Pet Sitter vs. Vet Boarding

[Nancy and Finley]

I have to travel for work, just moved to Tacoma WA and need to find a pet sitter.  There are several services available but I don't personally know anyone.  I prefer getting someone to stay in my home with my dogs or at least be with them several times a day, if not staying overnight.  Any suggestions in finding someone or if you think its safer to keep them at a vet that boards. 

Thanks for your thoughts!

Nancy

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

When we moved to Michigan, I was in the same predicament. I found an awesome pet sitter on DogVacay and I know she also advertises on Rover.com. I interviewed her in person and then tried her out for an overnight trip and now we use her for everything. She stays at our home.

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

I have a pet sitter (retired lady) who stays in our home 24/7 when we are out of town and cannot take Charlie & Beau with us. We have been very happy with this situation.  When we moved to Eastern Washington 9 years ago, I met several people that were using her when they vacationed and she came highly recommended.  We tried a weekend get away the first time, but since have taken various real trips without them.  Possibly the vet you will be using in Tacoma will be able to recommend someone. Good luck.

[Julie and Charlie]

Charlie and I have been through several boarding situations- summary: none of them are perfect. 

Originally, I used his daycare- the owners and staff understood dog behavior, had an overnight employee who stayed with the dogs, and Charlie arrived home happy, healthy, and tired after his visits. They changed ownership, started to be a little less reliable, and cut the overnight employee. Charlie also started coming home sick on a few occasions- vomiting, loose stools. He was so miserable, it required some very expensive vet visits for x-rays to see if he ate something he wasn't supposed to, Cerenia, and sub-q fluids. I never could figure out exactly what he ate, but I am thinking that they didn't do a very good job verifying that sick dogs weren't in the facility and keeping on eye on the ones that were there. 

Our vet offers boarding. Charlie appears happy to go there, and happy to come home. I've been using them since the incidents mentioned above- he gets plenty of outside play yard or walk time, time on their staff's sofa in the break room. I know that it's clean, and that they are paying attention to his health- if he needed medical attention, he would get it. They do not have an overnight employee, nor is it "free roaming"- he's in a kennel when he's not outside. 

I've also tried DogVacay (now Rover.com)- and couldn't find the right situation. We did a home visit in a home that was pretty dirty- Charlie, who has never marked in his life (neutered at an early age), decided to mark on her furniture and her female dog. Cross that one off the list! 

I would like to find a neighbor or someone close by with a small group of dogs who doesn't take multiple boarding dogs per week, I keep looking occasionally. I do have a pet sitter/dog walker for days when my work day is especially long- and she's fabulous. She will also do overnights in my home-- but that gets expensive very quickly. 

My friends consider themselves "cat people" or have very young children where adding Charlie to the mix just wouldn't work, so that's out. Most of my family is in another state, so they are off the list too. 

[Nancy and Georgia Brown]

I would check out rover.com and next door, an app that connects you to local resources.
I recently had to go that route when my normal friend/dog sitter was leaving for vacation at the same time when I had to fly out of town due to family emergency.
I visited a couple of them. The last one was a place recommended on the next door app.
It was perfect and probably cheaper than some of the high end boarding facilities. Georgia was sleeping on their bed and playing with the other dogs. I got text updates with pictures daily.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We have been lucky enough to have grown children who live nearby dogsit for us.  I will be interested to see the suggestions you get because there might come a time when our kids aren't available.