You are an adventurous person and you like to travel a lot but cannot always bring your pooch along. Or your job requires your absence from home on a regular basis and you have to leave your dog at home alone. You cannot always rely on your relatives because, well, they probably have busy schedules too. This means it’s time to find a housesitter.
Online sources are a pet-savior. There are two reliable websites that deal with these kinds of situations: TrustedHousesitters and MindMyHouse. The idea is that people are staying rent-free in places around the world in exchange for keeping an eye on homes, gardens and pets. Not only is this a brilliant way to travel, but it is the answer to our problem.
Set up profiles requesting assistance, and cross your fingers. Within mere hours you should have offers flowing in from people all over the world.
How to Post a Request for a Housesitter
This is very attractive to the many “digital nomads,” bloggers and remote tech workers that are drawn to housesitting, as well as regular travelers that want a comfortable place to keep in touch and research their upcoming adventures.
Include an honest description of your location and why it would be an interesting place to visit. Think about your place from a traveler’s perspective and the things they would want to know.
How to Choose a Housesitter
This is important. Review applicant bios, response emails for thoroughness and feeling of authenticity. Read reviews and contact references. Review police reports and/or do your own online sleuthing. Trustedhousesitters has a feature that allows potential sitters to volunteer their police records or you can do other online research to see if their stories match up.
Don’t be concerned with sounding paranoid, do whatever you need to make yourself comfortable with whether the applicants are who they say they are and have good intentions. If possible, ask to meet them in person before deciding.
And of course, last but not least, ask them if they like dogs. If not, for us dog-lovers that might be a deal-barker. Oops, sorry, a deal-breaker.