A dog I have been watching in myhome broke a large flower vase. I don't feel I should absorb the cost to replace it. I think the owner should reimburse me for the broken item. Has anyone experienced a dog breaking something in their home? and how did they handle that?
It is a cost of doing business in your home.
Something like a flower vase would be hard to ask for compensation. Might want to rethink where your fragile items are when dog sitting. I treat my dog sitting environment like I would if I had a toddler visiting. Hopefully the dog that broke the vase was not injured.
Damage in the home has been discussed many times. If you search damage, you'll likely see many opinions how people handle it. However, Rover's policy is clear that the owner is not responsible for these type of costs.
Here are a few: https://www.rover.com/community/quest... https://www.rover.com/community/quest... https://www.rover.com/community/quest... https://www.rover.com/community/quest... https://www.rover.com/community/quest...
As in any business, the things within the business are the businesses responsibility. In other words, if you have nice things, put them away or up high. If a tail is what broke it, either move them higher or watch smaller pups. It takes time but all pet sitters learn that valuables are not good things to have below half a wall high (usually 4 ft IF you keep medium to small dogs). You can also use velcro to attach things to surfaces and such. It is definitely a learning experience.
Otherwise, the customer probably should not be asked for the replacement cost as they assume that you know better than to leave things down low or on a surface that could be bumped. If you have many really nice things, raise your price to account for cost of replacing those things if they cannot be moved. While it is really nice to have beautiful things around, in a pet sitting house, it is not pet friendly. Oh...you can also gate off a specific room for pet sitting and place the nice things in a "welcome room" where you meet the pet parents and have drop off/pick ups.
I always tell the owner. Sometimes they will offer compensation, other times they will not. I always deny the money but I just want the owner to be aware of the good and the bad while their dog stayed with me. Hasn't led to any bad reviews yet. I think you just have to speak tactfully.
I've called Rover regarding damages before, the representative suggested that I could always negotiate with the owners. I do not think it is Rover policy that sitters just have to accept any damages in the house. It is just something they do not want to put down in writing. Sitters provide the service of caring for dogs, and I believe most sitters do not factor in the potential property damage cost when setting the rate. Sitters do need to be careful of the placement of things, but owners should also evaluate if their dogs are suitable of going into someone's house . Owners should not be encouraged of taking no responsibilities when damages happen. A hotel for human would charge for room damages, so does a dog boarding house in my opinion.
Yes - just one puppy so far and learned to seriously puppy proof and increase distractions. He even pulled curtains down! Learning as I go! Good luck!