If you’re going out of town for a week or more, you may decide to hire someone to stay at your home and keep an eye on things.  Even if you don’t have someone staying there, you will probably at least have someone stop by every other day or so.  While you may think they will know everything that needs to be done, they may not.  You probably do several chores every day without thinking about it, and it’s these chores that your house sitter won’t think to do.

First, obviously leave detailed instructions about any pets for your house sitter.  Tell them where your pet’s food is located, where the bowls are, how much food they should get each day, and when they are usually fed.  Also make certain they remember to refill any water bowls.  If you need your house sitter to clean out a litter box, let them know where the scoop and fresh litter is and what to do with the used litter.

Likewise, let your house sitter know which plants, if any, will need watering and how much water they get.  This includes indoor as well as outdoor plants, especially if you’re going out of town during one of the warmer months or have many plants.

If it’s a cold month or you live in a cold climate, you may need to ask your house sitter to check on your pipes.  They may need to leave your sinks dripping if there’s a danger of the pipes freezing.

If you’re going to be gone for a couple of weeks or so, you may want your house sitter to eat perishables or dispose of food as it goes bad.  Let them know what in your kitchen is open for them to eat and what, if anything, you’d rather they didn’t consume.

When it comes to your mail, you can either have your house sitter collect it or you can have it held at the post office.  You may want to have it continue to your home so you can call your house sitter and ask about specific pieces of mail.  Likewise, you may want your house sitter to transcribe any messages left on your answering machine in case there’s something you need to deal with right away.