POLICIES & PROCEDURES
Stay and Play Pet Sitting provides loving care when you’re not there. Whether you are gone during work, on vacation, or attending other events, Stay and Play Pet Sitting will be there to provide care and companionship for your pets while you are gone.
Initial Consultation/Meet & Greet:
A one-time processing fee will be charged of all new clients at the time of scheduling the consultation. The $20 fee is non-refundable. A meet and greet is required before booked services. This fee is not waved even if you decide to book. Please allow 45 minutes of uninterrupted time for me to get acquainted with you, your pets, assess your pet’s needs, review completed forms, a tour of your home, and sample walk if applicable. Please have a copy of your pet’s most recent vaccination and health records for our files. (must be up to date on shots and have had an annual check up)
Reservations:
The deposit is required to reserve a date and time for any services. The deposit is 50% of the total for overnights -total amount due 2 weeks before the start of services, 100% for drop in visits and pet sitting for a few consecutive hours, and 100% for all services on holidays. If you do not reserve a date, it may be given to another animal in need of care.
Reservation Requests:
It is best to plan at least two weeks in advance for services needed. I will try to accommodate last minute requests as best as possible, but there is no guarantee that we will be available. Stay and Play Pet Sitting reserves the right to deny reservation requests.
Requirements To Meet Before We Can Care For Your Pet:
To ensure the health and well-being of your pets, other clients’ pets, and all the animals that we come into contact with on a regular basis, we require that your pets have a wellness check (up to one year before the care date) and be up to date on the following vaccines for cats: FVRCP, FELV, and rabies and for Dogs: DHPP, Leptospirosis, Bordatella, and Rabies. Senior pets may be exempt if they have a consistent vaccine history. Current shot records must be sent to me before we can care for your pets. For emergency purposes, please give a trusted neighbor or a family member access to your home. We must have access to your home before you leave and return. Please clean up all pet messes before the sitter arrives. All of your pets need to have a bath, front and rear nails trimmed, and flea control administered no more than one week prior to the sitter’s arrival. Even if they have never had these things done before, it is necessary for your pet and the caretaker’s health and well-being.
Payment:
FULL PAYMENT IS DUE BEFORE THE START OF SERVICES.
Mailed payment must be received before the start of care:
Please make check out to: Stay and Play Pet Sitting, Inc.
Please mail check to:
Stay and Play Pet Sitting, Inc.
P.O. Box 892725
Temecula CA 92589
Venmo, Paypal, Zelle, Cash, Credit Card, or Check are accepted.
Cancellation Policies:
This policy is applicable to all services. There are no cash refunds unless there is a death in the family, including pets, or Stay and Play Pet Sitting cancels. After cancellation, the money due (minus the cancellation fee) is a credit and can be utilized toward future services.
Cancellation Timeframe and Credits
≥14 days from first day of Booked Date(s)
0% of Services Due- Full Credit Honored
8 Days-13 days from first day of Booked Date(s)
25% of Services Due
2-7 days from first day of Booked Date(s)
50% of Services Due
≤1 day from first day of Booked Date(s)
100% of Total Services Due- No Credits
Holidays (at ANY time)
100% of Total Services Due- No Credits
Early Return Home
100% of Remaining Services Due- No Credits
Date Change:
For the days that are cancelled, and then other days are scheduled instead, the cancellation fee will apply to those days because they were reserved for you. For example, If you scheduled the 4th, 5th, and 6th, but want to reschedule to the 5th, 6th, and 7th. Then the cancellation fee is applicable to services on the 4th and are dependent on the amount of notice. (please see list above). Scheduling is still on a first come first serve basis, so we can’t guarantee that dates will be available if you wish to reschedule.
Discounts:
Each discount announcement or Coupon can only be used once
There is no combining discounts, only one at a time
There are no discounts on reservations that include a holiday
Discounts can not be applied toward previous reservations (ie the deposit is paid and only the balance is due)
If the coupon says “Next Booking”, the discount is applied to the reservation in chronological order (2 reservations are requested on 1/31 for 3/28-4/1 and 7/6-7/15; the discount is applied to 3/28-4/1 because it is closest to the request date)
Percentage Discounts maximum numerical value: $100
Cost:
Overnight service (Noon day 1- Noon day 2) is guaranteed for a minimum of 16/24 hrs; hours added onto this service are considered extended service. The sitter will be at your home for 8 hours to sleep and 8 hours per day minimum. The sitter will only leave for the consecutive length of time you are comfortable with. Pet sitting (8 hours or less) The first two hours are full price with a discounted rate for consecutive time.
Holiday Policies and Fees:
There are additional fees for services provided the day before, day of, and day after holidays. The following holiday cancellation policy is applicable to any booking that includes a holiday fee; There is No discounts or refunds for holidays. A deposit is the booking. If you booked a holiday, the day before a holiday, or the day after a holiday and cancel at Any time, 50% of the Total amount due for the Entire stay and All booked services on or around the holiday is due as a cancellation fee since it was reserved for you and I turned away other pets in need of our care. If you paid more than the 50% deposit, the cancellation policy and credits are applicable to the remaining amount due.
Overnight Holiday Services
Additional $40 Per Day
Other Holiday Services
Additional 30% of regular service fees
The following are considered holidays by Stay and Play Pet Sitting:
New Year’s Eve New Year’s Day Valentine’s Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day President’s Day Easter
Mother’s Day Memorial Day Father’s Day 4th of July
Labor Day Columbus Day Veteran’s Day Halloween
Thanksgiving Black Friday Christmas Eve Christmas Day
One Account Per Household:
To avoid confusion, and to provide a timely service, I only allow one account per household. Access to that account is up to you. All pets needing services must be listed for insurance purposes.
Business Hours:
Feel free to call or text between 7:00 am and 10:00 pm while we are providing services for you. Otherwise, phone hours are 9 am to 7 pm. We will respond to your message within 48 hours.
Confidentiality:
We recognize that your privacy is important to you and your family. We will not, at any time, either directly or indirectly, use any information for our own benefit, disclose, or communicate, in any manner, any information to any third party. We will also not divulge the dates or nature of your travel or relationship with Stay and Play Pet Sitting, Inc. without your written permission.
Visit Time:
Since pets are sometimes unpredictable, we promise to visit within an hour of the booked start time. So if you want the visit to be at 3 PM, the sitter will arrive between 2-4 PM. If your pet has a specific medical need, please alert your sitter, who will be glad to work with you to set up a more specific schedule. Cats are always visited a minimum of once every 24 hours and dogs are visited a minimum of every 12 hours if free-roaming, 8 hours if loose in the house with no outdoor access, 6 hours if in a kennel.
Visitors:
Please let us know if you expect any outdoor visitors while Stay and Play is contracted for services. Visitors may include; landscaper, delivery persons, pool maintenance persons, exterminators, construction/repair and utility workers, etc. Visitors are not to enter the residence while the sitter is present. Any damage done by the visitor is not the responsibility of the sitter. Please postpone any home cleaning service until after the stay. The sitter will clean the utilized home space to the same state as arrival. If Stay and Play is not notified of visitors, the sitter will assume that they are trespassing on your property and the police will be notified.
Supplies:
Please have all of the necessary supplies such as pet food, litter, cleaning supplies, medications, etc. in your home before the start of the stay. It is not the sitter’s responsibility to purchase these items.
Short Notice Service:
Sometimes emergencies happen – our goal is to help you when you need it most, even at the last minute. However, do not assume that we have received your last-minute request until you have received confirmation. Emergency service is only provided to clients whom we have met previously and have access to their home.
Keys:
Stay and Play Pet Sitting does not keep keys on file. The sitter will need access to your home via your house key inside a lock box or a security code during the initial consultation when service has been agreed upon. Stay and Play will not perform visits based on remote access, for the well-being of the animals, in case contact can’t be made. We do not leave keys in hidden locations on your property and will not mail them to you at your home address. There is a $15 fee for key return (If I have your key on file). You or the secondary pet owner must be there to receive requested returned keys and sign for them.
Secured Areas:
It is the pet owner’s sole responsibility to “pet-proof” any areas of the home and/or property to which the pet has access. This includes thoroughly inspecting fences, gates, latches, doors and other devices meant to contain the pet or restrict access to specific areas. Please place all dangerous items out of the pet’s reach and block access to unsafe locations.
Inclement Weather:
Stay and Play Pet Sitting will be closed for services when inclement weather makes it unsafe to travel. This is when the spare key your neighbor and friend has comes in handy. For everyone’s safety, no services will occur when local schools and businesses are closed due to unsafe weather conditions. Your account will be credited the service fees for service that did not take place during these uncontrollable events.
Injury and indemnification:
The pet sitter does not assume responsibility and has no liability for any injuries the pet may sustain, or property damage the pet may cause while in his/her own home/property. If your pet injures the sitter in any way that results in a trip to the doctor, you are responsible for the medical bills.
Unsecured pets:
Cats and dogs left out in the yard or with access to a doggy-door are considered free-roaming. In the event of illness, injury, loss or death, Stay and Play Pet Sitting will not be held liable for these free-roaming pets. It is strongly advised that all pets wear an ID tag with a contact number and that they remain inside your home for their own safety and welfare in your absence. If your pet has a security microchip – please provide that information during your initial consultation.
Emergencies:
In the event that a pet emergency arises, the sitter will take your pet to the veterinarian that you chose on the Veterinary Authorization form or to an appropriate facility that is available. You will be notified as soon as possible. If in the event you are out of reach, the sitter will make the executive decision on Veterinary Care for your pet.
