Frequently Asked Questions
Why Should I Hire A Pet sitter?
Using a professional pet sitter reaps benefits for both pets and their owners. Once you experience professional pet care in your home, you’ll never worry about being away from your pets again.
For the Pets the Benefits include:
- Being surrounded by familiar sights, smells and sounds
- Following his/her regular diet and exercise routine
- Having play time
- Receiving love and personal attention
- Maintaining medical treatment when necessary
- Having someone responsible in case of an emergency
- Eliminating the trauma of travel or an unfamiliar environment
- Ensuring good health (no exposure to other animals’ illness or parasites)
For the Owners the Benefits include:
- Knowing that your pet is in caring, loving hands
- Having the confidence that the pet sitter can deal with other issues – such as grooming, vet visits
- Eliminating the trauma of having to transport and leave your pet
- Not having to impose on family, friends or neighbors
- Feeling your home is more secure (with someone going in and out several times a day)
What makes you unique from other pet care providers?
Creature Comforts constantly strives to provide the best pet sitting possible so that you and your pet truly have the peace of mind you deserve when you are away. We guarantee reliable, quality, trustworthy service. We make every effort to make pet sitting as affordable as possible. We do not charge extra to administer meds. We allow cancellations in most circumstances up to 24 hrs. prior to service with no penalty. We also offer a great deal of flexibility in regard to scheduling and services. We are one of the few services in the area that will make late night visits to your dogs so they don’t have to wait 12 hrs. or more overnight. Rather than limit service to a few time frames throughout the day, we make every effort to get to your house whenever you need us, as often as you need us. We offer extended visits and park adventures for those dogs that need more than the typical half hour visit. Creature Comforts ensures that its sitters are dependable, trustworthy, qualified animal lovers.
How do I get started with your service?
The first thing we need to do is schedule a complimentary in home consultation. This enables us to get to know you and your pet. We will gather all the information we need about your pet and your home. If you decide to move forward with CCPS, we will determine the types of services and corresponding rates that will best suit your needs. We will ask you to sign a service agreement and provide us with 2 copies of your house key at this time to avoid the key pick-up fee at a later date.
How much notice do you need to care for my pets?
Obviously, the more notice the better. As soon as you schedule something that will require you to enlist our help, you should schedule service right away. Even if it’s tentative, as long as you cancel with at least 24 hrs notice, there will not be a penalty. We understand that last minute things come up, and we always do our best to accommodate you at those times. But there is never a guarantee of availability for last minute requests. There is also an additional fee for visits scheduled with less than 12 hrs. Notice but a small price to pay for knowing we are there for you in a pinch! We do book up several weeks in advance at this point for our busiest times, which are any times that involve a school break.
How do I schedule services?
Once you have signed on with us, you will get logged in to our secure client portal with your own username and password. From there, you will schedule all services through our online system, Pet Sitter Plus. Management will then approve and schedule your request and you will receive an online confirmation. This is the ONLY way visits should be scheduled as it ensures nothing gets missed. Services may NOT be scheduled through your sitter.
How long are the visits?
Each basic visit is 30 minutes. We will only leave earlier if requested. A possible reason might be if your cat gets more stressed the longer a stranger is in the house. In severe weather, we will still stay the ½ hr but the outdoor time will be shortened and the remainder of the time will be spent indoors. We can also do extended visits. Refer to our rates for details.
Do you offer discounts for daily services?
Yes, we do! Sign on for our 1/2hr, 45min, 1hr, or 1hr Park Adventures consistently at least twice per week with very rare cancellations and receive a $2 per visit discount!
What times will you come to my home?
That is really up to you depending on what is best for you and your pet’s routine. Our hours of operation are 7am-10pm 365 days per year. We will ask for a 1-2 hour window when scheduling visits. We will give preference on narrow time frames for puppies, geriatrics, and those needing medication at specified times.
Can you give medications?
We can administer oral, topical, and injectable medications (insulin for diabetics) , as well as subcutaneous fluids.
Do you charge extra to administer medications?
No, we do not! It is included in the rate for the visit.
How is payment handled?
Preferred payment is by credit card in our online system but we will also accept checks. Payment is to be received at the beginning of service. If you are a daily dog walking client, you will be sign up for auto-pay so that your credit card may be charged at the beginning of each month.
How are keys handled?
When you begin service with us, we require that you give us two copies of your house key. One will be kept in the office for emergency use. The other will be with your primary sitter then kept in the office when not in use. We recommend that you allow us to keep both keys to facilitate future service. We will return keys to you and pick them up at later dates but there is a fee of $10 each time. We will not leave keys in your home on the last visit, thereby locking ourselves out, in the event you are delayed in returning home.
What do you do in case of an emergency such as sick pet sitter or severely inclement weather?
In the event of a sick pet sitter we will have another sitter or myself cover on a back up basis. In the event of severely inclement weather we may try to contact a neighbor you’ve listed as an emergency contact. If we are unable to reach someone, we will make it to your house. Your pet may have to wait a bit longer than usual if it’s too much of a risk at the time the visit is scheduled to be out on the roads.
Do you have references?
Yes. We are happy to provide references upon request. Please also view testimonials on our website, Yelp page, and Google page. They speak for themselves!
Can I receive updates on my pets while I’m away?
Yes, we understand how important it is for you to know your pets are doing well. Sitters submit a daily feedback report for clients out of town, through your client portal, that you will receive by email.
Can I use a friend or neighbor in combination with your service when I am away?
We prefer to not share responsibilities with anyone else. This is for your pet’s and your home’s safety. We are insured and bonded and cannot be held responsible for the acts of others while they are in your home if a problem arises. Our insurance protects you should there be an incident of negligence that involves your pet or property but may be null and void if there is a question of who is at fault. Common problems of job sharing include miscommunication regarding feedings, medications, locking doors, keys, etc. If you plan to have someone else in your home, please discuss this with us at the time of booking. We will need that person’s contact info and there should be communication set up throughout. **Please note: there may not be anyone else in the home during our full house sit services or overnights out of respect for our sitters’ privacy while staying in your home.
What precautions do you take to ensure the security of my home and how do I know I can trust you?
We are bonded and insured for your protection. All of our sitters are covered on the policy. Our sitters are screened prior to hire. Your personal information will always be kept confidential. Your keys do not have your name or address on them. We lock your home every time we leave. We frequently work with alarm systems. Our sitters are familiar with most systems and can keep your house alarm engaged. We can provide crime-deterring measures such as rotating lights and raising and lowering blinds.
Will you use my collar and leash?
Yes, we use what you have with the following stipulations. Standard collars must fit securely and should not be able to slip over the dog’s head. We will not use a retractable leash and will ask you to provide a non-retractable if this isn’t what you normally use. For dogs that pull, we will ask you to provide an Easy Walk harness. If you are in the habit of using a prong collar or choker collar for this purpose, you will be asked to replace it with a harness. It is generally much more effective and will not cause damage to your dog’s throat over the long term.
Will you be consistent with training routines we have in place and how do you discipline my pet?
Consistency is key with training. We are happy to adhere to any training methods but will not engage in any that we consider cruel or harsh. We believe in positive training methods only. We will never exert physical discipline, will not yank on the leash, or yell at your pet. If there are behavioral issues, we will discuss it and come up with a plan together.
How do you handle an emergency illness or injury with my pet?
If we suspect there is something wrong with your pet, we will immediately try contacting you to go over it and put a plan in place. If we cannot reach you, we are authorized through our service agreement to use our own judgment in regards to seeking medical care. We will also make the call whether it is something your regular vet can handle or whether we need to head directly to an emergency hospital. The client will then be billed for any and all costs associated with this care.