Leaving a pet with a sitter comes down to one document: the instructions they can pull up at 11 p.m. when something's off. The ASPCA's pet sitter checklist puts it plainly — your sitter needs your contact details, an itinerary, emergency contacts, your pet's health information, veterinary contacts, medication lists, and your pet's daily routine, written down and in one place. Verbal instructions and a text thread from three months ago don't survive contact with a real emergency.
Here's the complete checklist, organized so you can fill it in once and reuse it every trip.
The pet profile
- Name, age, weight, breed — and a current photo, in case they're ever lost
- Microchip number and whether the chip registration is current
- Health issues, allergies, and medications — name, dose, when, and how given; leave meds in original containers where possible
- Vaccination dates — many sitters and boarders are required to ask
- Behavior notes — fears (thunder, strangers), escape attempts, bite history, how they are with other dogs
The routine
- Feeding: how much, how often, what time — and where the food lives. Label containers if multiple pets are on different diets
- Walks and potty breaks: how many, when, and the route
- Medication schedule with a demonstration if the dosing is fiddly
- The quirks that matter: the cat's hiding spots, the dog's post-dinner potty break, the "she'll refuse dinner for one meal, it's fine"
The contacts
- You: phone, plus where you'll be and when you're reachable
- Your veterinarian: name, address, phone — and tell the vet's office who's authorized while you're away
- The nearest emergency vet, with the address
- A local backup person who can make decisions if you can't be reached
- The ASPCA Animal Poison Control line: 888-426-4435 — program it into the instructions; it's a paid consultation line that's open 24/7
The house
- Keys, codes, and the alarm procedure — written down, not texted
- Where supplies live: food, leash, harness, carrier, cleaning stuff for accidents
- Anything you want done that isn't pet care (plants, mail) — say so explicitly, or don't expect it
- Your breaker box and water shutoff if you'll be gone more than a few days
The authorization that matters most
Decide in advance what happens if your pet needs emergency care and you can't be reached: who makes the decision, and up to what dollar amount. Most sitters will ask you to sign a form covering exactly this — a spending cap and written authorization to treat. It's the single clause that prevents the worst 11 p.m. phone call from being worse.
Make it reusable
The reason people skip this is that it's a fresh scramble every trip. The fix is keeping it as a standing document you update twice a year — the ASPCA's pet sitter safety checklist and AAHA's pet sitter instructions guide are both good references for what to include.
If you coordinate care with friends, family, or a regular sitter, PetAmigo keeps all of this on your pet's profile — feeding notes, medications, vet contacts, and the people allowed to help — so anyone you invite into your care circle sees the current version, not a three-month-old text. You can also generate a printable one-page card with the essentials in about two minutes with our free pet care card tool.
The night-before check
Food out and labeled · meds counted for the full trip · vet and emergency contacts on the fridge · keys and codes handed over · itinerary shared · authorization signed. Ten minutes of checklist beats a vacation spent worrying — and it's exactly what the AKC recommends before leaving your dog in anyone's care.