Proper Payment for a Petsitter?

September 15, 2024 10:58 PM

Going on a trip for 10 days. We have found some people in the neighborhood willing to visit our rats to feed them, change water daily. No need to take them out of the cage. What would be the going rate for this? What if we also need them to put a dose of medicine in a spoon of baby food and hand feed one?
posted by Sophont to Pets & Animals (7 answers total)

Depends to some degree on where you are. For feeding-only and no playing or other care of our cats (who hide elsewhere while the sitter visits) in the PHX suburbs, we pay ~$25/ day. Bringing in the mail, taking out trash, and watering plants are included. Playtime is extra. Meds are extra ($5/ day/ cat I think). You may be able to search for services in your area to get a better idea. Such services are typically bonded and insured and 1099’d though, so will cost more than paying the neighbor kid under the table.
posted by Tandem Affinity at 11:18 PM on September 15 [1 favorite]

Here people who pet sit formally were asking $20-$25 per visit so I ended up paying a neighborhood preteen $10 a day (2 visits a day) instead. No medicine or special accommodation though.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 11:18 PM on September 15 [2 favorites]

(Our service charges similar rates for cats and smaller animals, so your rats would be same price)
posted by Tandem Affinity at 11:19 PM on September 15 [2 favorites]

$25 a day is what my dog sitter said she would charge for this (major midwestern US city).
posted by I_Love_Bananas at 4:21 AM on September 16 [1 favorite]

The best thing to do is ask whomever you found what their rate is.
posted by jmsta at 6:47 AM on September 16 [1 favorite]

I think it depends on the neighbors. We do this for neighbors, we're uncomfortable if someone offers to pay, but we'll happily accept tit-for-tat, or produce from the garden or trees when they fruit, or other neighborliness. We've paid the neighbor kid for cat sitting, but we like the casually offering help mode of neighborhood.
posted by straw at 10:52 AM on September 16 [1 favorite]

I would probably pay a neighbor kid around $10/day and pay an adult more like $20-25 per visit.
posted by maleficent at 4:16 PM on September 16 [1 favorite]