What kinds of expertise do you?

Question

look for in a horse/barn/home sitter....someone to take care of your place while you're on vacation?

Answer 1

dependable is the most important.

I can live with the wrong amount of hay flakes for a few days...but they MUST get something every single day.  The water HAS to be checked every day if the horses are in certain pastures.  I usually leave the horses in the pasture with the year round creek though...if I'm going to be gone.

Also will follow MY feeding directions.  Not what THEY think is best.  Actually...I will move my horses to only hay if I don't get the housesitter I prefer.  If I get the one I want...I only have to write down what I want...and she follows it.

Trustworthy...I want to be able to leave feed, tack,guns,  money...ANYTHING without worrying about whether it will be there when I return.

Knowledgeable...knows signs of sickness from infection to founder.  Covering horses, dogs, and cats...which I own.  One who KNOWS how to care for the animal until a vet can arrive or the animal can be transported.  Knowledge would also cover doing something that I didn't specify...but needed to be done.  Like....automatically checking for mold in hay, and NOT feeding it!

Kindness is a factor too.  I don't want someone treating my animals like c**p.  If the person has a bad attitude in general...I don't want them around my animals.  My animals don't deserve to be yelled at or pushed aside when they only want to be acknowledged.

I have a WONDERFUL friend who is all these things.  I can call her up with no notice to take care of things if needed.  I do the same for her.  One more bonus...she is the only 'stranger' that my large dogs will let on the property when we are not here.  That alone...tells me all I need to know about her character.

Answer 2

I want someone responsible & honest.  Someone I know will not invite others into our home who will steal everything not nailed down.  Someone who will not tear the house up having parties, etc.  

I want someone who knows our animals & whom our animals know.  I prefer someone with experience with horses & dogs, because I want them able to spot problems & know whether they are vet worthy or not.  I want a person who is not afraid to handle the horses incase there is a need to bring them in from pasture or take them out to pasture, hold them for  vet care or shoer appointments, etc.  Someone smart enough to read & follow feeding & care instructions & someone smart enough to know NOT to try & ride our horses.

We have been very lucky in all of these aspects so far.  I have never once balked at asking our friends to look after our animals, our home & even our boys when needed.

Answer 3

Look for someone who you know. I sit horses for the place I board when they go away because I am always out there riding and petting the other horses so they know me, plus I help out for price cuts on boarding, so I know how to run the place. A neighbor with horses would also work if you trust them.

Answer 4

You must be psychic!  I just had a friend who had this problem this weekend!

She left her 19 yr old son home while she and her hubby went to Vegas for their anniversary.  While her son went out partying, somebody came in and stole all their computers and his gameboy (We think it was one of his friends, because they left other valuables alone along with their tack, etc.).

It looks like next time, I'm staying over there at night on their NEXT vacation!

BTW, glad to see ya back, Soverign7!

Answer 5

Trustworthiness, reliability, and the ability to follow instructions. I am always willing to take plenty of time equipping an inexperienced horse sitter with all the hands-on instruction they will need to do the job. The horse sitter we like to use was totally inexperienced when we found her and she started doing it just to earn some part-time cash during summer break about 12 years ago when she was still in high school and since then she has turned it into full-time self-employment and is making a career of it now with her younger sister. She has accumulated a lot of regular clients since she first started sitting our horses and getting away now very often requires us to plan our schedule around her schedule. But trustworthiness, reliability, and the ability to follow instructions are the primary qualities we look for in a sitter and I don't mind taking all the time necessary to equip an inexperienced horse sitter with the hands-on instruction they need to do the job if their character references confirm they are trustworthy, reliable, and can follow instructions without having them constantly repeated.

Answer 6

Lots of references.  Check them out.  

And ask him/her a lot of questions  pertinent to horse care.

Answer 7

That's difficult. It would have to be someone who knew them and knew what they were doing.

A couple of years ago my friends house sat while we went away. These are the type of friends who have their own key and will wake you up with coffee in the morning. They know the contents of the fridge and where everything goes. They know all the animals and one of them rides with me and helps with the horses regularly so I'd say they were adequately experienced and prepared for the job

We left them with 13 cats, 2 dogs, 4 horses, fish, lizards and a magpie.

When we got back - 1 dog had a separation anxiety episode and had chewed his entire butt raw, a cat from up the road had moved in, my 3 placid and friendly horses had cornered the loan mare and bit and kicked her pretty much all over, the yard was flooded and there was a burst pipe in the washroom.

We dealt with it and it's now something of a running joke. But I'd never let anyone else housesit who I didn't think would be able to deal with that sort of catalogue of disasters.

Answer 8

honesty!!! thats the big one.

trustworthyness, knowledge, good horsemanship.

Answer 9

I look for someone who is dependable and knows the animals inside and out.  Someone who has refrences, and you know you can trust to look after your animals everyday.

Answer 10

Someone who has recommended him/her, and can provide references and has had experience. I would not trust just anyone to care for any animal I had to leave for a while. I learned that the hard way. Several years ago I left my dog with a neighbor to take care of so I could go out of town for two days. When I got home, my dog was gone, and I never saw her again.

Answer 11

I use my ex-neighbor, who also happens to have a pet sitting business and owns horses.  With her business she is "bonded and insured" which, if I was picking someone new, would show that they're serious about being professional pet sitters, and are willing to put in the extra effort needed to appear honest, trustworthy, experienced, etc.

Even though she owns horses, I usually just leave the horses out 24/7 and ask her to check their water and give them hay if necessary, and also make sure none of them are injured or ill.  It just makes things simpler, and she  doesn't charge me more than she would for just the two dogs.

Answer 12

1- you have to be able to trust the person you hire, not to return to an empty barn and the person you hired has skipped also.

2-someone that knows what they are doing around horses, and wont get hurt...a lot of people will say oh yes and give you references you cannot check out, and put on a good act, then bam, someone is injured bad, and you are liable for the workers bills.....can cost you a bundle if you dont get the right person.

3-make sure you can always speak directly with their previous employer, even if it means driving to their previous barn.....that is what I did, and I have had the same 5 barn men for over 7 yrs now, and they knew what they were doing, one can even break horses and the gentle way, with hands on, not riding or beating them to death.../

4- Josh, my barn manager comes from Lexington, KY, he has trained Thorough Breds, Quarter Horses, show horses, western and english, and jumpers...he is an all around horse man, and spot a horse getting sick before a vet can take the tests....he is great

It is all about the trust, and knowing that the person you hire is who they say they are and what they can do.

I made them all prove their abilities to ride and care for horses under Josh's watchful eye.........

It may be a trip to visit the old employer, but why take a chance they give you a phone number of a friend or relative to lie for them, not this chick..I am very rigid about my horses and dogs......

trust, caring, be able to do what they say they can do, this is what is important and nothing else, your horse or dogs life depends on it...right, or am I right.

and if you are looking for a home sitter, or dog or horse sitter, same thing, meet the references in person, and make sure that person has horses or dogs, that the person took care that you are thinking about hiring, and then ask them if they are bondable, if not, walk away.

any reliable person and knows what they are doing, are safe and bonable, you are covered by anythinjg they do by the law.

and this will ensure they are trustworthy, because bonding companies will also check out their work records,  background checks, and employer references..all my guys are bonded....and they did not mind one bit that we wanted it that way...

good luck

Answer 13

You want someone who is dependable and will show up consistently.  You want someone who will follow your instructions and not do what they think is best.  You want someone who is knowledgeable about horses and knows how to recognize a problem and is able to treat a minor injury.  Watch them with your horses, how do they relate to them, ask them to halter and handle your horse and watch how your horse reacts to this person.  Also, I would ask for lots of references.