35 a day/night to sit for 2 golden retrievers that belong to the family I nannied for for years. I normally stay all night. I walk them twice, feed them, play with them etc. My husband comes along and we enjoy doing it. We are free to leave and come back. Sometimes I come just for the day when the kids and mom are away and the dad is at work. When that happens sometimes I get $25 a day and sometimes the $35.

 

[Lorien728]

I pay our bonded pet sitter 23 per day plus tip to come in and take care of 3 cats including some paytime with them. She scoops the litter, adds food to feeders and changes their water. She also takes in the mail and does a check on the house for us. She texts me after each visit with an update. I have her come every other day as cats don't need as much as dogs.

We went through critter sitters and are very happy with their service.

 

[Turbanator]

We pay £10 an hour which includes walks

 

[4HOLIDAYS]

I have a pet/house sitter for our small dog. I pay $40/45 a day-I kind of round it off. It is so worth it to have our dog and home safe but it is a chuck of money.

She just collects the mail, no cleaning or anything else. She is the cousin of my neighbor, who is a good friend and our little dogs are best friends! So when we go away, our dog has a blast because he sees his little buddy a ton as the 2 cousins hang around all week together!

I would be willing to pay it as long as I trust the person and know they are good to my dog. The boarding is about $25 and he did not do well the several times we tried.

 

[Dopey420]

We pay what the local kennel charges. $30/day for live in house/dog sitter.

 

[lucyem]

I think a lot depends on where you are. Depending on the sitter I pay by trip or by day. The last time we had one come we paid $50 a day +tip. That was 2 visits a day. It included 3 horses (feeding only), bunch of chickens, 2 dogs, 1 cat. The same sitter charges $55 a day when she spends the night. I do not need to feed her, just supply wifi