How do I request a booking?

Send a booking request when you have found a sitter whose services, location, and availability look suitable. A request is not confirmed until the sitter accepts and you pay through CatsOnly.

Before you request

Check that:

• The dates are correct.
• The service type matches the care you need.
• The daily visit schedule matches the care you need if some dates need a different number of visits.
• Your owner and cat details are up to date.
• Any medication, access, or routine notes are clear.
• You have selected whether you would like a free meet and greet first.

Customising daily visits

If your booking does not need the same care type every day, select Customise daily visits before sending the request. You can choose no visits, 1 visit, 2 visits, or overnight care for each date in the booking.

This is useful if you need different care on travel days, want overnight care on only part of the booking, or do not need a visit on every day in the date range. CatsOnly updates the estimated total from the daily schedule before you send the request.

After you request

The sitter reviews the request and can reply in the booking thread. They can accept, decline, or discuss details before accepting.

If the booking needs a different price, the sitter can propose a new price before payment. This can be useful where the dates, number of cats, medication needs, holiday timing, or care routine mean the original rate is not the right fit.

If the sitter has set holiday rates, the booking date picker highlights possible holiday rate days and the estimated total includes them. Read How do Holiday Premium and Peak Period Rate work? for more detail.

Meet the sitter

CatsOnly lets owners request a free meet and greet before the sitter accepts your booking. Use it to meet the sitter, talk through your cat's routine, and agree access, medication, feeding, litter, and update expectations in person.

If you requested a meet and greet, you and the sitter can propose and agree convenient time slots in the booking thread before either person commits. Meet and greets are free and optional. For more details, read How do meet and greets work?.

Sitter acceptance and payment

Once the care details are agreed, the sitter accepts your request. If the care requires different pricing, the sitter can propose an adjusted rate before accepting.

After the sitter accepts, pay through the CatsOnly booking flow to confirm your dates. Paying in CatsOnly keeps the payment, cancellation, refund, and support context attached to the booking.

Payment must be completed before the booking start date. If the payment button is not available, check that the sitter has accepted the request and that the booking dates have not already started.