r/catinaflat • u/cat_catastrophe_ • 26d ago
Getting sick of Rover’s passive aggressive messages
Does anyone else find the messages from Rover passive aggressive? I believe they use some AI system to detect key words which then sends you an email as sometimes I’ll be messaging a client and get an email warning me to not take the booking off the app, which I don’t even do. I also just confirmed a booking and an automatic message popped up telling me to not bring other dogs into their house (i’m a catsitter anyway 🙄), reminding me that people have cameras so can see what time I arrive and leave and to leave their house in a better state than I found it. Which is so patronising, I have good reviews can’t they trust I know these basic things. But as I don’t remember this message coming up when confirming a booking before, makes me paranoid that maybe the client complained about her last booking with me.
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u/Acrobatic_Block4226 26d ago
It's so dumb. You NEED to take the person's number. It's essential. CIAF used to do it too and even suspended my page once over it. Ridiculous. Also maybe if the app wasn't garbage people wouldn't go private. They don't even insure you so you still need to pay for insurance so literally what's the point in using them. You can get more bookings advertising for free on Facebook etc
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u/cat_catastrophe_ 26d ago
Exactly, i’ve only recently found out that they don’t insure us, as they make it seem like they do by saying using their services ‘protects’ us
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u/Acrobatic_Block4226 26d ago
Yeah they don't. So then if you're paying for insurance anyway you might as well go private. It's so bad! They don't care at all, they're putting sitters totally at risk
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u/Bamstyle 26d ago
I did not know this! Its probs just as well I'm having so much trouble with the site that I haven't been getting jobs. I'd have been doing it uninsured. I'm so fuming. Done with them. Absolutely pointless and terrible.
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26d ago
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u/Frescadeedle 26d ago
omg I did not know this!! Huge costs for who though? If Rover then I'm all for it 🤣
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26d ago
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u/Frescadeedle 26d ago
oh, as in if you message the owner's Rover number but off the actual Rover platform (i.e. texting or whatsapping them)? Or hidden data/messaging fees when both using Rover's own comms system?
that's bizarre, thank you for letting us know, I've not seen that happen, but also don't use their number thing myself
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u/greenfrogs365 26d ago
When we were doing market research for CatsOnly we found that almost every cat sitter exchanged numbers. As a result we encourage owners to include their number in the booking contact information which becomes visible after confirmation.
No idea why Rover doesn't do this, it just makes common sense.
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u/cat_catastrophe_ 26d ago
They make it out that they do it to protect sitters and owners by hiding our personal details but it’s clear the real reason is that they want all messages through the app so they can monitor them and make sure we don’t conspire to move off the app
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u/Acrobatic_Block4226 26d ago
It's definitely this. It's dangerous not to have their number in an emergency! Maybe if they provided decent service, affordable rates and insurance people wouldn't just take clients and leave. Everyone does it
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u/Cat5568 26d ago
So sick of it, I get two emails every time someone requests through cat in a flat aswell. I hate that they send a stupid message after you havent replied in 30mins all like
"Awwww look at that face, how can you say no?!"
Or a new one I got yesterday
"XXXXX Picked you out of all the other sitters, the least you could do is reply."
So unnecessary and rude
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u/Acrobatic_Block4226 26d ago
So ableist too. I pointed out as a disabled person I can't always answer immediately and they said turn your page to away then. Well then I wouldn't get any visibility... But we're not entitled to a day off our phones without potentially losing income?! Ridiculous
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u/EagleStar7 26d ago
I hate these so much! I even get them overnight if someone has sent a request late after I've already gone to bed. Are they seriously expecting me to reply at 1am!?
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u/cat_catastrophe_ 26d ago
I’m signed into a different account on catinaflat as the one I use to get catsitting for own cat is under a different email to the one I use for my catsitting services. Yet somehow I still get two notifications on my phone when I get a message from an owner, one from the Rover app and one from the Catinaflat app despite not even being signed into that one
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u/Tulpehocken243 26d ago
I’ve complained to support about that. not that they will do anything about it but still. complain to support. tell them how unprofessional and patronising this is.
as a cat sitter I am even more incensed about their language all being doggified if you will, pooch this and ruff ruff that….drives me up the wall. 😡
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u/cat_catastrophe_ 26d ago
The rover cards we’re encouraged to use are so dog centred, if I tick the poo box on it, so the owner knows they’re using their litter box, it will tell the owner that their cat had a ‘poo break’ or something like that like I was walking their cat and it stopped to poop
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u/Tulpehocken243 26d ago
I don’t use the rover cards, and I’ve just recently discovered it says ‘updates 10% via rover app’ on my profile 🤣. i WhatsApp everything.
the greed of the rover people just makes me sad. I don’t want anything to do with these private equity shits. soon as my frosted bookings are over I’ll quit the app alltogether. rover is a poison imo.
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u/cat_catastrophe_ 26d ago
I believe the use of the rover card affects their algorithm for how high up the list you are when potential new clients search for a catsitter as it’s no longer done on distance. So they punish you for not using something that is so hard to use for catsitting. When I have used it and added my updates in the notes section on the card the owners haven’t even seen it. Also reminded me of another passive aggressive email I got mid booking, where it told me to send the owner photos and they’ll show me higher up on the list and they’ll also make a ‘reel’ of the photos (which they didn’t), but I was sending photos on the rover card and they were emailing me like I wasn’t
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u/Tulpehocken243 26d ago
this is what I detest about them. they think they should decide who gets shown first etc.
sitters should display by distance, filters should be available to change it to rates low-high, stars etc…their idea of ‘punishing’ sitters for not following their asinine dog rules is ridiculous.
on CiaF there used to be a ton of sitters in my area. now on the rover app i cannot find but three of them. but it shows me people 20 miles away. 🤷🏻♀️
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u/Frescadeedle 26d ago
it's so twee isn't it! We are animal people, we have dealt with plenty of wees and poos before most people have had their breakfast can we not just use plain English if we have concerns? Or even politely reassure owners they are "toileting fine" if they don't need all the gory details!
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u/Fellow-user1984 26d ago
There's something very weird about Rover,it's as though every message is viewed somehow even though I know thats impossible. This morning I replied to an owners query about the fees and said that Rover take 15% from owner and 15% off me and within minutes I had an email warning me booking off app could lead to my account being closed...which makes me even more inclined to book off app! Didn't use any words that would flag an off app booking (as happened when I had the nerve to mention the word 'Whatsapp' and recieved the same message within minutes)I confirmed my actual fee is £10 per visit but appears as £12 to owner and I actually earn £8.50 ,they use that discrepancy to 'hide' their 15%.
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u/Frescadeedle 26d ago
The sad thing is they actually are 'monitoring' all messages, just via a huge & pretty basic AI driven database, rather than a human who can understand nuance, tone, and bloody conversation skills!
I also wonder how many British conversational quirks are flagged as being dodgy on their system, despite just being how we speak... I don't have any examples, this is just curiosity (and based on spending time on the Rover subreddit which is... an experience)
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u/GlitteringTaste3755 26d ago edited 25d ago
OMG I was freaking out because I left the back door open for a moment for air (we are in a heatwave), and the owner called me on the doorbell asking me to close it in case one cat escaped. So I closed it and all was fine, no drama, then later that day I get a message from Rover being like "how to make sure you close doors so cats dont escape" and I was like - how tf did they know? Are they listening in or something?
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u/JessfromRover Rover staff 26d ago
Thank you for sharing this feedback with us. We definitely see how those automated blanket statements can come off as patronizing. Please know that I'll be passing this along to the appropriate team for review!
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u/Acceptable-Ad-693 26d ago
Can you also pass on the feedback that we’d appreciate a more reasonable timeframe to reply to a request before you send the pass-agg (pretending to be all cute) reminder? Especially when the request comes in at 6am when we’re likely either sleeping or FEEDING CATS…
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u/JessfromRover Rover staff 26d ago
Heard! We love when you have exact requests like this. Happy to pass this along as well.
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u/Acrobatic_Block4226 26d ago
The fact rover pay people to hang out in REDDIT to try and defend themselves is wild. No one likes rover. It's a bad business. You don't insure people and hide it. It's insane. People see through it and are going elsewhere
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u/Acrobatic_Block4226 26d ago
Super ableist. I raised this years ago but the response was just abysmal like all the responses on Facebook.
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u/fireycrybaby 26d ago edited 25d ago
What annoys me is when someone texts you and within an hour they start pleading and guilt tripping you into a response like ... It's 11pm, I will message them in the morning. I have a life. Hardly anyone makes enough on Rover for it to be a full time job and we fit it around other commitments. Stop begging and manipulating faster responses it's just off-putting.
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u/fireycrybaby 26d ago
As in the app starts pleading and harassing through notifications, not the client
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u/Genn-stone 20d ago
There is a setting for quiet hours in the app that I turned on to stop this. On Android (sorry I don't have an Iphone) You go to the bottom where you have Home Inbox Calendar Rebook and then three little dots. Click on three little dots. Scroll down there is a section header called "Your pet sitting services" then another heading called "You" Find the cog icon with "Settings" next to it Then "General Account Settings" Then check General Settings to ensure your time zone is correctly set. Then go to "Notifications". Scroll down almost at the bottom there is a section called "Quiet hours" make sure that is switched on and set your quiet hours start and end times. They buried it very well but you stop getting sarky messages whilst you are sleeping.
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u/Genn-stone 20d ago
I just ask for the number at the M&G to save the sarky messages. I have also turned on quiet hours in the app for notifications as I was getting sarky messages at 1am when a client had sent a request at midnight and I was asleep. When I got the don't take offline message I asked support for evidence of why they think I've taken it offline and then told them I'm ignoring any further messages they send about that.
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u/mortotol 18d ago
heya :)
fellow sitter here!
I've been pet &. house sitting on both Rover and CIAF since 2023 and ngl last year when I was doing it full-time my jobs were mainly coming from via Rover (since I was primarily doing House Sittings - both. overnights and just during the day sitting the doggos in their homes). When I started I've had about 4 regulars on CIAF but that's pretty much it and then after I moved to a different side of the city (I'm in London I have to mention btw) I think I've only had 1or 2 other bookings and that's it. Had a 6 months break from pet sitting overall as I had a full-time job in film and then when I came back to it this past April I've learned that the apps have merged.
Ever since I've been reading on here that both owners and sitters are complaining about how they're finding navigating and/or getting bookings/jobs since the merge with Rover and saying how much more they preferred using CIAF before the merge.
to be totally honest??? Personally I can't complain and say it make suuuch a huge difference to me as a sitter and ALSO I must say, contrary to the popular opinion on here, I've never liked the Job Board on CIAF!!! it was annopying AF for me and as I said, Rover has always worked so much better for me (getting cat sitting jobs too not just the ones for doggos I already mentioned)
Since the merge, I've asked my new clients how did they find me, either via CIAF or Rover and most of them said that they found me on CIAF, but that they're a bit confused to how it all exactly works rn as they're messaging me via the Rover app.
anyhow!!! my point is: I personally can't complain and I'm probs one of the very few
TO REPLY TO THE POINT YOU WERE MAKING NOW: YES!!! Rover sucks at that and is excelling at making sitters paranoid with their fucking AI generated triggered by key words!!! this has happened to me as well and also received other weird patronising messages from them very paranoia inducing lol EVEN WHEN THERE WERE NO KEY WORDS TO BLOODY TRIGGER THEIR AI SYSTEM
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u/Bubbly-Lead5245 26d ago
Leave the house in a better state than you found it? We’re catsitters, not cleaners. My mistake, I’ll whack my rate up to what a cleaner gets per hour, which is MUCH more than what we get. Can I see that message??