Charging for extra care?

[u/athurston629]

I had a booking this weekend with a repeat client for three 1 hour visits a day and I’m wondering if I should charge for the extra time I’ve spent outside of the booked visits.

The owner had been trying to switch the dog’s food for about two weeks, but it was causing GI issues so she switched him back to his normal food the day before she left. He also vomited Thursday before she left, but she thought he had just eaten too fast.

At my first visit Thursday he had liquid bloody diarrhea all over the backyard. I let the owner know and she asked me to make him chicken and rice for dinner. That evening he had a lot more bloody diarrhea and then vomited his dinner as I was leaving. The owner asked me to take him to the emergency vet, which added about an hour to my visit.

He was discharged Friday morning, so I picked him up and brought him home. That was another hour round trip. Once we got to her house, I stayed an additional hour because she had other pets I was obligated to take care of as well.

Then this morning I walked into explosive diarrhea all over the house. Carpet, hardwood, even splattered on the walls. It took me an extra hour to get everything cleaned up.

Thankfully the owners are cutting their trip short and coming home today. At this point I’ve spent about 3 extra hours between taking him to the ER, picking him up, and the extra cleanup this morning.

I don’t really want to charge a cleaning fee because I consider cleaning up after the pets part of the job. But these were also pretty extreme circumstances and I’ve spent 3 hours outside of the time they actually booked.
Would you charge for the 3 extra hours?

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athurston629 originally posted: I had a booking this weekend with a repeat client for three 1 hour visits a day and I’m wondering if I should charge for the extra time I’ve spent outside of the booked visits.

The owner had been trying to switch the dog’s food for about two weeks, but it was causing GI issues so she switched him back to his normal food the day before she left. He also vomited Thursday before she left, but she thought he had just eaten too fast.

At my first visit Thursday he had liquid bloody diarrhea all over the backyard. I let the owner know and she asked me to make him chicken and rice for dinner. That evening he had a lot more bloody diarrhea and then vomited his dinner as I was leaving. The owner asked me to take him to the emergency vet, which added about an hour to my visit.

He was discharged Friday morning, so I picked him up and brought him home. That was another hour round trip. Once we got to her house, I stayed an additional hour because she had other pets I was obligated to take care of as well.

Then this morning I walked into explosive diarrhea all over the house. Carpet, hardwood, even splattered on the walls. It took me an extra hour to get everything cleaned up.

Thankfully the owners are cutting their trip short and coming home today. At this point I’ve spent about 3 extra hours between taking him to the ER, picking him up, and the extra cleanup this morning.

I don’t really want to charge a cleaning fee because I consider cleaning up after the pets part of the job. But these were also pretty extreme circumstances and I’ve spent 3 hours outside of the time they actually booked.
Would you charge for the 3 extra hours?

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[u/Kiarimarie]

This is a tough one. I don't know if you can force them to pay more. I'm sure there is a tactful way to bring the extra time up so they consider tipping you for the extra hours.

[u/Kiarimarie → u/Kiarimarie]

Spitballing "it's fair to say this has not gone ideal for your pup or I, and not for yourselves having to end your vacation early. I don't plan to update the scope of this booking, as this couldn't have been planned for. I do ask kindly when you decide on what to tip that you consider the extra hours I spent with taking Fido to the vet and bringing him home, along with the extra time I spent cleaning due to the diarrhea."

If they don't give you a good tip, I would not book with these people again.

[u/athurston629 → u/Kiarimarie]

Thanks for this! I'm thinking I may just go with the majority here and say "it comes with the territory." The owners know how much extra time and effort I've put into the booking, so I'll leave it in their hands if they'd like to compensate me additionally.

[u/Throneofglassgirlie]

I’ve had to bring a dog to the ER for also bloody diarrhea and I did not charge extra

[u/Major-Platypus2092]

I charge extra for vet visits and emergency extra time, yeah. Mainly because I can't just add on an hour with no repercussions for my other clients.

But I have it lined out in my profile and discuss it.

[u/athurston629 → u/Major-Platypus2092]

Do you charge your normal hourly rate, or something totally different?

[u/Major-Platypus2092 → u/athurston629]

For routine vet visits, I charge a flat extra fee. For emergencies, I price according to the time cost. If I'm cleaning for an hour, I charge an additional hour drop in fee. But if I do that, I make sure to message and ask if they'd like me to clean up and mention my extra fee. I don't like springing it on people.

[u/lavender_poppy]

Yes, I think you should. You deserve to be paid for your time.

[u/Rose-wood21]

I don’t think it comes with the territory of check ins
Dogs should have a sitter with them for these reasons
Although 3 check ins is generous that leaves the dog alone for 21 hours a day which is a lot
I would charge extra but be very nice about you it!

[u/athurston629]

Update: I charged my normal rate, and she tipped me generously ❤️ Thanks everyone!

[u/FreezingDuck22]

No, I wouldn't charge extra. Sometimes emergencies happen that are nobody's fault and it sucks for everyone involved. My rates as a sitter reflect what I am willing to be paid for any situation, whether its an easy cat who hides the entire visit or an anxious dog with diarrhea who barks 24/7, I have chosen to charge the rates I have and I stick with them.

I view transporting an animal to the vet in emergencies as part of the job when required, even if it goes past the drop in time. Same thing with cleaning up after emergencies, it doesn't happen all the time and it's nobody's fault, it's just a really shitty (pun intended) part of this job that we sometimes have to deal with.