How to split house sitting and dog sitting when you are charging one flat fee?

The hourly breakdown is totally depressing for both house sitting and boarding, so you really shouldn't look at it. As Walt stated, you aren't tied to the house for the full 24 hours. Many house sitters will also perform drop-ins and walks for other clients, but will spend the majority of their time at the client home.

House sitting, in particular, should always be considered a premium service because of not only its dual responsibilities but also the inconvenience of having to uproot yourself and stay at someone else's home. In looking at your rate table, I was kind of confused because you have a daycare rate of $65 but your house sitting is $45. Is that correct?

Some house sitters will only stay at the house from only 7 pm to 7 am and then charge extra for daytime drop-ins or walks. It really is up to you how you want to structure this. If, however, you raised your house sitting rate to $65/night, as a client I would expect my dog to receive a couple of walks during the day as well as part of the fee.

Lots to chew on. Good luck!

When I used to do house sitting, my rate encompassed spending most of my time with the dogs at their house. The "housesitting" part was included in that price. In my opinion, the rate you charge includes taking care of the dog and cleaning up after yourself and daily maintenance - not deep cleaning, running their household, etc. I let clients know if there were times I was not going to be able to be there, as well as the details of how often the dog was walked, when fed, and all that stuff. My responsibility in terms of the house was to clean up my messes (dishes, laundry, trash, etc.) - if the floors got extra dirty I would definitely vacuum or mop, as well as taking the trash to the curb if it fell on trash day, getting the mail, and watering a few plants if needed. At the time of the Meet & Greet you should talk to them about what your nightly rate includes (it can or can't be what I did - as the others said, it's up to you). If they would like you to do more or be there more than you had planned you should decide if you want to meet those terms and if so, how much extra you want to charge. I hope that helps! Happy Sitting!

Both services are defined by 24 hours, but many sitters are not home or staying in the clients home 24 hours per day, many walk and offer drop-ins. Rates are pretty defined by your local area and I do agree for most they are very low when you break it down to a 24-hour rate. Truly though this is the nature of pet care, low earnings for a lot of work and time. Hope things work out for you.

First, start with Rover's info - this is what owners will refer to when considering a service:

(From the Rover website)

• How much time does the sitter rate cover? The amount of time covered by the sitter’s rate depends on the service being offered: Dog Boarding and House Sitting are both per night, up to 24 hours. Dog Walking is per 30-minute walk. Drop-In Visits are per 30-minute visit. Doggy Day Care is per day, dropping off around 7-9am and picking up around 4-6pm. Rover offers sitters and pet parents the flexibility to customize their experience. So while these are our recommended guidelines, you and your sitter or dog walker may agree on something different depending on the situation. It’s all about what’s best for you and your dog.

In a nutshell, it's up to you to define what you will and won't do as part of housesitting. The best way to let potential clients know this is to list in your profile what you rate includes. You can even list optional services which will incur an additional fee. At the Meet and Greet you can modify the booking.

Many sitters offer extras at no additional cost, like getting the mail, washing bed linens/towels used, watering plants. Others will either charge a higher rate, or make these items add-ons.

I agree, if you convert it to an hourly rate that stinks, but, then again, I don't many jobs that pay for sleeping, watching tv, running personal errands, etc. All that and more is done during a 24 hour period of dogsitting. :)