Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am about to hire a Rover sitter to care for my dogs in my home for 4 nights/5 days this summer. I’ve used Rover a lot, but I usually prefer to board my dogs in the sitter’s home.
I’m unsure what to expect as far as how this normally works with respect to house rules. I will make clear that staying overnight every night is expected (I’ve heard horror stories about sitters taking multiple simultaneous bookings and not actually spending the night). And I will communicate no parties or anything. But is it reasonable to allow the sitter (college age) to have a friend over to watch a movie or should I say no guests? Any other suggestions of things to iron out clearly ahead of time?
When my dogs board at the sitter’s home I don’t care what they do and with whom as long as they keep my dogs safe, cared for and out of danger.
Make the rules you need for safety and functionality. Don't try to micromanage the details.
I used to do a lot of house-sitting/pet-sitting. The people I accepted as repeat clients paid well, had well-behaved pets, and didn't make me feel like a suspect. You either trust the person or you don't, so honor your feelings about that. If you don't trust them to make good decisions (no parties, actually doing the job as specified) don't hire them.
Consider how you're going to enforce the rules you make. No guests? Really? Are you going to have cameras? Do you need to disclose that you'll have cameras? This is a lot of micromanaging, and it's probably just going to cause you more stress. Besides, Rover has its own liability coverage if your selected sitter does stupid things and/or doesn't do the job well. You could probably just review those with your selected sitter.
OP here. I think there is a huge difference between micromanaging and giving clear communication to someone you are hiring so everyone is on the same page and not making assumptions.
Think what you want, but what you should be thinking about is "What do I really need, and what control do I really have?" You can say you only want the sitter to wear a purple tee and jeans. Can you enforce that? You can say "no guests". Can you enforce that?
Most importantly: are you paying a rate that supports that? If you want to pay $60/day and expect someone to give up their whole life and love your dog like you do, you're insane. If you expect them to be there full-time, alone, you'll need to pay a rate that provides adequate compensation for that.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am about to hire a Rover sitter to care for my dogs in my home for 4 nights/5 days this summer. I’ve used Rover a lot, but I usually prefer to board my dogs in the sitter’s home.
I’m unsure what to expect as far as how this normally works with respect to house rules. I will make clear that staying overnight every night is expected (I’ve heard horror stories about sitters taking multiple simultaneous bookings and not actually spending the night). And I will communicate no parties or anything. But is it reasonable to allow the sitter (college age) to have a friend over to watch a movie or should I say no guests? Any other suggestions of things to iron out clearly ahead of time?
When my dogs board at the sitter’s home I don’t care what they do and with whom as long as they keep my dogs safe, cared for and out of danger.
Make the rules you need for safety and functionality. Don't try to micromanage the details.
I used to do a lot of house-sitting/pet-sitting. The people I accepted as repeat clients paid well, had well-behaved pets, and didn't make me feel like a suspect. You either trust the person or you don't, so honor your feelings about that. If you don't trust them to make good decisions (no parties, actually doing the job as specified) don't hire them.
Consider how you're going to enforce the rules you make. No guests? Really? Are you going to have cameras? Do you need to disclose that you'll have cameras? This is a lot of micromanaging, and it's probably just going to cause you more stress. Besides, Rover has its own liability coverage if your selected sitter does stupid things and/or doesn't do the job well. You could probably just review those with your selected sitter.
OP here. I think there is a huge difference between micromanaging and giving clear communication to someone you are hiring so everyone is on the same page and not making assumptions.
Anonymous wrote:This should probably be labeled as “pet and house sitter”.
Rules:
Absolutely no guests.
Sitter should remain in home as much as possible during time period (cook at house or get delivered meals), only leaving for 30-60 mins at a time.
Sitter should do trash and mail pickup, as well.
Anonymous wrote:It is not micromanaging to not allow a guest in your home while you're away who you've never met. I would say no guests.
Anonymous wrote:This should probably be labeled as “pet and house sitter”.
Rules:
Absolutely no guests.
Sitter should remain in home as much as possible during time period (cook at house or get delivered meals), only leaving for 30-60 mins at a time.
Sitter should do trash and mail pickup, as well.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am about to hire a Rover sitter to care for my dogs in my home for 4 nights/5 days this summer. I’ve used Rover a lot, but I usually prefer to board my dogs in the sitter’s home.
I’m unsure what to expect as far as how this normally works with respect to house rules. I will make clear that staying overnight every night is expected (I’ve heard horror stories about sitters taking multiple simultaneous bookings and not actually spending the night). And I will communicate no parties or anything. But is it reasonable to allow the sitter (college age) to have a friend over to watch a movie or should I say no guests? Any other suggestions of things to iron out clearly ahead of time?
When my dogs board at the sitter’s home I don’t care what they do and with whom as long as they keep my dogs safe, cared for and out of danger.
Make the rules you need for safety and functionality. Don't try to micromanage the details.
I used to do a lot of house-sitting/pet-sitting. The people I accepted as repeat clients paid well, had well-behaved pets, and didn't make me feel like a suspect. You either trust the person or you don't, so honor your feelings about that. If you don't trust them to make good decisions (no parties, actually doing the job as specified) don't hire them.
Consider how you're going to enforce the rules you make. No guests? Really? Are you going to have cameras? Do you need to disclose that you'll have cameras? This is a lot of micromanaging, and it's probably just going to cause you more stress. Besides, Rover has its own liability coverage if your selected sitter does stupid things and/or doesn't do the job well. You could probably just review those with your selected sitter.
Anonymous wrote:This should probably be labeled as “pet and house sitter”.
Sitter should remain in home as much as possible during time period (cook at house or get delivered meals), only leaving for 30-60 mins at a time.
Anonymous wrote:I am about to hire a Rover sitter to care for my dogs in my home for 4 nights/5 days this summer. I’ve used Rover a lot, but I usually prefer to board my dogs in the sitter’s home.
I’m unsure what to expect as far as how this normally works with respect to house rules. I will make clear that staying overnight every night is expected (I’ve heard horror stories about sitters taking multiple simultaneous bookings and not actually spending the night). And I will communicate no parties or anything. But is it reasonable to allow the sitter (college age) to have a friend over to watch a movie or should I say no guests? Any other suggestions of things to iron out clearly ahead of time?
When my dogs board at the sitter’s home I don’t care what they do and with whom as long as they keep my dogs safe, cared for and out of danger.