When a pet owner needs to travel away from home it is always a worry if you need to find new pet care, whether that pet sitter is a paid service or found on a house and petsitting service like HouseSitMatch. Before you go ahead and choose your pet sitter check out our blog on all the things you need to consider before making your choice. Each service and option will suit a different circumstance. Prepare and learn about your options.

Everything You Need to Know Before Hiring Pet Sitting Services

Leaving one’s little furry friend and heading for a no-pet business trip or vacation can spark a lot of mixed reaction. It’s never an easy decision as one often gets filled with a myriad of questions. One gets to worry about the feeding, cleaning, health situation, among other nitty-gritty details. However, take it easy; you can consider hiring a pet sitter. Here’s everything you need to know about hiring pet sitting services.

• Finding the right sitter

Leaving your pet with a stranger can sound a little bit harsher. However, what would you do in a situation where your close friend or family member is allergic to pets? Or they live in an apartment where your pet doesn’t get allowed? It’s time to seek professional services in pet sitting Australia.

You can start by inquiring from your veterinarian, pet trainer, or a friend who has sort such services before. After that, you can search for them online and see the services that they have to offer. You can also join various pet clubs and get to know if you will find the ideal pet sitter.

• Training & qualification

While hiring a pet sitter, you need to double-check their credentials. It’s because you’ll be entrusting them with a pet that’s significant in your life. Be sure to inquire about their previous pet sitting experience. You need to know some of the pets they got to care for and their exposure.

During this time, you need to pay close attention to body cues. You also need to inquire if they are comfortable and qualified to handle a pet with special needs as well as behavioural issues.

• Communication

As you head out for your vacation or business trip, you would need to know how is your pet. Thus, you need to ensure that there’s constant communication between you and the pet sitter.

You can also request the pet sitter to have a clear recording of your pet’s activities. Thus, even while you are away, you can be assured that the pet doesn’t veer off its regular activities.

• Pet sit Charges

While seeking pet sitting services, you need to know the expenses involved. All these get calculated due to the available services offered. Thus, you need to have a thorough look at what the sitter is offering.

From there, you can inquire about the price of each service. It will enable you to gauge whether they are ideal for you or not. You need to be smart while handling this situation. The best thing is always to have a budget ahead of time. Thus, you can stick to it while searching for the pet sitter that you need.

• Their philosophy on animal handling

Each pet is unique in its way, and the utmost care is paramount. You need to know the philosophical stand of the pet sitter you are about to hire. When it comes to handling, what equipment do they prefer using? Is it a choke chain, or which do they prefer? Some sitters are strict and stay away from using a particular collar and leash types. The life of a pet is critical. Thus, its safety, as well as well-being, is of utmost importance.

• Insurance

Accidents are inevitable in any situation. Thus, you need to know who’ll carry the liability, should anything detrimental manifest in your absence. It would be best to have a pet sitter who can show proof of any commercial liability insurance. It needs to get bonded, as well. Such a scenario will protect against any theft that might transpire in your absence.

• Work ethics

Another essential detail that you ought to be keen on is the pet sitter’s working ethics. You need to hire one who acts professionally at all times. You can get to observe how they perform their work while working with other clients. It would be best if you also were keen to hire one who can strike a secure bond connection with your pet.

Pets need constant adjusting whenever they are in the new environment. Why make your pet through such an ordeal when you can seek services in pet sitting Australia. Thus, your pet can remain around the confines of your home or neighbourhood where it gets accustomed to always. Staying in a familiar surrounding is better for the pet’s wellbeing and less stressful.

Further reading about petsitters and housesitters

At Housesitmatch.com we like to share useful blogs and practical advice about housesitters, housesitting and pet sitting. We hope you find this small selection of our blogs on house sitters useful.

Housesitters keep pets safe at home and save money

What a housesitter does – Top 10 responsibilities

Preparing a home for a house or pet sitter