When we first signed up as house sitters (AKA pet sitters), I would get excited about lots of the listings that were being posted.  I would apply, and then... crickets.

I started to craft my application responses to include a request for feedback from the pet parents, regardless of whether they picked us or not.  That was actually helpful!  What did I hear?  We didn't have any references within the app.  Of course not, WE JUST STARTED!  It's very much like the chicken and egg question. OK, so we aren't going to get the luxury sits in the fancy schmancy places.  Time to LOWER OUR EXPECTATIONS.

I applied to do a 2 night pet sit over the holidays that was only an hour away.  That would build up our references, and it was just a short sit.  Piece of cake!  I had two phone calls (one with each pet parent), and everything was clicking right along.  But then I wasn't hearing about the application being accepted.  Then I got a message from the pet parent, that the basement had flooded at the place they were supposed to be going, and their entire trip fell through!  So much for that.  They said they would keep me in mind for next time.  Unfortunately, next time wasn't going to be soon enough to get me what I needed - a reference to start off with.  Sigh.

Back to the drawing board.

Rejection after rejection. Sometimes it was because we hadn't applied fast enough.  We did find out more about how this all works though, which was very helpful information to have.  For the app we joined, when a home owner posts a sit, the app only lets the first 5 applicants through, and then it closes the sit for the home owner to review.  If the home owner rejects an applicant, it frees up a spot for another applicant to apply.  What the home owners tend to do is start from the beginning, reading the first submission first, and so on.  If they like how you sound they are going to look at your profile (make sure you don't look like an axe murderer, read through your references and reviews from airbnb, read your history, look at the photos you submitted of you frolicking with pets, etc etc.)  But it seems that a lot of pet parents don't read all 5 of the applications;  they may stop as soon as they find 1 or 2 that might be suitable.  So you know what this is? It's a race!  To find a pet sit, you have to start by typing in the place you want to go.  You can be specific for the length of time you want to sit, the time frame you are available for, the type of sit you want (no pets, just cats, just dogs, an entire farm, etc.!)  And you can save that search as a favourite, so whenever a listing comes up that fits those parameters, the app will notify you. 

If they like what you said in your application, they will ask you for a phone call or video call.  Word to the wise - do that call as soon as you possibly can!  We lost out on one because the other applicant did their video chat first, and the pet parent liked that person, so just cancelled our call.    

We retired at Christmas time, and thought it would be nice to have a mini getaway that we could drive to, just to break the mindset that we were so very used to, the idea we had to get up and go back to work soon.  Being Canadians, we happened to be looking for a mini cross border getaway just after New Years.  It would give us a chance to de-stress after the holidays, maybe visit some restaurants we can’t go to normally, wander around, check out some thrift stores, see a show or movie.  But I hadn’t committed to booking a specific hotel, as nothing was grabbing my attention at the miniscule price point I wanted.  Two hours later, I had a notification pop up on my phone for a pet sit in Buffalo, for the exact week I had been looking at.  Whooohooo! 

I applied for it, telling our story and why we would be a great fit to watch their kitty while they went away for a week (a written version of a 2 minute elevator pitch), and within a day or two we were having a video chat with the pet owners!  AND they picked us!  They accepted our application on the app, and sent us the Welcome Guide, which provided all the details of what is expected, what to do and what not to do. 

We were on our way!!!  I was determined to make us into the best pet sitters ever, to get that glowing review so we could have half a chance of scoring something fancy some day.