£10 per day for hamster boarding! Thinking of switching to pet sitter

[onthefencesitter]

My hamster boarder has just raised her rates from £5 per day to £10 a day. This is in north London. She is a good boarder, she provides a savic hamster heaven for free so I don't need to bring my cage and my hamster always seems reasonably happy upon return. Uses dust free cardboard bedding. But for that price, I could get a pet sitter to come in everyday and it would be less faff (she lives only a few tube stops away but I am always running late due to work so I end up using Uber!). Plus if I get additional gerbils/hamster in future, it would cost the same (I think).

The thing is I am not sure about letting someone I don't know well enter my flat when I am away. How do you find a reliable and trustworthy per sitter? Thank you.

I know some of you use cat in a flat and I think some of those people could probably feed hamsters/gerbils too, it's not very difficult. What are your experiences using cat in a flat?

I would be surprised if a pet sitter only charged £10 per visit. When we've used a pet sitter in the past we have gone by recommendations from friends.

Wouldn't someone you know just have your hamster for a week? That seems a lot. I'm paying the same for my rabbit who is indoor and will have his own room in the boarders house, all hay and food provided.

I paid £10 per visit for pet sitters for my guinea pigs (used a local company).

I asked my MIL before but frankly she doesn't have much space for my hamster and she doesn't like animals. I have a friend who loves hamsters but she lives in the other side of London (and has 3 hamsters).

Someone local to me says £10 for 20 mins. Even if there were 2 cages, shouldn't take longer than 20 mins for a feed/change of water/spot cleaning.

My cousin actually works for cat in a flat. She does stay-overs and visits. She has to provide full dbs and is insured. And she also provides references from her other clients and does a pre-meet so you can look her over. She'd do hamster visits so you'd have no problems getting someone. Choose someone who's been doing it for a while so you know they are trustworthy. Finding a hamster boarder is a nightmare. I know!

How long will you be away for?

I am not going away any time soon but as I often go away at least twice a year, I need to have a good plan for my hamster when I do go away. Can be a few days but can also be 2 weeks as my home country is a 12 hour flight.

I have found it easy so far due to this lady but I feel like I am not sure if her price is fair. I am all for her making a good living but this is her side gig and the hamster is in her home. I know the cost of food and bedding and tiny slivers of fresh veggies. It has not doubled!

She has told me though that if I am bringing 2 cages in and it isn't school holiday, she can charge me £10 for both which I suppose is fair.

I was shocked when I was charged £4! I gave them his food, all they needed was to chuck a bit of whatever veg or fruit they were having. So £10 is ridiculous. £150 for a two week stay! That's very easy money. If I lived near you, I'd take him for you but that's not very helpful of me, is it?
I guess 2 for £10 is what you were paying before but I don't understand her charging plan. Is that because you're providing the cage rather than her?
Hmm, I think a 100% hike is unreasonable but if she's not got competition, you're trapped. And at least you're not having a stranger come in. My cousin is very respectful and sends pictures and videos to the owner so they can see they're well, but she's still a stranger the first time out.
Good luck.

There was no guarantee of availability for the cages. Previously you had to pay £5 with or without the cage and it wasn't always available. It was available every single time that I needed to board my hamster but I suppose I was lucky. Re gerbils, she didn't have tanks so you had to bring your own (and she charged the same for gerbils as well as hamsters).

I agree re pricing. It's honestly not like a cat or a dog..there is barely any input required. I take my hamster out everyday but I don't expect her to do that and frankly many hamsters are scared of strangers..

Take this as a wake up call to build a local community. I’m guessing if you don’t have neighbours who could do this you wouldn’t have had someone to bring you shopping if you’d had to self isolate or to run you to A&E in the middle of the night or sit with you in an emergency. I’m no Mother Theresa but know a dozen people who’d do it for me and vice versa.

Can you get to know your neighbours and ask if one of them can pop in and feed the hamsters every other day. This is what we do with the guinea pigs we have - a neighbour and her 12 year old come by, top up hay and water, give them a cuddle and some veg. I buy the mum a bottle of wine and the kid a bag of sweets in return.

Or even better find someone local who also has a hamster and you can reciprocate.

I agree with @Etinoxaurus I know it's not easy & it's more difficult in some places than others. I also know I need to 'up my game' myself, but good neighbours, friends, casual acquaintances ARE important.

I do think £10 pd for babysitting a hamster in your own home is taking the piss

shame you're in london not near me, I'd be happy to have a little visitor again! My god daughters hamster died (of old age!!) and I miss her, she was here as much as there!!

I am married lol so my DH does this (but we travel together). When we self isolated, my MIL did this. My hamster cage is just huge and bulky and most people wouldn't have space! They wouldn't have a spare hamster cage either. My friends are young professionals who work long hours, they live all over London and they wouldn't be able to come to my place everyday to feed a hamster! Not everyone likes pets! I could ask my neighbor (she once lent me a space heater) but what if she is travelling as well. She often stays at her boyfriend. My MIL is the kind of person who doesn't like animals; I asked her to look after my hamster before and she found it stressful because it was on Friday and just before shabbat and she had to cook food for the next day.

I can afford to pay lol, I just want to find the most cost effective way with the least hassle.

I own my flat but most of my neighbours are renters. That's how it is in London. They often do move on (most of my neighbours have changed in the past 2 years)...I am planning to buy a bigger flat too so I may be moving on but am looking in the same area.

People do travel/ not like pets etc etc. Which is why a network of several very local friends is essential. Both direct neighbours would ask this of me and vice versa- I know another dozen people in the road and this is Zone 2 London.

Are your neighbours renters or home owners. What if they change every 2 years? Do you make friends with every person who moves in? I am friendly with my neighbours, we smile and say hi and the one who lives on the same floor- we talk quite often and she once lent me her space heater, and I lend her my ladder. But I wouldn't rely on her as a long term solution , she is in a flatshare, saving to buy her own flat and has a boyfriend who she stays a lot with..it's a matter of time she will move on.

Hopefully this will get better with axeing is s.21 so we get more owner occupiers or the tenants can actually stay.

Interesting. But don't you have to reciprocate? Most people have cats and dogs does that mean I have to look after their cats or dogs? I can't do that; my DH hates dogs. He claims he is allergic to cats. He would probably be fine with the caged animals as long as they stay in the study. It's 1 reason why I need a third bedroom; my DH doesn't agree with any animals in the reception room or bedroom or kitchen or bathroom. It's ok now as I don't have any DC yet but one day I hope to have DC (and still want to keep rodents!)

Good grief. I'm sorry, but you sound so unreasonable. I wouldn't provide any service for less than 10£ a day, and if you want your pet properly cared for by someone you know you can trust, and you don't want a stranger coming into your home, you need to pay for the service.

I didn't say I wouldn't pay it necessarily. I do want to explore all alternatives out there so if I pay it, I pay it gladly!

@onthefencesitter I think you're getting a lot of undeserved grief here. I agree that £10 a day is a lot of money. Round us to board a small dog is about £20 a day, which includes a kennel with its own heating, a private run, walks and food. I wouldn't want anyone to let out my hamster and cleaning after him was minimal - he weed in a little pot.
I also found it very difficult to find a boarder for him. They were happy to take guinea pigs and rabbits but not hamsters. I do have friends around but I dont like imposing on them, plus they often go away and have their own commitments. So it's not always as straightforward as people think.
You sound like a very caring owner. Sometimes life throws us curve balls and you've done nothing wrong exploring different options for the future.

Funnily enough although I have a dog I’ve never asked anyone to look after him, he goes to my parents. But I have fed neighbours cats and fish, had a dog to stay in an emergency, held keys, taken in parcels, waited in for a delivery (actually sent teenage daughter round because I was working) swapped plants, gone shopping for a neighbour with covid and had shopping delivered when I was self isolating. I was also one of several neighbours to keep an eye on a older teenager when her Dad was very ill and mum was hospital visiting, and supported a neighbour practically when a crap event happened. Lots of this is a result of covid but there was a good network before.
l made an effort to get to know people when we had just moved here and I had a orbital migraine and couldn’t l collect the kids. I called my mum who pointed out as she was 2 hours away she couldn’t be any practical help and I had to build a local network. Good luck with hamster care and getting some local friends, it does make life easier!

Thank you. I did look into different care options when I got my hamster but his cage turned out to be a lot heavier than I anticipated. Plus now I want to upgrade his cage to a 120 cm by 50 cm tank, this would be impossible to carry. So I need someone who comes in to feed the hamster (less preferred cos I have heard horror stories of the hamster escaping and nearly dying of dehydration and the hamster sitter wasn't there to see it) or somewhere that provides decent sized cages.

I have located a pet shop in Croydon which does day rate of £3. They claim their cages are at least 80 cm in length. Might be an option even if it's a trek.

My hamster can navigate his way back to his cage from another room and doesn't escape but I don't want to put so much faith in one rodent's sense of direction...