To expect dog sitter to....

[365BeachDays]

Walk dogs daily, regardless of weather, to an extent of course.

Clean up dog mess from garden.

Send updates/photos etc.

Keep house in decent condition - I.e, the way it was before.

I'd be interested to hear your thoughts.

TIA

@Weflewinstyle She was recommended on a local FB, but she was just starting out at the time. Yes, other than picking up mess from garden, as to me that was fairly standard. She used to, sort of sporadically, but now not at all. Walks were always short, but this last time practically stopped altogether.

I got the invoice a few days a go and I feel very uncomfortable about it.

I would expect walking, poo picked up and house in good order (not spotless, I’d expect it to be tidy but wouldn’t be too bothered if it had got a bit dusty or they’d not cleaned the hob or similar).
Updates as long as I trusted them they’d be a nice to have, rather than a necessity? When we go away we usually get one email during the week with a picture of them on a walk. Otherwise I’m happy to trust they are having a nice time and they’ll get in touch in case of emergency

I'd pay it and not book again also don't "review," the service put it down to a bad experience. They won't get much work if they are not doing it properly.

She’s doing a bad job - don’t use her again.

I wouldn't need photos or updates I would presume all is ok unless I heard any different but yeah all the rest sounds normal

@SerenityNowInsanityLater yes, basically.

Dp thinks we should just pay and move on, but it just doesn't feel fair. Whereas she's never done a great job, this feels a bit more of a pass take tbh. We know we won't be using her again, but principally it just feels wrong to pay for a service that we/our dogs didn't get.

How much did you pay her and what was the deal ?
Just house sitting your dogs for the week, not working elsewhere?
Makes a big difference really as to what one could reasonably expect

@WandaWonder I understand that's individual choice, but most sitters we've used in the past will have this in their job description and so did she. The first couples of times I'd get the odd photo and update, maybe 1 a day and I would be happy with that, but then it got to no updates at all and no replies to my messages or at least not for a long time. I wouldn't be bombarding her with messages, just the odd, "all OK?". One of our dogs has health issues, so pretty normal I would say. I could even see that she'd been online on WhatsApp, but chose to ignore my message, which just felt so bloody rude, knowing she's sat in our house and looks at my message and thinks, 'nah...that's not important enough to respond to' 🙄

Were they fed and watered and walked although not as far as you would take it? If your dog isn't distressed then leave it I mean you could say that you weren't happy with the service but I think you should pay them and move on.

They were fed and watered (I'm assuming) but in a week were very briefly walked for 15/20 minutes, twice. We will pay, I'm just not happy with the amount.

Are the dogs healthy/ is everything okay?

if yes: I’d pay and just book somebody else.

in regards to your expectations: keeping the house in order? What do you mean with that?

I would expect a dog sitter to provide dog related services (which includes picking up poo etc.), but nothing pertaining to the house unless it was directly related to the dogs.

Was the amount quoted or is it added on ?

...to not post on MN how offended she is that I've taken her DDs friend on holiday, but not her DD?

I'm not disagreeing with you the service sounds awful but the main thing is the dog is fine 2 20 minute walks is fine. You should tell her you expected much more from her.

Out of interest how do you know she didn’t walk the dogs much? Was she open about it?

A dog-sitter is there to take proper care of the dogs. If they didn’t give them a proper walk every day or clear up after them, they’re not doing that. A decent daily walk, and not being surrounded by a week’s turds when they go into the garden, is the minimum care your dogs should have had.

You should probably have discussed what was expected, though.

2 20 minute walks is fine

Not for an entire week it isn’t.

What she did is disgraceful - especially as she must have known that you expected more due to her previous stays with you when she walked the dogs daily.

I think you should leave a factual review on facebook - as a dog owner I would absolutely want to know what sort of service she provides (or doesn't provide in this case).

I'm a dog sitter, I would do all those things you mentioned OP. Plus I usually buy milk and bread for the owners on their return. I always leave it clean and tidy, and if time I strip the bed and wash the bedding

Walk dogs daily, regardless of weather, to an extent of course.
No, she's a dog sitter not dog walker. The clue's in the name, the person is being paid to sit and watch the dog.

Clean up dog mess from garden.
Probably if the garden didn't have any shit in it when their period of service started. If you'd left your dog shit from previous occasions though it would be unreasonable to expect the sitter to clean up your mess.

Send updates/photos etc.
Not unless you'd agreed the frequency of this beforehand.

Keep house in decent condition - I.e, the way it was before.
To an extent. Fair wear and tear should be allowed. I wouldn't expect them to clean though - you should employ a cleaner if you want the place kept tidy while you're away. But obviously they should be making structural alterations or redecorating, should wash up after dinner etc.

Shouldn't be making obviously.

A dog sitter is there to provide care for the dog over the period of time they are "sitting". Care includes walking the dog.