6 Things To Share With Your Pet Sitter
After a recent vacation away from my two dogs, I realized that communication with your pet sitter is very important. How was my sitter supposed to know that little Taco would throw confetti parties with the toilet paper if I didn’t tell her? Often it is assumed that pet sitters will automatically know your dog’s routine, but the truth is every dog, and sitter, is different.
When picking a pet sitter, resources like Sitting For A Cause can make choosing the right person a simple matter, but the work isn’t done there. After you’ve found the best match for your cat or dog, it’s key to communicate with the sitter about what your expectations are. It can be hard to remember all the little tasks you complete when looking after your pet everyday, and even harder to relay what these tasks are to the person watching over your pet. So, here are 6 important things to share with your future pet sitter:
1. Everything about Eating – Dogs and cats usually have personal eating routines. They eat a certain brand of food at a certain time, and changing this pattern could greatly effect your pet’s actions. It’s always a smart option to create a small calendar or outline that describes how much your pet should eat, what they should be eating, and when they should be eating this food. Also, add in any other important information regarding allergies or items that you know specifically upset their tummies. If you have multiple animals with different needs make sure to leave different, yet specific instructions! This will make it easier for your pet sitter, and in the end, you!
2. All about Outside – Whether your pet is an indoor or outdoor animal, it is crucial to let your pet sitter know how much time they should be spending outside. For dogs, outside time is essential. Your pup is used to their bathroom and play time schedule and changing this up, even for a few days, can be a messy mistake! Along with a food schedule, add in when your pet usually gets to go outside. For cats, make sure to include any instructions regarding their litter box. Also, add in if and when they like to be outside! You pet sitter doesn’t know your pet’s cues that show they want to be outside, so make sure to share these things before you leave.
3. Heads up Regarding Health – Your pet’s conditions are normal for you, but foreign for your sitter. Just like humans, animals have health issues that are important to be aware of, so let your sitter know if your pet is currently facing a health issue that requires medication. Be specific about what the medication is, how it should be given, and how often your pet will need this medication while you’re away. It’s also a good idea to list common side effects and other important info about the medicine just so your sitter has a thorough background before caring for your pet! Also, mention any disabilities your pet may have like deafness or blindness so your sitter can make appropriate accommodations. Whether your pet has specific medical issues that should be addressed or not, it is essential that you leave your sitter with resources to your vet. Include the name, phone number, and address of your vet so that if anything goes wrong appropriate action can be taken immediately!
4. The Know about The No’s! – Can your pet sit on the couch? Are they allowed in every room? Only you know what your dog is and isn’t allowed to do! Make a list that gives your sitter a better idea about your pet’s “house rules.” You don’t want to come back from a trip and find that your cat or dog has gained a new bad habit! In the same way, you wouldn’t want your pet to get in trouble for something you find totally ok.
5. The Lowdown on Rewards – Don’t only share what your dog should be punished for, include when and how the sitter should reward your pet! Talk about what you use as treats and when you give them. You don’t want your furry friend going without the happiness that is a treat while you’re away, so share this info with your sitter!
6. The Scoop on the Little Things – Maybe your dog really loves to destroy toilet paper like mine, or maybe your cat likes to swat everything off of your counter. Either way, it’s important for your sitter to know the little things that you deal with everyday. You know to keep the bathroom door closed at all times or to keep those breakable items out of reach, but your sitter doesn’t. Look back at the lessons you’ve learned about your pet and share them with your sitter ahead of time.
When it comes down to it, only you know what you should share with your sitter. Talk to them about what you feel is important for your pet, and also offer a chance for them to ask questions. If you communicate thoroughly with each other the process should be smooth and mess free.
What are some things you’ve found useful to share with your pet sitter? Tell us in the comments below!
Thank you for the tips on what to share with the boarding company that you are going to send your pet to. I really think that if you talk about the eating routine and what to feed them, It can really help to make sure that they are okay while you are gone. I also think about health and how important that information can be so they know what to look out for.
My husband and I are planning on hiring a dog sitting service while we are out of town, so I appreciate this information on what to share with them. I like how you point out that we should tell them how much we reward or don’t reward our dog so that they are aware how much to give them. That way, my dog won’t be expecting tons of treats when we get home! I think that in order to have success while we are gone it will be important that we first find a company who has great sitters and comes highly recommended.
It would also be a good idea to let your pet sitter know about any issues the dog has such as anxiety or stress. That way, the pet sitter can better assist your pet. If they know all they can, they should be able to take care of your pet, and you won’t have to worry quite as much!
This is some really good information about pet sitting. I like that you talked about understanding what they need to eat. My sister has a cat and she wants me to watch it for her when she goes on vacation. However, I am super allergic to cats. It seems like a pet sitter or cat boarding would be a better thing for me and her.
I like that you pointed out that a sitter knows the little things about your pet so that they can take care of he/she better. I also think that people should think about what they really want from the pet sitter and make sure that those needs are fulfilled. That is the important thing about making any decision really.
Thanks for the wonderful tips! Making sure your sitter knows any medication your dog requires or whether or not your dog has any disabilities sounds like excellent advice. I have an older dog who is going blind and if I ever hired someone to take care of him I would definitely want to make sure to hire someone who knew how to take care of him properly. Making sure you get someone who loves dogs and is willing to care for them also seems very important.
Great tip Tiffany! If you aren’t already a sitter with us, I hope you’ll consider signing up! 🙂
Food is most important matter for pets. My pet eat particular food so I have to tell my pet sitter whenever I go out of town.
I am going out of town, and I need to find someone to watch my two dogs. They are very easy to watch, but I want to make sure that they get plenty of time outside, and that they eat their regular diet. I also like what you mentioned about how I need to let them know about rewards.
All great tips! Another tip that has worked well for me is familiarizing my pet with one sitter in specific. It helps the pet get used to seeing the same person, and feeling more and more comfortable around that sitter. Much better than constantly switching back and forth with different pet sitters where the environments, objects and scents can be different.
I totally agree when you said that we should tell the sitter about the boundaries of our dog such as if sitting on the couch is allowed or not. I think that is important for us because we are just starting with the training of our dog. We just needed a sitter for a day because of the event that we will be attending this weekend which will take too long for him to be alone.
Thanks for sharing! I found it useful how you mentioned some viable options for this situation while choosing a qualified pet sitter. My family and I are going on vacation, and we need to find the best place for stay for our pet.I’ll definitely consider these recommendations in order to choose the best care facility for our pet. Keep posting!
I thought you made a great point when you said that you should tell a dog sitter what is and what isn’t ok for your pet to do. My wife and I are going out of town for our 10 year anniversary, but we need to find someone to watch our Pomeranian while we are away. We will be sure to relay any care information to the people that end up watching our dog.
It’s good to know that you should leave instruction for your cat’s eating routine with whoever is watching them while you’re away. My wife and I are going out of town for a few weeks, and we want to make sure that our cat has all the care that she needs while we’re gone. We’ll be sure to leave information about our cat’s eating routine for the sitter.
It’s good to know that you need to tell your pet care provider about your pets specific eating schedule. My wife and I have to go out of town for a business trip, and we want to make sure that our dog is properly cared for. We’ll be sure to tell the pet sitter all about what and when he likes to eat.
Thanks for the marvelous posting! I genuinely enjoyed reading it, you will be a great author. I didn’t realize that there was so many pet sitter for different types of pets. I’m getting ready for a trip soon and I’ve been wondering what would be a good option for my cat while I’m gone. I really like the idea of doing pet sitting because it sounds like my cat could be comfortable while I’m away.
You made a great point when making sure they know about little things that your pet does and how to deal with them. My dog is unable to fly with us and we have to keep him back in Dayton, OH while we vacation. These tips will be useful in our search for a petsitter for us.