Am I being too polite/flexible with booking?

you can ask for a deposit of say a couple of days. this would hold a spot and not be a financial burden. if you have a flexible cancellation policy they would receive a full refund. this may nudge them to respond quicker.

If it's happening with new clients, one way you may want to handle this is to Archive the request... and then when they're ready to book it remove it from Archives. That way at least you'll still show up as available.

My preference is to only book the current and next month. Pet parents of the dogs I care for on a repeat basis often want to ensure I can take care of their dog months in advance. So, I let pet parents know that for future stays, I'll add it to my master calendar, but it does not need to be booked that far in advance. I encourage hem to message me directly about tentative dates (as sometimes plans change and that way it's not affecting the Rover calendar) and book closer to the time needed. All of the pet parents (except for one) usually go through with their plans with minor date changes. That one person has cancelled many times for many different reasons without much notice so I've learned to not count on the booking and if it does, I just make it work.

2022. ADD: Now that Rover is going to include all cancellation refunds and service fees in the gross payments reported, which sitters are going to have to calculate the net earnings for taxes, it gives further incentive to minimize cancellations by not booking services too much in advance on rover’s calendar.

From Help Center: “Gross payments reflect the entire amount of payments processed on Rover on your behalf. This includes Rover’s service fees and is before any applicable refunds. This means that reported gross payments will be higher than what you actually received in your bank account.”

I archive immediately. I honestly can't think of any other place business or personal that would hold a slot open for you "just in case". Imagine doing that at the hairdressers! Lol, nope!

If they are repeat guests and you absolutely want to have them book with you, tag them 20 days or so prior. Something simple like "My calendar is filling up, currently the only way for me to guarantee your pups a spot is if you confirm within 72 hours." Think about it: if they have a flight they have no doubt booked that flight for hundreds of dollars even if they're driving they still taking off work so that's plenty of notice.

You're not leaving them stranded because 30 days is more than enough time to find alternative sitter. In fact the majority of my bookings come within 2-3 weeks of their planned travel. And never assume what a person can or can't afford. If they are going out of town, their pet should be an item they budget for. Just like food, hotel, flight etc. Especially if they contacted you months prior, they've had extra time to save!.

The fact that it keeps happening to you should be a big giant red flag that you're being taken advantage of.

I assure pet owners that they don't need to book MONTHS in advance, but the only way I can guarantee their spot is if it is booked and paid through Rover. Like Serina suggests, I would contact them 30 days prior to the trip and say you're filling up and the only way you can be sure you'll have space for their pets is if they book now. You should also archive their request so that you're visible in the search results. If you receive another booking request for the same dates, let the second owner know that you're pending a request, then reach out to the original owners and tell them that another owner is interested in their dates and you need them to book right now if they will need your services.

Like others have said, you can't reserve a room at a hotel or seat on a flight without paying for it. Your cancellation policy will protect them if plans change, but you are running a business and have to do so in a way that is best for YOU!

With a new client, I won't do a meet and greet if the booking is farther than a month in advance. I've learned the hard way that those people rarely actually book and then I've wasted my time. If they are interested in a date farther than a month out, I get the basic info out of the way (dates, types of animals, what they need specifically) and tell them I'll contact them 30 days prior to set up a meet and greet. I then archive that request to make sure I remain open for other customers in case they don't end up booking me. Once I do a meet and greet the only way for them to "hold their spot" is to pay through rover and officially book me.

For repeat clients, I encourage my loyal repeat clients to contact me as soon as they THINK they're going to need me, I put it into my phones calendar and then 30 days prior I check in to make sure they still need me. If they do then we officially book it through rover at that point.

I don't book any further than two months in advance because I travel. But it's totally up to you! I find the sooner the Meet and Greet, the better. Then I give the client a few days to decide. I remind them that slots fill up quickly and that no booking is guaranteed until it's actually booked and confirmed. But I definitely would not book anything over two months ahead :O

I've had people do that to me, because they want back up for their regular sitter. I usually let it sit until about a month before and then I contact them letting them know I need an answer because I have other requests that I need to reply to and/or book if they don't need my services.