Last Minute Cat Sitter needed in LA

January 13, 2009 1:59 PM

Looking for a last minute pet-sitter in Los Angeles!

I'm going to be out of town this weekend and need someone to look after my cat, Nosy Parker. I've always relied on friends & housemates in the past, but this weekend is especially hectic and no one is available.

I've never hired a service before, so I'm looking for personal recommendations in the WeHo/WLA area.

Does anyone know of a good service? What do I need to look for? I have no idea what to check for in terms of credentials, background checks for the employees, etc. so I don't have to stress about handing my house key to a perfect stranger. Most of all, how do I know they'll show up and spoil my already-spoiled cat rotten?

Google is less than informative (Company X is awesome!/No, they suck!) so I turn to you, AskMe.

Advice?

PS. Nosy is much happier at home, so I'm not looking for kennel referrals right now.

posted by Space Kitty to Pets & Animals (8 answers total)

Sittercity has petsitters now. :) It isn't a service per se -- you'll be choosing, talking to, and hiring the sitter of your choice -- but there are lots of candidates to choose from, and reviews, feedback, background checks, etc. are all available on the site to make the process easier.

I found a puppy-sitter this way a little while ago and she was fabulous.
posted by picopebbles at 2:47 PM on January 13, 2009 [1 favorite]

The best, EVER:

http://parkerpetsit.com
[phone]
[e-mail]
posted by bondgirl53001 at 3:00 PM on January 13, 2009 [2 favorites]

A good sitter will have insurance and will either be bonded or have additional insurance coverage for your personal property. Look for someone who knows CPR and first aid. Don't be afraid to ask for (and check) references. Most services will leave notes after each visit that summarize what they did and how your pet was; you can also ask the sitter to check in with you via phone/text/email if you are feeling really nervous -- a good sitter will be happy to do this if it gives you peace of mind.

As a general rule, I would want to hire a full-time, professional pet sitter rather than someone who does it here and there because they are really into pets and want some extra pocket change. A lot of people are okay with using non-professionals, but if it were me, I would want a pro -- they have more experience and know how to handle different types of situations and emergencies, they will have better availability and generally be more responsible and reliable. Obviously, picopebbles had a good experience with someone from Sittercity, but it seems that most of the people on there are not professional pet sitters and I would ask a lot of questions (Are you insured? Have you ever had to deal with a very sick pet or another type of emergency situation? Do you have reliable transportation? etc.) before I was comfortable with a lot of the people I see on that site. Just MHO.
posted by kitty teeth at 3:52 PM on January 13, 2009

Best answer: Uh, is there something really peculiar about the cat? Otherwise, give Amy and me a call. Jeez.
posted by klangklangston at 5:21 PM on January 13, 2009

Response by poster: Heh. I didn't know you guys would travel this far east. :)
posted by Space Kitty at 8:18 PM on January 13, 2009

Response by poster: Thanks, everybody! For future reference -

- Sittercity had a ton of sitters listed, but only one person within 10 miles of my house was reviewed. Maybe after they've been around awhile longer, they'll have more feedback available. I'll hold off until then.

- Parker Pet Sit looks great - I'm totally keeping them on file, their qualifications look great!

- kitty teeth; lots of good info there, thank you!

- klang, the gin is in the fridge.


I love AskMe.
posted by Space Kitty at 9:35 AM on January 14, 2009

Can I call dibs on next time?
posted by speicus at 11:45 AM on January 15, 2009

Best answer: speicus, keep it secret, but there's a cat-petting party at Space Kitty's house this weekend. There's gin! And a cat!
posted by holyrood at 12:17 PM on January 15, 2009