The first dog we sat for was with us for over a month too! We did a one-night trail run at no charge to make sure that everybody was comfortable, that our dogs would get along and that the pup would be happy with us. In the end everything ended up working great and we ended up watching that dog again for a month and a half a year later. The hardest part was saying goodbye to him after he'd spent so much time with us! He had become a part of the family.

Also - the owner should definitely provide food at the very least.

If a client picks up their dog early I contact Rover and request to have the extra time refunded.

I do not ask for reviews. I figure reviews are earned and if you have to ask for it, you didn't really earn it.

Rover technically charges by night, so I stick with that because it's easier and the most transparent why to handle pricing on the site. When owners search for you, they search for the days they are looking for and Rover quotes them a price. I don't want to deal with having to tell owners that I'm going to charge them more than the quote, so I stick with the quote. As an owner myself I also wouldn't be happy being quotes one price and then being told it would be more.

I know some people do decide on more complex pricing structures. I don't like that, but it's your business to do with what you please.

I did not ask permission, but 2 years in I haven't had any problems. I make sure to keep things within the rules of the complex though. We have a max limit of 2 dogs per apartment, so I never take more than one dog in addition to my own and follow all breed restrictions.

You definitely can! I use rover as both a sitter and an owner and the site is actually set up really well for that!

On the flexible pick up. - If they dropped their dog off at 9 p.m. at the beginning of the stay would you still charge them for that night since they're not only taking a few hours of the day? If you're going to add charges for late pickup, by that logic you should discount for late drop off as well. Rover charges by night, not by day, because it would be too confusing otherwise.

Dogs in new places do weird things. I'd suggest investing in a carpet cleaner, like a spotbot, they're pretty reasonably priced. As a dog sitter, accidents are just something you have to accept are going to happen.

We do refer to other sitters, but only sitters we know and have had our own dog stay with. Nine times out of ten one of us is able to accommodate.

I always send one update with photo a day, unless something significant or funny happens after that update, then I'll send a second. I try to make sure I'm sending them at convenient times. I also try to send them in whatever form the owner prefers (international travelers may not want text updates for example.)

Your dog wants to sleep with you because you are in his pack. It's a sign of trust and affection.

I've found that ginger treats help to calm pups' stomachs. Also a little peppermint oil/extract rubbed on the inside of the front paws.

I don't think it's appropriate to charge extra for medicine administration. You're already being paid to care for that dog, that should mean doing everything that needs to do be done to care for the dog.

I raised my rates after the first 6 months of sitting. By that time, I'd racked up enough good reviews to justify it. I sent out a message to all of my past clients letting them know I would honor my original price with them, as a thank you for trusting me with their pets before I'd made a name for myself. I have a list of all of those clients saved so I know if I get a request from one of them to adjust the rates, for everyone else the rate is higher.

Unfortunately, there isn't a way on Rover to send out a mass message to all of your clients, so you have to send it one at a time.

I've done nearly 100 stays and have only had 2 dogs that had significant problems (one bit me, the other bit my dog). However, I think we define "problem dogs" differently. I wouldn't consider a dog that has an accident (especially as a puppy), or whines at night to a problem dog. They're in a very different place, with very different smells, sometimes it just takes awhile for them to get the hang of things.

We also keep a very regular schedule, puppies go out every 2 hours, adult dogs every 4 (except at night of course, when we sleep).

I'm pretty lenient. If the reason they're cancelling is something totally out of their control, like the crazy blizzard that hit here over the winter, I call rover and request that they get their full refund. I also had one owner that cancelled 3 stays at my request. Their pup got a papilloma and for fear that my dog or other dogs staying with me might pick it up we agreed that it would be best for their dog to stay with a sitter that didn't have other dogs. In that case again, I called rover and requested that the owner get their full refund. I've had cancellations for deaths in the family etc. that I deemed appropriate.

I don't make that public though. My cancellation policy on my page is "moderate" and I've found that dog owners will abide by it and don't try to weasel out of it. I worry that publically stating on my profile that cancellations are case-by-case would encourage people to book before finalizing plans and I'd end up with more cancelations.

It is so easy for beagles to get overweight. They're chowhounds, it's just what they do. I recommend limiting food, cutting out any human food he might get. It also helps to break up feedings. Serve him half of his food in the morning and half in the evening. I know it's hard, and he's going to whine, but in the end I promise he'll still love you. You can also switch him to veggies for treats. My beagle LOVES green beans and carrots. Exercise is extremely important. I think the dog park is great for helping with weight loss because they can go at their own pace.

I have a beagle and live in a 750 sq foot apartment. He definitely needs exercise outside regularly, but he seems happy in the apartment. We've sat for a bunch of larger dogs and I agree with what other said, large low-energy dogs, like Great Danes are perfect apartment pets. Actually, as puppies, it's recommended that Danes not be too active because they are vulnerable to skeletal/joint issues, so a small space is preferred.

However, I think any dog can be an apartment dog, some just require more time outside of the apartment than others.

And for temporary help, trying giving your pup a little pumpkin. We do a tablespoon for our 25lb beagle if he has soft stools.

My beagle gets Authority Grain Free. Authority is Petsmart's store brand and it's fantastic. They've never had a recall that I can find and are well rated on dog food advisor, with the added benefit of a reasonable price tag. We love them so much that after moving and not having a Petsmart around we started ordering it online. Highly recommend. 10 out of 10. :-)

I always make my pup a cake for his birthday. I'm very picky about what he eats, so I ended up making my own recipe this year without any ingredients harmful to dogs. He LOVED it.

Here's the recipe: 1 egg, 3 Tablespoons peanut butter, 1/4 cup sugar-free applesauce, 1/4 cup rolled oats, 1/2 apple finely chopped

Mix it all together and put it into a greased ramekin or large muffin tin. Cook at 350 until toothpick comes out clean (20ish minutes). I "frosted" it with peanut butter and decorated it with treats.

In my experience, it's best to make sure the dog is comfortable and not force anything. When we have dogs who are particularly distraught after their owners leave (usually they'll sit by the door and whine), we'll move their bed or comfort item (we usually ask owners to bring something that smells like home, like a blanket or t-shirt) near the door so they're comfortable. Then we just let them be and usually they'll calm down by themselves and come away from the door within an hour to inspect their new surroundings and interact with us and our pup.

Trying to force love onto them by petting, hugging or trying to snuggle them before they're comfortable generally doesn't help and only makes them more uncomfortable. If they indicate that they want your attention, looking at you for comfort, or rubbing against you, following you, then they're looking for physical comfort and petting or snuggling might help. Each dog is different and will cope in their own way.

I agree, for dogs with "happy tail" syndrome there are definite benefits.

My pup eats Authority grain free food from Petsmart and loves it. Petsmart was the only pet store close to our old town and when we moved there was no longer one convenient. We tried to switch to different foods available at closer stores, but Bogie just did not like them at all (or they resulted in loose stools, vomiting etc.) so we now order his food in bulk from Petsmart's website.

I personally have never used one (I've also never had a private yard, so I can't say it's been an option). I do have a lot of experience with beagles however. I would worry that a beagle's desire to chase any woodland creature around might be too strong for an invisible fence. Beagles have a very one track mind and I have no doubt that if my beagle encountered an invisible fence while running after a squirrel, he'd run right through the shock and I'd never see him again.

I charge a flat nightly fee for full care, that includes walks, hikes, feeding, administering medication and bathing if the pup needs it.

One of the reasons we use Rover for our own dog was that I don't like that kennel's charge extra for things like walks, hikes, and whatever else. If I'm already paying somebody to care for my dog, I shouldn't have to pay extra for them to actually do the things that constitute caring for my dog.

The other's advice about starting your pricing a tad below the local average is good. We started 5 dollars below average for ours and raised it after 6 months once we got a few good reviews up. We did lock in the lower rate for our early customers as kind of a "thank you" for giving us a start and trusting us with their pets while we had very few reviews.

During the week our dog, and any dogs that we have staying with us, are left alone from 9 am when I leave for work until noon when my boyfriend comes home. We usually baby-gate our dog into our kitchen. We don't ever leave the dogs alone overnight. We do not crate dogs that are not usually crated.

My boyfriend and I have been Rover sitters together for almost a year. The account is under my name, but he is listed and he attends all the meet and greets. We very much work as a team with him taking care of the dogs while I'm at work and me taking over at night (our staggered work schedules make it possible for one of us to be with the dogs almost all the time). Actually, one of the only things I don't love about the Rover site is that you can only put one name on the account. I'd like for both of our names to show on search results.

Thanks for your response. The puppy does have an active papilloma and as I noted, Bogie is under 2 years old. If he were to develop a wart we would either have to pay for him to have it removed, or turn customers away for the 1-5 months. We would love to have the puppy again once she heals.

We have a puppy booked to stay with us for the next three weekends and her owner just informed us that she has developed a wart on her nose which may be transmittable to our 1 1/2 year old dog. We've sat for this puppy several times and like her and her owners very much but I'm not comfortable exposing my dog to the virus. I'm sad to say, but I feel that I must cancel the puppy's upcoming stays. I simply can't risk Bogie getting exposed and if he does, he could expose future Rover dogs we sit for, which would obviously be bad for business. I'm afraid in canceling the stay I'm going to end up losing a regular customer, but my dog's health comes first.

My question is, given that the stays are so soon is cancelling them going to negatively reflect on my rankings? I've never cancelled a stay before, so I'm a bit concerned. I feel like this is a perfectly justifiable reason to cancel and shouldn't reflect negatively on my business.

I meet all of the criteria to be a Rover pack member and have filled out the application. I was just wondering if anybody knows off hand how long it takes to get the badge after filling out the application. Will Rover contact me to let me know the status of my application, if I do happen to get turned down for some unknown reason?

I have a dog of my own and will in extreme circumstances take on two guest dogs but ONLY if they are both dogs I've had in the past. We have a fairly small apartment and it's tough having three dogs running around so we try to avoid taking in two additional dogs at all costs. There have been a few circumstances where a repeat customer has an emergency and I'll bend my rules a little but only for a night or two and only if both owners are comfortable with the situation. I wouldn't bring in any dogs I'm unfamiliar with as it would be difficult for me to keep them separate if need be.