Looking For A Pet Sitter? Here are 5 Qualities To Look For When Hiring
No matter how much we love our pets, there are times where we may have to leave them for a bit. In such scenario, you generally have two options. You can either leave your pet alone at home, or you can hire a pet sitter. If you choose to hire a pet sitter, you can’t simply hire the first one that you encounter. Always remember that hiring a pet sitter means that you will be giving someone access to your beloved pet(s) and your home. Hence, it’s best to be as careful as possible.
But how do you find a good pet sitter? In this article, we are going to enumerate five qualities that you should be looking for when thinking of hiring a sitter for your pet. [spacer height=”1px”]
A Passionate Pet Sitter
This is probably the most important thing that you should be looking for. There are people out there that do pet sitting jobs because it pays. For these people, it’s either they don’t care much about your pet, or they may even hate to be around pets. Obviously, you don’t want to hire such kind of pet sitters.
What you want is a pet sitter that is truly passionate about caring for animals. Also, passionate pet sitters have the tendency to be honest and responsible as they take their job seriously. And let’s be realistic here. If something happens while you are away from your pet, you would want someone that is honest and responsible handling the situation.
Licensed and Insured
If you are serious about the safety of your pet, then it’s best that you hire a pet sitter that is insured, licensed and bonded. It’s also a good idea to look for these as it naturally weeds out the pet sitters that are not serious about his/her business. Getting a license and insurance takes time and money, and if someone is not serious about becoming a pet sitter, he/she won’t bother going through the process.
However, the most important part of looking for insurance is that in case anything happens, you and the sitter are protected from any legal and financial obligations.
Knowledgeable About Pet Behavior
It’s best that you hire a pet sitter that understands how a pet behaves. For example, a good pet sitter will know that dogs like attention and have an inherent need for structure. On the other hand, cats are often best left alone if they are not in a socializing mood.
Understanding for pet behavior naturally come from working in the field. Hence, if you want a pet sitter that has a better understanding of your pet’s behavior, you might choose one that has the most experience.
Prepared For Emergencies
In most cases, a pet sitter’s job is to simply watch over your pet, have your pet accompanied and providing food and water. And yet, always keep in mind that there’s always a chance that something might go wrong while you are away. For this reason, you’d want a pet sitter that is prepared for emergencies.
At the very least, your doggy day care expert should have undergone basic medical training for animals. Such training programs usually include how to do first aid and knowing who to contact. Your pet sitter should also be able to stay calm and follow your instructions for emergency situations.
A Flexible Schedule
It’s best that you hire with a pet sitter that is flexible and doesn’t have a lot of “no’s” in his or her list. In most cases, adding a lot of “no’s” is just a trick so they can charge you more in exchange for agreeing to change their “no” to a “yes.”
It’s okay for pet sitters to have a few “no’s.” However, if you start to feel that there’s a long list of “no’s” coming your way, then there’s a good chance that he/she is just playing you for the extra charge. It’s best to stay away from such pet sitters as they are not only dishonest, but also most likely to do their job for the money with little regards to the safety and care of your pet.
Always remember that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. In this context, it’s best that you take the time to pick the right pet sitting professional, rather than dealing with the mess because you carelessly picked the wrong candidate. Keeping in mind the tips above is certainly a step towards the right direction for the picking the right pet sitter for you.
