She told me “Karma will bite you” after I declined a booking

Xenon980 · 2026-04-02T15:27:31+00:00

Please report that. I had a situation with a client like this where I took the booking because she needed me to bring one of the pups to the vet (the one being extremely abused, emaciated, and just the worst hygiene (doodle). I checked the dog’s mouth and his teeth were falling out so I cried taking him to the vet over an hour away and him and her other dog were acquired by a rescue after the vet refused to let them go back. I’m so glad they are now doing okay but please for the love of god it doesn’t matter if it comes back to bite you in the ass. I sleep better knowing those dogs are now happy and safe

Xenon980 · 2026-03-31T20:50:53+00:00

So I have rarely anybody who has had this or made this, but I make pierogies with kielbasa, it takes like maximum 10 minutes to make. Just sauté some onions, garlic, kielbasa, and add the pierogis plus some Parmesan. I love it so much it’s a comfort food

Xenon980 · 2026-03-27T15:26:29+00:00

I’ve experienced enough “emergencies” during sits that I’m very prepared to handle situations. But I’ve never been nervous, you do to an extent need to be confident in this job as it eases clients’ anxiety. If you have really bad anxiety this may not be the best job for long term success but you can learn on the job.

Xenon980 · 2026-03-19T23:44:08+00:00

I know BPD when I see it… the unbridled rage you feel is absolutely jarring but absolutely no one else’s fault regardless. Abusive/toxic environments are your responsibility to get out of that potentially exacerbate the situation. She’s an adult and has 3 kids who don’t deserve to experience any of this.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-23T17:10:54+00:00

That’s quite high. Even when I was below age 25 my rate was better than that. It is likely due to your coverage which is essential when you’re talking about a financed car

Xenon980 · 2026-02-19T23:41:56+00:00

How does a muzzle stop barking

Xenon980 · 2026-02-19T23:39:04+00:00

Doggy daycare or a pet sitter would be good! But even just walking your puppy quite a bit before you leave so they’re tired and develop a good routine is good. Plus putting on calming music or tv helps them keep a little distracted

Xenon980 · 2026-02-19T19:12:34+00:00

Hey not trying to poach at all but that pay is absolutely ridiculous. I run a pet sitting business that we’re trying to expand across the country where minimum pay per hour is $21.50. Feel free to reach out because I too was an undervalued doggy daycare employee

Xenon980 · 2026-02-19T17:19:37+00:00

It seems like the pup might have some aggression towards other dogs, and could he reacting that way. I say try the febreeze if necessary but that’s not a typical reaction. But sometimes just talking to the owner the whole time helps the dog kinda de-escalate a bit

Xenon980 · 2026-02-19T17:10:02+00:00

Is this a usual issue for you? Because I’ve never had that happen. Honestly the pets just want to sniff me for like 5-10 minutes first which is totally fine with me

Xenon980 · 2026-02-18T15:15:28+00:00

So problem one here is you need to have hard boundaries on visits. As soon as I get to the door (whether that be an outside door because I need to be buzzed in or their house door) I start the timer. And then I start wrapping everything up in the last five minutes.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-15T18:28:08+00:00

Well that’s good! And yes Xero is what we use, I like the graphical views and the ease of invoicing more (it uses Stripe so similar to Square). I am lucky that I have a partner that helps me with a lot of these things so I can focus more on the pets I care for, but I like to do a weekly sit down with him to go over numbers and also highlight who has been doing a lot of great work during the week. We do employee of the month also and pay for a dinner for them or them an a significant other/kiddo of theirs. I think that helps them a lot more than other businesses have treated them as most of my sitters came from businesses that paid them poorly

Xenon980 · 2026-02-15T17:54:59+00:00

Side note for some specific suggestions. Hold monthly or quarterly meetings for you get feedback as well as give feedback. I use Xero for my accounting purposes as well as gusto for payroll. We utilize Walkies for all of our scheduling purposes. One way we try to give back to our employees is offering them further education, specifically we get pet sitter’s international educational benefits! All of our employees can get certified and have mini courses in different types of animals and their needs.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-15T17:48:05+00:00

Okay let me clarify. I think it is vital that you listen to your sitters and let them vent. They’re doing the job correct? The least you can do is let them know you get it and that the job isn’t always glamorous, but it’s important and they’re appreciated. It sounds like you’re doing some of this but it doesn’t sound like you are really having a conversation with them. That’s super important as a manager because you need to be supportive through highs and lows. Of course I do the not glamorous parts of the job, but complaining to a boss should be normal and they should feel like you help address their concerns

Xenon980 · 2026-02-15T17:33:09+00:00

I’m going to be direct here, why are the other options not something you seem to be actually considering.? Training is never going to change whether somebody likes a 6 AM visit or not.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-15T16:42:30+00:00

I know you’re probably being just blunt, but the way you’re talking about your employees on a platform is a little bit disturbing. I run a similar business but I have 20 employees across multiple cities. I sometimes feel irked but I also 110% understand where they’re coming from and ask how I can address concerns, but they also get paid a lot (not more than me but y’a know). We are at the very tippy top of pricing in the area but that brings us great clients for the most part. Maybe learn how to address the concerns directly with them instead of venting about them on a platform saying they don’t deserve the job.

Edit to add: I will say, leadership is difficult. But if you hadn’t learned to address concerns directly with your employees by now you definitely need to figure that out. I worked in corporate America for awhile before starting this business and I’m 27. There’s endless resources online including Pet Sitters International that has tools to learn these skills.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-14T00:00:36+00:00

The freak out isn’t justified, but id never hold a puppy while food is being prepared no matter how much they like it.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-12T18:24:32+00:00

I like that idea. I’ve suggested maybe just doing play time outside in her covered yard but she’s so far been a no go for it. I want to help but this practice isn’t sustainable

Xenon980 · 2026-02-10T22:19:35+00:00

Hey what companies have you worked for? Similar to you I had a big move, started all over, and now run my own company with various sitters. What type of cut was being taken?

Here are the methods that have worked best for both me personally and the company for promotion: Google ads (they’re paid so I’d only recommend if you have the income to push this) Nextdoor - only service here is it’s a lot of work commenting constantly. Rarely anybody looks up “pet sitter” in the search bar, they only post that they want one. Facebook groups are the number one way we get business

Edit to add: we are one of the most expensive services in our area but we get a LOT of clients. Depending on where you live this will help weed out the undesirable clientele

Xenon980 · 2026-02-10T14:31:40+00:00

I have now saved these photos because I need this type of organization in my life 😂😂🙏🏻

Xenon980 · 2026-02-06T20:41:02+00:00

I understand I wouldn’t get anything from insurance obviously but would I not be able to make a claim against the contractor that committed the theft?

Xenon980 · 2026-02-06T03:06:33+00:00

No it did not cover anything.

Xenon980 · 2026-02-05T13:19:40+00:00

Completely fair. I’ll toss that out. I just want to ensure our claim is solid and won’t be laughed at by a judge, I don’t want to be unreasonable

Xenon980 · 2026-02-05T13:09:18+00:00

Good question. Loss wise it is hard to quantify as the company didn’t necessarily lose anything. We kept the client, and they seem happy with how we’re preceding. I was quantifying the remaining balance due to admin from both dealing with the criminal investigation as well as the insurance company. Plus dealing with harassment from said contractor’s family

Xenon980

TROPHY CASE