Great experience all around!

We hired Halley for our newly adopted 2-year-old dog, Thanos, for a 9-day vacation. Since Thanos is still adjusting to his new home and routine, we preferred in-house care to keep things consistent for him. During the meet and greet, we provided a thorough overview of his daily needs, including his feeding schedule, potty breaks, known commands, and behaviors we're working on. We also provided a care document to help make expectations clear. Initially, we agreed to her rate of $84/night. However, two days before our trip, Halley informed us that, after reviewing Thanos' routine, which includes four short walks a day (10-15 minutes each) and adhering to his feeding and behavior guidelines, she considered this “a lot more work” and raised the rate to $140/night. We felt this timing put us in a difficult position, but we agreed to the increased rate. When we came home after the trip, our house had a strong odor of dog urine, and we found Thanos' bed soaked in urine. We were concerned that our dog may have been sleeping in his urine-soaked bed, which was stressful. This was also challenging as we arrived home late at night and spent considerable time cleaning rather than resting after our trip. We spent multiple days addressing the odor, and the carpet still retains some smell. We were also transparent about having security cameras outside and a nanny cam in our living room for occasional check-ins. She shared that she was uncomfortable with the indoor camera, and we assured her it wasn't for constant monitoring since we were on vacation. The camera was working fine when we left, but stopped functioning the day after our departure. Despite troubleshooting attempts with her, it remained non-functional throughout our trip, only to mysteriously start working again the day she left. This also concerned us since it broke a mutual trust we were trying to build with her. Halley was also transparent about bringing her small dog, which we agreed was okay. Her dog had a few accidents that she cleaned up with our carpet cleaner. The extensive urine issue with our dog suggests missed opportunities for more frequent bathroom breaks or bedding checks, as noted in our care document. While we appreciate that Thanos was kept safe, the sudden rate increase and the condition we found our home in did not meet our expectations for the premium price paid. To her credit, she was responsive when we reached out about the issues and offered a $200 partial refund to help resolve the matter. Future clients may want to clarify expectations upfront and ensure detailed communication about care standards.