astrid Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 We're going to Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick next week, and a friend of mine and her daughter will be house-sitting for us. We'll be gone 8 days, and they will sleep here. My friend is actually the canine control officer in our town, my training partner and Molly's 4-H leader in addition to being an Australian Shepherd breeder, so caring for the dogs/cats/chickens won't be a problem for her. My friend's dh and teenaged son are staying at their house, so she and her daughter are treating this like a mini-vacation from "the men." You know....unlimited control of the TV remote, NO sports to watch, etc. :-) Basically, the job is this: Sleep here. Use the air conditioners in the bedrooms, eat whatever you find, enjoy the satellite dish and HBO, DSL, etc. Keep cat food bowls from getting empty-- dry food, just refill whenever they run dry. Cats are inside cats, but will probably make themselves ten kinds of scarce while we are away. Feed dogs 2x per day, potty morning, noon and night. Hang out and play with them a bit. The dogs know these people very well and LOOOOOVE them. Check on hens, throw a little scratch in the morning, collect eggs at night, keep an eye on their water. So what would you pay? I just can't come up with a figure---- $250? Too little? Too much? We've never had a house sitter before so I'm at a loss as to what to pay her! Thanks, astrid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orthodox6 Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 I do not know what price would be right for your part of the world. This summer, a friend asked me how much she should pay a house-sitter. The person was to look after one dog, one guinea pig, two geckos, plus the usual household routines (garbage, mail, etc.) My friend lives in Dallas. She pulled the figure of $35 per day out of thin air, and asked what I thought. I thought it sounded great -- and so did the young man whom I found to fulfill the task ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokotg Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 We paid our housesitter $200 for 2 weeks this past summer, job very similar to what you describe. We can't afford to pay much more than that, so we always look for someone who likes the idea of having a place to stay, too, so it's a mutually beneficial thing. In this case, it was a high school student who was thrilled to have her own place for a couple of weeks and pick up a little money. Sounds like that's what you have with your housesitter, too...I'd probably try to offer a little more to an adult, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 My son does this as his summer job (and sometimes school year). He advertises, and does quite well. He charges $15/day to stay in someone's house and care for their pets/house. He comes and goes during the day, just like people normally do. For those that would just like him to come by twice a day, and not stay, he charges $10-12. We're going to Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick next week, and a friend of mine and her daughter will be house-sitting for us. We'll be gone 8 days, and they will sleep here. My friend is actually the canine control officer in our town, my training partner and Molly's 4-H leader in addition to being an Australian Shepherd breeder, so caring for the dogs/cats/chickens won't be a problem for her. My friend's dh and teenaged son are staying at their house, so she and her daughter are treating this like a mini-vacation from "the men." You know....unlimited control of the TV remote, NO sports to watch, etc. :-) Basically, the job is this: Sleep here. Use the air conditioners in the bedrooms, eat whatever you find, enjoy the satellite dish and HBO, DSL, etc. Keep cat food bowls from getting empty-- dry food, just refill whenever they run dry. Cats are inside cats, but will probably make themselves ten kinds of scarce while we are away. Feed dogs 2x per day, potty morning, noon and night. Hang out and play with them a bit. The dogs know these people very well and LOOOOOVE them. Check on hens, throw a little scratch in the morning, collect eggs at night, keep an eye on their water. So what would you pay? I just can't come up with a figure---- $250? Too little? Too much? We've never had a house sitter before so I'm at a loss as to what to pay her! Thanks, astrid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mamasteff Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 We just got back from 3 weeks in a cottage by the beach. I didn't get paid a dime. I figured it was a free beach house. We fed their cat, got the mail and the papers, watered their flowers... ate their food, used their electricity, and probably left a small mountain of sand even after cleaning extensively. I was in heaven and didn't think about getting paid! You are so nice to consider it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in the Kootenays Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 I pay $25/day for 2 dogs, 1 cat, and chickens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiver0f10 Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 My daughter does this and charges $40/day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mooooom Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 She was a professional pet sitter (probably equivalent to a professional such as your sitter). I didn't pay that much when I had a college student pay, but I did let them eat anything they wanted from our house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pongo Posted August 25, 2009 Share Posted August 25, 2009 I live in MA. We pay $25 a day, 1 dog to be feed and walked and watch the house. Collect mail daily, and we leave the fridge chock full.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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