Hi,
I am so confused about what overnight stay entails. I read that it is 24 hour care so am I suppose to stay at the client's 24 hours?
I was wondering if someone could give me a breakdown of an overnight stay schedule. Thank you!
It's really no different from if you board dogs in your home. You can come and go, so long as you let the customer know that you do this and that the dog will not be left alone for longer than x number of hours. They need to know and agree to your plans.
House sitting is also like boarding in that it is supposed to be for 24 hour intervals. Moreover, it should be considered a premium service because you are not only taking care of the customer's pet but also watching their home and probably being asked to do little jobs around the house, like watering plants, taking in mail, etc. Therefore, the sitter needs to stay overnight in the home and be there a majority of the day as well. If you have other clients for dog walking or drop-ins, then let the house-sitting customer know that you do have other commitments but will be in their home a majority of the time and their dog will not be left alone for whatever time you need.
There might be some customers who require you stay in their home 24/7. If you want to accept that arrangement, you should be charging accordingly because you cannot do other jobs concurrently.
Finally, since you are an independent contractor you can decide for yourself how you want to handle house-sitting jobs. From what I read here, there are many variations and interpretations. Just be sure the customer understands the arrangement.
Thanks for the answer! Now that I know what it is and what is not, I am more comfortable asking client's expectations and whether I can fulfill it or not.
Hi, Jung! While overnight care covers the time frame of a 24 hour period (reservation wise), you do not need to be in the client's home the entire day and night. While you and the client can discuss and come to an agreement of when you will be at their home, usually it entails sleeping at the client's home (therefore being there overnight for 10-12 hours), plus visits during the day. For me, most overnight clients want a mid-day and an evening visit in addition to me staying overnight. Of course, I am "allowed" to stay as long as I would like. I always ask what the longest amount of time the dogs are okay being by themselves for, but never leave them for more than 5-6 hours. Usually my time away from their home is spent doing other drop-ins/walks and checking in on my own dogs during the day. I believe there are other sitters who remain at the home unless they have other tasks/sits/errands to run during the reservation. It really depends on what you're comfortable with and what the client wants, so I would suggest discussing their expectations at the Meet & Greet!
Hi Hilary! Thanks for this answer! It was really helpful. I just got an overnight stay request and we discussed the client's expectations and whether I can fulfill it before the meet & greet so I didn't waste the client's time if I couldn't meet it.
I agree with the others. For my house sitting clients, I basically move into their home for the duration of the stay, using it as my base of operations. For starters, we discuss everything at the M&G. I explain that I will be coming and going (other dog clients, check on my house, church, etc) but won't be gone more than a few hours at a time and will always be there from dusk to dawn. We discuss their expectations and requirements (dog must be walked X times a day, etc) and come up with a plan. One client did want me to be there 24/7 but it was only for a 4-day stay, and I altered my rate to reflect that.
I normally do not accept house sitting assignments more than 5-7 miles from my home because of the inconvenience, and this is in my profile. I have had 2 clients that are approx 10 miles and I charge $5 more a day. One was a personal friend and the other had a very low-maintenance dog.