'AITA for refusing to pay my cat-sitter?' 'I'll be putting the money toward a vet visit.'

"AITA for refusing to pay my cat-sitter?"

I (29F) have an eleven year old calico named Daisy. A year ago, I moved a few hours further from home for work, which came with the issue of needing to find a new sitter. My fiance (34M) and I were lucky to find somebody pretty quickly through a pet sitting app, but she ended up being unavailable during the week of our trip.

This came up over dinner at my sister's house, and her daughter/my niece suggested her cousin (BIL's family) Ava (18F), saying she's been looking for some side jobs to make money before she goes off to college this fall. I contacted Ava and she accepted the job.

I invited Ava over a couple days early so she could meet Daisy and get acquainted with the space. The most important detail here is that I emphasized our main rule to not let Daisy out unleashed and unsupervised.

I showed Ava the harness and leash I use to take Daisy on walks, explained the risks of letting her out unsupervised, and she seemed to understand. Fiance and I left on our trip a couple days later thinking all was well.

We finally got back yesterday, after a genuinely lovely week, and met Ava as she was finishing up with her last drop-in. During our reunion, I found scratches on Daisy. I asked Ava if she had any idea what happened. At first Ava's story was that she didn't know, and then she admitted it might have happened when they went on a walk.

I went to find the harness to see if there was any damage to it, but it was in the exact spot I left it in, along with the leash. I asked Ava point blank if she let Daisy out by herself and she finally admitted yes, that Daisy wouldn't stop hounding her for food and treats and that she was yowling so much during a drop-in when she was having a headache that she put her out for "a little while"...

...while she set up the food and cleaned the litter. She then FORGOT DAISY OUTSIDE ALL NIGHT. She said she realized when she dropped back in the next morning for a feeding and a walk and Daisy wasn't waiting just inside the door that she remembered she'd put her out so she tried shaking a bag of Daisy's favorite cat treats (which worked, she's a greedy little cat).

I was furious at that point and asked Ava to leave. She asked what about the money, and I told her she wouldn't be getting paid. She got upset and said it wasn't fair to not pay her for an entire week over one mistake, but eventually left.

She has texted me an apology since, but I've also received some texts from my BIL, who is mostly taking her side in the issue and saying I should absolutely pay her, but that he would understand if I docked a day off. I told him I'll be putting my money towards a vet visit, which I have an appointment for tomorrow. AITA if I stand my ground here?

Here's what people had to say about this one:

NorthernLitUp said:

NTA. Tell her you'll pay her whatever is left of her fee AFTER the vet visit, provided your cat doesn't need anything due to her injuries. Daisy very easily could have been infected by FIV from a feral cat. That's the part that would terrify me. Quite frankly, she'd be lucky if you didn't sue her for the vet care if Daisy did contract a disease.

Gemzanity said:

NTA at all. She's lucky your cat didn't get lost or worse. I'm currently dog sitting to help my friend out. As I'm not usually around dogs he's given me a comprehensive list of Dos and Don'ts. You bet I'm following that list to the letter because he knows his dog better than I do. Although we're getting on quite well. She even took me for a walk earlier.

skiveman said:

NTA. Stand your ground. I've done some pet-sitting in my time for both cats and dogs and I can quite honestly say that if I fucked up as bad as that girl fucked up then I would never be asked again.

She THREW the cat outside, to fend for itself because the cat was fussing too much because it hadn't seen any human for hours. Some cats are very greedy and won't quiet until they've been fed.

This girl was young and she acted her age by showing her inexperience. I can imagine this girls thoughts - cats are cute, cats are no trouble, this'll be easy money - only for the reality to bite her hard.

Velharthis009 said:

This is tough but, I'm going to say NTA. If she wants to be paid so badly, tell her sure, but it will have the vet bill subtracted from her pay. Your cat had scratches and was left out OVERNIGHT?!

Yeah, once she realizes she'd most likely be out of pocket paying for all the bloodwork and labs kitty probably needs now, then I have a feeling she'll take the L and consider this a lesson learned in being patient following instructions.

She could have put the cat in another room for the 60 seconds it took to fill her bowl, or locked herself in a room while she did so. What she did was reckless, selfish, and lazy. What would she have done if your cat hadn't made it back? She is extremely lucky things didn't end up worse.

Lady-Faye said:

NTA. The cat was injured in her care, because of her neglect and she shouldn't get paid. I'd feel a little differently if she had called you because the cat got out and wanted to inform you of what was going on, but like, she straight up did not care about it.

Just_here2020 said:

NTA. I’d say that you want to be fair. You will give her any remaining money after you paid for the vet visit and paid for any necessary treatments for your cat’s wounds. In the interest of fairness, she needs to agree to be responsible for any vet bills that are more than the petting sitting fee which arise due to her negligence. You aren’t refusing to pay - you are ensuring that her negligence is her responsibility.

After ready some comments, OP edited the post to include more information:

1) Ava is not a family member of mine. She is my BIL's niece (technically step-niece, as his sister is Ava's step-mother). I do not consider her a niece or cousin of mine. Family is not a factor here for me.

I didn't know her at all and admit I should've been more cautious about hiring her. BIL said she was a very good a responsible kid, and she had done some pet sitting jobs before, so I thought everything would be fine. Won't be making that mistake again.

2) To those suggesting I still pay Ava, but dock the vet bills from her pay, if I do that it will result in her owing me. I do not want to pursue legal action or try to get any money out of Ava. I have told her and BIL this and expressed more than once that the best I will do is compromise and consider us square- I don't pay her, she doesn't pay any of Daisy's vet bills.

3) I know results for certain things won't be available/reliable so soon, I will be doing follow-up appointments for further testing and assessments.