It’s go-time! You finished the laundry and packed it. In addition to your pre-travel tasks, you had to send two last-minute work emails and run a couple of errands. Looking around, you think to yourself, “The house is a wreck! How am I going to clean up before our 5 AM flight tomorrow?” You’re not and here’s why: your pet sitter doesn’t care what your house looks like. Today, we’re sharing a pet sitter’s expectations of your home. We hope that reading this will take the pressure off the next time you leave your pets in our care.

A Pet Sitter’s Expectations of Your Home: Hygiene

Maintaining our hygiene as well as your pet’s ensures that we are keeping all the pets in our care safe from cross-contamination and communicable diseases. Because we take this part of our job very seriously, we ask that you please inform us if anybody in your home – human or otherwise – has been diagnosed with a serious contagious illness or parasitic infestation so that we may take necessary precautions.

Ideally, we’d like to have access to a dish-free kitchen sink where we can wash our hands and maintain your pets’ dishes and feeding supplies. We’ll also need hand and dish soap at the kitchen sink and extra paper towels to dry our hands and to clean up pet messes. Finally, a general purpose cleaner that is safe for your counters and another that is safe for your floors helps a bunch; bonus if the cleaner you choose is safe for all surfaces.

A Pet Sitter’s Expectations of Your Home: Maintenance

While you may think that we prefer a freshly cleaned environment during our visits, we actually prefer that you halt all cleaning services until your return.

Firstly, we don’t want to run into a service provider in your home. They may think we’re a threat, or vise versa. We also want to prevent pets being locked in closets, doors and windows being left open, lost pets, or other mistakes that can be made by service providers that don’t know your pets. Haulting services also applies to home maintenance in general including general contractors, lawn service providers, and others.

If you insist on having service providers present during your reservation with us, please let us know; email us the planned service date, company name, and their contact information.

A Pet Sitter’s Expectations of Your Home: Safety

As professional, insured service providers, we require that homes be safe to access during visits. Please mind your cords and cables so we don’t trip. And, clear walkways from debris and treat exterior areas during icy conditions.

Please also consider our safety when setting up your pet supplies. If you have cans of pet food on high shelves, for example, please consider leaving a step stool nearby so that we can safely reach them. Further, if you have a rug that everyone trips on, roll it up or use rug tape to keep it in its place. These are just a few examples but please keep in mind that our livelihood depends on our physical ability to care for pets. An injury can cost us more than just a trip to the ER.

Finally, please unplug small electronics that could catch fire including portable AC, heaters, and other potentially flammable electronics including Christmas tree lights and other holiday decor. Also, remember that extreme temps can lead to fires so mind your oily rags, flammable items in the garage, etc.

A Pet Sitter’s Expectations of Your Home: Supplies

Our priority as professional pet sitters is to leave your home in as good a shape as we find it, if not better. For us to do that, we request that you set us up with the following supplies.

Clean doggie towels left by the front/back door protect your home and furniture on rainy/muddy days. Similarly, apparel like raincoats left by exit doors ensures that we don’t forget to use it when we head outside.

Animal Admiration was created to take pressure off of pet parents, not add to it. For this reason, our focus is always on your pets and their care. Your home’s cleanliness is not our priority. As long as we have some basic supplies and safety measures in place, we’ll be thrilled to visit with your pets.

To learn about our in-home pet care services including dog walking, dog sitting, and cat sitting, contact us at info@animaladmiration.com or (281) 391-1015. Our team of outstanding pet care providers offers quality care dog sitting, cat sitting, and dog walking services in Katy, Fulshear, Richmond, Energy Corridor, Memorial, West Houston, and Cypress. We look forward to hearing from you and helping you enjoy your time away!