What exactly does nightly rate mean? Does this mean 24 hours? What if someone brings a dog at 6 pm and picks up at 8 am the next day? (14 hrs). Is that the same rate as someone that brings a dog at 8 am and picks up the next day at 8 am? (24 hrs)? How does pay get broken down in other words.
As a sitter, you are under no obligation to pro rate your overnight (24 hr) rate for a single night's stay as you've described in the first scenario (6pm to 8 am). If, however, an owner drops off a dog at 8 am and pckup is two days later at 7 pm, they would be charged for 2 nights and a daycare charge that you would determine based on the overage. Since the overage is practically an entire day, you would be justified in charging the owner for another daily charge, but that is up to you. I give owners a couple of hours leeway before I charge them for additional daycare. you should find out planned dropoff and pickup times prior to completing a booking so the additional charge can be factored in. There will always be unplanned and emergency situations under which an owner cannot pick up their dog within the stated period, but you deal with them on a case-by-case basis. Remember, a kennel will always charge for additional time and will have all sorts of extra fees for pickups and dropoffs outside their normal windows. Hope this help.
Generally, the nightly rate is for a 24 hour period. The nightly rate would most likely apply in the scenario you asked, since it's still overnight care. I believe most sitters offer some leniency +/- a couple hours. Depending on the sitter's hours and availability for the dates that can vary and sometimes custom rates are offered. Also, if this is an ongoing frequently occurring need that may affect the rate. I'd suggest pet-parents look at the sitter profiles, contact those that are of interest, and ask these specific questions through the inquiry messages.
As the others have said, the nightly rate refers to a 24 hour period of time. It's entirely up to you whether or not you want to prorate for stays under 24 hours. Personally, a full day of daycare (up to about 9 hours) is $30; longer stays, whether they are overnight or not, would be rounded up to my nightly fee of $37, so I would keep 14 hours of overnight care at my full rate. I also charge a daycare fee for the time difference between the drop off and pick up times, though usually only on shorter stays. If a stay is more than a few days, I usually don't worry about it.
Like Deb said the nightly rate is a 24 hr period and it's still over night care. I rarely have a customer pick up "exactly" within the 24 hrs. Sometimes it's a couple hours earlier to a couple hours later. I am very flexible with my travel repeat customers due to traffic or flight delays. Even my customers that I Host for once or twice a year are either eager to pick up their pup(s) right away if they are home a little earlier from their trip or later due to delays. My customers do call and let me know what is happening and if they will be arriving early or later. It's a Great question to ask at the Meet & Greet and keep great communication with your sitter because "we" really appreciate it.