TwistedSifter

Pet Sitter Always Traded Free Care With A Neighbor, But Then A Long Trip Forced A Choice Between Friendship And A $2,000 Loss

woman petting a golden retriever

Pexels/Reddit

Mixing friendship and money always sounds easier than it actually is.

One pet sitter was used to doing favors for their neighbor, but when the neighbor asked for a huge favor that could impact their financial security, it put them in a tough spot.

Keep reading for the full story.

WIBTA if I charge my friend/neighbor closer to full price for an extended pet sitting gig?

I have a friend who lives incredibly close to me, and we typically trade pet sitting when one of us goes out of town.

I do have a pet-sitting booking site that I have them book through so any time is on my calendar, but I discount it to $0.

But soon the neighbor had a much bigger request for her.

They are going out of town for six weeks, and my full price would be over $2,000.

I am not feeling comfortable trading care for this long.

She doesn’t find this trade-off totally fair.

I hardly ever go out of town, and when I do, it’s no longer than one week, but typically just a weekend, and I have two small animals.

They regularly go out of town for one to two weeks and have one large pet and two small ones.

WIBTA if I only gave them a 50% discount?

Should generosity mean working at a loss?

Redditors chime in with their thoughts.

This redditor encourages this pet sitter to stand up for their livelihood.

A 50% discount might be a little too generous.

Accepting the gig may come with unexpected drawbacks.

Is financial security really worth sacrificing for a friend?

Being a good friend shouldn’t mean putting your livelihood on pause.

Favors are great, but six weeks isn’t a favor—it’s a full-time gig.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check out what happened when a family gave their in-laws a free place to stay in exchange for babysitting, but things changed when they don’t hold up their end of the bargain.

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