What is a Professional Pet Sitter?
Posted on November 1, 2020 by Kelly
Isn’t it true that anyone can be a pet sitter?
Yes, technically. I was about 11 or 12 years old when I started taking care of the neighborhood pets. Looking back, I definitely left room for improvement. I was a pet sitter, but I was not a professional pet sitter. I was a kid and I was a neighbor. I was cheap. Even though I was more responsible than most kids, I asked myself: would I have hired me? The answer I’d have to go with is “no.”
There is definitely a difference between a pet sitter and a professional pet sitter. Pet sitters can be friends or neighbors. I’d be retired if I received a dollar for every time a potential new client informed me that they “tried the neighbor’s son, but it didn’t really work out.” Friends and neighbors are great as friends and neighbors. Since they have other things to worry about, it’s rare that your pets are going to be their top priority. A professional pet sitter has chosen to make pet sitting a career and will place your pet’s needs first. Sure, you’ll pay more for a professional pet sitter, but, in the long run, it’s worth it.
There are several things that set a professional pet sitter apart from a pet sitter:
Being bonded and insured. A professional pet sitter should be insured and bonded if they have used other pet sitters or have employees. If something happens, everyone is covered.
Having a license. If it is important in your city or state, realize that a business license does not require any knowledge in a field. A licensed pet sitter is simply one that is registered.
Professional organizations and knowledge. A professional pet sitter will likely belong to professional pet sitting organizations and will have training such as pet first aid, education and /or certification in animal health and behavior. Some will have relevant college degrees.
Will do consult. Professional pet sitters should come to your home to do an initial consultation and you can see them interact with your pet and get a feel for your pet’s routine. Never hire a pet sitter you haven’t met.
References. A professional pet sitter will have references that you can call upon and verify the quality of his/her work.
Services Contract. A service contract should be signed to protect both parties.
Experience. Depending on how long a professional pet sitter has been in business, he or she probably has much more experience in dealing with animals and unoccupied homes than the neighbor does. A professional has a code of conduct and a list that can be checked twice. They can draw upon their knowledge to deal with difficult or unusual situations and circumstances.
Love. Professional pet sitters become such because they love animals. You should be able to see that love during the initial consultation and feel assured that your pet will be in the hands of someone who will not only provide food and water, but will go the extra mile to make sure your pet feels happy and secure in your absence,
Since a professional pet sitter is being contracted to take care of your pets and your home for a designated period of time and they are being paid to do so, a quality sitter will honor that or even go above and beyond. Even though a neighbor or friend may be receiving some sort of compensation, it is more likely that they will rush the visit and not spend an optimum amount of time with the animals. Details may be overlooked.
A few years ago I asked a friend, a former pet sitter, to check on and feed my shy cat and African dwarf frogs once over the weekend. When I returned home my pets were fine but I could tell frogs hadn’t been fed in their tank. Even though I only paid her a small amount, that doesn’t seem like a small detail to overlook.
This past holiday season, I was sharing the care of a client’s pets with a teenage family member. It’s not something I like to do, but I was flexible about it because I knew the client really needed to save money. Whenever another party is going to enter the home during the contracted period, I try to remind pet parents of my service agreement, which releases me from liability due to another parties negligence. Since I don’t have complete control over the situation, I cover myself. I was contracted to go in once a day in the middle of the day to walk the dogs only, and the family member was there in the mornings and evenings and in charge of feeding and cleaning and what not.
The pets were all healthy and seemed happy, and nothing disastrous happened, but I definitely noticed some things that I would have done differently, had the care been contracted to me 100%. For example, I don’t believe the litter box was scooped for the whole four days and the area never swept. In addition, I noticed poop on the carpet in the living room and piddle on the tile floor. I cleaned up the poop and left the piddle sit for two days to see if the other party would notice or clean it. When that didn’t happen, I cleaned it too. Newspapers were brought in by me…..they may have sat in the driveway otherwise, alerting passers-by to the client’s absence. The pets were fine, mind you, but the differences between what was being done by the family member and the care I would have provided as a professional were marked.
When choosing a pet sitter to care for your scaled/furry/feathered animal companion, there are many factors to consider. Whether you choose to go with a friend, neighbor or professional, it’s important to be educated about the differences between pet sitters and professional pet sitters.