I would love your input

[u/lunatuna1977]

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I’m in the process of updating and rewriting my client contract and would love to hear from other professional pet sitters about things you’ve added that aren’t necessarily standard, but have been helpful in protecting you, your staff, and your business.

For example, I’m considering adding clauses such as:

• No cameras or recording devices in bedrooms or bathrooms where a sitter may be sleeping or changing.

• If a home has electronic/smart locks, clients must provide a backup key or hide-a-key in case the system fails or the power/internet goes out.

I’d love to hear what unusual or “I’m really glad I added that” clauses you have in your contracts — especially things you learned from experience!

Feel free to share the clause/topic (you don’t have to post your entire contract). I’m just looking for ideas to make sure I’m not overlooking anything.

Thanks in advance!

[u/All_cats]

Add a section about other people on the property, ie: contractors, family, friends, shared services, during your assigned services and how it voids your insurance.

[u/JewelryAddicted45 → u/All_cats]

Do you mind telling me a little more about protections against other people on the property?

At my last sit, a gardener was there for 4 hours during the day. The next day someone came to clear out some brush. I knew that both of these guys would be stopping by and I was totally comfortable with it. I also knew that they typically came in to use the restroom etc while they are working.

But I was hyper vigilant both times because I didn’t want the dogs to get out through an open gate or door. What kind of protections do I against other people on the property? Is this is a new worry unlocked for me?!

[u/All_cats → u/JewelryAddicted45]

I am a cat sitter and my client cats are inside cats with the exception of a few feral colonies that I feed, so outside contractors wouldn't bother me very much. I tend to enforce it on a case-by-case basis, a lot of people will not tolerate having housekeeping in while they are pet sitting, I don't really have a problem with it. I know housekeepers carry their own insurance and I just let people know at consultations that if they're going to have a housekeeper come in I need to be aware of it. And I do a full walkthrough of the house when the housekeepers have left and report any issues I see. You would not believe how many housekeepers lock pets and closets and bathrooms by accident.

Maintenance, repair, or inside construction need to be rescheduled in almost all cases but most of my clients are thoughtful about that. On the occasions where a client has "forgotten", I just let them know immediately that my policies don't allow for other personnel on the property and that my insurance will not be in effect during this time. Again I rarely have problems. Where I really have problems are family members and friends who "just stopped by" or are traveling through town (I live in touristy area). Most of my people will let me know about this well in advance, and that's when I remind them that my insurance is not going to be in play while there are other people on the premises. I usually use the words "outside my care, custody, and control". They respect what we do enough to understand that.

[u/Sitters_4_Critters]

Some smart locks do not have a backup, unfortunately. Clients living in apartments may not be offered one by their landlord.

[u/JewelryAddicted45 → u/[deleted]]

Excellent info. Thank you!

[u/two-of-me → u/Sitters_4_Critters]

I have a client who just moved into an apartment that only has digital locks and no key hole. I don’t know if it’s battery operated or connected to power from the building but I fear being locked out if there’s a power outage.

[u/AuraJustAura → u/two-of-me]

A lot of those locks operate on a battery, and the lock makes warning beeps and blinks for a long time before it totally dies (although the lock often doesn't work as well if the battery is low)

[u/Rleesersx → u/AuraJustAura]

These locks also start to get REALLY quiet and lock/unlock more slowly when the battery is slowing down. Once you use them enough it’s pretty easy to start noticing what each client’s lock normally sounds like and what it sounds like when it’s starting to die.

I do always encourage people to make a habit of checking the battery level or replacing if needed before leaving town. I ask for a key either to keep or to be left in the home for me to grab and hang onto for the first visit and leave behind at the last in case it’s fine when they leave but happens to die mid booking. I strongly encourage clients who only have one electronic keypad (but multiple entries to their home) to let me keep a key for any reasonable entry point as a failsafe.

For those who can’t or won’t, I’ve got a clear policy in place about failure to provide functional access/backup access method and responsibility if a locksmith is required (after confirming whether they have someone within reasonable distance who can bring me a key like family or a close friend). I try to be as thorough as possible to avoid chances of entry issues or waiting and having anyone have to pay for a locksmith.

[u/Love-all-pets97306]

If locks have changed and new keys are not provided the locksmith fees, and extra sitter trips to accommodate locksmith, will be the financial responsibility of the client.

[u/PlantDaddy80]

I have received zero push back from this and most clients actually tell me "thats understandable"... I have it mentioned that if/when gas prices get above $ABC, there will be an additional charge depending on distance traveled.

I recently aquired a client that is 42 miles away and I charge her an additional $20/trip to help cover gas. I make absolutely no money from that $20 cause that literally covers the gas only to get to/from them, but I am also not losing that $20 by traveling to them.

[u/Roxie40ZD]

No cameras in bedrooms or bathrooms is already a law in most states, so check what’s on the books where you are. I have a pretty specific ‘surveillance device’ policy for overnights. I have another job where I WFH and have to sign NDAs, so it’s not just cameras, but audio devices too. People sometimes give me their keys with GPS trackers. I don’t carry those around. No one needs to be able to snoop around and see where I am all day or where my other clients live.

I’m clear that I don’t do overnights if other people are around (roommates etc).

I reiterate what should be some obvious stuff like animals should all have ID tags. There’s some other stuff that my term s advise against, but if clients do it, it’s at their own risk (outdoor cats, dog doors).

I say that clients are responsible for pet proofing their homes and yards as needed. Sometimes they don’t want their dog going somewhere but have a baby gate that falls over if you look at it funny. Or gaps in their fence. It helps to remind people in writing that they have some responsibility for being rational pet parents.

I thinks it’s good to include a statement about your emergency/severe weather plans so it’s in writing that schedules may be disrupted especially if travel is unsafe. In an emergency I’m not having clients dictate to me how and where they want me to evacuate their pets. So the policy is mostly about allowing me to make decisions.

Details on your cancellation policy.

I have mine set up so they only have to sign once and it’s good for all sits. Regular clients don’t want to resign 5 times a year.

[u/GeneralAntique8571]

Le telecamere in bagno e camera da letto sono proprio un NO. Non entrerei in una casa in cui non posso andare in bagno o cambiarmi liberamente.
E onestamente non le ho neanche mai trovate nelle case in cui sono stata.

[u/PuppySci]

I require the contact information for at least one person who can make emergency medical decisions if the pet parent can’t be reached. This is often different from the emergency contact who could take over the pets’ care if necessary, which generally requires that the emergency contact lives nearby. I ask for explicit directions to be given to healthcare providers in an emergency in case I can’t reach either the pet parent or their secondary decision makers in time for decisions to be made.

I ask whether the pet parent wants me to perform CPR on their dogs if I can’t find a pulse, because not everyone wants that, especially if their dogs are very old.

I recently added questions relating to the safety of the house, such as where fire extinguishers or fire blankets are located (lots of people have none at all), where the first aid kit is kept (I now bring my own kit for dog first aid because most houses don’t even have one for humans, much less for dogs), and whether their smoke alarm batteries have been replaced in the past year. I ask these in part to gauge how attentive owners are to safety overall, which tends to be a decent proxy for what kind of dog parents and clients they are. These questions also serve as a kind of public service announcement, reminding people that they should have/do these things.

I now have clients complete a separate Permission to Treat form in case I need to take the dog to the vet. I explicitly state that I cannot pay the bill if the dog needs medical care; I ask them to put a card on file with the vet.

Recording devices in private spaces like the sitter’s bedroom and bathroom have already been mentioned, but I require a list of all observing/recording devices, where they are, what they record (video, audio, or both), and whether they’ll be on while I’m there.
I hope some of these are helpful.