Rover In-Home Pet Sitting Tips (for Animal Lovers!)
Is Rover legit? As a pet mom who travels often, I know how important it is to find excellent, reliable care for my dogs while I’m away. That’s why I’m glad I found Rover.com, a trustworthy in-home pet-sitting service in your own home. Whether you’re looking for a pet sitter, or you want to become one yourself, you’ll want to read these dos and don’ts of using Rover.com!
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Do consider in-home pet sitting.
The idea for Rover.com grew out of a negative experience co-founder Greg Gottesman had with his dog at a traditional kennel. He was on vacation when his dog, Ruby Tuesday, was injured at a high-end boarding kennel in Seattle.
When his 9-year-old daughter said she would have paid to take care of someone else’s dog, Gottesman saw a business. He and his team pitched the idea for Rover.com, a website connecting dog owners with dog sitters, at the 2011 Startup Weekend in Seattle and won top prize.
Don’t book a pet sitter without reading ratings.
Before booking a pet sitter, be sure to read user reviews. A 5-star rating is the highest compliment a sitter can earn, and there are many of them on Rover.com. In fact, 97 percent of Rover sitters receive 5-star reviews!
These ratings are based on reviews written by owners whose pets have completed stays with them. To learn how a sitter is likely to care for your dog, pet parents should read those reviews and testimonials from the sitter’s former clients.
Do look for background checks.
All Rover.com pet sitters and dog walkers must undergo a background check. Based on social security number, full name, and address — third-party Checkr investigates the safety of pet sitters. This ensures sitters aren’t registered sex offenders or on a terrorist watch list. They also search the National Criminal Database for any disqualifying criminal offenses.
A background check badge with a green star on Rover.com indicates that the sitter has also undergone an enhanced check. This means a comprehensive manual search of county court records has been completed based on the person’s address history over the last seven years.
Do a meet and greet with your potential pet sitter.
Rover encourages each sitter and pet parent to schedule an in-person meet and greet before booking a stay. It’s the best way to observe how the sitter and your pet get along to determine whether it’s a good match for your family.
Don’t forget about other pets.
Rover isn’t just for dogs! Sitters on Rover have looked after cats, birds, horses, pigs, and even lizards and fish.
Do earn extra income with Rover.com.
Animal lovers seeking income will also appreciate Rover for the opportunity to earn money doing something they enjoy. Earn income by spending time with dogs, cats, and other pets!
Pet sitters and dog walkers on Rover can earn $1,000 or more per month. Each person has the freedom to choose his or her offered services, schedule, and rates. One of the added benefits is that Rover sitters can work from their own homes.
Start by visiting Rover.com to create a free account and apply online. Click ‘Become a Sitter’ for information about starting a sitting business with Rover. Then click “Create your profile” to begin the application.
Once you have answered the questions and finished the first part of the application, you’ll create a testimonial and complete other actions to enhance your profile. Each new sitter and dog walker also completes a general background check and a safety quiz.
The Rover team then manually reviews each sitter and dog walker profile.
Don’t skip travel because of your pets.
Feeling nervous about leaving your furry friend while you travel? Don’t be! Rover.com is both the largest and the fastest-growing network of dog lovers, with over 300,000+ pet sitters in 34,000+ cities in the U.S. and Europe.
Rover also offers support before, during, and after the stay with complimentary premium insurance for all services booked through the platform. You can expect emergency support, a reservation guarantee, 24/7 access to vet consultation, mobile apps, photo sharing, videos of stay highlights, and sitter background checks.
Do Save Money on Rover.com!
Save $10 on your first service with the creation of a new account on Rover.com.
In addition to pet sitting, Rover offers dog-walking services and drop-by pet visits.
Do save these in-home pet sitter tips for travelers!
Be sure to save these Rover.com dos and don’ts. Simply pin the image above to Pinterest. Go ahead and follow Travel Mamas on Pinterest while you’re at it!
Would your pet prefer a traditional kennel or in-home pet sitting with Rover? Let us know in the comments below!
What a great idea. So many pet owners like to travel with their pets but not all places are pet friendly so this great for when the owner wants to eat out or enjoy a museum where pets aren’t welcome.
I often travel with my dog, but there are times that it’s just not practical to take him with us and the kids are busy and not always able to give him the attention he needs. This service would be perfect. And I wouldn’t mind watching someone else’s pet either.
Sounds like Rover.com is a perfect match for you, Tonya! 🙂
I will have to check out Rover. It would be a great way for my Sister to make some extra cash. Is is a huge animal lover and has the perfect house and yard for it.
Oh great! I hope your sister signs up with Rover.com!
This looks like a great service for pet owners.
Also, it looks like a nice opportunity for employment for pet lovers!
So true…who COULDN’T use a little extra cash doing something they love?!
This is perfect ideas for the travelers who needs a help to take care their pets while they are on a trip.
This is a great idea.. Very good service and helpful for animal lovers and owners.
Such an awesome idea! Such a win win for pet owners and dog lovers who wants to earn!
What a great service for both pet owners and animal lovers. There’s many times that we don’t get to go places because I hate the thought of leaving our furbabies in a kennel.
Kristin – I know what you mean. I feel so much more comfortable when my dog is home with a good sitter.
I’ll have to share this info with our neighbor. She travels a lot and if we can’t watch her pets then she can use Rover.
Thanks so much for sharing, Tonia!
Rover sounds like a great service! My female boxer was too high energy for our local kennel and they kicked her out. We’d definitely use the service to find someone who can handle her needs while we travel!
Oh, I love boxers! I hope you find a wonderful pet sitter for your high energy pup on Rover.com.
Wow this sounds like a wonderful service. Although i don’t have any dogs, many of my friends do and they travel a lot. This would be very beneficial to them and they could travel with ease knowing they’re pets are in good hands.
I hope you’ll tell your pet owner friends about Rover.com, Janell! 🙂
This is such a nice idea. Being able to drop off your pet somewhere you can trust sounds really nice. The ratings and background check badges are really nice features.
Agreed – the ratings and background checks would make me as a pet owner more comfortable!
This sounds like a great service for dog lovers who want to travel. ITs also great for people like me who don’t want To board their pets.
This sounds like a great site. I have never heard of it.
Glad we could introduce you to Rover.com, Maegan!
This is great to know! My dog is older and I won’t put him in boarding. This is a great option!
Reesa – That’s exactly how I felt when I had an elderly dog and elderly cat!
That sounds like so much fun for any animal lover. I love the idea of getting paid to have time with the pooches!
And such a flexible option, too!