If you have pets or you have decided you need a housesitter to care for your property while you are away read this. You are likely preparing a home for a house or petsitter to come and stay while they watch your home and pets. Here are some top tips on how to go about your preparations before they arrive.

How to Prepare Your Home For a House or Pet Sitter

You are all prepped and ready for your trip away or work weekend. You have packed and booked yourself a house or pet sitter. Now to do some of those last-minute preparations.

When planning a trip, especially during or after a global pandemic, you may want first to get a covid cleaning service to do a sweep of your home to make doubly sure that you and your house sitter are both safe.

Preparing for your perfect petsitter

Other than that, there are a handful of other last-minute things you can do to make sure your sitter knows what’s what and essentially give yourself the peace of mind that things will be fine while you are gone.

Read on to find out some ways to prepare your home for a house or pet sitter.

The Lists

Leave them a list. This sounds obvious but hear us out.

Whether it is house chores that need to be done or the pets’ feeding and grooming schedule, leave a list somewhere in the house so that the sitter can keep on top of things for you. It can literally be as simple as “Take the trash out on Wednesday” or more complicated instruction on maintaining a pool if that is something that needs to be done.

Of course, the terms of what the individual needs to do while you’re away will be agreed upon before you hire them but give them a fighting chance. You don’t want your trip constantly interrupted by phone calls asking you if A or B needs to be done.

Physical lists are also better than email lists that can get buried. You can do both, of course, but always leave a physical list behind.

Food

If you have a pet with dietary requirements, or have a specific food you always feed them, then ensure you have a stock of it before leaving. Especially important if you are going on a long trip if it is a particular kind of food that would be difficult for your pet sitter to obtain, get more than you think they will need.

On the flip side, if you are having a sitter stay in your home, it might be nice to let them know what food they can have from the fridge and pantry. You can even offer to grab some things for them as a thank you for looking after your home. This is a small but welcome gesture of goodwill that will be much appreciated.

Medications

This point doesn’t need too much explanation and links back to the point about leaving lists. However, with pets at home it is a vital step when preparing a home for a house or petsitter. Leave your pet’s medications out somewhere in an obvious container so that the sitter knows where they are. It is very easy to gloss over this when you are prepping to leave the house. And yet it is no less important.

Also, make 100% sure that you have enough medication for the duration of your trip. This is especially true if it is a specialist medication that only you, as the pet owner, can get. If it is a more generic medication, provide the number or location for the medications. That way your sitter can obtain more if they run out in your absence.

Long term housesitters need extra preparation

If you need long term housesitters and you’re inviting them into your home to care for pets and property prepare. Your sitters will need place to put their clothes for a longer period. So for example, you may need to empty a full cupboard or wardrobe for them. You will also need to consider space in the kitchen so they can keep their own food stuffs separate to yours.

Agree the terms of their long term visit. Document what you have agreed. That way you will have a clear understanding on rooms they can access and spaces that are resolutely yours. One idea is to put all your precious, fragile and breakable items in a room that is lockable for safe keeping. Most housesitters prefer this to avoid any unexpected accidents.

In Conclusion

This, of course, if you are preparing a home for a house or petsitter, take a moment to make that list. This is not a definitive list of last-minute things you can do to help a sitter out. Yet they are some of the most important.

Be as clear and helpful as you can for your sitter. They, in return, will have the best chance of looking out for your home and pets. You can go on your trip knowing that you have done everything possible to keep your house and animal safe when you are away.

FURTHER READING ON PETS AND PET SITTING

Prepare your home for the petsitters

What to look for in an ideal petsitter

Shedding pets – Top tips for cleaning up at home