3.7

Unfortunately, I cannot recommend Beyonka for housesitting, and I feel it is important to leave a detailed review so that other pet owners can make an informed decision. My husband and I hired Beyonka through Rover to stay in our home and care for our two dogs while we traveled approximately 5,000 miles away to England for my father-in-law’s funeral. Because we would be overseas, having a sitter who could independently and reliably manage the dogs was extremely important to us. This was not a situation where Beyonka arrived on the first day unfamiliar with our dogs or their routine. Before the housesitting assignment began, Beyonka came to our home twice to meet and familiarize herself with Poppy and Molly. We also provided approximately four pages of detailed written instructions covering their routines, feeding, medications, bedtime and other aspects of their care. We wanted both the dogs and Beyonka to be as comfortable and prepared as possible before we left the country. From the first night of the booking, however, there were problems. Our younger dog, Molly, was having difficulty settling at bedtime. Beyonka contacted me in the middle of the night because Molly would not stop barking and told me at one point that she felt she might have to sleep in her car. Our neighbor ultimately went to our house that night and helped settle Molly. I then communicated with Beyonka again about the dogs’ normal evening and bedtime routine, despite this information already being included in the written instructions we had provided. Throughout the stay, we received additional calls and messages about situations that I would ordinarily expect an overnight professional pet sitter to be able to manage. This created considerable stress while we were overseas. The most serious situation occurred on our final night. At approximately 4:14 a.m. UK time, as we were preparing to fly home, Beyonka called and messaged us saying that Molly had “tried to bite” her, that she no longer felt comfortable sleeping in the same room with her, and asking whether our emergency contact could “finish this housesitting situation.” We immediately tried to contact her for clarification but initially received no response. Being thousands of miles away and unable to determine what was happening with our dogs was extremely distressing. When Beyonka later responded, she clarified in writing that Molly had not bitten her. She described Molly lunging/snapping toward her face while they were interacting. For additional context, Molly has a form of face-directed play that she regularly does with me. However, I was not present for this particular interaction and therefore cannot say whether Molly was attempting to play, communicating discomfort, or warning Beyonka. I take any face-directed lunge or snap seriously, and I completely understand why Beyonka felt uncomfortable afterward. I would never expect a sitter to continue close physical interaction with a dog if she felt unsafe. Beyonka subsequently asked us to find someone local to take over the remainder of the housesitting. We agreed and began trying to arrange emergency help while we were at the airport in London. Beyonka then specifically told us that she would remain long enough that morning to give Poppy her medication, feed the dogs, and take care of their morning potty needs. She did not do those things. Beyonka left our home at approximately 7:00 a.m. without feeding either dog, without taking them out for their morning potty break, and without giving our senior dog, Poppy, her prescribed morning medication. At that point we were beginning our journey home from England and had no ability to physically care for our dogs ourselves. We had to urgently contact two neighbors, who thankfully stepped in and provided the morning care that Beyonka had told us she would provide, including feeding the dogs, taking them outside, and making sure Poppy received her medication. That is ultimately why I cannot recommend this sitter. I completely understand that a sitter may encounter an animal behavior that frightens them or makes them decide they cannot safely continue a booking. My complaint is not that Beyonka felt uncomfortable after her interaction with Molly. My complaint is how the situation was handled afterward. We had taken substantial steps before leaving the country to prepare for this booking: two pre-booking visits with the dogs, extensive written instructions, emergency contacts, and detailed information about their routines and Poppy’s medication. If a sitter nevertheless determines that she cannot safely continue a booking, I believe the responsible course of action is to communicate clearly, arrange a safe handoff, and ensure that the animals’ essential needs are met until replacement care is actually in place. Instead, Beyonka left our home before the agreed end of the booking and after explicitly telling us she would complete the dogs’ morning care, leaving our senior dog without her morning medication and both dogs without their morning feeding or potty break. Our neighbors should never have had to step in and complete care for which we had hired and paid a professional Rover sitter. This experience caused an enormous amount of unnecessary stress during an already difficult international trip. On our flight home, instead of knowing our dogs were safely being cared for, we were coordinating emergency care from thousands of miles away. I have retained the Rover messages and other communications documenting the events described above. I am sharing this review because other owners—particularly anyone traveling internationally, anyone with a senior pet requiring medication, or anyone who needs dependable overnight care—deserve to know about our experience before deciding whether this sitter is the right person for their animals.

Beyonka was a great sitter! I was very pleased at how she communicated, sent pictures and took care of my pets. I will certainly be in touch with her in the future!

Beyonka was absolutely amazing! We couldn’t have asked for a better sitter for Guapo. She was always on time, followed all of our instructions and requests perfectly, and took such great care of him. We especially appreciated how she kept us updated throughout the walks with pictures—it gave us so much peace of mind knowing he was happy and well taken care of. She also made sure Guapo was fed right on schedule and paid close attention to everything we asked of her. She was incredibly quick to respond to our messages, which made the whole experience feel so easy and stress-free. You can truly tell that she cares about the pets she takes care of and puts a lot of love and attention into what she does. We are so grateful for how wonderful she was with Guapo and for making us feel completely comfortable while we were away. We would absolutely recommend Beyonka to anyone looking for someone dependable, caring, and trustworthy. We will definitely be booking her again in the future! Thank you so much, Beyonka, for taking such great care of our boy! ❤️🐾