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So, I have a repeat client with three cats ..?

Hi! I'm a sitter in the Twin Cities metro area, and I have a repeat client we will call Jane. She has three cats, one is an older petite thing, and two other kitties that are sisters and are younger (maybe..4 or 5 years old). For her booking she combines them all into one 'cat' to only have to pay for a single cat, and not have the additional cat fees. My rate is $15 a visit (I get $12) and my additional cat fee is $2 (I get $1.60), so with her I do two drop ins a day (morning and evening to feed, scoop boxes, play, etc) so she only pays the $15 x 2, so $30 ($24 for me). But I could get, if charged properly, I could actually make $30.40 a day.

So.. maybe you are seeing where I am going with this.

Should I tell her next booking I will add on two extra cats so that I get paid for them as well? Or do I just let it go and keep her as a regular? Anyone been in this situation where a person lists one pet but you have to care for .. more than one (just to get around the extra dog/cat fee)?

Thanks for any advice/comments!

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This happened to me. I didn’t realize until my second visit that there was an issue. I like her and her cats and I chalked it up to a lesson learned. Now I always verify the total numbers of pets and make sure they are added before I accept a job.

This happen to me also, after 2 visits I realized this, also she didn't live all that close to me. So on her 3rd request I told her that you have 4 cats so I need to charge you for each cat, at the time it was 3.00 per additional cat. She got upset with me and told to nevermind. I was fine with that

I'm just telling you if you don't mind taking that chance, I was upset about it cuz the client is ripping me off, rover is taking 20% and now the client is taking $$ out of your pocket to. I'm not down for that. It's not worth it to me.

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This comes up frequently. Here's one recent thread about unlisted pets:

https://www.rover.com/community/questio…

She is taking advantage of you. Remember, this is a business. You are not her friend doing her a favor.

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I dont really mind too much when that happens, some people cannot pay per animal. It does add up very very quickly If they just simply can’t afford it, I deal with it. I’d rather have some money, then no money at all . It’s not that much extra work

Especially with people who have 3 or more dogs.

Adds up. Extremely fast

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I'll say! I can't even afford to use Rover now because everyone chargers $15-$30 extra per cat in my area. With 8 cats, my week trip would cost $2000 for twice daily drop ins. That's insane!

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Your additional cat fee is so nominal. If I owned three cats, I would not mind paying it. However, it sounds like this person has isn’t willing to compensate you for your effort because it would cost her $8 more/day [feels it’s okay to take advantage and may find someone else to give her what she wants.]

There’s two ways I would consider handling it if I was in your shoes.

  • The least likely scenario = if I really wanted to continue providing service for all 3 felines, I would ask that we list all three cats individually, and I apply a negative cost adjustment on the booking to negate the additional cats fees. I’d explain that that is the way to cover all the cats with the rover guarantee.
  • I’d probably choose to tell her that I can’t continue providing service for all 3 as I had been for only 1 pet listed. If she wants to continue, all three need to be listed and point out that the additional cat rate is a nominal $2 dollars per cat.

Ultimately it’s your call. Consider how busy you are, if you have other things competing for this time, and how you feel providing service to these pets.