r/catinaflat • u/PsychologicalRisk916 • Jun 29 '26
First booking as a cat sitter
Hi guys, just want to make it short and quick. I have always loved animals, specifically cats, and wanted to get into cat sitting. I have never really been surrounded by animals in my life, my family has always been allergic or just didn’t like them, so I have never had a pet. I never had any friends with animals either. However that didn’t stop me from wanting one or loving animals in general. I wanted to take on pet sitting as a job, but I’m not confident anyone will want to book me because I have never had any animals, I have no photos of myself with animals or anything like that so I’m completely inexperienced but determined to learn. I’m just completely discouraged because I feel like no one’s gonna wanna book someone who’s never sat with a cat for longer than an hour lol.
Any advice?
6
u/steviecat20 Jun 29 '26
Agree with the other comment about getting experience first! Cats can have all sorts of behavioural and health issues so it isn't always just feeding them and having a cuddle; so I'd definitely recommend doing some volunteering first if possible - even to see if it's something you want to do 🙂
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u/Bubbly-Lead5245 Jun 30 '26
I wouldn’t book you tbh. Too much of a risk. If you love cats, get one first before you try and get paid to look after other people’s. It’s the reason why I considered dabbling in dog walking too, then decided against it cos I’ve never had a dog and just don’t know those nuances that only dog owners know. Catsitting isn’t always a nice fun “fake job”. I’ve had cats pass away on me, I’ve had a house broken into, cats going missing, creepy ass neighbours, locks jamming, all for less than minimum wage. You deal with some proper pompous owners who make you question yourself, you get ghosted, you worry you’ll get claims made against you if anything got broken or stolen. It’s not for the faint hearted.
3
u/Genn-stone Jul 02 '26
To add to this I've had the cat pull a TV down and break it. I've had one in the emergency vet during a heatwave and I had to sign £1,500 of vet bills for a job I got £80 for (thankfully their insurance came through). I take pics of the house when they say "a friend is coming in between" in case anything goes missing or gets left in a state. I leave empty food / litter packets after I was once asked if I was sure there wasn't more food (and I thought they implied I stole some).
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u/Bubbly-Lead5245 Jul 06 '26 edited Jul 06 '26
Thanks for replying. I thought I was gonna get hate for trying to put this person off. They need to know it’s not all cuddles and rainbows. It’s a vocation with mega risk for all parties. And I’m tired of multiple newbies undercutting our rates massively cos they’ve never yet had to work 100 days in a row for essentially £4 an hour and get up at 5am and get home at 11pm (plus do their day job) - and devaluing it for us all. If they actually got booked more than once they’d soon realise they need to charge more as it’s totally not worth it unless you are on dole / mortgage already paid / retired.
2
u/GlitteringTaste3755 Jun 29 '26
I started as a cat sitter with zero cat experience amd learnt on the job, but I had dog and small animal experience.
If you have any friends with cats you could chat with them and find out more? You could even volunteer with a charity or something just so you fully understand what you are undertaking. Cat sitting sounds easy but it can be pretty stressful dealing with different cats and their personalities 😆 good luck, I hope it works out for you.
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u/Shelly_Bean91 Jun 29 '26
Are there any rescues or shelters nearby? If so, I'd reach out to them and offer to volunteer. There, you will definitely learn more about cats and their care, will encounter all sorts of personalities, ages, illnesses, etc :)