A good care sheet helps a sitter follow your exotic pet’s familiar routine and notice when something seems different. Because care needs vary widely among reptiles, birds, small mammals, and other species, write instructions for your individual pet rather than relying on general advice. Include exact routines, where to find supplies, and who to contact with questions. Before you leave, review the plan together and make sure the sitter knows when to call your veterinarian.
Write Specific Feeding Instructions
List each food your pet eats, the amount, and when to offer it. Specify how to prepare it, such as washing produce, thawing frozen food safely, or adding a supplement only as directed. Note foods your pet must avoid and whether uneaten food should be removed after a certain time. If feeding changes by day, provide a simple schedule instead of asking the sitter to remember verbal details.
Show where food, measuring tools, supplements, and clean dishes are stored. Explain how to refresh drinking water and check that your pet is eating and drinking as usual. If your pet has a prescribed diet or medication mixed with food, write the veterinarian’s directions clearly and leave the original packaging or written instructions available. Don’t ask a sitter to change doses or substitute foods without veterinary guidance.
Describe the Habitat Routine
Explain the enclosure’s normal conditions and daily checks. Depending on the species, that may include temperature readings, humidity, lighting schedules, water quality, or checking that a heating source is working safely. Identify the correct controls and show how to use them. Include the pet’s usual day and night cycle so a sitter does not leave lights on or disturb the animal at an unusual time.
Describe routine cleaning tasks and what should be left alone until you return. Point out safe cleaning products, where waste goes, and how to secure doors, lids, and gates after care. If your pet uses a heat lamp, heating pad, or other equipment, explain how to check it without moving or covering it. Leave emergency supplies nearby and tell the sitter whom to contact if equipment stops working.
Explain Handling Preferences
State whether your pet should be handled at all during your absence. Some animals are comfortable with brief contact; others become stressed or may bite, scratch, or try to escape. Describe your pet’s preferred approach, safe places to support its body, and situations when handling is off-limits. If handling is needed for care, demonstrate the method beforehand and ask the sitter to follow it exactly.
Share your pet’s usual behavior and ways it shows stress, fear, or discomfort. Include practical precautions such as keeping doors and windows closed, separating other pets, or avoiding sudden movements and loud noises. Tell the sitter what to do if the animal gets loose, including which room or hiding places to check. Avoid instructions that require chasing or grabbing a frightened pet unless your veterinarian has advised a specific method.
List Health Concerns and Contacts
Write down your pet’s normal appetite, activity, breathing, droppings, and other signs you routinely monitor. Describe changes that concern you, such as refusing food when that is unusual for your pet, labored breathing, unusual weakness, repeated vomiting, bleeding, or a sudden change in behavior. The significance of a symptom can depend on the species and individual animal, so ask your veterinarian which signs require prompt attention.
Provide your veterinarian’s name and phone number, the nearest appropriate emergency clinic, and your preferred way to reach you. Include medication instructions, known conditions, allergies, and permission or payment arrangements you have made for urgent care. Be clear that a sitter should contact a veterinary professional when a serious or rapidly worsening problem occurs rather than waiting for your return.
Keep the care sheet easy to scan, with a daily checklist, labeled supplies, and emergency contacts in one place. Review it with your sitter and update it whenever your pet’s routine or health needs change. For help planning care while you’re away, contact Fresno Exotic Pet Care to discuss your pet’s needs.