Pet sitting -- WWYD in my situation?

[jujsky]

DH and I are in a rather uncomfortable position. We have a friend who occasionally pet sits for us. (and I mean VERY occasionally -- once for a week almost a year and a half ago, and we've asked him to stop by in the day to let the dogs out twice since then, most recently the day after Christmas). He is divorced, no kids, no obligations other than his job, and he pets sits for our mutual friends on occasion as well. On the week-long trip we left the house fully stocked with food, and brought him back a gift for doing us the favor. We offered to pay him, but he wouldn't accept $$$. We only ever ask our friend as a last resort, so I don't think or feel we're taking advantage of him. We also always ask him via e-mail just in case he isn't comfortable verbally telling us no. E-mail always gives you an out to formulate a response ;) Before we ask him we ask our in-laws who live 40 minutes away, or if it's a day-trip, we ask my brother and SIL who live 5 minutes away. We don't want to inconvenience our friend.

 

Anyway, onto our dilemma. We have a 4-day trip planned to NYC that we have already rescheduled 3 times over the last 2 years due to various reasons. Rescheduling isn't an ideal option, as the kids would be terribly disappointed and we promised them we wouldn't reschedule it again. It's their first time, and we're staying with friends we haven't seen in 2 years. The in-laws have an out-of-town wedding that weekend, so they won't be able to pet sit for us. My brother and SIL could come over and let the dogs in and out, but they wouldn't be able to stay (they have their own dog) plus my mom is having surgery to remove a cancerous tumor this weekend, and with us being out of town next weekend, we want them to be available to head up to Maine at a moment's notice if she needs them. She probably won't, but just in case. Our friend who pet-sits agreed to it, but has been less than reliable recently -- like the last 6 months or so. I don't want to get into all the details, and really they don't matter, but we're concerned about his reliability, and both of us are uncomfortable leaving him in charge of the pets. We have 2 German Shepherds, and 3 cats (one is being boarded at the vet because he requires fluids each day with a needle and we don't expect anyone to deal with that).

 

One of our sheppies is young, and we didn't have him when our friend pet sat for our over a year and a half ago for that week. He has a strong prey-drive, and needs to be kept away from the cats. We have baby-gates up, and although he sleeps in a crate in our room at night, we have to leash him before we bring him downstairs and put up a baby-gate on the stairs or else he will go after them. He already cost us over $400 in vet bills when he got hold of one of them, and the poor cat needed his tail amputated. I don't mean to make him sound like an aggressive dog. He's not (he passed his Canine Good Citizenship test). He's great with people (especially children) and large dogs. Due to our friend's recent unreliability, I'm concerned that he will forget to leash him, forget to put up the baby gate, forget to peek in the house before he lets them inside to make sure the cats are out.....go out partying with his new, trashy karaoke friends and be too hammered to remember he's staying here and not show up until the next day when he remembers. Yes, I'm THAT worried, and he's shown recently that I have potential reason to be.

 

Boarding all the pets is out of the question. Our other German Shepherd is really old and in failing health. She's been falling down a lot. Going to the kennel stresses her out, and the cold cement floors won't be good for her joints. She needs to stay home where she's comfortable. Anything else would be cruel.

 

Cancelling the trip is, I guess, an option, but as I said -- we've already cancelled 3 times. The kids would be so disappointed, and our friends who we're staying with have already scheduled time off work so they can see us. We CAN cancel, but I'd rather not. Let's call this Option A.

 

Option B: We can have our friend come as planned, watch the dogs and the 2 cats we're not boarding and hope they're all still alive and uninjured when we come back.

 

Option C: Get an in-home pet-sitter that we hire and pay. I found a service that does this. It's pricey -- $75/day -- and while I'm completely comfortable with the idea, DH is not comfortable having a stranger in our house while we're gone. If the decision was mine alone, this is what I would choose.

 

Option D: Have our friend come over to care for our elderly dog and the 2 cats, and board our younger dog. The place we took him for training also boards, and he's done doggy daycare there a few times for socialization. The kennels are REALLY small and look uncomfortable, so I feel awful for leaving him there for 4-5 days, but he's young, strong, and healthy so I know he'd be fine. This kennel is also right next door to our vet's office, and if our dog got hurt or sick that's where they would take him. He is also familiar with the place and the owner/trainer of the facility.

 

Option E: DH and the kids go to NYC, and I stay home. I'm not jazzed about this option, but I'm okay with it. I know you have to make sacrifices when you have pets. DH isn't okay with this choice, and doesn't want to go if I'm not with him and the kids.

 

There really is NO ONE else we can ask to watch them. If you had to choose one of these options, what would you do?

[vonfirmath]

D sounds like your only option if B is "hope they are still alive" and C and E are DH doesn't agree.

[LizzyBee]

I would probably go with option D if you lean toward your friend will "probably" show up when he's supposed to be there. If you lean more toward probably not, I'd go with option C.

 

About the small kennels, if the dogs are put out on leads for a good portion of the day, I wouldn't worry about the kennels being small. We used to have 2 largish dogs, and we had one medium kennel and one large kennel. They race to get the medium kennel, even though the larger dog couldn't even stretch out all the way in it. Something about tight spaces gives dogs a sense of security.

[Jpoy85]

I would do C or E. That is a tough situation though.

[Trish]

Option D, or, ask your brother/SIL if they know someone they could recommend to be the pet-sitter (not sleepover). I wouldn't want a stranger, but if your in-laws know someone THEY would trust in such a situation, perhaps that would work for you. (I might be leery of allowing ANYONE to handle a dog that is aggressive toward some of the other animals. Too much that could go wrong).

[stansclan89]

D sounds like your only option if B is "hope they are still alive" and C and E are DH doesn't agree.

:iagree:

[gardening momma]

Option D--that's what I was thinking would be best before I got to it in your post.

[Unicorn.]

Option D. Board the pup. Either that or E. No way would I trust him to keep the pup away from the cats. :grouphug: I sympathize. We have too many pets for us to go on vacation, and the dog has meds 2x a day. I don't have anyone who can pet sit, and can't board them.

[Teachin'Mine]

We need a poll!!! :lol:

 

D sounds like the best option assuming that your older shepherd is okay with the cats. If the cats need to be kept separate from him too, then it might be easier to keep the dogs at home and board the cats. Since you already need to board one of the cats, it might not cost that much more to board the others as they could stay in the same enclosure - assuming they all get along well. Although friend's partying would give me pause too.

 

Could you just arrange for brother and SIL to come in and feed and walk the dogs, and if they have to leave for Maine, have your friend as the back-up? I'd prefer to just have the friend come in and care for them two or three times a day as opposed to staying there anyway. That way he would be less inclined to bring over the gang. For peace of mind, I'd still be inclined to board all the cats. That would probably be my first choice.

 

Don't even think about missing out on NYC!!!! Lots of great family memories will be made on your trip. :)

[WistfulRidge]

Option D--that's what I was thinking would be best before I got to it in your post.

:iagree:

[Jann in TX]

We have 2 GS's as well-- plus a horse, a cat, lizards, hermit crabs...

 

Going ANYWHERE for more than 3 hours is almost unheard of!

 

My pet-sitting friend is bi-polar and NOT stable at the moment...

 

If we wanted to take a trip I would hire a pet-sitter.

While I do not like the idea of 'strangers' in our house-- I would make sure they were from a bonded company. We also have the option of adding in video security to our security system-- it would alert us when they came and we could actually WATCH (this sounds creepy though!!!).

 

I think the pet-sitter would be your better option. I know what it is like to leave and have your friend 'accidentally' forget about your animals for a day (big dogs make BIG messes)-- or like the last time-- nearly set the house on fire (visible smoke in air when we arrived home!!!).

 

The danger of your friend forgetting something seems so much higher than the risk of a pet sitter (which is a VERY VERY low risk!)

[SonshineLearner]

Is "D" a place where your pup can go outside, at all? And can your older dog go outside, at home, with a "doggie door" or something?

 

If those two are "yes" then I'd do D. I would actually look for another spot to board your pup. I have a great spot here that has indoor/outdoor places to run... and I pay $3 or $5 (can't remember, think they went up to $5) for them to do a half hour play time with him. I would think that you could find a spot like that?? I don't have to feel bad at all about leaving him, and he comes back exhausted. I can also pay $160 for a week of keeping him there, with training included. Just a thought...

 

I wouldn't go with the "hope they're alive" option.

[I talk to the trees]

I'd choose option C, but we have a wonderful, fantastic, amazing pet-sitter that we know we can trust. You could ask local vets for sitter recommendations. They're usually very good sources of information when it comes to groomers/trainers/sitters.

 

If C isn't an option, I'd either cancel, reschedule, or stay home. If I would be worrying about the health and safety of my pets the whole trip, I'd have a lousy time, so I may as well stay home.

[QuirkyKapers]

I would go with D. That was my first thought before I read that as an option. Of course, if you had an in house sitter you trusted, than I would do that first.

[Alicia64]

Option C: Get an in-home pet-sitter that we hire and pay. I found a service that does this. It's pricey -- $75/day -- and while I'm completely comfortable with the idea, DH is not comfortable having a stranger in our house while we're gone. If the decision was mine alone, this is what I would choose.

 

 

Option E: DH and the kids go to NYC, and I stay home. I'm not jazzed about this option, but I'm okay with it. I know you have to make sacrifices when you have pets. DH isn't okay with this choice, and doesn't want to go if I'm not with him and the kids.

 

You sound like lovely animal owners. I wish we lived in the same state: then we could trade sitting back and forth.

 

Okay, I have the same kind of dh. He does not want strangers in the house. But given the difficulties I would ask him to reconsider and purchase locks for certain rooms that the sitter can't just snoop without breaking a nice lock. I would make sure the person is bonded and comes with references (and I would call each and every one of them).

 

I've had a couple of terrible pet sitting situations which has made me crazy careful. And, yes, my current sitter has many horror stories. A couple where the family returns to dead animals.

 

Do what you can to help dh feel better.

 

Or I'd stay home. (You're a good person.)

 

Alley

[jujsky]

We need a poll!!! :lol:

 

D sounds like the best option assuming that your older shepherd is okay with the cats. If the cats need to be kept separate from him too' date=' then it might be easier to keep the dogs at home and board the cats. Since you already need to board one of the cats, it might not cost that much more to board the others as they could stay in the same enclosure - assuming they all get along well. Although friend's partying would give me pause too.

 

Could you just arrange for brother and SIL to come in and feed and walk the dogs, and if they have to leave for Maine, have your friend as the back-up? I'd prefer to just have the friend come in and care for them two or three times a day as opposed to staying there anyway. That way he would be less inclined to bring over the gang. For peace of mind, I'd still be inclined to board all the cats. That would probably be my first choice.

 

Don't even think about missing out on NYC!!!! Lots of great family memories will be made on your trip. :)[/quote']

 

I wish I knew how to do a poll!

 

Our old girl gets along with the cats fine. The problem with having someone come in and walk them is that our younger dog is still in that unreliable phase when left on his own. He doesn't have accidents, but he does destroy things. We usually put a baby gate up in the hallway when we leave. The problem with doing that all day for multiple days is our old girl is then stuck on a cold, tile floor and her joints are bad. I've thought about possibly getting another baby gate so I can keep the pup in the hall, and give our old girl access to the rest of the downstairs while still gating the stairs. I don't want her going up and down without someone there because she fell down the last 1/3 of our staircase the other night when her legs gave out on her. If that happened and she broke a leg and no one was there.....

 

I don't think our friend would have people over, but I can see him working all day then going out and partying all night. DH did raise the concern that he could see him partying too hard, and forgetting that he had to come back here. Sadly, I can see that too.

 

I guess DH is going to call him and go over all the responsibilities to see if he's up for it. With the cat issues with the pup, and old Elsa's recent joint trouble, it's a lot more to handle than when he sat for us a year and a half ago for a much healthier Elsa and our other dog who has since passed on. Our old dog would chase the cats, but it was all a game -- he never hurt them, and is usually the one who would end up with a bloody nose in the end if he managed to corner one. In a way, I'm honestly hoping he says he can't do it so then we're forced to make another decision. He's they type that will try to be nice -- even if that means telling you what he thinks you want to hear in the short-term.

 

Boarding the cats, while an awesome idea, wouldn't work in this case because we're boarding at the vet. They only board animals for medical reasons, which is why we're leaving our kidney-failure kitty there. I don't know if another cat boarding place would take that one with his medical needs, even though the fluids aren't hard to administer once you get the hang of it, and he's a friendly, easy cat to deal with.

 

DH is really against the idea of me staying home. I think he MIGHT be warming up to a professional, in-home pet-sitter though. If our friend does sit for us, I think we're moving the pup's crate and Elsa's bed into the school room on the first floor so we can avoid the dogs on the stairs/dogs eating cat issues as much as possible.

[jujsky]

We have 2 GS's as well-- plus a horse, a cat, lizards, hermit crabs...

 

Going ANYWHERE for more than 3 hours is almost unheard of!

 

My pet-sitting friend is bi-polar and NOT stable at the moment...

 

If we wanted to take a trip I would hire a pet-sitter.

While I do not like the idea of 'strangers' in our house-- I would make sure they were from a bonded company. We also have the option of adding in video security to our security system-- it would alert us when they came and we could actually WATCH (this sounds creepy though!!!).

 

I think the pet-sitter would be your better option. I know what it is like to leave and have your friend 'accidentally' forget about your animals for a day (big dogs make BIG messes)-- or like the last time-- nearly set the house on fire (visible smoke in air when we arrived home!!!).

 

The danger of your friend forgetting something seems so much higher than the risk of a pet sitter (which is a VERY VERY low risk!)

 

I like the idea of the video system! Yeah, it's creepy, but maybe it would ease DH's mind. I'll have to see if that's an option with our security company.

[RanchGirl]

If you have time, I would ask around for recommendations of a new pet sitter. Use them a few times for day visits between now and the trip so you can get more comfortable with them.

 

Do you know any responsible college students? They seem to love to pet sit so if you find the right one [e.g. not a partier :) ] it can be a real blessing so you both -- you have someone reliable and they get a break from roomies and a quiet place to focus on studying.

[jujsky]

Is "D" a place where your pup can go outside, at all? And can your older dog go outside, at home, with a "doggie door" or something?

 

If those two are "yes" then I'd do D. I would actually look for another spot to board your pup. I have a great spot here that has indoor/outdoor places to run... and I pay $3 or $5 (can't remember, think they went up to $5) for them to do a half hour play time with him. I would think that you could find a spot like that?? I don't have to feel bad at all about leaving him, and he comes back exhausted. I can also pay $160 for a week of keeping him there, with training included. Just a thought...

 

I wouldn't go with the "hope they're alive" option.

 

The pup (he's 15 months old and still VERY much a puppy in a big-dog body) would be able to go outside if he was boarded. I don't think he'd have free-access to the outdoors, but I believe he would be taken out for couple-hour spurts. The trainer/owner lives on the premises with his family.

 

We don't have a dog door, and because of the layout of our house, we couldn't put one in. Our yard is on a hill with a walk-out basement, so there would be stairs involved, which I'd like to avoid without supervision due to her hips. Plus we've had neighbors complain about their barking in the past (mixed sub-division of houses, condos, and townhouses, with a bank of those townhouses right behind our house) so giving her free-access to the outdoors might cause neighbor issues. German Shepherds like to bark and protect their property, even when it's not warranted!

[J-rap]

How about option F?

 

It's the elderly dog I'd be most concerned about. Can you bring him to your BIL's home, or another friend you would trust completely (and yet make it easy for them at the same time). You say bringing your elderly dog anywhere else besides home would not work, but maybe he'd be okay in someone else's home who would treat him gently and be there for him?

 

Then put the younger dog in a kennel, and let the cats fend for themselves? We've left our cats for 4 days before. We just left lots of water and food and an extra litter box.

[jujsky]

You sound like lovely animal owners. I wish we lived in the same state: then we could trade sitting back and forth.

 

Okay, I have the same kind of dh. He does not want strangers in the house. But given the difficulties I would ask him to reconsider and purchase locks for certain rooms that the sitter can't just snoop without breaking a nice lock. I would make sure the person is bonded and comes with references (and I would call each and every one of them).

 

I've had a couple of terrible pet sitting situations which has made me crazy careful. And, yes, my current sitter has many horror stories. A couple where the family returns to dead animals.

 

Do what you can to help dh feel better.

 

Or I'd stay home. (You're a good person.)

 

Alley

 

Thank you :) I love my critters. Our Elsa and all 3 of the cats were here when I went through infertility, a miscarriage, the loss of my dad.... They were my babies before my babies. They deserve kind, compassionate treatment, and if that means I don't go this time, I don't go. They're my responsibility. Staying home would suck in many ways. I'd love to see the kids' faces when they see the Statue of Liberty for the first time, and I'd love to meet our friends' youngest baby, but there will be other trips. It's not as though we'll never go again.

[jujsky]

How about option F?

 

It's the elderly dog I'd be most concerned about. Can you bring him to your BIL's home, or another friend you would trust completely (and yet make it easy for them at the same time). You say bringing your elderly dog anywhere else besides home would not work, but maybe he'd be okay in someone else's home who would treat him gently and be there for him?

 

Then put the younger dog in a kennel, and let the cats fend for themselves? We've left our cats for 4 days before. We just left lots of water and food and an extra litter box.

 

If my ILs were around, this would be an option. My brother has a little dog (Chinese Crested) and we tried introducing them a few times, but it didn't work out. Elsa was okay with him until he started acting like he was all big and bad and then started yapping in her face. I don't think she would hurt him, but I wouldn't want to take the chance. I have other friends I've thought of asking (the ones our friend also pet sits for) but Elsa and their new dog don't get along. She used to get along with every dog she met (and our friends owned her sister until she passed), but over the last few years (and the loss of our other dog) she's become a grumpy, old lady!!!!! I've thought of asking them to watch the pup. He is their dog's nephew and I've brought him over for plenty of puppy playdates -- they get along beautifully, but they don't have a fenced yard, and 2 dogs without a fenced yard would be tough. Their dog is on an e-collar, but Logan isn't trained on one, and I don't think we'd have enough time to train him. before we need to leave.

 

The 2 cats we're not boarding could fend for themselves for 4 days. We've done it before. It's the dogs. It's so hard to travel when you have dogs. I think I'm one of the only people in the world who despises going away on vacation. It's such a pain and I worry so much about the pets that it also makes it not worth it.

 

I will have to give your idea about bringing Elsa somewhere else some thought. Maybe there is someone without a dog who would take her for a few days. I'll have to think on that for awhile.

Edited May 8, 2012 by jujsky

[QueenCat]

Option D

[Jennifer3141]

Julie, you've reminded me of why I need to start looking for a pet sitter MONTHS before I actually need one. Thank you!

 

I would board the pup if I were you and I'd ask SIL to stop in and check on unreliable friend just to make sure...

 

But I'd also meet the pet sitter and see if she/he is a viable option for next time.

 

And we had a HORRIBLE experience with a pet sitter before but I'd still give a new one a try. :D

[joannqn]

Board the difficult dog.

 

I would ask my local homeschool group if a teen was interested in helping care for the pets by coming over a couple times a day for a small fee. I'd still board the one dog, though, regardless of who's caring for the pets.

[StephanieZ]

D

[Mothersweets]

Option D

[ktgrok]

How about boarding all the cats at the vet? Cheaper than boarding hte dog, and cats handle it better usually, in my opinion.

[KidsHappen]

IDK. We haven't travelled without the dogs or one of us staying home since we got the dogs. We once seperated the two dogs and that was a mistake. They were both heart broken and mopey until they got back together. You have to take that into consideration as well. I don't evny you any.