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AIBU?

To think this house sitter was bloody cheeky?

818 replies

Littlefluffyclouds81 · 18/06/2016 23:38

My DM recently got a house sitter for 10 days whilst we all went on holiday. She had used her once before and all seemed fine. She seemed very professional - took detailed information about all the animals, signed contracts, she is fully insured etc.

She was supposed to sleep at my DM's house each night, although my DM was aware that she would need to pop back here and there to exercise her own dogs (she lives with her parents).

She was paid over £600, and for that she had to look after 2 dogs and feed a cat. There are also 2 horses at my mum's, my mum's horse who is a big cob, and my daughter's pony. She wasn't expected to do anything with the horses.

While we were away the house sitter emailed to ask if it would be ok if her partner's kids came to meet the horses. My DM said that was fine. When we got back, my mum had a good chat with her and the house sitter said that the kids had come over and groomed my mum's horse, but not my daughter's pony because she was grumpy (she is grumpy).

I was the first to go into the tack room, and noticed that the bridles weren't in the right place. I didn't really think anything of it. But today my DM said that there is grease on the bottom of her saddle, from where the saddle pad hasn't been put on properly and it has rubbed the horse, which she wouldn't do. Also her bridle had been done up all wrong. The stirrups on both saddles were at different lengths to how they'd been left by Us. She suspected that the house sitter had taken the kids riding on our horses. This was confirmed when she went for a ride around the village today and a neighbour (who has booked the same house sitter) said that the house sitter had emailed a picture with the kid sat on her horse!

Not only is riding someone's horses without their permission incredibly rude, it is also a really stupid thing to do. She knew nothing about our horses, they could have had any kind of quirks, and putting 2 kids on them (when she doesn't appear to know much about horses herself) was just bloody dangerous.

Not only that, but my DM said there's no way that the bed was slept in for 10 nights, so she suspects that the house sitter had left the dogs overnight which she wasn't supposed to do.

WWYD? I absolutely think that something should be said to the house sitter, but my DM is veering towards leaving it, and just locking the tack room if she uses her again! She was paid a lot of money, and in my opinion, took the piss.

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 00:47

No-one else could have ridden them, the yard and fields are tucked in behind the house, and can only be accessed through the house.

She claimed to be vaguely horsey - but I have a feeling that may be as in 'used to have riding lessons when I was a kid' kind of way.

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thisisafakename · 19/06/2016 00:51

even if the kid just sat on the horse, they still seem to have saddled and bridled up the horse, which is out of order. if it genuinely was just a photo opportunity, why put a saddle on? They blatantly went riding.
I have house-sat a few times. For free. I don't know how she can justify that huge amount.

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 00:55

That's what I'm thinking too, surely if they just wanted a photo of the kids on a horse, they wouldn't have bothered with bridles? They'd have just put the saddle on and left the head collar on. Also I don't think there'd have been that kind of grease mark underneath the saddle from the horse just standing still, he was clearly moving around for it to have rubbed against him.

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TheWitTank · 19/06/2016 00:56

I would be raging -seriously. What a bloody stupid and dangerous thing to do, as well as totally unprofessional. I would be contacting the house sitter and asking her what she has been doing and I would also be looking at the contract. £600 is beyond ridiculous. Is she with an agency or independent?

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:00

She's independent.

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TheWitTank · 19/06/2016 01:01

I presume she is a business though? Not just a cash in hand, money on the side thing?

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:04

Yes she does it as a business, she seemed very professional.

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scarlets · 19/06/2016 01:07

£600 is far too much money, irrespective of whether she stayed overnight each night or washed the sheets.

She's very lucky that neither the child nor the horse came to harm.

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TheWitTank · 19/06/2016 01:09

I think you need to make a proper complaint -write an email or letter voicing your concerns and asking for explanations. Your mum has paid a lot of money and this woman has done something incredibly stupid, unprofessional and dangerous. What if her children had been thrown/bitten/kicked? What if your horses had been injured (inexperienced handling/escaped etc).

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beetroot2 · 19/06/2016 01:09

I disagree that £600 for 10 days is extortionate. To sleep there and look after the house/pets, I was thinking was rather a good deal. Id be more worried that she was maybe a bit naive where the horses were concerned and glad that all was ok in the end.

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:18

Fucking hell! I just looked her up on Facebook, and there, clear as day, is a photo of both of our horses, with the house sitter leading the pony, in our ménage.

my daughter's pony looks very unhappy, with the kid wearing my daughter's hat and back protector. And my mum's horse, with HER FUCKING PARTNER sat on him, wearing all my mum's stuff.

I am raging. Just emailed that to my mum. The possibly worst bit about it is is that actually both horses have been given to us on permanent loan, with contracts agreed about what we will and won't do with them, and this definitely was not agreed.

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beetroot2 · 19/06/2016 01:19

How can a pony look unhappy Grin

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beetroot2 · 19/06/2016 01:19

I think you're going a bit OTT here OP.

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:21

I really don't think I am going OTT.

A pony looks unhappy when it has its ears flat back and appears to be shying away from the person leading it.

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beetroot2 · 19/06/2016 01:29

Im sure there won't be any lasting damage. I do think you're going over the top here. What happened? Ok she took them out but Im not sure you should be raging about it. No harm done and that's probably why your mum doesn't want to pursue it any further. You however are firing off emails or whatever right left and centre Confused

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:30

And it gets worse...I've now looked at the boyfriend's page and his profile picture is him riding my mum's horse, with his kid sat on the saddle in front of him.

I am actually speechless at this point.

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:32

It is a massive breech of trust - I take it you're not horsey beetroot, but please take it from me that you just don't EVER ride people's horses without their permission.

My mum I think was shocked and needed to process it, and that was before she has seen what really happened. All my mum knows at this point is that a kid sat on her horse.

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Littlefluffyclouds81 · 19/06/2016 01:33

And I'm not firing off emails left, right and centre, I sent two emails to my mum Confused

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JinRamen · 19/06/2016 01:35

It is very dangerous to ride unknown horses. YANBU.

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Vickyyyy · 19/06/2016 01:38

I am free for future house sitting, especially at that rate :D

But yeah, agree with the general consensus that I would be absolutely livi9d the terms hadn't been stuck to and even more so as the horse thing is damn dangerous.

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beetroot2 · 19/06/2016 01:39

Is the house sitter horsey?

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MissMarpleCat · 19/06/2016 01:40

I think the op is trying to stress that you don't put equipment on wrong on a horse or ride them without guidance or agreement.
Horses can be bloody dangerous unless you know how to handle them. I'm not a 'horsey' person, but even I know that.

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WTAFisgoingon · 19/06/2016 01:40

I would also be speechless OP! Unbelievably wrong thing for her to have done!

However, I'm a bit unclear - you left your horses alone for 10 days with no competant person checking on them on the grounds that they had enough food and water (by which I assume you mean a lot of land and a stream??) That's massively irresponsible!! What if one of them had sustained an injury / got a sudden bout of colic / laminitis / anything else that may not be obvious to the untrained eye?

...... Or am I misunderstanding and the house sitter was actually horse care competant and supposed to be doing casual checks?

I would also be outraged at her behaviour, but mostly on horse safety grounds.

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MariaSklodowska · 19/06/2016 01:41

I don't think you are OTT at all, it was bang out of order.
So who was supposed to be checking the horses?

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beetroot2 · 19/06/2016 01:41

How old is she op?

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