how to report horrible cat sitter experience in detail?
April 2023. Kingwood, TX area. This is long but important if you reside in my area. I live in a house near Kingwood, a suburb north of Houston, TX and within 15 miles of Deerbrook mall. I never honestly faced my Rover sitter whose first name starts with an S, is Caucasian and aged less than 25y.o about her neglect while sitting for my cat. Thus the sparse personal sitter information. I usually comment constructive criticism in person without any postings but I chickened out because the care my cat received was bordering on abuse and it was a fine line to tell her constructively without being damaging, demeaning or decisively mean.
Through Rover, I booked 7 day/once a day 30min visits for a no needs, healthy 4 yo cat (SO easy!!!) at greater than $120. No other chores. No indoor/outdoor plant watering, big trash to curb, temperature setting, turning lights on/off or getting the mail. The following were agreed upon: make sure dry food was available, a can of cat food with a bit of water mixed in served DAILY and a suggestion of ONE litter box change during the week. I'm not sure if Rover commits to daily photos but I was texted only one photo.
I was chest tighteningly mortified and felt supremely cheated and betrayed when I came home after my week long absence. As I pulled into the driveway my first sign of lax care was a wet newspaper on the lawn near the sidewalk. I get a Sunday newspaper delivered. I returned on a Fri. Which means the paper had been on the lawn for six days. But I had not specified bringing in the newspaper - so I dismissed the oversight.
HOWEVER Upon entering the house at 11:30 PM it REAKED of litter-box ammonia (a horrible nose searing, eye tearing, nausea inducing, gagging odor that would be considered a cruel/unusual punishment in a prisoner environment) to the point of having to clean the box after a very long day of travel and a funeral emotionally challenging week. I did not expect daily scooping, just only one simple whole litter box change (during the week I was gone) when stinky...with ALL supplies available 3 feet of said litter box including a large heavy duty trash bag, fresh litter, newspaper, deodorizing granules, Lysol spray, broom and dust pan!!!. All of which were untouched.
The 2 dishes of dry food (one upstairs and one downstairs) were piled high (as if you were to leave for 2 days-we cat people have done that)...I guess that qualifies as "dry food available". Because of the other obvious signs of less than poor care, I suspect these dry cat food piles were created on day one and never, ever refreshed.
The kitchen trash was swarming with fruit fly like insects from the empty cans of cat food put in the trash. I surmise that even an unsound, careless rental-apartment dwelling person would have figured to take out the trash (in ...