25 tips for landing an international house sit

After the restricted travel of recent years, it’s no wonder that international house sitting has become so popular. It’s a budget-friendly way to see the world, allowing people unique travel opportunities while paying nothing for accommodation AND meeting furry friends along the way. 

But, there are quite a few things to consider if you’d like to become an international house sitter, and when it comes to preparing for your international house sit. So to help you find the house sit of your dreams, we’re exploring how to enhance your profile, how to secure your first sit, and what you can do to leave a positive, lasting impression on pet parents. And naturally, if you're not a member just yet, be sure to keep an eye on our TrustedHousesitters discount codes.

Make sure your sitter profile is glistening

The first step to getting prepared for your international house sit is to refine your sitter profile.

Your sitter profile is how your prospective pet parents will make the call on whether you’re the right fit to look after their beloved furry family member. And while the pet is the priority, you’ll also be staying in their home amongst important possessions, alongside their garden and of course neighbours - it’s a lot of responsibility! 

To become a house sitter abroad, locally, and if you're thinking about long term house sitting, you’ll need to provide the perfect photographs, a well-thought out profile description, ID and background checks and references. We know it can sound a little daunting but not to worry - we’ll cover everything you need to know about how to enhance your profile, and everything you need to get started as an international house sitter.

Choose the right images for your profile

Your images as well as your name are likely the first two things potential pet parents will take a look at when choosing you as their international house sitter. So, it’s vital that you pick images that you feel represent yourself in a clear and accurate way. When it comes to choosing the perfect selection of pictures, make sure they’re crisp and clear, feature as many of you and pets as you can, along with pictures of you doing things you love. That way, pet parents can get a sense for your personality, preferences, and just how much you love the animal kingdom.

Put the work into your application message

While pet parents might love your profile images, your about you, preferences and experience sections, you’ll need to make a good impression when you reach out to them. The key to a great application message that’ll help you secure your international sit is to really personalise it for whoever you’ll be sitting for. Read their listing carefully and think about how your interests, experiences and love for their pet breed will make you the right fit for them and their furry family members. 

If you’re a US sitter, complete a background check

At the moment, this is only available for US sitters. It’s simply part of getting your profile set up and is free to do. Sitter background checksare another way for pet parents to have a bit of extra reassurance, and will in turn be more likely to secure you as their international house sitter with the extra trust gained from the check.

Complete your ID verifications 

You’ll need to apply for your sitter ID verifications when setting up your profile. It’s one of our Trusted Tools that comes free with your membership and helps to offer pet parents extra peace of mind when they’re choosing who to welcome into their home. The verifications are particularly useful if you’re trying to secure your first sit and dreaming of international house sitting. If your profile is completely new or you haven’t built up any reviews just yet, the verifications help to build another layer of trust between you and pet parents.

Provide references

Head to your member dashboard and apply for your house and pet sitting references. We’d recommend adding at least three references to your profile to increase your chances of landing any house sit, including international house sits.

Make use of saved searches

Starting off your international house sitting journey can be a little daunting, so save yourself a bit of research time with our saved searches feature. It’ll allow you to save your search results, making it easier next time you come back to looking for your dream international house sit. Once you’ve saved your search, you’ll also receive tailored alerts for your planned trips to make the process easier.

Get experience locally first

Jetting off abroad straight away might be what you’re desperate to do, and we can totally understand why. But to make your chances of international house sitting a whole lot better, we’d advise building up your profile locally first. That way, you can get reviews to enhance your profile, alongside lots of experience to talk about that’ll reassure pet parents of your suitability to their pet and home.

Karen Schuppert - global house and pet super sitter with over 50 sits under her belt - shares her tips on building your profile and landing your dream sits.

“When I first started pet sitting I would care for pets of friends and once completed, I would ask them to write a review and reference. Also, once I became a member of TrustedHousesitters, I began by doing sits in my local area so I increased my odds of being chosen due to my convenient location.”

Apply as early as possible and cast your net wide

When it comes to house and pet sitting, it’s best to plan as far in advance as you can. Pet parents who are jetting off will want to know as soon as they can that their furry family member is going to be cared for and that their house will be kept clean and tidy while they’re away. So, increase your chances of matching with a pet parent in your ideal location by applying to multiple sits. Remember, you’re only committed to a sit once you and the pet parents have spoken and both clicked confirm. 

Be willing to talk over the phone or on video call

Having a stranger stay in their home, care for their pets and be amongst their possessions is understandably a big deal for pet parents. So, anything you can do to build trust before your sit should be done. And this includes chatting on the phone or by video call to build up a bit of a relationship. Take the chance to put any of their concerns at ease, and to get to know one another before the sit takes place. These also gives you the chance to cover all the questions to ask before pet sitting!

Be flexible

Staying open to a variety of dates far enough in the future to avoid messing with anyone’s plans is a great way to widen your net of house sitting overseas. Being open to a variety of dates is also a great way to show the pet parents that you’re willing to meet their needs, as well as work around their schedule. 

Don’t cancel unless you seriously have to

If you’re looking to start house sitting worldwide, you need to be reliable. Finding last-minute pet care is less than ideal for pet parents, and cancelling could is likely to jeopardise their plans as well. So, only cancel if you’re under exceptional circumstances, such as a family bereavement or serious illness. To avoid having to cancel, keep track of your dates and triple check that you’re able to arrive when the pet parents need you to.

Make sure your communication skills are on point

When applying for international or non-international house and pet sitting opportunities, we can’t stress how important great communication skills are. As well as being friendly and clear in the communication you share, you also need to make sure you’re quick to respond. Pet parents will need to know that their fluffy family member is going to be looked after as soon as possible. So, the quicker you get back to them, the better the relationship you’ll have and the more successful you’ll be with house sitting overseas. And remember, once you’ve both clicked confirm, exchange one another’s personal contact details so you’re easy to reach. Want some more top tips on being the best sitter communicator you can be? Check out this sitter communication guide.

Know your destination country’s entry requirements

If you’re house sitting worldwide, it’s super important to prep ahead and get to know your destination country’s laws around entering, like the back of your hand. The last thing you want is to secure a sit and not make it through border control! So, understand all the documents (and any tests) you’ll need to have ready months before jetting off. If you’re based in the UK, head to the foreign travel advice and if you’re in the US, visit the USA.gov website section about travelling outside of the US as an American. It’s also worth checking out your destination country’s government website, where entry requirements and documents should also be detailed.

For more details on how to prepare for an international house sit, explore our blog where you'll find a list of things you'll need to check off, including relevant travel documents, visas, and a heads up on getting prepared for immigration.

Make sure you have the funds for travel

While you don’t get paid for international house and pet sitting through TrustedHousesitters, you do get a free place to stay and a cool location to enjoy. Even though you pay nothing for accommodation, it’s important to remember that you still need to fund your food, any travel while you’re sitting and your flights and transfers if you’re an international house sitter.

Get to know the pets beforehand

So that you can have the smoothest experience while house sitting overseas, it’s vital you get to know the pets and their needs before jetting off. That way, you know what to expect on arrival and can come prepared. If you’ve recently secured an international house sitting opportunity, here are 10 questions to ask before pet sitting.

Understand the pet parents’ needs

As well as understanding what the pets need, you should also find out if there is anything you need to know about the pet parents’ house or grounds before jetting off for house sitting overseas. Here are some questions to get you started:

• Does the house require any specific maintenance?
• Is there an outdoor area that needs to be looked after?
• Where are your indoor plants kept and how would you like them to be cared for?
• Are there any functional quirks to your home that I need to be aware of?
• How do the bin collections work in your area?
• Are there any neighbours that I should be aware of?

Learn about the area you’ll be staying in

In order to land a successful house sitting job internationally, you’ll need to show awareness of local laws and cultural differences when getting to know your prospective pet parents. Understanding the local area will also benefit you once you’re on your sit - it’ll ensure you’re following any laws around driving and maintaining respectful to any cultural expectations or norms.

Get a sparkling review from your local sits

Sounds simple and much easier said than done, but getting dazzling reviews will increase your chances of the international house sitting adventure you’ve been dreaming of. So, here’s a few tips on how you can impress your pet parents no end…

Agree on a level of communication and stick to it

If you’ve got a bit of experience with pet sitting, you’ll know that pet parents vary massively, and each have different expectations when it comes to updates while they’re away. Some will love nothing more than a snap of their precious pooch each day, while others would rather only hear from you should they absolutely need to. So, find out their preferences and be sure to stick to them to ensure a great experience for both of you.

Leave the house as you found it

This one goes without saying, but make sure you leave the house clean and tidy - there’s nothing worse than arriving back home to a living room coated in dust and a kitchen littered with dirty dishes. Cleaning up is of course the bare minimum, but if you’d like to make a truly lasting impression, why not leave the pet parents with a card or gift, thanking them for a lovely stay? Creating that great relationship from the first sit could mean you’re able to visit again in the future.

Be warm and friendly to neighbours

Often people consider their neighbours close friends, so it would create a lovely atmosphere for your stay as well as a positive lasting impression if you make the effort to chat to the neighbours! They might even report back to the pet parents, so being respectful and conscious of those around you is super important.

Don’t invite others who haven’t been agreed as part of the sit

Only those who the pet parents have agreed should be joining you on your sit, and preferably those described on your profile.

Maintain the pet parents’ confidentiality

Respect the trust that the pet parents have given you by protecting their confidentiality. So, respect their privacy and avoid posting images of their home and pets or any information about them onto social platforms.

Agree on anything that needs to be bought for the house or pet

To avoid any disputes at the end of your sit, agree on anything that needs to be bought for the pet or house and keep your receipts.

Prepare a little handover at the end

Be prepared to answer any questions about the house or furry friends before you leave to make life easier for the pet parents.

Landed an international house sitting opportunity?

Fab! Here’s a guide to preparing for your international house sit.