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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to expect my doggy daycare lady not to leave the dogs alone and go out

79 replies

ThisIsStartingToBoreMe · 13/02/2022 21:40

Genuine question. I was filling in for someone on Friday and doing care at the house all day for the live-in carer to have a day off. The client needs to be hoisted into and out of bed at the beginning and end of each day and this needs 2 carers so another carer comes to help the live in carer.

To my surprise, the carer who comes to do the hoisting is the carer who provides doggy daycare for me. I know no-one else is there looking after the animals.

AIBU to think she shouldn't be doing this?

OP posts:
BuanoKubiamVej · 14/02/2022 07:35

Even with a 'lunch break' she's not entitled to leave the dogs unsupervised for that time without the owners knowledge and consent. Yes a break is fine but that would be with alternative provision - e.g. if it coincides with her gardener husband being home from work.

Of course you have to find new provision. How can you trust her? It's not really relevant that your dog likes her and likes the setup. Your dog doesn't have a clear understanding of the risks.

QuillBill · 14/02/2022 08:07

Teachers get a lunch break but someone else is drafted into look after the children.

Imagine if childminders just left the house for an hour for a break.

Also, people are only entitled to twenty minutes break. Not an hour.

bcc89 · 14/02/2022 08:21

I'm saying YABU for not saying anything at the time Confused

getsomehelp · 14/02/2022 08:24

Tell her you want a reduction.
My dogs are fine if I go out fir an hour,
They sleep. ( I can see on the canera)

Pancakeorcrepe · 14/02/2022 08:27

Nipping out for essentials would be fine, on occasion, but this would not be acceptable to me. You are paying her to look after your dog while you work, if you wanted him to be on his own, then you wouldn’t be paying for doggycare! I do think the trust is broken now and not sure you can go on with her without having a chat.

Unsuremover · 14/02/2022 08:35

My issue is she’s “nipping out” to do care work, so what happens if the person needs an ambulance called or similar, not exactly unusual in care work, and she has to stay for hours?
Call me cynical but I wouldn’t believe it’s just this one client.

HollowTalk · 14/02/2022 08:38

She has got two jobs hasn't she? I would have loved to have seen her face.

BeyondMyWits · 14/02/2022 08:44

What is written in your contract?

That should tell you the arrangements for when she is not there. Both dog sitters we have had have had clauses allowing for absent periods. (School run, shopping etc.) But both had time limits unless emergencies... and procedures for emergencies included calling me.

Laiste · 14/02/2022 08:45

Technically it's moonlighting.

Laiste · 14/02/2022 08:47

It's one thing to pop out to do x y z that she needs to do in her life, (you can argue the toss about length of time/necessity) but it's another to be popping out to do other paid work!

lunar1 · 14/02/2022 09:13

I'd be asking for my money back and finding someone else. Why on earth does she think you are paying someone else to leave your dog alone, you could do that for free!

There is no way you have just happened to catch her out in the only job she's done in this time.

Lou98 · 14/02/2022 09:18

Are you 100% sure she doesn't have anyone else watching them? Just because it's only her and her Husband that live there doesn't mean she may not have someone who comes in for that hour. Our doggy day care, it is just the woman and her husband but he works away but if she needs to go to collect dogs or similar throughout the day she has someone that comes to stay with the dogs.

I would talk to her, see what she says about it. I wouldn't mind my dogs being left if it was only for an hour once a week or the odd thing here and there but I would want to know that they would be left sometimes

girlmom21 · 14/02/2022 09:25

Find other daycare. What if another dog attacked yours and there was nobody there to help your dog?

Gowithme · 14/02/2022 09:33

How much are you paying for her to look after your dog all day?

ZenNudist · 14/02/2022 09:38

Find another daycare. You may as well leave your dog home alone. Report her if there is a licence for this kind if business or to trading standards

WouldBeGood · 14/02/2022 09:39

Just the “one other job” that just happens to be the one you’ve caught her at?

I have sympathy with her if she’s struggling to make ends meet, but I doubt her story and I’d be pissed off.

Ownedbyabeagle · 14/02/2022 09:39

I wouldn't be happy with that. We had a similar situation with our dog sitter.
She kept saying certain times weren't convenient for drop off. We assumed it was because she was doing the school run. It turned out she took our dog in then went straight to her shift in Tescos!
Once we knew she didn't go back there.

frogsbreath · 14/02/2022 09:40

No, you aren't being unreasonable.

She should not be leaving dogs alone, i'm sure many are in her care because they are the type of dogs who can't cope with being alone anyway. It's why we pay for dog sitters. So they are cared for in our abscence.

WetLookKnitwear · 14/02/2022 09:41

Awkward.

MaChienEstUnDick · 14/02/2022 09:42

I really would need to have a conversation with her about this. If say, she is only out for half an hour first thing AND the dogs are all crated, then I would maybe be OK with it. But if she's leaving loose dogs unattended then you have to sack her off, that's incredibly dangerous. Mixed groups of dogs need supervising all the time, it's really not the same as leaving one or two dogs who live together at home while you nip to the shops.

MaChienEstUnDick · 14/02/2022 09:43

And yy @frogsbreath is right, some dogs will be in daycare precisely because they don't like being left.

SirVixofVixHall · 14/02/2022 09:46

@Rewritethestars1

The whole point of dog dat care is so your dog us not left alone while your at work. So your dog us cared for and supervised all day. Basically what us the point in you paying for her to leave your dig uncared for.

Also risky because dogs do get over stimulated and fight at day care.

I agree with this.
frazzledfragglefromfragglerock · 14/02/2022 09:47

ultimately it doesn't mater if people here think it's ok that she nips out fur 40 mins twice a day. What matters is she broke your trust. She clearly didn't tell you she was doing this and you only found out my accident. If it was part of your agreement for daycare fair enough but she was very obviously caught out. It's a lie of omission, it makes her untrustworthy.

SmellyOldOwls · 14/02/2022 09:57

Oh my god that's a genius swindle actually. Gather up a load of dogs and get paid for leaving them in your house while you go to work. I don't think I'd be sending my dog there again if I were you!

PhoenixReincarnated · 14/02/2022 09:57

I wouldn't be happy with this either. I think it's safe to presume that the service user needs hoisting every day so it's unlikely to be only one day a week.

OP I think you should find alternative care. I wouldn't be able to trust her again. I'd be wondering how many times she thought it was acceptable to leave the dogs for. I suspect that if there was anyone else looking after the dogs she would have told the OP that when she saw the OP.

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