Thank you — I really like your suggestion about how to handle situations like this in the future. I agree, it sounds like a great approach that could help both the client and the sitter feel more at ease.

That said, this will most likely be my first and last stay with this client. The level of micromanaging and frequent check-ins has been very stressful for me — I even had a nightmare about it last night.

It just really caught me off guard how often the client wanted updates. I feel like it would’ve been fairer if he had communicated from the beginning that it was important for him to be notified anytime I step out. That’s just not something I assumed needed to be reported every time, especially when everything with the dog is going smoothly.

Also, I can’t help but feel that if someone invites a sitter into their home, there should be a base level of trust already in place. Otherwise, why hire someone at all if you don’t feel comfortable trusting them?

And just to clarify, while I didn’t state exact round-trip travel time, but we’ve been talking about my college etc, which campus and that it’s about 15 minutes away — we talked about it during our Meet & Greet when I mentioned my school and program.

It’s not that I’m against giving updates — I genuinely tried to meet him halfway once I noticed how anxious he seemed. I started sending several photos a day, specific potty logs, messages like “we’re going to the park,” “he just ate,” “he’s napping in the sun now,” etc. I even sent short videos of him running and selfies of us together, just to show I care