Any regular house/pet sitters on here?

[Doodledangle]

DH & I are making retirement plans and and plan on doing some pet/house sitting in UK + Europe up to the 180 day limits.

1. Do we need a website or dedicated SM page? We're doing a 2 week sit for a friend this summer & have done the odd weekend favour so wondered if it would be a good idea to make a start, get a couple of reviews/testimonials & start small so when we're ready to make more of a go at it, we at least have something to show.
2. We have a miniature poodle & ideally he'd just travel with us on sits but interested to know how restrictive this would be.
3. Do you normally meet the hosts in person before the sit or is it just a case of video calls then turn up and hope for the best?
4. Do we need sitters insurance (is that even a thing?)
5. Anything else to consider?

We are a couple of years off yet but in the meantime I'm fully remote and would happily take myself off (with dog ideally) and sit for friends when they're away but do wonder if people would find this weird having a friend staying in their house. We've used a sitter before and it was fab and what started us on this thought train but she's since retired and only really did it via word of mouth locally.

If I was to use a pet sitter in my own house I’d want them to be insured, have up to date DBS clearance, and trained in animal first aid.
By taking your dog with you could be restricting your customer base. Not all dogs get on and as a cat owner I’d certainly not want a dog in my house.

I use Trustedhousesitters.com which is free (after £150/registration). The site verifies they sitters identity and has insurance the sitter can take out but usually the owner’s house insurance is first port of call. You post your dates and info about the property and pets, people apply, you chat to them (text, WhatsApp video etc), agree. Then they either come beforehand to get the keys and lay of the land or day of departure.
I would not want the sitter to bring their own animal as no guarantee the pets will get along. You are there to look after MY animals and property.

I’d imagine bringing your own pet would be a deal-breaker for most potential clients? If the hosts don’t already have a pet they’re unlikely to want a dog in their home, and if they do have a pet then there’s a reasonably high chance they won’t get on.

We do it via trusted housesitters but we don’t travel with a pet. I think that could restrict you somewhat - even if their pets are dog friendly, people generally want their pets to be the centre of your attention.

We regularly use pet sitters but we wouldn’t use one who had their own dog. I’m paying you to look after mine!
Yes, we always meet them before hand. I’m not going to hand over the keys to my house, or the care of my beloved dogs, to someone I haven’t met.
Yes, you need insurance.
Finally, decent, reliable pet sitters are rare. If you are decent, you’ll be busy!
We have one couple that we use a lot, I love them, they are great, but they get booked about 18 months in advance.

I used to do loads of house sitting through an agency.

You must have insurance. You would be insane not to.

A lot of people get sitters because their house is haunted. They have friends and family that would do it for free but they know the place is haunted so they won't stay the night. On several of my regular sits, the family call on me and bring me eggs, chutney and the like and will chill out with me in the day but won't stay after dusk. In all the cases, I was aware from the first night that this was the case and in all cases, the owner or the family confessed this was the reason on day 2. If you are sensitive, take this into consideration.

Wow this thread took a turn!

I’m sorry, what?

You lost me at eggs and chutney.

Another cat owner here. I wouldn't want another animal in the house, OP- the purpose of having a sitter is to make the cat feel less traumatised, not more so! I don't know whether dogs would mind it less.

If you can overcome that, then yes I think a starter website or page is a good idea. But if you don't know what you're doing, get someone who does to do it for you- a rubbish website can cost any business potential clients, and people do have very high standards for their fur babies...

@GelfBrideBULL

Hang on, eggs and chutney, what’s going on?

😂

The dog would be a deal breaker for me as my dog won’t let another in the house. I imagine that will limit you a lot.

I would only hire a sitter through a well known agency such as Trusted Housesitters, and would never want someone who planned to bring their own dog.

This

I do house-sitting as part of my business.

I would never, ever take my own dog along with me even though he knows all the dogs and clients I house sit for and gets on with them well. He stays at home with DH.

I have first aid training, a clean DBS check and insurance which covers me while I’m staying in peoples homes. I also know all the dogs and clients beforehand and would never just rock up to someone’s house to look after a strange dog - it’s a huge liability issue even though I know many companies offer it.

Feel free to ask if you have any questions!

I also use Trusted House Sitters, although as an owner not a sitter. Many sitters do take their own dog with them so it is possible but as PPs have pointed out it does limit your options.

Also as well as the membership fee, THS have also introduced a £9 booking fee per sit (for both sitters and home owners).

Also despite spending a lot of time on the THS chat forum, none of the sitters have ever mentioned ghosts 👻 THS does have a no third party rule so that must keep them away.