I had a total of 3 dogs out of the 40 I've had so far, that gave me big trouble:

• One was super aggressive with me, and even bit me causing me to lose a nail and bleed from my hand. The dog didn't stop crying and scratching doors the 4 days and nights he stayed with me. There was nothing I could do to calm him down: no treats, no walks, no petting. When the owner came to get the dog, I explained her the issues I had and her answer was "Oh yes, he's spoiled, I can't even walk him, only my daughter".

• Another one was mostly the owner's fault for not being honest with me during the M&G: she told me caring for her dog was easy, but when she came to drop her with me, she listed a ton of things the dog needed: diapers changed 5x a day because she never potty trained the dog (during the M&G the dog didn't have a diaper, and the dog doesn't have a medical problem, it was lack of training), special food I had to mix and cook for the dog and make sure it was at the correct temperature for her to eat, letting her sleep with me in my bed. She also called me every. single. night. She wanted me to report to her what I did with her dogs and what was new compared to the previous day. Seriously? I do this as a side job while I work from home full time. It's a dog! She sleeps, eats, plays, poop. What else do you expect? If you want me to take care of so many things that demand a lot of time, you should pay me at least 3 times what I charge.

  • Another dog was aggressive with my dog. During the M&G he was friendly and played with him. But when the dog stayed with me, he attacked my dog 4 times for no reason. My dog was napping in the carpet. There was no food or toys involved. I had to keep them separated for the whole week he was here.

I have the same fear: a bad review if I say something negative to the owners about their dog(s). I had cases where the dogs were very difficult to handle, and/or the owner's demands for care were too much. I had a client who asked me to change diapers 4x a day to her dog b/c she never took the time to potty train her. She also asked me to prepare each meal mixing ingredients and making sure it was "warm enough b/c her dog doesn't eat cold food". She also called me every single night to ask about the activities I did with her dog, expecting me to do something exciting and new each day. It's worth to clarify that during the meet and greet, she said her dog was "normal, low key, standard care". This owner only brought all these complications the moment she was dropping the dog. Rover should allow us sitters to "flag" a customer for not being honest, being rude, or for having dogs that present aggressive issues once the owner is gone.

This is the 2nd time this happens to me (different dog the 1st time). During the meet and greet the dog was friendly, happy to play with mine, and running around the backyard. When they dropped him for the stay, the dog immediately switched to very shy/scared, and pees every 30 min inside the house. He refuses to move, so I carry him in my arms 4 or 5 times a day to the backyard. He pees in my arms while I do this, pees on the floors inside the house, and screams bloody murder when I touch him. I've tried calming him down with his favorite treats, special food, and playing, but nothing. If this is separation anxiety: how can I help him calm down and trust me? Thank you.