Pet sitting in the Alps

What to agree before you hand over the lead

• The vet. Name, address, opening hours, and written authorisation to treat with a spending limit. Without it a vet can hesitate, and hesitation costs time.
• Food. Brand, quantity, times. Changing food and changing house in the same week is how a holiday turns into diarrhoea.
• Medication. Written, with doses and times. Never verbally.
• Microchip and documents. Number, and where the passport is kept.
• The border. Crossing between Italy and Switzerland with an animal means an EU pet passport, a microchip and a valid rabies vaccination. Check before, not at the barrier.

Altitude, snow and heat

An animal that lives at 300 m does not arrive at 2,000 m unaffected, and a coat that suits January does not suit an August afternoon in the valley. Say the animal's age and any conditions when you write: a sitter who knows the area will tell you which walk is realistic and which is not.

What we verify on a pet sitter profile

Identity, written references from previous owners, and any qualification — veterinary assistant, dog trainer, canine first aid — confirmed with the body that issued it, with the date. Not more than that, and we say so.