AIBU about dog sitter?

[Dygger]

We have an elderly deaf dog who gets distressed in kennels, so when we were invited to attend a family wedding abroad we asked around to see if anyone we knew would dog-sit for a week. A friend who used to live nearby but moved away a few years ago, jumped at the chance to spend a week here and catch up with her old mates. We agreed to leave her a full fridge and wine in exchange for dog care..

A couple of weeks before we were due to leave she called to say that her request to take the time off work as holiday had been denied and she'd have to take it as unpaid leave. She works part-time and isn't very well off. She wasn't sure she could afford to come if it meant she wouldn't be paid, so we ended up agreeing that I'd pay her £250 plus petrol money. She arrived as planned and we went off on our trip. She sent photos each day of the dog out and about on various walks.

When we got back we discovered that the day after we left she'd tripped over a tree root on a footpath and injured her back. She could barely move, so one of her local friends, whom we know by sight, had looked after her and the dog. Fortunately she was feeling a lot better and was able to drive herself home.

I didn't think any more about it until earlier today when I bumped into the woman who'd helped out. I thanked her. She said she was glad she'd been available to come to the rescue and then said something about her rate for dog-walking being £20 a hour. I was a bit thrown and said she'd be the first person we'd call if we needed a dog-walker in future. She didn't look happy and said something about not normally offering freebies.

I don't know what to do. On the one hand it doesn't feel fair that we pay twice. They didn't even let us know there was an issue. On the other hand this is a village and it won't take long for word of how mean and thoughtless we are to do the rounds.

Do we need to pay the woman who stepped in to help? If so, how much would you offer?

Of course it should 🤣

She chose to hire the services of someone else. That's nobody's fault but her own.

I think an explanation to the ‘dog walker’ to clear up the misunderstanding is needed. And whether you think she’s a ‘professional’ or not, she clearly does this for an income so she needs to be paid - explain to her that you weren’t aware her services had been booked by your ill friend.

she was only being paid £250 for a week’s dogsitting which is very low.

I don't think that is very low, especially with accommodation and a fridge full of food & wine and petrol money thrown in. I had the joy of looking at every single dog boarding option in my local area recently 😂

She should definitely have communicated with the OP. The fact that it wasn't a professional (registered and insured) dog Walker makes me think that she might not have known the "friend" intended to charge. I wonder how much she charged for looking after the injured dog sitter?

I'd probably pay because I am a complete doormat but it would annoy me for ages. I don't think you have a obligation to pay though.

I agree, I don’t think the Friend should have to pay the extra dog walker given that she was only being paid £250 for a week’s dogsitting which is very low.

She wasn't "only paid £250", though.

She also got a weeks' free accommodation and a fridge full of food and wine.

The woman who ended up walking my dog is not a professional dog-walker. She's a TA at one of the local schools, I'm told. She does not walk dogs for an income.

Read the updates, eh? Her services weren't 'booked' by my friend. She's an old friend of my friend and she came round to help her out. According to the next door neighbours there were quite a few visitors to the house that week, so it sounds as if she was one of several people who came over to assist. I'm told that at least one other person was seen taking my dog round the block. If only he could talk...

I'm totally on your side here OP.

It started off as a mutually beneficial agreement - she got a holiday/to visit friends and family without paying for accommodation. You got a dog sitter - for what sounds like a not very demanding dog.

Then she says she want £250 plus fuel so we're looking at £300/350 I take it? That would have pissed me off to start with I think the whole work thing was nonsense and someone had said to her that people get paid to house sit (yes fully insured professional ones) and she tried her luck.

She may or may not have been injured (convenient though - on the day she arrived - miraculous recovered by the day to drive back) and 'hired' a friend.

If this was a professional dog walker with insurance etc I would ask them for an invoice and would pay it I think. A mate doing a favour no chance. I would contact 'friend' and ask if she agreed to pay/or that you would pay her - surely she should have called you to say what was going on? MY old greyhound would have been fine for a few days without a walk so you might have just said not to bother just to feed him etc.

That is a lot of money - I have a friend who boards in her own home. She has insurance to the nth degree etc and she does kindly give me a discount but it's I think about £30 a night per dog.

I would find someone like that next time - but I don't think you did anything wrong with exchanging 'services' like this. I think she's acted really badly.

I've got a few dogs and my brother comes and house sits, we pay him £200 for the week, fill his car up with fuel, and stock up the fridge and freezer, we will also bring him back fags and a bottle of booze. If he'd hurt himself, I'd have expected him to ring us, and I'd have told him not to worry about walking the dogs, they would be fine for a week. There's no way I'd pay for a dog walker on-top of what I pay my db. In the op's situation, if her friend had called and told her, she could have either agreed to pay someone else, arranged for someone to walk the dog foc or not had the dogs walked. Her 'friend' didn't give her the option and now someone is expecting money. Op I'd speak to your friend and find out what was agreed and then take it from there.

Now if I'd paid a dog sitter to stay in my house and walk the dogs, if they were unable to walk the dogs I'd expect them to organise someone else, foc to me, to walk the dogs.

There's a big difference between a mate coming for a free holiday and a few quid, to someone who does it for a living. However neither scenario would have me paying twice for the dogs to be walked.

OP, tell the random woman that there was misunderstanding as you paid your friend, left her full fridge. Plus petrol money and wine as part of your agreement for dog sitting. If she’s looking for payment, please ask your mutual friend. Thank her for stepping in the help as you’d not known anything about friend hurting her back as they never told you while you were away (or however it is you found out)?

this misunderstanding was not if your making, all on your friend, regardless of injury or not. That she never told you she got hurt not that it was not her taking your dog for those walks/taking the photos shows that she’s really underhanded.

Thank you MotherofWhippets. You've summed it up better than me. We went from a mutually beneficial arrangement between friends to me being expected (apparently) to fork out twice. The positive outcome is that various people around here have said they'd be very happy to look after my old boy in future. He's a nice old dog: no meds, very calm and quiet. A couple of short walks, two meals a day and a cuddle on the sofa if you're watching TV and that's about all he needs.

I've emailed the friend who came to stay and said I wish she had let me know about her accident because I could have found someone to walk the dog for her. I've said that I now seem to be in a difficult position with her friend, who seems to expect me to offer payment. I haven't had a response.

Free accommodation, really?!

Is that how people interpret someone coming to stay so an old dog needn't be kenneled?

Why not count up how much toilet roll she used, too?

Your friend pays her! It's not your fault she fell over and hurt her back plus she should have contacted you to check it was ok for someone else to step in...she basically got £250 for sitting on her arse eating your good and drinking your wine....I do think you should have offered to pay her in the first place though.

And £20 an hour for walking a dog? Wtf

It's the going rate.
I pay £25 to my dog Walker for the walk, which takes more than an hour, but I'm only paying for the hour. The Walker has a route that means picking up/dropping off other dogs around the time she walks mine. Just means mine get longer out with her. She walks everywhere as she is local and very well regarded.
I reckon if she charges us all the same she makes over £250 a day.
But factor in days she is sick, it's too cold, its too hot, the inevitable loss of customers over time, the miles she must walk every day, the sheer boredom seeing the woods, the stream, the glade and on and on. Shes worth every penny.

Before coming on here you should have asked the local friend of she requires payment.As you say she's not a dog walker by profession,my take on this is that she walked your dog for a week and her efforts have not been acknowledged.
Some flowers and chocolates and £50 in an thank you envelope might soothe ruffled feathers.

It's £13/hour for my dog walker to take ours out. Includes pick up, drop off and a full hour of walking.

You paid someone £250 plus petrol to dog sit for a week when she is the one who asked to come as it's suits her to have a base to see friends. She tricked you into that, as you said you had others including SIL who would have otherwise

Then she asked a friend to help her.

This friend is now asking you for payment? Get to F !! I'd tell her to take it up with your friend as you paid her for walking your dog already, she didn't tell you, it's up to friend to sort it out with her direct.

Give she's not a dog walker she has a cheek approaching you. Both of these people are chancers

As per the OP, before payment was even discussed, the friend jumped at the chance to come because it gave her a chance to catch up with her friends.

So yes - * *free accommodation and a fridge full of food/wine in exchange for keeping the dog company and walking him once a day. Sounds like a pretty great deal to me!

Well done @Dygger for batting it back to your friend, hopefully she can shed more light on it

I pay my dog walker (professional, fully insured, been working for ages, great reviews, absolutely brilliant and he loves her) £10 an hour including pick up and drop off, so doggo is out of the house for about 1.5 hours. Is that a 1:1 dog walk?

I wonder if your friend said something about you paying for the walker, because you've said she muttered something about not normally doing freebies. It doesn't make sense otherwise.

Great response to your friend @Dygger - it'll be interesting to see what she comes back with

Flipping eck. I could dog sit, get £250, a fridge full of food and wine, take my laptop and do my job as well….. 😂 bliss.

Suzi, you underestimate your earning power. According to previous posters here you can earn £100 a day, plus food. £700 a week and no expenses and you could work f/t while you're doing it.

Bellisima234 · 20/08/2022 23:16
Yes she isn’t a charity and you owe her for dog walking services and you pay her whatever her rates are.

^ That's batshit advice. There was no contract or agreement between the OP and the other walker.

A similar scenario would be that I paid my window cleaner in advance to clean my windows but he sub-contracted out to another cleaner who then approached me to be paid. I would owe him nothing and it's the same in this scenario

Ask to see evidence of her insurance and tell her you'll need an invoice through her business in order to pay her. ;)