Can I be sued if I couldn't go...

Can I be sued if I couldn't go to the owners house when he asked last minute because his dog had diarrhea?

I began a housesitting job and the owners requirementst were that the dogs be walked 2x a day in the AM (3 hour period) and pm (3-pm). Fed twice and also did not ask me to spend the night at the home. I believe they booked housesitting instead of dropins because it was the cheaper option. The owners plans changed multiple times and although the stay was suppose to start Saturday night because his sister was staying with the dogs, he needed me earlier. He asked me to arrive at 3/4pm and I did and spent a few hours with the dogs and even informed the owner that the girl dog had diarhea when I took her out. He said it happened the day before too and didn't think much of it. I didn't stay the night and was not in the area for the rest of the evening. Around 11pm the owner messaged me informing me he has a camera and one of the dogs was pacing the kitchen and he was worried she would have diarrhea. I told him I couldn't get there at that time because I was too far away and didn't have my car. He asked if I knew anyone else that could go by and I said no. I told him I was 30/40 minutes away but would stop by on my way home. I had to uber from where I was to my house to get the keys to his place then to his place and back because I didn't have my vehicle and did this around 3am. The dog was fine when I arrived and the owner messaged me shortly beforehand saying she stopped pacing so she should be okay. When I got home my phone died and between 7 and 10am the owner was texting me calling me and even called rover support. Around 9am I messaged him and said I would head over shortly and he was threatening me, saying I neglected his pets etc and that he has a camera and was going to come after me. I didn't go to the apartment between 6 and 7 am as the care instructions said because I had already checked in on the dogs only a few hours before. Between 10 and 1030 he sent me multiple threatening messages shouting for me to come over and return the key fob because he can't get in the apartment, shortly after that he claimed I left the door unlocked. I felt so uncomfortable going back to even return the key but I left it with the concierge. The owner spent the entirety of the day threatening me with hateful messages because his dog had diarrhea after I left around 3am. He claimed I didn't feed the dog or do what was asked but thats not true and if he indeed has a camera it would prove that I did. I believe the dog had anxiety being away from the owner since its the ... (more)

Deb A.

The owner is probably just blowing off steam. My hunch is it won't end up in the courts, because it if does, you'll present all the printed communications that hopefully support you performed as agreed. However, the owners can write a bad review and may get a refund from Rover, which may impact your payment. If you haven't already contacted rover or there is information that didn't get communicated via their messaging, I'd suggest call them to discuss the details. It looks like you were there initially at 3-4 PM, then 3 AM, (which although 12 hours is a long time- may be what was agreed), then 9-11AM (6-8 hours later, which seems long but within reason). It looks like agreed to only 2 walks daily, which I wouldn't book. Expecting a dog to wait 12 hours all the time is a lot! Most humans wouldn't like that restriction for themselves.

I'm glad to read that you documented everything on the Rover app. Documenting your agreement in writing before booking and any time that agreement changes is always a good preventative measure, as well as documenting your visits with at least a short update (i.e. the dogs say hi). For future bookings like that, I'd suggest the agreement is more defined, by mutual agreement of a 2 hour window for each of the walks, understanding that it may need to change.

I've done house sitting where it was agreed to not stay the night, because it's less $ than booking 4 walks per day (it's always 3 or 4 walks, unless someone else is also caring for dogs). On occasion, the dog had diarrhea or some other issue. The best protection is to document in rover messages, in this case: dog's name is still having diarrhea- is there anything you want me to do for dog's name? (This allows support to easily view and help if the owner or you end up contacting them). You could even make suggestions: Would you like me to make some plain white rice & mix it in w. their food (or boil plain chicken breast to mix w. rice).

Comments

I arrived at 4pm but stayed until 730 or so

Sanjana J.

I also suggested pumpkin purée which the owner didn’t have so I brought some from my house

Sanjana J.

I just read the owner left a review. In the past, rover sometimes suggests it's best to not respond (so as to not escalate tensions) but if you do, don't write much & stay professional.

Deb A.

It may be something like: I'm sorry your pups weren't feeling well and that you were dissatisfied w. our agreement 2 or 3 walks. On Sat. I stayed from 4pm-7:30 pm & planned to return in AM. Around 11PM you requested I return asap. I got there about 3am, & planned to return mid morning instead

Deb A.

Pumpkin puree can go either way with dogs - Firm or Loosen their GI tract and it's like rolling the dice which way it will go. Rice is more binding, consider it Nature's Cork.

Deb A.

Thanks for the feedback. I had suggested pumpkin purée the evening before and he said it’s worked in the past but he didn’t have any. In my opinion the owner was aware of That one of the dogs has a sensitive stomach from time to time and didn’t inform me of any medical issues at the meet and greet

Sanjana J.

Also he wasn’t worried about her when I said her poop was runny and just said it was like that the day before to. If he had asked me to stay the night when I was there I would have but he didn’t reach out to me until 11pm and at that point I couldn’t get over there immediately.

Sanjana J.

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Can I be sued if I couldn't go to the owners house when he asked last minute because his dog had diarrhea?

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