Hey everyone, I'm at a bit of a loss and could really use some unbiased advice. I've been working as a dog sitter since 2018, and up until now, I've never had any issues with clients. But this last one has been really difficult, and I’m not sure what to do.

The Situation: I had a client reach out very last minute, asking me to sit their dogs the next day. I didn’t receive confirmation of the booking until midnight, and I had to go to their place later that day.

A few key issues came up during the sitting:

Wrong Address: The address listed on their profile was incorrect. When prompted for it they initially gave me the location of a nearby park instead of their actual home.

Sparse Instructions: The only info I got about the dogs was basic—feeding routines, potty breaks, and that they sometimes eat each other’s food.

Late Responses: On the day of the booking, I still didn’t have their real address or instructions on how to get into the house. I spent hours trying to contact them and even opened a support ticket before they finally responded.

Unlabeled Supplies: They mentioned they would label the feeding cups, but nothing was labeled. I had to figure everything out myself.

More Problems:

Delayed Responses: Every question I asked was answered late. Given the last-minute nature, I tried to be patient, thinking they might be on vacation. But it got to the point where I had to search the house for everything, from kennels to food bowls, while waiting for replies.

Unmentioned Dog Behaviors: They didn’t inform me of any behavioral issues, so I assumed there weren’t any. Turns out, two of the dogs had sharp nails and would jump a lot (no big deal), but one of them was very aggressive toward other animals. This dog was large, and while I’m used to handling big dogs, I wasn’t prepared for that level of aggression.

Schedule Miscommunication: I told them upfront I couldn’t work the weekend because I had to go out of town. I mistakenly booked for Saturday anyway. I contacted them as soon as I noticed and said I could come by early (6 a.m.) to take care of the dogs before I left. They agreed, and I refunded them for the second check-in that day.

Previous Sitter Issues: They mentioned their previous sitter had canceled last minute. However, they didn’t provide any detailed instructions, which I found odd given they had been planning to have a sitter.

The Incident: On the third or fourth day of sitting, one of the dogs got out of her kennel, despite me double- and triple-checking that it was secure. When I arrived, she had chewed up part of the door. I called the owners to let them know, and that her collar was missing. They linked me to the Apple Tag on her collar, which was somehow in the neighbor's yard. I spent 30-40 minutes frantically searching for it, eventually finding it in a really odd spot inside the house.

After that, I started taking videos to show how I was securing the kennel—moving it against the wall and bed so it couldn’t be opened without significant effort. Everything seemed fine until Monday night, when I got a message at 11 p.m. saying the dog had gotten out again and completely ruined the door. The issue apparently happened on Saturday when another sitter was there, but I didn’t hear about it until almost three days later.

They also didn’t say anything about the original incident and acted like everything was fine, continuing to talk to me as normal. Instead of addressing the issue immediately or trying to figure out what to do about the door while I was still sitting, they waited. The last day I was there, they asked me to label the cup that they hadn’t initially, which I did, no problem, even though I felt like it was a little unorganized of them.

What I’ve Done: In my report, I told them I won’t be issuing a refund—not even partially. It’s not about greed (this is my livelihood), but I genuinely feel that I shouldn’t be held responsible given everything that’s happened. However, I’m open to helping them replace the door once they respond.

My Question: Is it wrong of me to refuse the refund? I’ve done everything I could to provide care for their dogs, and I feel like a full refund is unjustified. Any advice would be appreciated.

Oh, boy, oh, boy. What a shit show.

If you have a contract about your services (I hope you do), I would say that they were in breach of the contract and that a full refund would be absolutely impossible due to the nature and sheer lack of information given in a timely fashion, down to before saying that I'd be taking screen-captures of the texts, etc, in case they took the low route and went "I never said that!"

And just because I'm vicious when it comes to furbabies and their care, I'd ask them straight up what they would have done if some kind of emergency had come up and I couldn't have gotten a hold of them in due time to inform them of said emergency. Besides clearly take the furbaby to the nearest vet/emergency vet possible beforehand but that also hinges on allergies, their behavior at the vets, etc, things that should be told about prior and could save lives (i.e. egg allergy, don't give furbaby eggs.)

You're not in the wrong. How people can be that entitled and that selfish with pets is beyond me to comprehend.

Oh boy I'd be firing them as clients myself. I do dog/house sitting as a side gig,just a friends of friends thing. And if any of my people did what you described to me I'd fire them as clients. First glaring issue: if they had someone they worked with prior how was there no notes for them that you can use? My primary client uses more than me if they have extended trips from home and the notes are explicitly written for all of us to follow, even though I've sat their dog and house enough to know the routine, sometimes stuff changes.
Two you're new to these dogs, did they not have you meet them to know the dogs would get along with you? Even for a bit before they left same day? Three do NOT replace that door. They failed to tell you about that behavior of escape so it's on them for lack of information and instructions. And they had others coming in it sounds like so they absolutely can not pin it on you. You even took pics of your due diligence after the first incident.

Me personally the lack of instructions, short notice of needing services and no alert of behavior I'd fire them. I agree refund where you overbooked but beyond that no thanks. I'd also try to find out why the prior sitter bailed, it's possible therea good reason why that's not an emergency/ schedule conflict.

Not in the wrong. You did so many things above and beyond standard work for a client to accommodate their lack of organization, appropriate communication, etc. The outcome of all of this isn't on you.

It sounds like you did what you were supposed to. I've learned over time if a dog really wants out, they'll find a way.