QueenScoopalot
10-12-2005, 08:11 PM
http://www.thewgalchannel.com/news/5028577/detail.html
:eek: :( :mad: What I can't figure out is why didn't they post this so called pet sitters name? :confused:
Woman Uses Hidden Camera To Check On Pet Sitter
Sitter Allegedly Not Putting In Time She Said
LANCASTER, Pa. -- Pet owners will do a lot to protect and provide for their pets, including hiring someone to take care of the animals when they can't.
But how can you make sure the pet sitter you're hiring is the right person for the job?
News 8 consumer reporter Brian Roche has the story of one pet owner who answered that question with a hidden camera.
Hunter and Winston are Weimaraners, a German hunting dog known to be friendly, fearless and obedient. They're also known to have high energy.
Nicky Stouch and her husband work long hours, so she hired a pet sitter to come to her house and take care of her dogs when needed.
"The guilt of leaving a dog in a crate for 10 hours ... It was a peace of mind for me once I hired one," Stouch said.
For three years, Stouch employed the same woman until she got into a conversation with someone about having a pet sitter.
"I actually said, 'Oh I have a great pet sitter.' He said, 'Who do you use?' I said her name and he said, 'That's who I just fired,'" Stouch said.
Within 48 hours of that conversation, Stouch had set up a hidden camera in her home to see if what she was told was true.
*VIDEO: See What The Camera Caught* (click news link above)
"So I wanted her to come between 10 and 11, whatever suited her best, and then one more time in the afternoon," Stouch said.
After running the hidden camera for just one day, Stouch discovered she may not be getting what she was paying for.
Instead of coming twice a day to walk and exercise her dogs for a half hour each time, the pet sitter appears only once on the tape.
"They were outside for about four minutes. That was their playtime, so they probably just went to the bathroom," Stouch said.
Even though the pet sitter is only seen once on the 12-hour tape, she left a card saying she was there at 10:45 a.m. and at 3 p.m. that day.
The next day, Stouch ran the camera again. This time she positioned a clock in the picture to display the time.
"And this visit is at 1:15 p.m. and again, she's supposed to come at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m."
Even though she appears on the tape only once, the pet setter once again left a note saying she was there twice.
On the third day, it was the same routine. One appearance on the tape and two times left on the pet sitter's card.
On the fourth day, the dogs are seen near the front door looking out the window and waiting.
"Look, he's laying by the door because it's 20 minutes to 2 p.m. He hasn't been out since 7 a.m."
On this day, the pet sitter's note claims she visited at 9:45 a.m. and 2 p.m., but she's seen only once on the tape.
According to Stouch, she had been using the same pet sitter for three years and feels guilty because she believes her dogs were not getting the attention she thought they should be getting.
Now she wants other pet owners to learn what's she learned about hiring a pet sitter.
Pet sitting is a fast growing cottage industry. Some pet sitters have hundreds of clients and several employees to help them.
But the industry is completely unregulated, leaving pet owners pretty much on their own.
Stouch said the pet sitter she hired only got the job because she was the first one to return a phone call.
"It was my own fault, that's why I blame myself for this. I didn't do anything a good consumer should do," Stouch said.
Pet Sitters International is a group that tries to self-regulate its industry and educates pet owners about hiring a sitter.
"You have an interview with the actual sitter you're considering. Make sure they're bonded and insured," said Tina Ovensen, of Pet Sitters International.
Pet Sitters International encourages pet owners to talk to their pets' veterinarian to find a qualified sitter and check out the group's Web site at www.petsit.com for other questions to ask.
The Stouch's have established an e-mail address at [email protected] for people to contact.
:eek: :( :mad: What I can't figure out is why didn't they post this so called pet sitters name? :confused:
Woman Uses Hidden Camera To Check On Pet Sitter
Sitter Allegedly Not Putting In Time She Said
LANCASTER, Pa. -- Pet owners will do a lot to protect and provide for their pets, including hiring someone to take care of the animals when they can't.
But how can you make sure the pet sitter you're hiring is the right person for the job?
News 8 consumer reporter Brian Roche has the story of one pet owner who answered that question with a hidden camera.
Hunter and Winston are Weimaraners, a German hunting dog known to be friendly, fearless and obedient. They're also known to have high energy.
Nicky Stouch and her husband work long hours, so she hired a pet sitter to come to her house and take care of her dogs when needed.
"The guilt of leaving a dog in a crate for 10 hours ... It was a peace of mind for me once I hired one," Stouch said.
For three years, Stouch employed the same woman until she got into a conversation with someone about having a pet sitter.
"I actually said, 'Oh I have a great pet sitter.' He said, 'Who do you use?' I said her name and he said, 'That's who I just fired,'" Stouch said.
Within 48 hours of that conversation, Stouch had set up a hidden camera in her home to see if what she was told was true.
*VIDEO: See What The Camera Caught* (click news link above)
"So I wanted her to come between 10 and 11, whatever suited her best, and then one more time in the afternoon," Stouch said.
After running the hidden camera for just one day, Stouch discovered she may not be getting what she was paying for.
Instead of coming twice a day to walk and exercise her dogs for a half hour each time, the pet sitter appears only once on the tape.
"They were outside for about four minutes. That was their playtime, so they probably just went to the bathroom," Stouch said.
Even though the pet sitter is only seen once on the 12-hour tape, she left a card saying she was there at 10:45 a.m. and at 3 p.m. that day.
The next day, Stouch ran the camera again. This time she positioned a clock in the picture to display the time.
"And this visit is at 1:15 p.m. and again, she's supposed to come at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m."
Even though she appears on the tape only once, the pet setter once again left a note saying she was there twice.
On the third day, it was the same routine. One appearance on the tape and two times left on the pet sitter's card.
On the fourth day, the dogs are seen near the front door looking out the window and waiting.
"Look, he's laying by the door because it's 20 minutes to 2 p.m. He hasn't been out since 7 a.m."
On this day, the pet sitter's note claims she visited at 9:45 a.m. and 2 p.m., but she's seen only once on the tape.
According to Stouch, she had been using the same pet sitter for three years and feels guilty because she believes her dogs were not getting the attention she thought they should be getting.
Now she wants other pet owners to learn what's she learned about hiring a pet sitter.
Pet sitting is a fast growing cottage industry. Some pet sitters have hundreds of clients and several employees to help them.
But the industry is completely unregulated, leaving pet owners pretty much on their own.
Stouch said the pet sitter she hired only got the job because she was the first one to return a phone call.
"It was my own fault, that's why I blame myself for this. I didn't do anything a good consumer should do," Stouch said.
Pet Sitters International is a group that tries to self-regulate its industry and educates pet owners about hiring a sitter.
"You have an interview with the actual sitter you're considering. Make sure they're bonded and insured," said Tina Ovensen, of Pet Sitters International.
Pet Sitters International encourages pet owners to talk to their pets' veterinarian to find a qualified sitter and check out the group's Web site at www.petsit.com for other questions to ask.
The Stouch's have established an e-mail address at [email protected] for people to contact.