How to find farm sitters near me

As a friend to all farm animals and farmers, we want to make sure you find the right pet sitter every time, even for our outdoor domestic animal friends. Whether your family is furry or feathers, hooved or hairy (pigs are hairy, right?), we’re here to help you source a trustworthy person with a genuine love for farm animals.

So, how do you go about finding this amazing farm sitter? Are there any near you and, if so, how do you go about connecting with them? We have you covered! Here’s how to avoid barn dancing around farm animal care and harvest the best farm sitters near you.

What are farm sitters?

There’s no such thing as a silly question, pet people! Let’s lay down the lowdown on what a farm sitter is and what should be expected of them.

Firstly, they can also double as house sitters. In-house pet sitting means they’ll stay on-site, in your home, to care for your animals. This offers added protection for your home, as well as full-time farm animal care.

Alongside daily feeding and cleaning, farm sitters can also patrol your land, look for any damages in your fencing, and complete additional chores such as minor DIY jobs. A good farm sitter will know this is a demanding role, but always be as frank as possible about what’s expected.

So, how do you go about finding a farm sitter near you?

How to find a farm sitter near me?

TrustedHousesitters

Who? Oh, only the best pet sitting solution for pet parents around the world. All of our trusted, verified sitters come with a detailed profile of their experience with references to back them up. This means you can actively search for trustworthy people who have farm sitting knowledge or are experienced farm sitters.

In fact, you can find sitters who are particularly good with cows and chickens, people who love pigs, as well as those who understand farm dogs and cats. We’re quite an eclectic pet-loving community!

Speaking of communities…

Local farming communities

Farming communities are amazing spaces that mostly rely on word-of-mouth. They keep farmers across acres of land connected and act as a safety net should anything happen. So, where better to find a farm sitter already considered a trustworthy person by the community?

Nearby towns and villages can often host a communal notice board to advertise potential farm sitters in the area. In a rural area where WiFi can be dodgy, sometimes the old-fashioned way is the best way. Ask around, and chat with other farmers you’re familiar with.

Hire a professional farm sitting service

There are plenty of dedicated farm sitting sites across the US, UK, and Europe. They often have lists of localized, experienced farm animal handlers who can be hired to visit the farm each day. 

The cost will vary from service to service, depending on what needs to be done each day and week. On average, it’ll be about $75 to $100 a day (£65 to £100, or €70 to €110 a day). Some may have the option for an hourly rate of about $25 an hour (about £20 or €20). But, again, it’ll completely depend on your farming situation and if you need chicken, duck, goose care, or a more demanding to-do list with larger animals.

Tips for finding the right farm sitter

Host an interview or meet-up before the sit

We highly encourage our TrustedHousesitters members to do this every sit, regardless of whether they have fins, feathers, or fluff. Nothing quite beats a face-to-face conversation to familiarize yourselves with each other and to make sure no details are lost in translation. This can be really reassuring for nervous pet parents who are not used to having in-home pet care.

Assuming your farm sitter is local, this shouldn’t be too complicated to organize. But, life is life, so if you’re unable to meet up in person, try to have a video call at least once or twice before the farm sit.

Organize a training day beforehand

Even if you find yourself the most experienced farm sitter in the area with a mile-long list of credentials and references, it’s still important to do a sitting ‘rehearsal’. Each farm and its animals have their own quirks and chores, so a run-through or training day can help cover all the bases.

Human nature being what it is, minor details can easily be left off to-do lists, so a training day can help refresh your memory and allow your farm sitter to ask questions in person.

Familiarize them with the local community

As this is an article about finding farm sitters in your vicinity, you can probably ignore this one! However, a local area for some people can be within a 50-mile radius, meaning they may not be familiar with neighboring farms and farm vets. Make sure they’ve been introduced to those who could offer nearby help or guidance in case of an emergency. Always leave additional contact details for your farm sitter as a precaution.

Before you begin your search for a livestock sitting service, check out all the TrustedHousesitters farm sitters near you to find the right, trustworthy person. If you’re a pet parent who’s unsure what would be fitting for their farm, head to our Community Forum to connect with other farm families to hear what worked best for them.