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Pet Sitting News
Name: Break In at Pet Sitting Client's Home
by Linda from www.ajoyfulwalk.com
Recently, I was pet-sitting for a client who is out of state for six days. He is divorced and his 17-year old daughter was to stay with her mother. He had changed the locks prior to leaving so that she would not come over while he was gone.
The second morning, I did my routine visit with no problems. On occasion, my husband accompanies me to my pet sitting visits – it’s a good thing that he had come this night! When I arrived for my evening visit, I noticed that the front door lock opened unusually easy, not yet realizing that it was unlocked. When we entered the home, I then noted that the pantry door was open, the locked bedroom door had been pried open and the back door had been clearly broken through - the doorframe was laying on the floor! My husband checked the house for intruders and as I was checking on the dogs in the backyard. I immediately called the client and informed him of what had happened. He asked me if it looked like anything was missing - was he robbed? I told him that it looked like someone that knew the home because nothing appeared out of place or ransacked and the dogs were happy, calm, and all had fresh bones. (I give the dogs fresh ones at night, not in the afternoon.) However, the computer and monitor were gone. He believed it to be his daughter to have broken into the house being that nothing else was gone.
He gave my husband permission to nail the frame back onto the wall as best as possible so that we could secure the house and he would call the police and make a report. The police were steering the man to look at ME, the pet sitter, as being suspect! Fortunately, the man had contacted the girl’s mother and it was confirmed that she indeed had the computer, as well as over $2,000 in cash and credit cards stolen from the bedroom that was broken into.
Since this experience, I’ve spoken to several pet sitters and police officers for their input. While there were several things that we did that were right, there were quite a few things that we did very wrong and could have put both of us in danger and/or jeopardy. It is my hope is that others will benefit from my mistakes.
1. The moment that we noticed that the home had been broken into, we should have backed out and called the police. While we believed that no one was in the home, it was possible that an intruder was hiding and our own personal safety was at risk.
2. Contact the homeowner and have him call the police as well. Then as the pet sitter, I have double reports coming in to the police. Because I have the signed contact from the client allowing me into the home and the additional telephone call to the police would be coming in from him, my own probability as a suspect becomes less.
3. Once the home has been cleared from the police that there are no intruders – take pictures! I had a camera phone; I could have taken pictures of the damage to prove my findings.
4. Secure the animals and make arrangements with the homeowner regarding the home. This is probably the only thing that we did right. We made a verbal agreement on the phone as to what we would do with regards to the broken doors. The dogs were fine.
Finally, I’ve changed my Terms and Conditions portion of my contract to read exactly the process that I follow in the event of a break in. All of my current clients have now signed new contracts and I carry them with me to each visit.
It is so sad that we live in a time that trust is a rare gem. But what a great opportunity to serve our clients and give them the security that they so need when they are gone. My motto is:
Giving you and your pets peace of mind while you’re away
Linda Haecker
A Joyful Walk – Pet and Home Care Services
Murrieta, California
ajoyfulwalk.com
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