Oh, my Cat Sitter....

I have a hired cat sitter that I have been using for almost 2 years now. I don't travel TOO often but do have to go to a few conferences for work 4-5 times a year. Each trip ranges from 3-6 days at a time.

I met her when she came for the consultation/interview a few years ago. She is a super nice lady in her 50's. She pet-sits in nursing scrubs and brought over her proof of insurance, references, etc. 

I don't think I'm too high maintenance of a client but I do have a specific list that I asked her to follow. My list of tasks per visit:

• Feed Cats (I have 2 cats) **This task takes approximately 6-7 minutes in its entirety**
  • Empty 1 container of ground raw food into each cat's stainless steel bowl
  • Stand there until both cats finish meal (takes approx 3 min for both cats to finish)
    • If you don't stand there and wait for them both to finish, my male cat will eat all of his food AND push my female out of the way and eat her food
  • Wash the stainless steel bowls with soap and water
  • Replace the 2 containers that you just fed the cats with two more (from the freezer) and put in refrigerator
• Give Cats Fresh Water **This task takes approximately 20-45 seconds**
• Empty Litterbox **This task takes approximately 1-2 minutes**

Total amount of time to complete tasks on my list = 7-10 minutes in its entirety

I understand that caring for my cats is a bit more high maintenance than making sure they have fresh kibble and water and emptying the litterbox and leaving but I went over the list with her in the beginning and she said that this is something she is willing to do....for $20 per 20 minute visit. Since I need 2 visits per day = $40 per day.

I recently bought a camera system for the outside of my house (strictly for protection, nothing to do with sitter). I had one spare camera from the system and decided it might be fun to put it inside so I can check on my kitties while I'm out of town! This is when I realized that my sitter does NOT do what I ask. 

• Not once did she stay at my house longer than 3 and a half minutes. Shortest time was 1 minute and 45 seconds
• She does not stand near the cats while they eat. Instead, she puts the food down and goes to empty the litterbox and freshen up their water bowls. 
  • Every single visit, my male cat (Malibu) quickly inhales his food, pushes Kali (my female) out of the way to finish hers and has eaten both meals before my sitter even glances at them to check 
• She does not wash the bowls with soap, only rinses them
  • Keep in mind that I feed RAW food and by not washing the bowls after every meal, their chance of getting sick from a bacterial overload is much higher
• She only empties the litterbox once per day, not every visit

I'm not overly furious because at least she DOES come every visit and she does do most everything but the main thing that I'm worried about is that Kali doesn't get a chance to eat. When I am gone for 6 days at a time, Kali could very well get Hepatic Lipidosis. I also feel a bit cheated and that she's stealing from me because I pay for 20 minutes of her time and the longest she has stayed was 3 and 1/2 minutes. 

I obviously won't be using her again, although I probably won't tell her anything (I'm not very confrontational). I'm going to have to set up a consultation with someone else.

I just wanted to vent a bit....thanks for listening!

I feel your pain.  I would be delighted if the person I sit for had a "nanny cam" on me.  Maybe she does.  Maybe that's why she keeps having me back.  I don't cat sit for anyone else anymore, too busy.  But I was the one who noticed her older cat was drinking and urinating too much and the vet diagnosed him with diabetes.  I was the one who picked him up at the vet and gave him his first insulin shots at home.  The vets had trouble handlng him.  I used psychology, it still took a little while. ("If you want to eat, you must let me stick you with this teeny tiny needle first.  No needle, no food.")    It is half an hour's drive to her house, and when that cat was alive, I had to go twice a day and give him his insulin shots.  I think I only dug the box once a day.  I would always dump it, wash it, and refill with totally clean litter at some point.  I would also thoroughly clean the little Drinkwell machine she had for them.  She paid me $20 a visit and always tipped well also.  Eventually the old guy went to the Rainbow Bridge but the young guy is still there.  He doesn't like strangers, so she still pays me $20 to care for him while they are away (she's married now) but only once a day.  I don't watch him when he eats.  I go into the other room and do his litter box, and then I sit down on the couch and switch on the TV if it isn't already on (she leaves it on for him but it goes off after a time.) I always spend time with him, brush him, play with him, hang out with him until he dismisses me.  ("OK, I'm done now.  You can go.")  Unless I have to rush off somewhere (occasionally) and then I'll stay longer next time.

Anyhow, I think you should tell her (or your NEXT cat sitter) to feed the cats in separate rooms and make sure Kali finishes her food, or don't let her out for 15 minutes (or more).  Then you should post your checklist above including "wash dishes with antibacterial dish soap and rinse" -- all easy to do with a new sitter, but maybe could cause resentment with the old one.  Also, if you have toys they like etc., leave them out and ask her to give them a little exercise.  It could be that your sitter has too many clients and has to rush to get everything in.  I do know that over the holidays and school vacations, when I was pet sitting, I would leave the house at 8 AM and not get back until 9 PM, then up the next day to do it again.  Not sure if the week you caught on camera was a holiday week or a regular one, and that might matter.  You might want a sitter who has a little more time, or this one may be fine as long as she uses soap on the dishes and makes sure each cat eats its own food. 

I did not know that you were supposed to tip the sitter, maybe that's why she didn't spend much time at my house!

I can't believe I never thought of this and as I was a waitress/bartender for almost a decade and I know how important tipping is. What are the rules for tipping a sitter if you don't mind my asking?

I guess it never crossed my mind since she didn't work for a company and I wrote the checks directly to her, I just figured the $20 standard fee per visit was enough.

The weekend that I watched her on camera was last weekend, 9/4-9/7. Not a holiday I don't think. And the biggest issue that I have is her not watching the cats while they eat. I texted her every time I left "Hey, please make sure you focus on the cats while they eat so Malibu doesn't try to steal Kali's food!" She knows it is a big thing for me.

Also, the To-Do list that I have in my original post is what is printed out word-for-word and stuck on the refrigerator with her check attached to the To-Do list.

The litter box thing and the rinsing of the bowls I can live with. But I know how was it is for cats to get fatty liver disease and I feel like she just disregarded my reminder text every time. Maybe not? But I still won't ask her for help again.

I don't know the rules for tipping a pet sitter but I can ask my cousin, who has a very successful pet sitting business in California.  It grew so fast she had to get help!  Anyhow, the person I sit for would usually tip me at least 15% when I did work for a company, and now I have not paid any attention to percentage.  I always sit for about 3-5 days or else she wouldn't need me.  I think she always gives me an extra $20 which seems huge to me.  When you do work for a company, you give them a percentage, and the one I worked for took a higher percentage for your first (some number dollars which I never exceeded).  I know in the city people made a good living because they would get clients in close proximity, but I'm in the country and spent a lot of time driving.  When gas prices went up, I was making about $5 an hour, which is when I stopped working for them.  (I had been laid off permanently so $5 an hour was OK in the busy times).  I'm in Georgia.  My cousn is in California, so it may be different there.

She was getting paid very well for doing less than half her job, regardless of tip!  And there is NO excuse to take anything out on the animals.  Poor Kali.  That's one of my nightmares, and one reason I don't go away more than 36 hours very often.  I'm too paranoid about what might happen with the pet-sitter.  I hope your next one does their job.

Another thought I had was that a lot of pet sitters are basically DOG people.  They don't dislike cats but don't love them and relate to them like cat people do.  Conversely, as a cat person, I was good to the dogs and some of them I really liked, but others not so much.  I admit I loved the well-trained ones who wouldn't pull my arms out of the sockets on a walk and would sit and stay on command, and the ones that had their own yard and dog door were a blessing because I didn't have to walk them.  (If I had time and it was nice, I would walk them, but if I was busy, I didn't have to.)  The cats ewre always a challenge, the regulars became my buddies but the occasoinals were often afraid of the stranger in the house and I remember several times being down on my belly on the floor looking under beds and sofas just to make sure the resident was alive and well.  I bet there are some sitters who accept that a tootsie roll and wet spot in the litter box and the food being gone means the resident is fine.I never trusted that.  Although none never died on my watch, there was always that fear, so I had to be sure that the last time I was there, the cat was alive and well.  Also, when the person from the company was training me, she didn't do the cats as well as I would have with zero training.  She would take the litter diggings and instead of taking them out to the dumpster as we left, she would put the bags in the bathtub and take them all out on the last day.  She said to be sure to clean very well on the last day, sweep up etc.   I cleaned every day as if the person would be home that night.  And one time that happened, something went wrong in the middle of their trip and they came back unexpectedly.  No problem, everything was fine, but it would have been really embarrassing if I left cleaning and sweeping until the last day.  You want someone like me to be your pet sitter. 

I just heard back from my cousin in California.  She says she doesn't get a lot of tips (may be different in California, she charges a lot more than I did -- also, as she points out, attitudes towards tipping have changedin the last 5 years or so.

Here's what she wrote:

"I very rarely get any tips. Even at Christmas. Sometimes gifts. I charge $27 a visit. And today the person booked 2 visits, forgot what I charge and wrote a check for $60. But really with about 300 visits a month, I would say I get a tip maybe 10 times a year. I have noticed that tipping is going down in most services here. I actually read that waiters should only be tipped 10% because they do make minimum wage here and that is going to $10 here soon."

My feeling is that the goodwill an extra $5 buys is more than worth it, so unless you never plan on seeing the person again, if you can afford it, do it.  Especially if they work for a company and are not independents.  My cousin IS the company but has to have help over holidays and other busy times.  She's not as old as me but she's no spring chicken either!

I vote new cat sitter. She lied and broke a contract with you.  I have always used personal friends who stay in my home and whom i trust, and who give me reports by email daily.

That seems like a lot of money to me 40.00 a day. That is so wrong that she is not respecting your wishes and taking care of your kitties like you want her too. For that kind of money I would expect her to spend time playing with them and petting them. I have a couple bad experiences when I have hired a sitter as well. Where I use to live my next door neighbor took care of my dogs (I didn't have my cats then.) She was awesome and did it for free!

I just wanted to add to my post that when I moved I gave her quite a bit of furniture because she would never accept money for taking care of my dogs.

I really think it is bad that she spends so little time.  IMO you are already giving a tip in sense you pay for A LOT more time then she comes close to spending. Leavinga  few minutes early I would be fine with if the cats ate then went off and were ignoring her or if she did say 15 and 25 the next.  But staying minutes is so horribly sad.

I would be pissed too. At 20 bucks for 20 min I would not tip. Heck great job. I would do everything you ask plus play and pet them.

I would tell her something. I understand you would rather not, but I would speak to her because she has to hear what she is doing is not right and eventually cat owners find out. At least it will make her think twice about leaving in 1 min and a half and ignoring the to do list next time someone hires her.

I feel for you. This must be every pet owner's nightmare. I myself am very paranoid when it comes to these things, therefor I would never use a sitter. Probably because I have heard too many horror stories and if your case was bad, it could have been so much worse. Aside from this there are too many people who mistreat animals to just trust my cats with a stranger. I feel sad that I have this cynical outlook, but at the end of the day I know that I would never forgive myself if something were to happen while I was away, whether it was animal cruelty or just simple negligence. My god, six days without enough food. Kali could have been stuck with some serious conditions.

It is unacceptable and I would definitely talk to her and let her know that this behavior (including stealing!) is unacceptable and outrageous. Of course you will not use her again, but your words to her could make sure she does not do it to anyone else.

Thank you all. My family and friends tell me that I'm too anal about the cats and I shouldn't worry so much but I knew YOU GUYS would get it! 

I don't mean to nitpick and the situation could definitely have been worse, such as her not showing up at all, etc. But meal-time is very important to me and I do stress how important it is that both cats eat their entire meal. 

I doubt she did it on purpose, she probably was just thinking "They're cats, they're eating. I put the food down". But I'M thinking about hepatic lipidosis and also how most of the time, the only way to tell if a cat is ill is to watch to make sure they eat their meal.

I didn't mention in my earlier posts that in May of this year, I came back from a 5-day conference and within 10 minutes of me being home Kali had jumped in the litterbox 4 times and was straining to use it. I called the sitter to see if she had noticed how long this had been going on for and she said Kali seemed fine and she didn't notice a thing! I immediately took my cat to the emergency vet because I know how serious this could be (even though she is a girl, she can still get blocked). She was not blocked but was diagnosed with cystitis (bladder infection). Now I know why my sitter didn't notice anything wrong with my cat because she didn't even stay the 5 minutes it would have taken her to notice Kali was going in and out of the box. 

I should have gone with my gut instinct in May and not asked her to come over anymore. But she seemed really apologetic and I figured most "dog-people" wouldn't know how serious of a situation it is for cats make multiple trips to the litterbox. Once I explained to her that she needs to look out for this sign, she was very apologetic and said that she would keep a close eye on their litterbox habits going forward. And she still did not even stay for a full 4 minutes for any of the three visits I paid her for on a non-holiday weekend. 

I didn't even get the cameras to "spy" on her but I am glad I saw what I did. I have a consultation set up with a new sitter service and will inform them that I have a recording camera that I view. This way, they will make sure they stay the full 30-min and do what I ask. 

"Too anal about cats"?  This is a thing?   

Abby2932 said:

I didn't mention in my earlier posts that in May of this year, I came back from a 5-day conference and within 10 minutes of me being home Kali had jumped in the litterbox 4 times and was straining to use it. I called the sitter to see if she had noticed how long this had been going on for and she said Kali seemed fine and she didn't notice a thing! I immediately took my cat to the emergency vet because I know how serious this could be (even though she is a girl, she can still get blocked). She was not blocked but was diagnosed with cystitis (bladder infection). Now I know why my sitter didn't notice anything wrong with my cat because she didn't even stay the 5 minutes it would have taken her to notice Kali was going in and out of the box. 

I should have gone with my gut instinct in May and not asked her to come over anymore. But she seemed really apologetic and I figured most "dog-people" wouldn't know how serious of a situation it is for cats make multiple trips to the litterbox. Once I explained to her that she needs to look out for this sign, she was very apologetic and said that she would keep a close eye on their litterbox habits going forward. And she still did not even stay for a full 4 minutes for any of the three visits I paid her for on a non-holiday weekend.

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I am appalled at this pet-sitter.  She needs to be shut down. 

You left such simple, clear instructions.  And told her your concerns.  Which she dismissed.  It's very disturbing that she acted so agreeable and apologetic to your face all the time, yet still NEVER did what you asked of her!  She has no respect for you, probably not for any of her clients, if she thinks she knows best and can ignore owner instructions.  And she obviously doesn't care about the well-being of the animals, even after you specifically addressed concerns over the cystitis!  She is just plain wrong for care-taking work.  I really hope she gets out of this line before there are serious consequences to her neglect.  Kali could have died because of her. 

But.  Kali is OK.  And you are getting someone new & 'big brother is watching'.  If that's what it takes to ensure decent care for your babies, so be it.  It's so sad though. 

catsallaround said:

 
I really think it is bad that she spends so little time.  IMO you are already giving a tip in sense you pay for A LOT more time then she comes close to spending. Leavinga  few minutes early I would be fine with if the cats ate then went off and were ignoring her or if she did say 15 and 25 the next.  But staying minutes is so horribly sad.

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Caralian said:

It is unacceptable and I would definitely talk to her and let her know that this behavior (including stealing!) is unacceptable and outrageous. Of course you will not use her again, but your words to her could make sure she does not do it to anyone else.

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Right, catsallaround and Caralian.  She's been not only endangering animals with her neglect, she's stealing from clients while doing so.  I wonder if her insurance and references are real?  And who exactly gave her good references? !?  Sorry to keep ranting but this makes me so mad.  She needs to be shut down.  Imagine an ad for what she really does:

"Pet sitter, friendly and professional-looking.  I will make house calls to feed your cats from dirty dishes, let pee and poop accumulate in the litter, leave within 5 minutes while you pay for 20 minutes, and not give any attention to how your animals are doing.  You can pay for me to watch cats but I don't know anything about cats and I wouldn't notice if yours was ill.  I'd rather not follow your instructions, no matter how big a health risk to your animals, and even if you correct me repeatedly, I will smile and apologize, and not lift a finger to do anything different." 

Talking to her probably won't help anything, though if she actually IS insured, that could be something to start with. 

I didn't read all the replies.. but $20 a visit, for 20 minutes?! That's pretty pricey, especially for healthy cats (if the cats were special needs, yea, charge a bit more)

for cats, I charge $15 for UP TO an hour (usually visit twice a day, unless the owner tells me otherwise), since they're easy, and I don't guarantee a time frame. Mainly to give enough time to feed, clean the dishes, litter boxes and any mess they make. Depending on the cats, I'll stay and give them attention. The cats that hide when I'm around, no sense for me to stay and stress them out. The sociable ones, I'd play and love on them.

I had one client who fed raw to her dogs. She actually did have a nanny cam on me (which I did not know then) and she complimented on how well I took care of her dogs while she was gone! She said most sitters would toss kibbles at the dogs and refuse to touch the raw meat.

You are not anal about your cats and that cat sitter is not a "cat person"! I would only use that person again if I had absolutely no other alternatives. So sorry to hear what must be so disheartening to you! :-(

I hate hiring a pet sitter. We once hired one that texted me to tell me the rabbit wasn't eating his pellets. I said no big deal if he was eating his hay and veggies.

I came home to see she had fed him his litter box pellets. Thank God he didn't eat them. We just assumed there were two containers of pellets and everyone knew what hay pellets look like. I guess not.

You are not expecting too much. I don't know that I would tip if I was paying that much for 20 minutes. Maybe I am cheap.

I agree with you, @Red Top Rescue  that some pet sitters are really dog people--we had two like that before we found the woman we use now.  One was a horse trainer and I got the distinct feeling that she thought my instructions for the cats were silly and 'overkill'.  The cats survived   but I didn't call her back.  The second one has a successful business but she mainly takes care of dogs and I got the feeling she didn't spend much time with the kitties.  

The sitter we use now charges $25 per visit.  I usually tip 10%.  We've got six cats and three of them are older and need more attention--whoever takes care of them has to be willing to clean up puppy pads with pee on them and the occasional poop accident, give meds, and watch to make sure they eat enough. That's in addition to cleaning the litter boxes throughout the house, checking the water stations, and feeding of course.  She says she plays with the younger ones while she's here--they're always looking for affection while we're gone.  She also texts me after every visit and even sends pics, because she knows I worry about the older kitties when I'm gone. She's a very conscientious person, I believe she does what she says she does, and I feel it's worth what she charges.  I feel lucky to have found her--it's nice to have someone I trust taking care of the kids.  

@Abby2932, I hope you find someone you feel comfortable with to take care of your kitties.