House sitting

Have you ever house-sitted for someone while they were on vacation? If so, why did they feel they needed someone to keep their house 'lived' in while they were away? If you were going out of town, would you call in someone to temporarily move into your place?

I sometimes house-sit for my aunt and uncle. They have a cattery business in which they breed and sell Siamese cats. The reasons I house-sit vary because sometimes they have pregnant queens, or cats that are ill. A few months back they had to go out of town for a weekend. One of their queen cats had kittens two weeks before. I stayed at the house to make sure the mother and kittens were doing ok and I had to record the weight of the kittens and if one of them was having trouble drinking from the mother I had to bottle feed milk supplement.

I have a friend who also pet/house sits for people who have special needs pets. Sometimes he doesn't stay at the houses and he will sometimes go over to the house for a few hours to give medicines, feed the pets and spend time with them. He only stays overnight in the houses if the customers requests that he does.

I don't think I would ever have anyone house sit for me unless I had circumstances in which someone needed to be at the house.

No and no.

Back when J and I first got married, we always would have some friend who lived with their parents still come watch our house and dog while we were gone. Now that people all have their own houses,it's not that easy.

I house sat for a cousin of mine once for about a week, because they had a dog that they couldn't take with them and had plants they wanted to keep watered. I doubt that I would ever ask anyone to sit with my house while I was away though.

i think i did once, it was for a friend, and she just wanted me to keep an eye on her dog basicly..

I have but it was more pet sitting and turning the water on, as they had an acre of property. Might end up house/pet sitting for a good friend of mine this summer if it works out - not sure of the timing as I'm helping my sister-in-law and brother when baby #2 comes and the timing will be pretty close.

I wouldn't like either one. I don't want someone into my business. If I was gone for more than a week, I would just have my stepdaughter stop in to check things out once or twice.

I have never house sat, but I don't think I would like it. I was at my God Daughter's house this Sunday and watched her while her mom was gone for an hour or so. I didn't like watching her at her house at all. I would much rather do it in mine. So, I could never stay there over night without really not feeling comfortable.

I house/pet sit for a living. I stay at my clients' homes and take care of both pets and house. They hire me to have someone in the home to deter burglars and in case something goes wrong that needs to be taken care of. One of my clients has a water-based heating system. When they were gone, one of the pumps sprung a leak. I caught it when there was about an inch of water in the basement. If I hadn't been there, they would have returned to several feet of water and many destroyed possessions in their basement. People also want someone there with their pets so they can leave them in their own environment and on their own schedule. I really enjoy being with the animals without having to incur the cost of caring for them and I have been able to stay in places I would never be able to afford to stay. As far as getting into people's business, I just don't look at their mail or go through drawers, etc.

Chris wrote:Have you ever house-sitted for someone while they were on vacation? If so, why did they feel they needed someone to keep their house 'lived' in while they were away? If you were going out of town, would you call in someone to temporarily move into your place?

I've never house-sat and we've only asked friends to stop by and feed our cats when we've gone away for more than a few days. But what if you do house-sit for someone...do you need someone to watch your stuff? And then what about your house-sitter? Won't they need someone to watch theirs, etc., etc.? Holy dominoes, Batman!

Right now, I don't have a permanent address. I have been traveling around the Midwest and to Florida to visit a friend I hadn't seen in over 25 years in between the house/pet sits. I am taking a look at different areas to see if I find some place I want to stay. So, I don't have to worry about someone watching my stuff (which is either in my car or my storage locker). Right now it works for me. A few months or years from now, I may change my mind.

Welcome aboard avitoots. May the four winds blow you safely home, whereever that winds up being.

Thanks, Alan.