Pet Sitters in Upper Red Hook, NY

Shelley and Mark
-38% off
5.0 miles away
Limited time deal
4.73
• 15 reviews
/night 49.00
Owner Image

Shelley is a dangerous and incompetent housesitter. She should never be entrusted with anything more valuable than a houseplant. Her pet care was terrible. On the 2nd day she left our 2 dogs outside in the backyard, unattended on a 83-degree hot, humid summer day with no water for 90 minutes while she left our home to go out for a walk. We saw this on our Ring camera and immediately reported this to zeewoi (full complaint currently under investigation) and let her know directly how concerning this was for us. Not only was it unsafe to leave the dogs outside while she left the home, but it also went against clear instructions that were communicated to her in person during the handover and in writing about what to do with the dogs anytime she left our home. She repeatedly had trouble following basic instructions that were communicated verbally, in writing and in text reminders. She was incapable of following basic pet care requirements. We asked that only one of our 2 dogs be walked once a day (I did not want her walking the other stronger dog, because during the handover we went on a walk together and Shelley DROPPED our dog's leash). We use Fi collars, so we know that over the course of 11 days, Shelley brought our dog for only 4 walks. We did a phone interview with Shelley and never did she inform us that our medium sized, 40 pound dogs would be too much for her to walk. Additionally, Shelley traveled with her sister who clearly is unwell (likely dementia or some sort of developmental disability) and also was afraid and nervous around dogs. She never informed us of this, and it was clearly a huge safety issue. Shelley's sister let our INDOOR cat out multiple times (at least 4 times are seen on outside cameras). Sometimes our cat was left outside for 20+ minutes without Shelley or her sister realizing. This is so, so dangerous- we are on a main street with a lot of traffic. We are lucky our cat didn't get lost or killed under her "care." Shelley and her sister left our home in a terrible, and honestly gross and unsanitary, condition. A paper bag with human feces was found in our bathroom and made the entire 2nd floor of the house stink for days. The rug in my office was covered with urine- which makes me wonder if she locked my dogs in this room for extended periods of time. Our dogs are fully house trained and have never had any potty accidents. The kitchen was filled with flies, milk had been spilled in the refrigerator and never cleaned up (a gross film had formed by the time we got home). The blender was put away in the cabinet unclean. The recycle bin was filled with dirty trash- so much so that we got a notice from the city. She carelessly used metal utensils and scratched our Le Creuset dutch oven (which will now void its lifetime guarantee). Three brand new bars of soap were taken from our home, like they were some sort of hotel amenity. Shelley went into our basement storage freezer (which she had NO need to access) and took home 3 gallon bags (about 20lbs) of frozen tomatoes I had harvested before our trip from our garden. When I addressed this with her, she claimed her sister packed them by accident (which, if true, & your sister is so unwell that she's packing things from someone's home that are NOT HERS, she should not be allowed to travel with you). However, I don't believe that's the case- 20 pounds of tomatoes aren't really something that just sneaks by your consciousness- it's A LOT of tomatoes. Shelley was offended I accused her of stealing, but that's what she did. She ultimately returned them, knowing full well she was in the wrong. I'm not sure what else she might have taken from our home, as I didn't think I needed to take an inventory of our belongings and supplies before we left. Ultimately the sit ended when our one of our dogs ate some of a marijuana plant in the backyard (she had never shown interest before and we did not know the plant- with no flowers on it- was dangerous). We do not blame Shelley for that (even though it was probably from a time the dogs were not adequately supervised in the backyard); having the plant where dogs could access was our mistake, and one that will never be made again. The part that is extremely concerning is that it took Shelley nearly 2 hours to get our dog to the emergency vet from discovering the first symptoms (she first texted me at 6:26pm that our dog was unwell and "having seizures" and did not leave for the hospital until 8:12pm). And I am certain she never called the zeewoi vet emergency line. She eventually reached out to my mother (our emergency contact while we were in Europe) and my mom told her to go to the vet ER immediately. Afterwards Shelley stated via message, "I cried, prayed & hugged her throughout the incident." So, instead of getting prompt medical care for our dog (emergency vet was clearly listed in our printed out home instructions), she prayed for her. Unhelpful, incompetent and incredibly dangerous. I'm not sure how she has previous good reviews. We were shocked by the incompetency and complete inability to understand and follow simple, clear directions- there are, sadly, many more examples I could include here. We are grateful our girls survived having her stay in our home. I would hope no one else ever has to deal with such a horror. To finish things off, disapproving of the legal marijuana plant in the backyard and probably of our rainbow flag displayed on the front of the house, Shelley texted "You need prayers. Find a Bible based church to go to and get healed. I pray for your soul."

Sitter available from Oct 1
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Reviews from Pet Owners

4.93
4.93
4.96 Organised 4.96 Reliable 4.95 Clean and tidy 4.97 Self-sufficient 4.91 Pet care
User
Juliet
I came here with my teenage girls after discussion with Juliet, and the stay went like a dream. The cottage was so cozy and individual, and the views took my breathe away.

The horses' routine was well planned for us, and the cats kept us very amused. 

It was a great pleasure to meet Juliet and her husband.
User
Ashleigh
What a lovely, relaxed sit. Ashleigh is so tidy and organised, the house was spotless and comfortable and in a very quiet spot. Brambles is a doddle to care for.  She has her own little routine, breakfast, out into her enclosed space for her morning air, a bit of play and a treat...then back to bed. Evenings, after the Brambles most important need, food, are quiet purrings on your lap, interrupted by a mad half hour zooming around.  The day is your own!  Lots of lovely countryside walks in the area, and both the West and East coasts are within easy access both by bus or car. The lovely, small city of Truro is just down the road. I recommend the park and the small Cathedral and it has a good selection of eateries and shops for browsing.
User
Raewyn
We loved taking care of Stewart and the house was really nice to live in. We appreciated being able you walk to shops and bus stops. The area is very beautiful and had access to great walking trails. We will especially miss little Stewie who captured our hearts and was such a pleasure to look after. Highly recommend staying here!
User
Kate
We had a wonderful time watching Bennie! He’s such a sweet dog and made us feel right at home! He was nervous about getting outside since it can be a busy area, but once we got going, he was fine. We were sad to say goodbye to him on our last day!

Kate and Adam left us with all the information we needed for our stay. They were great communicators and their place is beautiful. We’d gladly sit for them again!
User
Paloma
Pumba is extremely affectionate, protective and curious. He likes to walk the streets and sniff everything. When he wants to go home he requests in a very nice way: he enters the middle of your legs. When he gets home it's time to play, and he politely requests: holds the toy with his mouth and stares at you.
 It was very peaceful and funny to take care of him. I already miss lying on the couch with him on my lap under the blanket. Paloma and Vinícius are lovely people. They made us super comfortable in their apartment and we felt like we are friends. We hope to see you soon, on some trip around the world.
User
Michelle
This was an amazing house sit. Michelle and the family were very welcoming and even offered for me to use their teas and some food in the fridge. Raffles and Mittens are an absolute delight and super friendly. Raffles at first was a bit nervous about a new person in the house, but he soon warmed to me and by the second day he was fully trusting, following me around and wanting to play. We had lots of lovely walks and he was very well behaved. Mittens is an amazing character, very friendly and a great work buddy. The house is beautiful, in a great location for walking into town, the big bathtub was a joy, and I didn’t want to leave! The only things were that the heating was set for the week and the house was a tad cold, but with my hot water bottle and a nice cuppa I was fine; and a welcome guide could be handy as there wasn’t quite enough time to ask all my questions when I arrived and there were a few small things I was unsure of but didn’t want to contact Michelle and Thomas on their holiday more than I already had. However, all important questions were answered by Michelle over text which I really appreciated. Overall, an incredible stay and I would highly recommend to other housesitters. Thank you so much to the family for having. 🥰

Pet Sitting FAQs

From $29/week to $155/week for the cat sitting and from 29.9950 to 29.99150 for the dog, additional rates include from 50% to 100% per additional pet, cheap rates are 29.9940 for the cat sitting and 29.99 for the dog sitting. On Sittsy you can find a pet sitter who will not charge you anything for keeping your pets at home.

Yes, you can find a home pet sitter to stay in your house with your pet overnight and provide 24/7 care for your pets. You can include in your listing time the advisable timeframe that the pet sitter should adhere to and not leave your pet alone in the house. Usually, it's not to leave the pet alone for more than 4 hours.

The pet sitter for the cat should visit at least once a day. For the dogs, the pet sitter should visit at least three times per day, the best solution is if the sitter stays overnight and watches your pets all the time.

Look at the pet sitter with a high rating, and many previous bookings with good reviews, ask the sitter to make a meet and meet before confirming the booking online or in-person, and reach out to the pet owners where the sitter stayed before asking about reference.

Common red flags in pet sitters are bad reviews from previous pet owners, a high cancellation rate after approval, a sitter who doesn't have a background check, a sitter who refuses to meet and greet in person or online, and a sitter who wants to make bookings outside of the platform.

Yes, it is safe to hire a pet sitter it's still advisable to see if the sitter has a background check, good reviews, and past bookings and make a meet and greet before confirmation in this way you can reduce risk to the minimum.

Yes, pet sitters stay all day in your house and also they stay overnight, the sitter can leave your home for up to 4 hours or for a different time that you can discuss during the meet and greet.

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