Are you looking for a guide to help you write pet sitter instructions? These simple tips will remind you of the important information that will help you, your pet and your pet sitter relax during vacations times.
Going away on vacation can be exciting and relaxing, but leaving your pet behind can feel sad and down-right stressful. As an overprotective dog own myself, I am going to give you my top tips for leaving the best pet sitter instructions.
You are going to learn the top 5 pet sitter instructions from how I leave feeding instructions, a schedule you can create, house information that is super important and more.
After learning these simple tips you are going to be able to leave your furry fluffy friends with a new confidence and enjoy your trip even more.
This post is all about the simple pet sitter instructions that you need to leave behind so your fur-baby can get the best care while you are away.
Simple Pet Sitter Instructions
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Feeding/ Walking Chart
You can hand write out instructions for your pet sitter like I did here. This allows you the freedom to include everything. But no matter the format you choose, the feeding and exercise chart is essential! (Also, don’t forget to lie out the leash, poop bags, food and supplies, any medication and treats of course!)
You can also buy a preprinted pet sitter chart like this one:
Click HERE to buy the sheets from AMAZON.
2. Emergency Contact Information
You might forget that your pet sitter may need some back up while you are away. You need to give them all of the information they might need. Here is the list of contacts I leave for my sitter every single time I ask her to stay:
- My Contact Info– that includes my cell phone, email, a number at my destination, a number for a person I am traveling with, hotel information and flight information and any other way she can contact you.
- Vet Information– name of clinic, address, phone number and name of specific vet that you tend to work with.
- Contact Information for A Trusted Person Who Knows Your Pet and/ or House– I always leave my pet sitter with numbers for a few close friends. I let them know ahead of time that the pet sitter may call on them for back up. I also let the pet sitter know she has back up in case she has to miss a feeding or a walk. You never know what can happen while you are away so leave her with more contacts than you suspect she will ever need. It’s peace of mind for all of you.
Again, I wrote mine out but check out this cute sheet that could work well for you if you are looking for more guidance and structure:
Click HERE to buy these information pages from AMAZON.
3. Home Information
We all get so used to how things work in our homes, but we need to take care of our pet sitters. Leave them:
- Wifi information
- Your home address for Uber Eats
- Your security passcodes and/or garage passcodes
- TV remotes and a small tutorial to get to Netflix
- Instructions for anything extra (outdoor lights, grill information, gas fireplace instructions, hot tub information, pool passcodes/ instructions.
- Garbage/ Recycling day and instructions
Walk around your house with fresh eyes and make a list of anything that might need a little further instructions. (I still have to ask my kids how to work the TV remotes!)
4. Make Videos
I can’t tell you how helpful it is to make videos demonstrating how to do things for your pet sitter. I make the following “how to” videos for my pet sitter:
- How to feed Odie with proper measurements
- How to administer medications
- How to open and lock our back door that happens to have a very tricky lock
- How to turn on and work the outdoor fire pit
- How to uncover / recover and power the hot tub on and off
- How to work the TV
- How to work our complicated coffee machine
Video is such an amazing teaching tool and it allows your sitter to watch you in action as many times as needed. And, it’s fun and personable. There is also some peace of mind when you know your sitter can watch exactly how you want it done. It leaves less room for error.
5. Meet and Greet
Connecting with people is easier than ever online. You can use pet sitter companies and have someone stay with your pet that same day. But, let’s face it, a meet and greet before you leave town is best… for everyone. You can do the following much better face to face:
- It allows your pet to meet and connect to the person before you leave. This will give you an idea of how well they will get along while you’re gone.
- You can make your expectations clear. Are others allowed in your home with the pet sitter? Are there areas of your home that are off limits? Smoking? Drinking? Should the pet sitter clean up before you get home? Should the pet sitter get the mail and if so where should they leave it?
- This is the time to discuss payment. Our pet sitter stays in our house with our dog while we are away and she also works from home. We both looked at going rates and agreed on payment at our meet and greet.
- This is also the time to ask the pet sitter more professional questions. You can allow them to explain their background, ask about training, references, how they might handle an emergency and their overall pet experience. My dog is kind of a breeze to take care of, he loves to sleep by the fire and isn’t a huge walker. With that said, he has some quirks I wanted to talk the sitter about.
Bonus Tip:
It’s ok to spoil your pet sitter a little. A good person in your life that is able to take care of your fur baby is a huge help and can allow you to enjoy your trip away from home. You can leave behind a few surprises to make their stay more enjoyable like: lint brushes, filled candy dishes, gift card for uber eats or seamless, a list of your favorite restaurants that deliver, password to access movies on your Apple TV, a stocked fridge, put your best blankets and pillows on the couch, bake some fresh cookies… you get the picture… don’t be afraid to be appreciative of the good people in your life.
This Post Was All About Simple Pet Sitter Instructions You Need To Organize Before You Leave.
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Until One Has Loved An Animal, A Part Of One’s Soul Has Remained Unawakened”
~ Anatole France
