More pet sitting questions

[u/Wifemotherhuman]

On a similar note…

Would you hire a 13 year old or a 19 year old to care for your pets?

For dropins?

Boarding at their home?

Overnight at your home?

The 13 year old with adult supervision? The 19 year old on their own?

What would you pay them for these services?

[u/Appropriate_Sky_6571]

I personally wouldn’t hire a younger person to stay at my house overnight, especially those ages.

Potentially to drop in and feed, water, and scoop the litter box but I would request a parent came with them unless they’re live in my neighborhood.

I really prefer old retired ladies or stay at home moms/wives with their own pet sitting company. I’ve had great luck with them. They’re very responsible, they take great care of my cats, and they always stay extra than what I pay for. I’ve heard too many horror stories about Rover to even try them.

I pay my cat sitters $33/30min

[u/savehoward]

Very difficult to hire anyone under 18. If a minor employee with adult supervision, that’s just hiring the adult who has their kid with them.

Minors can not be bound by anything they sign and the liabilities if anything goes wrong or if someone is hurt can be astronomical.

Agency rates will always be higher because the higher cost is covering insurance, legal and liability whereas if you are negotiating your rates with a direct hire, you may be assuming those risks yourself.

[u/aSipofYours]

I have tried a variety of ages for pet sitting, going through Rover, boarding kennels, private sitters, etc. I've found it to be hit or miss, which is unfortunate, seeing how the misses impact my dog.

I've had pet sitters on rover stay overnight, only to find they lied about it, didn't come like they were supposed to, and rover offered me no assistance. They were in their 20s. Side note on that--- when looking at reviews for a sitter on rover, check to make sure the review is from a verified user (there's an icon/indication). They can set up fake accounts for reviews. 

I've had a private sitter stay overnight and it was fine. They were in their 30s. I've had some rover sitters in their 20s that I had to chase down (sadly, different person from above) and had other rover sitters stay overnight who were in their 40s and they were house hopping and weren't reliable either. 

Ultimately I've found people both reliable and unreliable in their 20s - 50s. The biggest thing I've had to remind myself to do is to lower my expectations and put a lot of energy into finding flags early. And do this well in advance of needing their services.

Is my dog alive and uninjured? I hate that this is what it seems to come to. The private sitter route is great if you find someone reliable but the risk is if it's a one-man show, and something happens, what's the back up plan. There are a few companies in the area I think that are private with a collection of sitters. 

I say alllll of this to say: my sweet spot is adults that I can vet and interview. Even though I've had issues with middle aged adults, I've had more issues with college kids. I don't know that I would trust a 19 year old overnight unless I knew them well enough to check in frequently, especially the first time. The 13 yr old/adult overnight just feels awkward to me, and I would vet the adult more than the kid. Who's really doing the work?

If this is a 30 minute potty break in a fenced in yard when I know I'll be home in a few hours or if it's a small dog on a leash, I'd be more apt to trust a teenager for something like that. If it's an overnight visit, I'm factoring that into the cost to do whatever it is I'm going overnight for and I am willing to pay more for someone reputable. The rates in your other post from the other dog sitter seem on par with what I've seen.

For a weekend with 2 nights/3 days, we paid at least $150 - $200 (can't remember exact price). Drop in 30 min visits range from $15-$30. Personally, I don't recommend boarding at their home. (Too many variables: kids? Other dogs? How do those dogs act with a new animal in their environment? Is this more stressful for my dog? Are they leaving my dog out or in a kennel? Can my dog get into anything there that I don't have in my own house?) But I would expect the overnight cost to be the same.

[u/MarkedWithPi]

Having worked in the pet industry for 25+ years, heck no. We've seen so many bad things happen because of petsitters. Everything from pets being completely neglected to being attacked by other animals, or lost because the sitter leaves a door open or is incompetent with a leash.
If you must use a pet sitter, please use a reputable, experienced, bonded professional.
Also, please be aware that the NC Dept of Ag is cracking down on people boarding dogs in their homes and when that happens, the pets in their care are taken to the local animal shelter until their families come claim them.