Tennessee Woman Hires ‘Expensive’ Rover Sitter For Her Great Dane. Then She Catches Her Lying On Camera: ‘She Knew That There Was A Camera’

Going out of town and looking for a pet sitter?

If so, you may have heard about Rover. This is an app that allows people to hire dog walkers and sitters, complete with reviews and ratings.

While many users have positive experiences, others’ experiences using the app are so poor that one might be discouraged from using it entirely. For example, one pet owner claimed their Rover sitter tried to feed their dog grill pellets. Another alleged that they left their dog with a Rover sitter—only to return to find their pet’s cremated remains.

Now, a Rover user says they accidentally booked a “dog sitter from freaking h—”—and she only knew because she caught the sitter on camera.

What Went Wrong With This Rover Sitter?

In a video with over 116,000 views, TikTok user Gabrielle (@gabrielle.lyn1) recounts her experience with a Rover sitter. According to Gabrielle, she was planning to leave her dog, a rescued Great Dane named Diesel, for longer than she ever had before—a total of “10 or 11 days.”

As a result, she says she decided to get a dog sitter from Rover. She says she selected one with “over 50 five-star reviews” who was “very expensive.”

Even though Gabrielle says her dog is “very, very easy to take care of” and that the pet has previously had “so many dog sitters” without issue, she expected the pricey sitter to go above and beyond for her animal. However, when Gabrielle met the sitter, the two did not immediately connect, she recounts.

“She comes here, she’s very quiet,” Gabrielle recalls. “But the dog seemed to be OK. Like, everything was good. She was very nice. So, whatever.”

With assurances from the sitter that everything was “gonna be great,” Gabrielle says she left.

Things Were Not Great

Immediately, Gabrielle says she noticed issues with the sitter.

According to Gabrielle, she informed the sitter that there would be a camera pointed at her dog’s crate in order to monitor him.

After the first day, Gabrielle received a text message from the sitter that she took the dog on a “long walk” and that the two “had such a good day.” But when Gabrielle looked at the camera, she says she discovered the sitter only came to the house for a total of 7 minutes.

Not only that, but Gabrielle claims she had a list of simple things the sitter was supposed to do to ensure the dog’s comfort, such as accompany him outside. The sitter, she claims, did not adhere to the list.

“I am furious. I’m f—— typing, and he’s like, ‘You know what? Let’s give her another day and see how she does,’” Gabrielle says of her partner. Concerned, Gabrielle did not follow up with the sitter in hopes the issue would be resolved the following day.

The Rover Experience Gets Worse

While the second day went normally, the third presented issues.

According to Gabrielle, she checked the camera to find that her dog had been left in his crate for nine hours.

“When we had our conversation…the max crate time for him was five [hours]—and I said, ‘max,’” she recalls. “I prefer four, but I understand there’s instances. Five is fine.”

At this point, Gabrielle says she confronted the sitter over text. The TikToker reiterated their agreement, noted that the dog had not been walked, and said that she observed issues via the aforementioned camera.

“She texts me back. She’s like, ‘Today was a fluke. I got stuck at work. I’m so sorry.’ Whatever,” Gabrielle says. “If that was the truth, I know she would have texted me, because any other dog sitter that’s had that happen has texted me being like, ‘Oh, my god, I’m so sorry,’ and it’s been fine. I’ve just had somebody else that I trust come to the house and walk the dog while they had an emergency.”

“It’s OK. I understand. S— happens,” she continues. “But if that was the truth, you would have f—— texted me. I know that you would have. You’re lying. You’re lying to my face.”

More Problems Emerge With The Rover Sitter

Her vacation now fully consumed by monitoring her dog camera, Gabrielle says she began to take note of how often the sitter was there and how often she interacted with the dog. In short, it’s not very often.

“So I text her, and I’m like, ‘Hey, I don’t think that this is really working, but we don’t really have another choice, so what I’m going to do is pay other people—his usual dog walkers that couldn’t stay with him—to come and walk him anytime that you need to be gone more than five hours,’” Gabrielle states.

“‘I understand what we agreed on. Clearly, you can’t do that. So, please let me know when you’re going to be gone for so long so I can have somebody come and take care of my dog,’” she adds.

Despite receiving this text message, issues with the sitter continued. At one point, the sitter asked if it would be all right if she left the dog for her family’s Independence Day celebration, and whether the dog would be OK alone with the sound of fireworks.

“No, ma’am. He came from a rescue. I don’t imagine he’ll be very good with the fireworks,” Gabrielle says.

Even though they had already agreed that the sitter would be present with the dog through the 4th of July, the sitter still texted Gabrielle about how disappointed she was that she would be missing her family’s Independence Day party, much to Gabrielle’s disbelief and chagrin.

The Dog Owner Returns To Chaos

When Gabrielle finally got back, she says she discovered that things were worse than she could have imagined.

First, the dog had become so anxious during this time that he ripped up his dog bed. According to Gabrielle, this is something he “does not” do.

Second, Gabrielle says she had informed the sitter that she could use her backyard pool as much as she wanted. Additionally, she could invite friends over so long as they didn’t throw a “rager.” The only rule was that the dog was not allowed in the pool.

Gabrielle quickly learned upon returning that the dog had not only been allowed into the pool, but had damaged it as well.

“He ripped the liners. The whole pool is ruined. It’s filled with dog hair,” Gabrielle explains.

To somehow make matters even worse, Gabrielle says she paid the sitter extra to feed her fish and turn their light on and off. The sitter, it seems, did not do this.

Finally, Gabrielle says that her home was covered in beer bottle caps. In response, Gabrielle reported the sitter to Rover and had them removed off of the platform.

“So now I have trust issues, and so does my dog,” she summarizes. “Be careful who you let watch your baby.”

How Can You Report A Rover Sitter?

In an email, a Rover spokesperson shared the following: “Rover is committed to creating a safe and trustworthy experience for pet parents, pets, and sitters alike and we take reports of this nature seriously. When initially contacted by Miss Sutliff, our 24/7 Trust & Safety team conducted a thorough investigation into this incident. The sitter involved has been deactivated from the platform and Miss Sutliff was reimbursed in full.”

“It’s important to note that nearly 40 million stays have been booked by pet parents in the U.S., with more than 98% of reviewed stays receiving five stars,” the statement continued.

Rover’s website details a process for reporting poor experiences with walkers or sitters.

While the site suggests attempting to resolve the issue with the sitter directly, it further notes that, if that’s not possible, one should fill out a formal complaint with supporting documentation within 28 days of the incident.

From there, Rover will investigate the issue and respond accordingly. This can involve a refund or, as experienced by Gabrielle, the removal of the sitter from the platform.

Gabrielle isn’t the only person to have success reporting poor sitters. One user on Reddit also claimed that they were able to get a full refund and have a sitter removed after their sitter verifiably neglected their animals.

Commenters Have Rover Horror Stories

In the comments section, users recounted their own negative experiences using the app.

“Similar thing happened to me – 5 star reviews, met the sitter,” said a commenter. “Got a call from the police 3 days into being away… our back door was left open and the dogs were running in and out and barking and the neighbors had called the police. We call the sitter – he drives up and claims here was there the whole time. Like we have you on police body cam driving up to the house at 4 am…..”

“Had a Rover sitter bring my new puppy to her house. Left her chained outside for three days and when I asked about it she said ‘its okay because I can see her.’ 4 month puppy,” stated another.

Other commenters simply expressed shock that anyone would feel that the sitter’s actions were appropriate.

“She owes you whatever that vacation costs,” declared a commenter.

“I would have called the police or my neighbors or my enite family and everyone I knew….like no absolutely not,” added a second.

BroBible reached out to Gabrielle via email.