How to Become a Pet Sitter in 2025 (No Experience Necessary)

Last Updated: August 8, 2025

A dream job that allows you to travel the world?

Check.

Feels like a vacation?

Check.

And offers quality time with animals, insights into local culture, and free access to cushy accommodations?

Check, check, and check.

Thanks to house sitting websites like TrustedHousesitters and Rover, pet sitting allows you to stay around the world for free or, better yet, for cold hard cash.

After you get started and land your first sit, you can earn part-time income locally or even turn pet sitting into your full-time job.

If you’re wondering how to become a pet sitter with no experience, we’ll teach you all the basics, from booking your first gigs to launching your own business.

How to Lay the Foundation

To start, pet sitters — especially full- or part-time ones — should love animals and be able to handle everything those animals require, including cleaning litter boxes and administering medications.

Keep in mind that you may also be asked to do some light house sitting tasks.

Craft a Sitter-Specific Resume

So, you’re ready, willing, and able to become a pet sitter.

Great!

First things first: your resume.

As with any application, tailor your CV to each job.

After all, you’ll be caring for people’s beloved companions — pet owners won’t trust just anyone to watch their beloved fur babies.

Your pet sitting resume will include the same components as any other, including a header, experience, and certifications.

And if you don’t have any experience in animal care yet, think of your previous jobs that required similar skills, like communication or problem-solving.

Consider Pet Sitting & Animal First-Aid Certifications

If you’re starting from scratch, boost your resume by picking up some handy certifications ahead of time.

Different organizations and online courses can get you accredited as a bona fide professional animal care provider, pet sitter, or even trainer.

The National Association of Professional Pet Sitters has a number of special certifications that cover everything from parrot care to senior pet care.

These credentials will show potential clients that you take the job seriously and know your stuff backward and forward.

Level 1: Pet Sit in Exchange for Free Accommodation

Let’s start at the bottom rung of the pet sitting ladder.

This option is best for those who have no formal sitting experience but want to gain some while traveling on a budget.

Ready to travel and want to stay in exciting cities like San Diego, Osaka, or Denver (for free)?

Great, because no-cost lodging worldwide and the chance to hang out with some fun critters can be its own reward.

1. Sign up for a Pet Sitting Website

To get started, sign up for a pet sitting website where potential clients will post gigs.

We highly recommend TrustedHousesitters, which features jobs all over the world.

All users are vetted and verified, and it’s the most widely used house sitting site (or app) in the biz.

You’ll need a paid membership to apply to postings on TrustedHousesitters, but the potential to score free accommodation is priceless.

True, you can use other pet- or house sitting sites, but do your research so you don’t accidentally apply to scam listings.

2. Create a Great Profile

Once you’ve found some interesting jobs, create a strong profile on the app or site of your choice.

Include clear, high-quality photos of yourself — bonus points if you have any pics with animals, which will show clients how well you could care for their pets.

In terms of the text, mention any relevant skills or certifications that will let prospective clients know they’re dealing with a professional.

Your profile makes a strong first impression on pet owners, so take some time crafting a standout profile page that will reel them in.

3. Get Sits, Collect Reviews & References

After you’ve worked your first pet sitting gig or two, be diligent about collecting those good reviews and references from satisfied customers.

This will prove to future clients that you’re reliable and experienced, so it’s a crucial step toward booking even more jobs.

After taking good care of your clients’ pets, leave them a positive review and ask them to give you one in return.

Generally speaking, it won’t be too difficult to start accruing good reviews — and if it is, well, you may want to find a new line of work.

Level 2: Pet Sit & Earn Part-Time Money

Now that you’ve successfully cared for a few pets, you could keep doing what you’re doing…

Or you could expand your business and get paid.

Part-time pet sitting can be a solid source of side income, and you’ll continue to rack up those references along the way.

1. Sign up for a Paid Pet Sitting Site

While sites like TrustedHousesitters are great, you can also sign up for a pet sitting-specific site, such as Rover.

One of the most commonly used pet care websites, Rover shares pet-related job listings of all kinds, including dog walking, doggy daycare, and house sitting.

Rover thoroughly vets all sitters, so you’ll get an extra vote of confidence in the eyes of pet owners.

At the time of writing, Rover charges a 20 to 25% commission on your gigs but provides a variety of resources to help you start sitting through the site.

2. Create a Great Profile

After moving to a new site, you’ll once again have to create a compelling profile that will catch pet owners’ attention.

Keep it up to date, be specific about your certifications and services, and include at least a few high-quality photos that showcase your professionalism.

Above all, don’t be afraid to hype yourself up a bit — if you hope to score well-paying jobs, clients will need to know all about your relevant skills and experience.

Also, take some time to explore Rover’s other features, like their handy availability calendar.

3. Set Competitive Rates

You don’t want to underprice yourself and your value as a pet sitter, but you also don’t want to overprice yourself to the point that pet owners ignore you.

To determine how much you should charge, thoroughly research other sitters’ rates and set yours accordingly

Rates can vary widely by location, though, so check up on all of the different places where you might want to pet sit (and/or travel).

As time goes on and you land more pet sitting work, the more you’ll be able to charge your clients.

4. Get Sits & Collect Reviews

Whether you’re on Rover or TrustedHousesitters, the goal is the same: to land as many pet sitting gigs as possible to build up your resume and impress future clientele.

And, of course, you should focus on collecting good reviews to strengthen your profile.

If you provide excellent pet care, you could see a steady stream of cash — which will, in turn, support your travels.

Or, stick close to home if that’s where you’re most comfortable.

My first pet sitting gig was just 20 minutes from my house but felt like a paid staycation.

Level 3: Start Your Own Pet Sitting Business

After you’ve notched some significant sitting experience, you might want to level up and go full-time.

Now, you can travel the world on all that income and still get accommodations for free without a site like Rover taking a cut of your hard-earned cash.

1. Build a Local Pet Sitting Website

To avoid losing money to sites like Rover or TrustedHousesitters, you’ll need to create your own business website to land your gigs.

Don’t worry — it might sound daunting, but there are plenty of resources out there to help you build your perfect page.

We recommend using SiteGround to host your website, WordPress as a platform, and GeneratePress to create a theme, which will act as the foundation for your site.

Check out competing pet sitting websites that have found success, and use their designs as inspiration.

2. Set Competitive Rates

Since you’ve left behind your verified profiles on other websites, you’ll more or less need to rebuild your online reputation all over again.

With that in mind, charging highly competitive rates will help you land clients through your own site.

You may have to experiment with different rates and offerings to find what attracts the most pet owners.

Though it may initially feel like you’ve taken two steps backward in your pet sitting payscale, you can always raise your rates after you build your client base.

3. Use Marketing to Find Customers

Without Rover or TrustedHousesitters to do the job for you, you’ll need to market yourself using other methods.

If you have some social media know-how, promote your work on Instagram, local Facebook pages, or even TikTok to reach as wide an audience as possible.

You can also advertise your sitting services on Craigslist.

Perhaps most importantly, dial in your site’s SEO so your name and business pop up quickly in Google search results.

Further down the road, you may be able to hire some marketing help.

4. Get Sits & Collect Reviews

When you’re pet sitting through your own website, it will be more important than ever to score positive reviews and earn potential clients’ trust.

As with other sites, always ask happy customers to leave you good reviews and act as references when possible.

To help pet owners easily comment on your work, include a review widget in your website design.

And you don’t want to lose all the reviews on your old profiles, either — encourage previous clients to review you again in your new digital space.

Ready to Become a Pet Sitter?

Whether you want to pet sit in exchange for free accommodation, make sitting your side hustle, or turn it into your career, there are options for everyone (even those with no experience).

Pet sitting can be an excellent way to travel the world on a budget or just land a fun staycation near home.

As long as you love animals and are willing to take first-class care of them, you can find clients in need of your services wherever you might be in the world.

Now, get out there and go find your first sit!

With the right combination of skills, certifications, and a little time, it’s not as difficult as it might seem to get started.

You could be raking in those dream sits before you know it.