Pet Sitter Pet Peeves

The best part of being a professional pet sitter is spending time with pets. Taking care of pets, loving on them, and providing a valuable service for their guardians gives us great pleasure and pride. There are however some aspects of pet sitting that are not so pleasant. These pet sitter pet peeves may cost you your pet sitter.

Pet Sitter Pet Peeves

Here are some pet sitter pet peeves:

No cleaning supplies

Pets make messes! Their water and food dishes need cleaned out. Litter needs swept up. Pet sitters want to be sure your home is in tip top condition when you return. It makes our job so much harder when there are no cleaning supplies available. Please at least leave your pet sitter some paper towels. Make sure the broom, dustpan, and vacuum are available. Most importantly, leave a litter scoop if you have cats.

Not enough cat litter

Scooping out litter boxes is not a fun chore. Not leaving a supply of extra litter is most definitely a pet sitter pet peeve. It’s really awful when clients leave only a dusting to cover the bottom of the litter box. The pee & poo cements to the box. It takes some arm muscle to chisel that goo out. We don’t like cleaning that mess and cats certainly don’t like doing their business when there is not enough litter to cover up.

This is especially gruesome in multi kitty households when there aren’t enough litter boxes available for the cats. Make sure your cats and pet sitter are happy. Leave an adequate supply of litter but also be sure to supply enough cat boxes. The rule of thumb is one box per cat plus one extra.

Non emergent calls/texts in the middle of the night

Pet sitters have long grueling schedules. They start early, work late and spend all holidays and weekends caring for pets. We certainly encourage our pet guardians to check in on their pets while they are away. We love receiving calls for new service bookings. Surprisingly though we get many calls and text messages after 10 pm or before 6 am for non emergent calls. We keep the phone on for emergencies. This is in case someone is in an accident, sudden death or illness in the family, or their return home from a trip is delayed.

A big pet peeve of pet sitters is receiving a call at midnight asking how Fluffy is doing or to ask for a change in a reservation that is booked 2 months out. Please be respectful of your pet sitter’s down time. They need to sleep, spend time with their family and pets. If your pet sitter has office hours, please contact during that time. Would you want your boss contacting you at 2am for something that could be discussed while you were at work the next day?

Leaving an ill or injured pet with no warning

It is very upsetting when pet guardians fail to let us know that their pet is ill or has been injured prior to arriving for service. As professional pet sitters, we take the well-being of your pet very seriously. It is not fair to your pet to leave them hurting. Nor is this fair to the pet sitter. A sick or injured pet requires more time and may even need emergent veterinarian care.

Not adequately scheduling enough time with the pets

The cost to have someone care for your pets can add up. Scheduling enough time for your pet to receive the proper care and attention while you are away will result in a happy, well cared for pet. Skimping by scheduling shorter time visits is a disservice for your pet.

Unrealistic expectations

Unrealistic expectations are very frustrating to a pet sitter. There are some things we have no control over. We can’t make your dog poop within a 20 minute visit if they don’t need to. We can’t guarantee to be at your house at exactly noon every day if there is not a medical need. If you have 10 pages of notes for the care of your pet, have multiple pets all fed different foods, at different places, 6 litter boxes, and 3 dogs that need to go out separately, we can’t make that happen in a 30 minute visit even if you are able to. One of the most unrealistic expectations is asking us to reduce our rates to $10 a visit because the neighbor kid or person on Rover charges much less. This is most certainly one of the biggest pet sitter pet peeves. We can’t stay in business caring for pets at discounted rates.

A professional pet sitter will reduce the stress for you and your pet while you are away. Finding someone you trust and can rely on will make traveling much more enjoyable. Avoid these pet sitter pet peeves to keep your pet sitter coming back then next time you need to go away.

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