Is Pawshake safe?

When it comes to our pets, trust is the most important thing. We not only entrust our dearest dog or cat to a pet sitter, but in some cases also the key to our homes. But how do you know that you can trust your pet sitter? What are the experiences of other pet owners on Pawshake and how do you know for sure that it is safe to make a booking?

Pawshake is a real community of animal lovers, and as such, our pet sitters, pet owners and the people behind Pawshake all want to contribute to a safe and fun platform. There are a number of issues that we are working on together to increase trust and safety at Pawshake. Will you join us as we improve trust and safety as a community?

Screening of the pet sitters

Each profile is individually screened by our team, not a robot! We get a lot of applications, but only 20% of the sitters are accepted. Pawshake sitters love pets like you and me and they apply to join because of this love of pets and desire to help people. There are also many professional pet carers on Pawshake, such as dog walking business owners or dog behaviour therapists, who would like to do some extra work via Pawshake. There are also, for example, veterinarians still in training or volunteers at animal shelters who want to use their knowledge of looking after pets as a fun way to earn some extra income. 

After admission, we will continue to monitor the profiles and conduct of all pet sitters. Should something changes or if there are any complaints, we will always investigate this and take measures if necessary.

Reviews

After each booking, pet owners can leave a review. So before you book a pet sitter, have look at the reviews on the pet sitter's profile. We ask all owners to write their experiences in a fair and constructive way, which helps to keep the platform transparent and honest.

Of course, you can also choose to contact a new pet sitter who has no reviews yet. But always get acquainted first and book a trial walk or trial pet sitting day before you leave your pet with the sitter for a longer period.

Customer service

With every booking through Pawshake, you can use our Customer Service support. The people behind Pawshake are huge pet lovers, and most employees are also active users of Pawshake! There is a lot of knowledge about pets in the Pawshake team and we are always willing to help you with questions about pets and pet care. We can also help by referring you to the right channels. 

With every new enquiry between a pet owner and pet sitter, we ask both parties to verify their mobile phone number. This is not only an identification method, but we also want to make sure that both the pet owner and the pet sitter are available during the pet sitting service so that our Customer Service team can reach them if necessary. 

The Peace of Mind Guarantee

With every reservation, your pet is automatically covered by our Peace of Mind Guarantee in case of accident or illness. This means that if your pet gets sick during the booking or gets into an accident, your pet is covered. You are also covered with third party insurance, which means that you will not be faced with unexpectedly high costs from parties outside of Pawshake. 

Online payments

Pawshake securely arranges all payments online. This means that the pet owner and sitter don't have to worry or arrange any exchange of cash.  The owner pays when they makes an official booking via the website or app. This can easily be done via your bank account using Poli, Paypal or credit card. We pay the pet sitter automatically after the successful conclusion of the reservation. This also means that we can always refund the money in the event of a cancellation. Always check the cancellation policy displyed on the pet sitter's profile.

Free meet & greet

Perhaps the most important pillar when it comes to trust and safety: Pawshake encourages you to always organize a free introductory meeting before making a booking. Get to know each other, ask questions and see whether your pet and the pet sitter are a good fit. Then you can decide whether you will make a formal reservation or if you'd rather search for a better match. Read more about the meet & greet

Can nothing go wrong?

Of course, there can always be questions or concerns about your pet. Pet sitting might be fun, but it's real work and pets can be unpredictable - these same risks also apply to large, professional pet boarding facilities. With the small-scale personal services of Pawshake we can easily act should an incident occur. We are constantly working to inform owners and carers as much as possible to minimize risks and we are always ready to support you if there are any questions. And are you not satisfied with your pet sitter's services? You always have the right to our Happiness Guarantee.

As a pet owner you can also help to increase trust and safety yourself:

• Read profiles carefully: follow your gut instinct
• Read reviews 
• Organise an obligation-free meet & greet
  
• Book a trial walk or trial day-care service
• Doesn't feel 100% right? Just say no thanks!
• Always book via the Pawshake platform

Experiences of Pawshake users

What are the experiences of other Pawshake users? You can find their reviews here: read reviews

Recently we asked our community what they think of the trust in Pawshake. They could give their anonymous feedback to help us improve the platform. Here are some comments - thank you for those who took part!

"It is difficult to entrust your pet to an unknown person, also to give that person the key to your home and with that all your stuff. But everything turned out great. The daily photo or video also gives the impression that someone really comes every day. "

"We have used Pawshake for a year and the trust was immediately right at the first interview, and is fully realized during the booking "

"I am confident that everything is arranged well and that my pet is taken care of"

"Anyone who gives trust can receive trust."

"I use Pawshake for one year now, and have only good experiences!

Curious? Find your own Pawshake sitter

Have fun!