Sit! Stay! House & Animal Sitting.

Terms of business.

 

Below are the Terms of Business of Sit! Stay! House & Animal Sitting.  

 

By booking me, Mrs. Christine Day, to care for your animals/property in your absence, you are agreeing to the published version of these Terms at the time of each booking (available on my website, www.sitstayanimalcare.co.uk).

 

1. “Sit! Stay! House and Animal Sitting” is the trading name of Mrs. Christine Day of Hawthorn Way, Northway, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, GL20 8TQ.  Tel: 01684 276085 or 07969 590656, email: happy_horses@hotmail.co.uk .  (Sit! Stay! House & Animal Sitting was previously called Sit! Stay! Animal Care).

2. Criminal Records Disclosure Number 200000005960145.

 

3. My insurance is provided by Cliverton, certificate number M1461676.

 

4. My insurance covers me for both house sitting and animal care.

 

5. The terms of my insurance state that I am not covered to walk more than 6 dogs at one time, and that they must be on a lead, or I must obtain written permission from the owner if dogs are to be walked off lead.  If you wish your dog/s to be walked off lead, please complete and sign a disclaimer form, which can be supplied upon request.  Obviously to walk this many dogs together, they all need to be well behaved and with an established recall.

 

6. My insurance does not cover me to ride, lunge or exercise my clients’ horses.  If you need your horse exercised in your absence, please arrange for someone else to do this.  I am an experienced BHSAI, and well used to handling young and nervous horses, but please try to ensure that your animals are used to being tied up, having their feet picked out, having rugs on if required, etc.

 

7. If I cannot deal with veterinary matters with my own extensive experience, or using veterinary products left by you, then I may need to purchase veterinary supplies or take your animal to your vet (small animals), or call your vet out (large animals).  Please request, complete and sign a veterinary form to cover this eventuality.  I do have a dog crate in my van with which to take dogs to the vet, but no tow ball to enable me to take horses to vet clinics in a trailer – if you have a small lorry, then you may want to put me on the insurance for that for the period of your absence so that I can take your horse/s to the vet’s in an emergency.  Alternatively leave me the contact number of a friend or relative who could transport your horse/s to the vet clinic if necessary.  Cat owners please let me know where you keep your cat travel crate.

 

8. Once I have made a free home/yard visit and seen what is involved in caring for your animals, I will give you a price for doing so for the period that you have told me that you want covered, and for the number and types of animals agreed.  If you request and I give, a ball park figure, before I have made a home/yard visit, then this figure is not confirmed, and may be amended once I have seen for myself what is involved – some people’s requirements are much more complicated than others’, and to care for a client’s animals safely and effectively requires vigilance and takes time.  If you need to change the duration of your absence, or the number and/or types of animals involved, or the number/type of dog walks required (e.g. dogs that are normally free-run that have to be lead walked because they have come in to season or are recovering from injury), or your dogs cannot be left for up to three and a half hours at a stretch occasionally then I reserve the right to revise the original sum agreed.

 

9. Animal Care, drop-in service payment; 100% of the total sum quoted will be due before you leave.

 

10. House Sitting & live-in Animal Care payment;  A non-returnable deposit of £10/day will be taken at the time of booking and offset against your final payment.  50% of the total sum agreed will be due one calendar month before you depart.  The remaining 50%, minus the deposit, will be due before you leave.  If you return early, for whatever reason, the full balance will still be payable.  When bookings are made less than 1 calendar month before your departure, then the deposit and the first 50% of the total will both be payable at the time of booking. Please note that, once paid, your 50%-month prior payment will now be non-returnable unless government COVID-19 restrictions prevent you from travelling.  If you decide not to travel for other reasons, then you risk forfeiting that payment.  This is to protect me financially because with COVID-19 associated fear being evident, there is now a real danger of me going out of business.  However, if you cannot travel because of, say, a close family tragedy or something, then please contact me in confidence and I will see what I can do regarding this.  Also, if you delay paying your 50% payment after it’s due date to try to circumnavigate this condition, I reserve the right to deem this as a cancellation, and to rebook your dates. Thank you for your understanding.

 

11. Payments may be made by cash, cheque (payable to Mrs. C. L. Day) or by bank transfer (account details for BACS payments will be given at the time of booking)

 

12. If you book me to live-in/house sit, please note that it is your responsibility to notify your insurers that you are leaving your property/animals in the care of a professional house sitter/animal carer.  They are normally quite happy about this, as it means that your security will be better than if you left the property unoccupied.  Please make me aware of any security systems when I make my home/yard visit, so that I can familiarise myself with their operation.

 

13. The animal owner is responsible for providing all feed and bedding materials for their animals.  If you are unable to leave supplies to last the whole duration of your absence, then you must leave me cash with which to buy further supplies, or authorise me to put them on your account with your regular supplier.

 

14. When house sitting/living in, I do not normally undertake to remain on your property 20+ hours per day every day, but I can do.  If you require this, please make it clear in your initial enquiry, and during my home/yard visit.

 

15. Charges quoted are per whole- or part- calendar day.  Charges for part-days may be waived at my discretion.

 

16. PLEASE NOTE; When you require my live-in service, you must be honest about how long your dogs/animals can be left, whether dogs have been in a crate before, whether they have caused damage when left at home alone before etc. at the time of enquiry/booking, as this will affect the price that I quote you – I have a dog crate in my van and your dogs can come with me sometimes when I go out, if they are happy to travel in the crate; but for insurance reasons, I am not happy having dogs loose on the front seat etc.  Likewise, if they are likely to howl or damage my crate bedding when left in my van whilst I tend other animals, then they will have to stay at your home when I go out. I will have all my meals and spend most of my time in your house, but cannot guarantee that it will always be 20+ hours in any given 24, because I have my own horse and pony to tend, and occasionally another client’s dogs to walk or cats to feed etc. too.  

 

If anything is unclear, or inconsistent between the pages of my website, please contact me for clarification. Thank you.

 

13/01/2022