In case you haven’t noticed from my writing, I love to travel. Fortunately, Thom does too, and we intend to do as much of it as possible while we are physically able. Of course, it hasn’t always been easy. When we were young our work and our finances often took priority. Then we rightsized our lives and most of that changed for the better. But one thing that has always been a concern is what to do with our pets. Kloe, like each of our former dogs, is a big part of our family and adds an incredible amount of good to our lives. But managing her needs with our travel needs can be tricky. Fortunately, we have discovered a great solution. After three very successful experiences, I’m finally ready to recommend this service to everyone who faces a similar challenge with wanting to travel while cherishing a pet. Not only does it cost a fraction of traditional care, I think it provides Kloe with the best attention possible.
So, what’s the big secret? A year ago we signed up and started using a pet and house-sitting service. This may not seem like a revolutionary concept but what is so amazing is that it costs so little. In the past it was assumed that in order to have someone stay in your house and water your plants, bring in the mail, keep everything secure WHILE watching your beloved fur-baby would cost you plenty. I don’t know about where you live, but it can easily cost $50 per day to have a traditional pet/house sitter come stay in your home for every day you are gone.
Plus, in our opinion, taking Kloe to a “kennel” was never a solution. Although there are luxury kennels in our community, they require that we take Kloe out of her familiar surroundings and kennel her with strangers—not to mention unknown dogs. In addition, there is also the chance that your pet will pick up an infection from another one of the pets. That happened to us one time and we swore we’d never do it again. And even if a person is fortunate to find a kennel that is loving, kind and clean, again, the price could be prohibitive. Paying up to $75 per night for your pet (and think about if you have more than one!!!) could mean the difference between a weekend getaway camping in the mountains vs. a three-week European vacation!
So, what’s the catch? After all, if it doesn’t cost much then surely there must be a downside? The disadvantage is that you have someone you don’t know very well staying in your home taking care of your pet while you are away. When we tell people what we have done, that is one of the first things that seem to freak people out. Second? That many people seem bothered by the idea that a stranger is sleeping in their bed.
Okay, I agree there is an element of trust involved when it comes to having someone watch your beloved pet. The thing is, if you’ve had pets in your life for any length of time (and we just about always had them in the last 41 years) …. then you realize that just because you know the person watching your pet does NOT mean they are providing good care. Years ago we had a close friend and co-worker watch our dog. We eventually discovered that the dog had run away mere days after we left, and the guy never told us about it. A few days before we were set to return home, he finally let us know. WTH? Fortunately we were able to find our pet at the dog pound before anything too serious happened. And that wasn’t the only “lesson” we learned about putting friends or family in charge. There are NEVER any guarantees when it comes to someone else caring for your pet—whether you know them or not.
And as far as being concerned about other people sleeping in your bed—I guess those people must not travel much. After sleeping in hotels and vacation rentals all over the world, as long as the bed (and bedding) is clean, then I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about the other people who have slept there before me.
A major way our concerns are soothed is the fact that the service we chose, Trustedhousesitters.com, is a membership site. In other words, the people using the service pay a fee to belong. That tends to eliminate people who are just “thinking” about doing it and requires a certain level of commitment. Then once you join and start doing sits, there are reviews for both the pet sitter and the home/pet owner. That way sitters get an idea of what is expected of them and what they might expect, and pet/home owners get an idea of the quality of care that will be provided. And again, WHAT IS AWESOME is that there is no money changing hands. The sitter does not charge the pet/home owner. In exchange for the service, the homeowner allows the sitter to stay in their home rent and utility free enjoying the benefits of living in a certain location with whatever amenities are included.
In addition to the level of assurance provided by the website, Thom and I have made a practice of calling potential sitters on a SKYPE video call and chatting with them for about an hour each time. So far all our sitters have been couples and when we (as a couple) talk with another couple, it is reassuring to see them in person and get a feeling for their temperament and personality. After all, when you look into the eyes of your potential sitters, ask them direct questions, and communicate as honestly as possible, you learn a lot in a relatively short time. In some ways they are really not strangers when they show up on your doorstep.
After three successful sits, what is the worst thing that has happened? Well, our first sitters who were here for two weeks let a houseplant die and left our hot tub pretty dirty. Kloe however seemed extremely happy and well-nourished and that was most important. During the next two sits we had absolutely nothing to complain about. One couple was here even in the dead of summer for three weeks (very hot!) but they ran the A/C less than we would have if we had been home. And keep in mind it is really nice to have someone staying in your home, giving your dog attention, and keeping an eye on things while you are gone. There hasn’t been any emergencies or troubles but isn’t it nice knowing that it will get handled if there is?
Another benefit is that I request that any potential sitters walk Kloe every day as much as I do when I am home. All of our sitters have been very active people and look forward to it. They all send photos of her throughout our travels so we can “check in” on how she is doing. We also request that the sitters never leave Kloe alone longer than four or five hours at a time. Because I work at home Kloe is very accustomed to having people around. So far so good. You can request that your sitters do all sorts of routine things that your pet enjoys.
We aren’t naïve enough to believe that things could never go wrong. But again, at some point you have to trust someone else with your pet’s care or you never can go anywhere. If it bothers you to have someone sleeping in your bed, you can always request they stay in the guest room. We also have a cupboard/closet that we put our most “precious” or personal items in and lock it when we go. Other than that, we aren’t concerned with loss (beyond Kloe)—and have had absolutely nothing lost or broken—just that one house plant. In fact, the house is usually cleaner when we come home than when we left. After traveling for a total of seven weeks last year, I think it was a pretty good test.
If you are the kind of person who is extremely attached to your possessions then this might not be an alternative to you. Likewise, if your extremely attached to your pet, you’ll never leave them with anyone regardless. But for those of us who love our pets AND love to travel, the SMART and frugal alternative is to find a pet/house setting service might be worth a try. And if you’re anything like Thom and I, you are already planning your next vacation.
Trustedhousesitters.com offers a 25% off coupon for anyone who signs up using this link. (The normal cost is $119 per year.) If you use the link, they give me two months free membership. Win-win for us both!
Okay, your turn. Have you ever used a service like TrustedHousesitters.com? What was your experience? Does it sound like something you might be able to use? Please share your thoughts about this in the comments below.
Hello Kathy,
I really enjoyed reading post. Being an owner of two dogs myself, I’ve been having a difficult time in figuring out what to do with my pets when my family and I want to go out of town. I’ve looked into those dog hotels but as you stated in your post they can be quite expensive, especially for two dogs. While, I do like the idea of someone coming into your home and looking after the dog there is an immense amount of trust that you have to put in that person. And I must admit that I’m not a person who trusts very easily, especially when it comes down to my pets. Not to mention, that my dogs aren’t the most friendliest pets one could find. They aren’t aggressive by any means but they definitely aren’t keen to strangers. I guess that leaves me with the option of having to convince a relative come over and check on them.
Hi Loraine. Yes, it does take trust. But like I mentioned, the worst dog sitting experience I ever had was from a friend who eventually even became a relative. It was horrible and bizarre to say the least. Luckily we did eventually find our pet but it could have easily gone the other way. What is also pretty amazing is the interaction of the people who we’ve met so far who want to come and watch our dog. Some of them have amazing experience taking care of all kinds of animals, not just dogs, and even very unusual cases like sick dogs or unfriendly. While it is great to have a family member to help you out, I think it is equally great to know you have other options. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. ~Kathy
Kathy, when my son was living with us last year, we used to have a “built-in” pet and house sitter when we travelled. Now that he has his own place in another city, we have had to find other solutions for our dog and cat. We have tried the “best” local kennel, but don’t like to kennel our pets except as a last resort. We left the dog with our daughter for a very short trip, but it didn’t work out well because our dog and her cat did not get along. Now we have found a local woman who is happy to house and pet sit, and she does an excellent job. She has done this for us for our last three trips, each three weeks long. We do pay her, but it is no more than we would pay a kennel, and she also waters our big garden. Because she is on a fixed income, she is very happy to have the extra income from her pet sitting jobs with us. That said, I would certainly consider an arrangement such as the one you describe – it does sound like win-win.
Jude
Hello Kathy, this is extremely amazing! i got to gather so much information from your blog that i would definitely consider using for the future. In fact, it is accurate the amount of trust we can have on people in which we do not know nothing about. Also, having friends or family members can give us a sense of calmness but at the same time they feel more comfortable and don’t provide the adequate care we expect for our beloved pets. ALL of the points that you discussed are exactly the way we think when leave our pets in someone else’s hands. I actually have a friend/co-worker who who is a pet sitter aside from her full-time position as a kindergarden teacher, I am will definitely mention about Trustedhousesitters.com thanks to you Kathy!! Thank you so much for all this great info! Best, Allie Quintero.
Hey Allie! So nice to meet you in person at Gary’s class. I’m glad you found this post helpful to you. I realize that lots of people have other options, but for those of us who don’t it is something to consider. And yes, if your friend wants to pet-sit on the side it is a great possibility. Of course for short out of town trips I use a site named Rover.com. If you are are going to just be gone for a couple of days it makes it easier just to arrange a local person to watch your pet. There is a cost but they make it super easy. I’ll bet your friend would benefit from signing up on this site if she isn’t already. Thanks again for your comment. ~Kathy
Hi Kathy,
While we’ve had to resort to boarding at times, we prefer to have doggie-sitters. Luckily we have a neighbor in NH who loves Cali as much as we do and takes her to her home while we are gone. No money involved! We just came back from a week in Costa Rica and this same friend flew down from Boston to stay for the week at our FL home to vacation and visit with little Cali as well. We did leave her a bit of cash to help defray her costs – but she came with her daughter and they had a nice little vacation while we were gone.
I’ve read about Liesbet’s experiences and am very interested from both sides.
Hi Nancy! You and your pet are very fortunate to have such a friend. While I think we’d all like that, it isn’t always available. IMHO a petsitter like I’ve described is the next best thing. And yes, not only is it a great thing for pet owners, it also is a great thing for those free enough to travel around and experience different locations. Thanks for your thoughts. ~Kathy
Yes, the homesitters seems like a good option for folks…I am very lucky in our situation, but it doesn’t always work out so we may investigate this in the future.
Good for you for doing your homework, Kathy! I’m not a pet owner, but have many pet owners among my family and friends. I will definitely pass the link along to them. If the service is available in their area (BC, Canada), I’m sure they will be delighted to look into it. Thank you for a very helpful post!
Hi Diane! I’m almost certain this service is available all over Canada and actually most of the world although I’d bet the U.S. and Europe are the biggest users. We had a couople of people from Europe and one or two from Canada apply to stay in our place but for one reason or another it didn’t work. Glad to help share the news about this because it is an excellent way to save money while traveling AND get good care for your pets! ~Kathy
Hi Kathy, leaving pets is always a challenge. We have cats currently, and We have a reliable cat sitter who doesn’t stay at our house but checks in twice a day. She is also a vet. tech. so that is reassuring. My daughter has successfully used a housesitting service for her dog and they have had very good experiences. I like the house sitting idea and would consider that if our current cat sitter becomes unavailable.
Hi Michele. I think cats are much more independent and don’t require as much interaction so you’re fortunate. Plus, if you have a long-time sitter (that has vet experience) that’s good too. And hopefully it doesn’t cost nearly what it does here where I live. But do keep it in mind this service as a possibility. It also works for people who want to travel but don’t want to spend money on lodging. Like I mentioned to Donna in my response, it is such a great example of our new “sharing” economy. Thanks for your thoughts. ~Kathy
I heartily agree with using a pet sitter service like this. One of our dogs is old and does so much better if she can stay in her familiar “places”. We used House Sit Mexico and were so pleased with the quality of the people who applied, it was hard to pick which one to use.
Hi Heidi! Thank you for checking in and letting us know that a service like this is helpful AND a way to save money. And while I’m not familiar with House Sit Mexico I would agree that nearly all the people who have applied for a sit in our house have been wonderful. We haven’t accepted anyone from another country yet but several have applied. They just didn’t work out for one reason or another but who knows? We might try that next. Thanks again for sharing your experience. ~Kathy
I’m glad you had good experiences with your house and pet sitters and with THS. Being on the other side, you know how much we think this is a win-win situation, after doing house and pet sitting full-time for over three years. A lifestyle that conbines the best of many worlds.
Hi Liesbet! You know YOU are the catalyst for us even trying this service right? Thom was pretty hesitant until he met you and Marc. Once he saw how dedicated and caring you both are–not to mention responsible–he was sold. And I think you first recommended Trustedhousesitters to us as well. We’ve been happy with them so far and like I mentioned in the post, I think it gives us another level of commitment because it does cost both homeowners and pet sitters to sign up on it. Just last week I put out our travel dates for this coming summer and within a week I had four good possibilities. We’ve SKYPED with one of them and he will be coming this summer. Not only does that help with our planning, but it takes a great deal of pressure off of wondering what to do. Thank YOU again for getting us started on this! ~Kathy
You’re very welcome, Kathy. That Skype call is so important to get to know each other and get a good feel for the sit and the sitters. It’s a mutually beneficial situation, for sure. Happy summer planning!
Hi, Kathy – This definitely sounds like a win-win to me. It seems similar to Home Exchange (which we love), but allows people to exchange their pet-sitting/house-sitting services instead of their home. Thank you for sharing this. I will need to keep it in mind for the future.
Hi Donna! I know you’ve done quite a few home exchanges which are similar in that they provide a relatively inexpensive and enjoyable way to travel to different places without having to pay for lodging. I think I remember that you also did some pet sitting too. So much of these new services could never have happened without the internet so I’m immensely grateful. To me is is also part of the “sharing” economy which boils down to sharing things instead of “buying, buying, buying” all the time. If more of us learned to share our resources we could both save money and help others out at the same time, don’t you think? ~Kathy
This is so timely, Kathy, as we are always looking for the best option for our dogs. On our recent road trip, we took our trailer and our dogs with us, which is great, except when we have to integrate our dogs into our kids’ homes, who all have their own dogs. We’ve explored the kennel idea but many overnight kennels are not only expensive ( we have 2 dogs), but there is no live person spending the night with all the dogs…talk about WTH! We’ve been lucky that our church has several college age gals who are happy to stay at our house and spend the night with our pups. They charge $20/day, and yes they are gone during part of the day, but our 2 dogs have each other. For now this works, and we are not gone for more than a week at a time right now. I’m very interested in the link you shared and I know other house-sit services Liesbet recommended. I appreciate post, Kathy, as I literally lose sleep worrying about my dogs!
Hi Terri! I know it can be fun to travel with our pets–sometimes. But it is also a bit of work and always a concern for their comfort and needs. While we do take her if we go somewhere for a month or longer, if we are doing a road trip (like this summer!) it makes it SO MUCH EASIER. You’re fortunate that you have someone who can come in for a reasonable price, and like you said your dogs have each other PLUS they are accustomed to being alone for stretches of time so it works for you. But do keep in mind for sometime in the future. It’s nice to know that such a service is available. ~Kathy
We have a cat and hate to leave him. But then we don’t like to travel much, so that works out. We do have a cat sitter who will come once or twice a day to feed him, play with him, etc. It’s pretty reasonable. She sends us “proof of life” videos and images. They look pretty chummy together. He seems pretty happy, but boy, he talks up a storm when we get back.
Hi Donna! I personally think cats are much easier to leave than dogs. At one point we had a cat and he was fairly self-sufficient throughout the day. And lucky you who have a sitter who can get away with just a visit a couple of times a day. But we’ve pretty much spoiled my dog by being home with her nearly all day long. To late for us. If you raise them and go to work daily, they don’t need the same amount of attention. But hey, the rewards are worth the effort. ~Kathy
Although we have never used these services for our house (we don’t have a pet and, fortunately, we have dear friends who are always happy to come “sit” our house while we are gone), we have pet- and house-sat for others. The best gig was a “free” months stay in San Miguel de Allende taking care of one of the coolest cats I’ve ever met. I agree that it’s a win-win-win for the homeowner, pet, and sitter.
Hi Janis! Yes I know you have done a sit before even though you don’t have your own pets. That’s usually what happens. All the people we have had sit for us used to have their own pets but are really hoping to travel A LOT so watching our “kids” is a way to enjoy pets without the whole responsibility. And I think because they are there for a short time they are able to give extra special care (at least the ones who have stayed at our house) so much so that Kloe misses them when we return and they are gone. Kloe loves people and would probably like them all to move in and pet/play/walk her each and every day. Such a great service that would never have been available until the internet. ~Kathy
Sounds like a great company. Smart to SKYPE beforehand.
When our dogs were alive we had to plan our vacations when our dog sitter could sit. She doggy sat for us for about 8 years until she moved. We did pay her and she was wonderful. It was a struggle to find someone else. Now with the cats we have a neighbor across the street who comes over twice a day and we reciprocate for them. It works but we are gone more so there is that awkwardness!
Hi Haralee! I get that “awkwardness.” We have several people who have watched Kloe through the years and even though the people are gracious, there is always a bit of uncertainty involved–especially if you ask too much! You might want to consider this service in the future. I wouldn’t do it for short weekend trips because it is a bit more complicated getting the house ready for people to live there–but if you are going to be gone a couple of weeks or longer it makes REALLY good sense. ~Kathy
Sounds like a good solution. When I was working I had a single woman at work who stayed at our house while we were away … for free, since she got to stay in the house instead of her 1 br apartment … plus, fortunately, she liked our dog. Now, my daughter babysits our dog.
A plea to other dog owners … please leave your pets behind. I just spent a night in a Hampton Inn where two people on my floor each had two dogs who were barking all night! The one woman said, Well, sorry, but the dogs have been cooped up in the car for the last 15 hours. Well, aside from being rude to fellow travelers, isn’t that being cruel to the dogs?!?
Hi Tom! Oh no! Dog owners like you just experienced in a hotel give all of us a bad name. We did travel with Kloe a couple of times before but thankfully she is pretty quiet and we would NEVER have let her bark all night! Still, traveling with a dog changes the entire experience so you have to make the trip about the dog as much as anything. And if you want to go by plane, we we frequently do, we would NEVER take her that way. She’s a bit too big to stay in a small kennel in the cabin with us and we would NEVER send her as “freight.” That’s why this new method works so well for us. It’s nice if you have family/friend who can do it–but like I said that can have problems too. Plus, most everyone we know works during the day and we have never left Kloe so long by herself. It’s such a win/win to have retired people or work-at-home people stay and take care of her. So far, so good. ~Kathy