I want to meet our dog sitter before I pay for a full week to make sure they are a good fit with my dog, but Rover seems to require full payment up front. can't I meet them first?

Yes, you request a meet and greet when you send your booking request to the sitter. The meet and greet is free. They are not required, but any good sitter would require them. You can wait until after the meet and greet to confirm the booking, at which point you would pay to secure your spot with that sitter.

Just to be clear, you are asked to provide payment information when you set up a booking. You do NOT get charged right away,. You can have your Meet & Greet with the sitter first. Then, if both of you think it should proceed, the sitter will accept the booking. Then it is sent back to you for a final confirmation, at which point your credit card is charged.