Questions to Ask When Hiring a Pet Sitter
Questions for interviewing a pet sitter before a trip: insurance and references, what a visit actually includes, how medication and emergencies are handled, who covers if the sitter is ill, and what the rates really include.
The questions
Open any question for the note
How long have you been doing this, and is it your full-time work?
Why ask it
Full-time sitters tend to have systems: a calendar that prevents double booking, a named backup, insurance. Someone fitting it around a job may still be excellent, so ask how they handle a clash between the two.
Can I have two references from clients with pets like mine?
Why ask it
Ask for clients whose animals resemble yours in size, age or temperament. A glowing reference about a calm elderly cat tells you nothing about how someone copes with an adolescent retriever.
Are you insured and bonded, and can I see the certificate?
Why ask it
Insurance covers accidents involving your pet or your home; bonding covers theft. Ask to see the document, because plenty of sitters describe themselves as insured while carrying nothing at all.
Will you personally be doing the visits, or could someone else be sent?
Why ask it
Larger services rotate staff, so the person your dog met may not be the person who turns up. Get the answer in writing, along with what happens when the assigned sitter is unavailable.
How many other pets will you be looking after during my trip?
Why ask it
This is the question that reveals whether visits will be rushed. A sitter with fourteen visits in a day is mostly driving, and your booked half hour quietly becomes eighteen minutes.
How long is each visit, and what happens during it?
Why ask it
Ask for the sequence: food, water, litter or garden, medication, play, tidying up. A specific answer means there is a routine; a general one means the visit becomes whatever the schedule leaves room for.
Will you send me a photo or a note after each visit?
Why ask it
Photo updates are the cheapest accountability available and are now normal practice. A sitter reluctant to send them is either disorganised or would rather not create a timestamped record.
What medication have you given before: pills, drops, injections?
Why ask it
Tablets, ear drops, insulin and eye ointment are quite different skills. Ask what they have actually administered, then demonstrate your own pet's method rather than describing it in an email.
What would you do if my dog wouldn't eat for two days?
Why ask it
A judgement question wearing a hypothetical. You want a threshold and an action: how long before they phone you, and what they would try first. Vague reassurance means they will wait too long.
Which vet would you use, and who pays at the desk?
Why ask it
Confirm they would use your practice rather than the nearest one, and settle payment now. A card on file or a signed treatment authorisation prevents an argument in the middle of an emergency.
What would you handle yourself, and what would you call me about?
Why ask it
Owners want very different thresholds and sitters are left guessing. Say plainly what you want to be phoned about, including anything you would rather hear immediately even while you are away.
Who covers your visits if you are ill or your car breaks down?
Why ask it
Illness, snow and car trouble all happen. The answer should be a named person who has met your pet and can get into your home, not an assurance that they never cancel.
Has a pet ever got out while you were caring for it?
Why ask it
Anyone who has done this for a decade without incident is either fortunate or not telling you. What matters is the account: how quickly they noticed, who they called, and what they changed afterwards.
How do you handle a dog that pulls or reacts badly to other dogs?
Why ask it
Describe your dog honestly and listen for whether the plan changes. A sitter who says every dog is fine with them is more of a risk than one who proposes a quieter route and a harness.
What do you do if my cat hides the whole time and you never see her?
Why ask it
A hiding cat is the most common way a problem goes unnoticed for days. You want someone who checks litter and food levels rather than reporting all is well because the bowl was empty.
If you are staying overnight, what hours would you actually be in the house?
Why ask it
Overnight often means arriving at ten and leaving at seven, which is not the same as company for an anxious animal. Ask about the hours in the house and whether they leave during the day.
What are your rates, including holidays, extra pets, and short-notice bookings?
Why ask it
Holiday surcharges, additional animals, medication administration and late bookings all carry extras that appear on the final invoice. Ask for the whole rate card in writing before you book.
What is your cancellation policy, in both directions?
Why ask it
Ask what happens when you cancel and what happens when they do. A sitter who charges a fee for your change of plan while offering nothing for theirs has written a one-sided arrangement.
What do you need from me before I leave?
Why ask it
Their list shows how organised they are. Expect vet details, feeding amounts by weight, medication instructions, where things are kept, alarm codes, and written consent for treatment.
Is there any animal or situation you won't take on?
Why ask it
Every good sitter has limits: certain breeds, unfenced gardens, aggressive cats, complex medical cases. Someone who claims to take anything at all is the answer that should slow you down.
Hiring someone you can actually leave the house with
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Before you decide
Pay for one trial visit while you are home
Book a short visit before the trip and stay out of the way. You learn how your pet reacts to them, whether they arrive when they said, and whether the notes afterwards match what you saw happen.
Check paperwork, not the website
Ask for the insurance certificate, the bonding document, and any pet first aid certification. Logos and association names mean far less than a current document with dates printed on it.
Call references and ask one specific question
Ask what went wrong once and how it was handled. Every reference will say the sitter was lovely; only a real client can describe how a problem was dealt with.
What to leave behind in writing
- Feeding amounts and times by weight or measure, not scoops or handfuls.
- Your vet's name, address and phone number, with signed treatment authorisation and a payment arrangement.
- A second emergency contact who lives nearby and has a key.
- Medication with doses, times, and a note on how your pet takes it.
- Where the leash, litter, carrier, cleaning supplies and spare food are kept.
- Alarm code, wifi password, bin day, and anything about the house a stranger could not guess.
Warning signs
- No insurance document, or a promise to send it on later.
- Reluctance to give references, or references who all share a surname.
- A schedule so full that visit times cannot be committed to.
- No named backup for illness or car trouble.
- Claiming to be comfortable with every animal and every situation.
- No written agreement covering rates, visit times, vet authorisation and cancellation.