Do you need a pet sitter/walker

Was watching one of my tech podcasts (all about android) today. They were evaluating an App called Rover. It's available in the Play Store. They also have a web site Rover.

You put in your location and it gives you a list of the people in that area that offer the different services. Dog boarding, Pet/house sitting, Doggy day care, Dog walking etc.
If you know you'll be gone for an extended period and want someone to care for your pet this may be a good way to find one in the area you're in.

If you need a pet sitter/ walker you don't need a pet

Good link, Don!  We could have used that information when traveling with our Yellow Lab, Dusty, in the late 90's.  She was a barker/defender, so we either had to stay home, take her with us on sight seeing trips or put her in a kennel.  We didn't like kenneling and neither did she.   Such a great, caring dog, though.

Gwbeech said:

If you need a pet sitter/ walker you don't need a pet

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There are any number of reasons that a loving pet owner may need a pet sitter/walker:

• Visiting a location that doesn't allow pets to take a couple hour tour
• The pet's owner is sick or not completely ambulatory and would like their pet to get a walk
• The pet is not completely comfortable in the RV and the owners would like to take in a movie and dinner
• The pet owner is compelled to leave the RV for a couple days to attend to a family emergency
• etc
• etc

Gwbeech said:

If you need a pet sitter/ walker you don't need a pet

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Really?  Several of our necessary kenneling decisions for Dusty were because of family funerals.  That sometimes happens when you're on the road!  What would you suggest under those circumstances?

Would you go online for a sitter for your kids/grandchildren you know nothing about
to watch them. Don't think so.

Gwbeech said:

Would you go online for a sitter for your kids/grandchildren you know nothing about
to watch them. Don't think so.

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No, but my pets are pets, they're not people. Nor do I have a furbaby, it's a dog. I'm not it's parent, I'm it's owner. Just because you feel that way, don't impose your views on everyone else and expect them to treat their pets to appease you and people like you. My animals have the care and attention they need and then some, so don't act holier than thou with people about their pets.

We've used doggy daycare many times on vacation, and we will again next week while we're on the road.

Sometimes Fido has a better time than we do, and doesn't want to leave his new canine friends.

Gwbeech said:

Would you go online for a sitter for your kids/grandchildren you know nothing about
to watch them. Don't think so.

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There is a site called Care.com that provides lists of qualified (human) caregivers. It is just a list of options, and I know a number of people who have used to get a list of people to interview. Most have been quite happy with the results. I would assume a pet walking/sitting service list is the same. It just gives you a list of alternatives that you can perform due diligence on prior to hiring. I think it is a great idea. If we had an emergency come up while traveling, I would like to have a list of options.

There are definitely places we go that our dog isn't allowed and/or it just isn't a good idea to have her there, so we have a dog sitter and our dog loves her.

We leave her at the kennel only on day trips, but any longer and she stresses out.  If it's an overnighter our dog does great staying in her own home with the dog sitter coming in.

Dobies get very attached to their peeps and can stress when separated from them for very long.  Our dog considers the dog sitter to be one of her people.  That process took about two weeks but was well worth it.

Gwbeech said:

If you need a pet sitter/ walker you don't need a pet

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Are you being serious?  I guess you think people should not have kids if they ever need a sitter.  Do you even have pets?

This is a timely post.  I just passed the info on to my dd.  She has a dog they will be bringing on our next trip and it has separation anxiety so they can't leave it in the trailer.

Thank you!

3-? years ago, we had a nine year old Collie and a 12 year old Sheltie that we no longer wanted to give to the sitters when we went on vacation. They were at the age where we didn't know if they would still be alive when we got back from a two or three week vacation. That is the primary reason, believe it or not, that we bought our coach. We had done enough cruises and were ready to see the country and what it had to offer, and we wanted to take our dogs with us as a family.

Those dogs have passed on but we have three more to take their places. And they go with us on every vacation. We plan our vacations around the dogs, making sure we are never gone for more than five or six hours so they can be left in the coach with food and water. The trick is treating them as members of the family rather than just pets and showing them the same consideration you would want shown to yourself. We have never used a dog sitter while having the coach and I guess we're lucky because we have dogs that don't suffer separation anxiety or bark incessantly while we're gone. They are well mannered but two are kept crated while we are away because of age or other reasons.

So I don't see the need for this service, but know it will be welcomed by others that aren't as fortunate as we are. I don't subscribe to the idea that you shouldn't have a pet if you need a sitter for it. There are times when anyone having pets will require the assistance of others; sometimes events occur that are out of your control and it is always nice to have contacts such as this available on short notice.

John
Cape Coral, Fl... You are right ON!!! Our family do the same as we plan around our furbabies! Own a pet mean you are responsible for their well been, for their care. The joy that our 3 dogs given us each day is something that we look forward for ... ohh let me look at the clock ,,almost time to go home and be greet by then  ;D

Good share could come in handy, thank you.

If you need a pet sitter/ walker you don't need a pet

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Many times while on the road, my DH had to go to the ER. I literally pulled into San Antonio and got on the internet to find a kennel to drop my dog off at on the way to the hospital. Id rather leave him at a kennel for a day than to make him sit in the coach for 14 hours or so. Yes, soome of his ER visits have taken that long. I got on google and checked reviews before deciding on a place. Ive not had any issues and actually found a really good kennel that way.

A good kennel will let your dogs interact with other dogs. Its called socialization and its good for the dog.

Our cats go with us every time we take the motorhome.  When we fly someplace we have a cat sitter that comes in twice a day and feeds the cats.  They don't need to be walked.

Tom---Our Rusty is down to 23.75 pounds.  You met him last January.