Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Mar 20, 2013 7:42:29 GMT -5
I personally would not want to dog sit. And, what if the dog were to get loose and run away and so forth? In a strange environment where you dont' know the dog that well, i could see that happening. It just isn't something i would want to do.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2013 7:47:00 GMT -5
My son's girlfriend was asked to dog-sit by some friends of friends. For 1 week. This family had MONEY and told her they would pay her. The poor girl drove 30-40 miles round trip 2 times a day to feed and water, walk and clean up after the dog. They gave her $20. WTF??? Wow that would have pissed me off big time. As for our dogs, we usually drop him off at my parents when we travel out of state, etc. If that is not possible we find hotels that allow dogs and take him with us.
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Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Mar 20, 2013 7:48:45 GMT -5
It is a good lesson in business though. Know the terms of what you are doing for the job you are doing. I learned that one time when i babysat some brat all day long and the parents gave me $2.
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Mar 20, 2013 8:15:54 GMT -5
I have dog-sat for friends and acquaintances in the past. Unless it's a good friend or someone I know doesn't have much money, I let them know my daily or weekly rate in advance. Usually, I would stay in their home with the pets, so I cared for the houseplants and yard, picked up the mail, took messages, etc. I never got stiffed money-wise, but I didn't really charge a going rate either.
I never had any terrible dogs, probably because I knew most of the dogs already. One dog did run away on me. We found it again in an hour or so. I told my friend that I wouldn't dog-sit again until her hubby finished the fence. Oh, and I sat a very ill-mannered puppy once and I wouldn't have dog-sat him again until he was trained. But I moved, so it never was an issue.
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Mar 20, 2013 8:41:05 GMT -5
It is a good lesson in business though. Know the terms of what you are doing for the job you are doing. I learned that one time when i babysat some brat all day long and the parents gave me $2. See that is different. I would have paid my neighbors but they would not have taken anything. The trade off is that they are in their 70's so in the winter when it snows we go over and shovel out their driveways. We also get asked to help with all sorts of things throughout the year. I can't imagine getting a babysitter to sit all day and handing them 2 bucks.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2013 8:42:05 GMT -5
I take my dogs to a kennel when i travel. I feel it is better for everyone involved. The cost sucks but that is part of having pets. I wouldn't mind watching a dog/cat that can get along with my pets in the future but right now it is already tough as it is having 2 dogs and a cat with a toddler.
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Shooby
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Post by Shooby on Mar 20, 2013 8:43:41 GMT -5
It is a good lesson in business though. Know the terms of what you are doing for the job you are doing. I learned that one time when i babysat some brat all day long and the parents gave me $2. See that is different. I would have paid my neighbors but they would not have taken anything. The trade off is that they are in their 70's so in the winter when it snows we go over and shovel out their driveways. We also get asked to help with all sorts of things throughout the year. I can't imagine getting a babysitter to sit all day and handing them 2 bucks. Well, that was years ago when i was like 12.
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973beachbum
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Post by 973beachbum on Mar 20, 2013 8:48:10 GMT -5
See that is different. I would have paid my neighbors but they would not have taken anything. The trade off is that they are in their 70's so in the winter when it snows we go over and shovel out their driveways. We also get asked to help with all sorts of things throughout the year. I can't imagine getting a babysitter to sit all day and handing them 2 bucks. Well, that was years ago when i was like 12. To me that is worse. Who stiffs a little kid? It seems like they planned it knowing a 12 year old wouldn't complain.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2013 8:51:25 GMT -5
What constitutes a terrible dog?
My dog will sit by the table and try to hypnotize any new mark she sees into dropping some food for her. But she will cut it out if you tell her no.
If you leave an unattended burrito on the coffee table or anywhere close to the ground, she will steal it.
And she will jump on your furniture. Not because she isn't obedient, but because she is allowed on my furniture.
I always assume that stuff just makes her a dog.
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Mar 20, 2013 9:05:09 GMT -5
Sarah, for me, those wouldn't make me not want to sit that dog again. If a dog does what a dog does, but has some manners and responds reasonably to direction, that's all fine with me. I enjoy the dogs, so I'm not looking for problems. Most of my dog-sitting gigs happened in the owner's home, so I went with their house rules.
The only gig I considered a non-starter for me was the ill-mannered puppy. It climbed all over me constantly, didn't respond to any commands or direction, chewed things up inside the house, and barked constantly. It was young, so I would have told them that after it received some training, I'd have been happy to try watching it again.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2013 9:10:56 GMT -5
Well, that was years ago when i was like 12. To me that is worse. Who stiffs a little kid? It seems like they planned it knowing a 12 year old wouldn't complain. I had two regular babysitting jobs in my neighborhood. The father of the first couple was a police officer, so they would pay me well AND make sure I got home safely. The second couple were partiers. I remember the last time I agreed to watch their little hellions was on a Thursday night (I was in HS at the time). They got home a 3 am (it was a SCHOOL night FFS!) and they paid me $6 because that was all they had left! And I got to walk myself home!!! NEVER AGAIN!
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Mar 20, 2013 9:18:37 GMT -5
We have found a good kennel. The owner is an older lady who used to breed pugs, so she is very much a "dog person". She only takes 6-8 dogs at a time, so the kennel is pretty quiet. There is a large common yard that social dogs can enjoy. Non- social dogs get access, but have limited time. It's not cheap ($50/ day for 2 dogs) but I have peace of mind knowing they are safe and cared for.
Friends hsve offered to take them, but either they are still working or I feel it would be too much of an imposition.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Mar 20, 2013 9:37:45 GMT -5
We board our Aussie since she has a tendency to destory the house if we are gone for an extended period of time. Midnight, our lab, stays home. We boarded her once and the dog hasn't been the same since. My dad comes over 2-3 times a day to feed her, let her out and play with her. He puts her in her crate at night. Otherwise she gets the run of the house. She's well behaved for him. Only exception is the first time she met him she got so nervous she peed all over his shoes. I told him not to approach her when she rolls over onto her back, it means she's submitting and she'll pee if she gets too submissive.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Mar 20, 2013 10:04:29 GMT -5
I guess I'm not certain about the question in the OP. What am I willing to do as a dog sitter? Depending on the dog, I've done major grooming, supported their hind legs going up and down the two steps to our back yard, wiped bums (bulldogs), picked up after accidents (you have to expect an accident or two if the dog is in a strange environment and you don't know it's clues), broken up playing that's turned too rough, given pills, etc. At the same time, we foster with an organization called Old Dog Haven, so maybe that gives you an idea of what we're willing to do for dogs that aren't ours.
Right now, we don't actually dog sit, because 3 dogs in the house is the limit for our dogs. We tried having a 4th one (we dog sat for a weekend, at the same time as watching the dog's human toddler), and it was just too much for our dogs. Even when the toddler was at "school" all day, our dogs were just not good with a 4th dog in the house. No one could quite settle or feel like they had enough space. This was despite the fact that we had dog sat that dog successfully in the past (when we didn't have a foster in the home, so we knew the dogs got along okay).
So what I am not willing to do is place my dogs in danger or in situations that could lead to bad outcomes, otherwise, we're willing to do what needs to be done to take care of the dogs.
For ourselves, we have a roommate, so most of the time if we're going away, he's home, and very little changes for our dogs. June will sleep in J's room and Larry and Howie will each take half of our queen size bed, and everyone is happy. On the rare occasions when J is gone at the same time we are (or if we're doing something with him), we have friends who house/pet sit as a side business and we'll schedule them if they aren't already booked for the weekend. If they are, we have also had the grown daughter of another friend (who works with animals for a living) come stay at our house. In both cases, we pay them. Our one big rule is that men the dogs don't know can't come in the house when we are not there. Larry (our terrier) has very definite ideas about who is the boss and can authorize strange men in the house. (Basically, C or I.) And if one of us isn't there, he will bark and possible try to bite a strange man entering our house, so no men the dogs don't already know can come over.
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lynnerself
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Post by lynnerself on Mar 20, 2013 11:06:35 GMT -5
Until recently we would kennel our dog when we left town. It's a good place and he's been there often enough that he is familiar with it. But now that he is almost 15 we are hesitant to leave him there for extended periods. We have a house/dog sitter. She comes and stays in the house, or takes our dog to her house for short periods of time.
She gives him meds and walks him. The most annoying thing he does is that he gets up and wants out a couple of times early (5 am) in the morning. She also checks our mail, waters our plants etc.
We pay her $20 a day, which is only slightly more than the kennel cost.
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Mar 20, 2013 11:21:14 GMT -5
I think I'm exactly the opposite of the OP. I won't let just anyone watch my dogs. Our older dog, who we lost about a year ago, was one who did not board well, so we would have a sitter come in and stay in the house. I have only used two people, both of which also compete in agility. Meaning, the know my dogs outside the home, and they are very knowledgeable about dogs and behavior types.
Mine are high energy though well behaved. But I would never ask an inexperience person to watch them.
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TheOtherMe
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Post by TheOtherMe on Mar 20, 2013 11:23:39 GMT -5
My only dog sitting experience has been with my DS's "baby". She is an adorable dog. I kept her for three nights. She has been to obedience school and learned the basics. I learned the first night that I didn't let her go to the bathroom right before bed. I was just happy she woke me when she had to go to the bathroom. They had brought me her leash and I had her on the leash whenever I took her out.
After my nephew's wedding last summer, I dog sat this dog and my niece's two dogs at my sister's house. That was okay for one night. It's on a farm and there is a doggy door. I did sleep on the couch and ended up with the two small dogs with me and the large dog on the floor beside me. We did fine, but I wouldn't want to make a habit of it. I won't keep niece's dogs here because they scratch my hardwood floors.
Over the years, I have had neighbors cat sit and I have done cat sitting for neighbors and friends. In this area, I haven't found a cat sitter who comes to the house like I had in Boulder. Now my niece comes and cleans the litter box and refreshes the food and water. I figure that is a fair trade for all the free babysitting I do for her two kids and two dogs. What's fair is fair.
When I was about 12, I was asked by a neighbor to baby sit her baby, not her older kids. I usually babysat just the baby. She was gone many hours than I had been told and the boys had pretty much destroyed the house despite my begging them not to do that. Neighbor gave me like $1 and yelled at me for not controlling the boys. I did tell her I wasn't hired to babysit the boys and she was gone a lot longer than she had told me. She hadn't called either.
I think my mom talked to her because she never did either of those things again when I babysat for the baby.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2013 12:31:14 GMT -5
We were telling a friend about this awesome vacation we have planned this summer and she was like..so it is basically a vacation...for your dogs? Yes we are staying at a cottage, with a doggy door and attached run, on a secluded beach and also on miles and miles of walking trails. Do you know how hard it was to find a place that would let us bring 5 dogs?!! We love going for long walks when we are on vacation and prefer to take the dogs with us. If more places would allow them, we would pretty much take them everywhere. But if we go away, we kennel them, it is too much to leave 3 crazy dogs with non-dog owners. We have left one for a weekend with my brother who used the time to teach the kids why they would not want a dog. where is this vacation place? sounds great!
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