Is it safe to give a pet sitter my house keys?

It can be, if you have met the sitter with your pet, checked their ID and references, and hand keys over in person with a clear plan. Give only the keys they need, leave a spare with a trusted neighbour, tell the security desk and household help, and collect the keys or change codes afterwards.

Should I leave my keys with the security guard for the sitter?

Avoid it if you can. Guards change shifts and you may not know who holds the key. Hand keys to the sitter in person instead. If you must use the desk, give them to a named supervisor in a sealed envelope, and ask for a signature when they are handed on and returned.

Is a digital lock better than giving a pet sitter a key?

It avoids copies of your key. Set a separate code for the sitter and change it when you return. Check the batteries before you leave, and tell the sitter where the backup key or override is, in case the lock fails or the power goes off.

What if my pet sitter loses my house key?

Change or rekey the lock when you return, especially if the key was labelled with your address. Agree in advance, in writing, who pays for a replacement. A spare with a trusted neighbour means your pet is not locked out of care in the meantime.

Should my maid or cook know that a pet sitter is coming?

Yes. In many Indian homes the cook or maid also has a key. Tell them the sitter's name and visit times, ask them not to feed the pet unless agreed, and agree a door rule: the pet goes into a closed room before anyone opens the main door.

What should I do with the keys after the pet sitter leaves?

Collect every key at the handback and check them against your list. Change any digital lock code you shared. Remove the sitter's visitor approval on the society app. If you use the same sitter often, agree in writing whether they keep a key and how it is stored.

Should I give the pet sitter my car keys or gate remote?

Only if they need them for the booking, such as driving your pet to the vet, and only with clear agreement on when they may be used. Otherwise keep car keys and remotes out of the set you hand over. For vet trips, an app cab or auto with a carrier or leash is usually simpler.

Care guide 10 min read

Handing over your house keys to a pet sitter safely

Updated October 2026By PetymFacts checked against official sources on 21 October 2026

Quick answer

Hand the keys over in person, after you have met the sitter and checked their ID, and only the keys they need. Leave a spare with a trusted neighbour, tell the security desk and your household help who the sitter is, and agree when the keys come back. Afterwards, collect them, or change a digital lock code.

Never leave keys under the mat, in the electricity meter box or with an unnamed guard. And write down everyone who holds a key to your flat, because in many Indian homes the cook, maid or driver has one too.

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Why are keys the part people get wrong?

Because they feel like an afterthought, and in an Indian home more people hold them than you think.

Most owners spend hours on the pet's care sheet and seconds on the keys. But the key handover is where your home's security and your pet's safety meet. A lost key, a sitter locked out at 10 at night, or a maid who lets the dog out because nobody told her the sitter was coming are all common, and all avoidable.

Indian flats add their own layers. A housing society gate with a guard who logs visitors. A visitor app that needs approval. A cook who comes at 7, a maid at 10, a driver who parks the car. A neighbour who has had a spare for years. A digital lock that needs batteries. All of it belongs in the plan.

Keys only go to someone you have already checked. The RSPCA's advice is to meet a sitter before hiring and check their references and background. For a sitter you hire directly in India, see a government photo ID, and consider a police verification request: the Ministry of Home Affairs' Digital Police Portal lists verification for servants and employees among its citizen services.

Who has a key to your home, and what should each person know?

Make this list before you hand over a single key.

	What to tell them	The door rule
The pet sitter	Which keys open what, the lock's quirks, who else comes in and when.	Pet in a closed room before opening the main door.
Cook or maid	The sitter's name and visit times, and whether they should feed the pet (usually no).	Check where the pet is before opening the door; keep it closed while working.
Driver	That a sitter is coming, if the driver uses the flat or the parking key.	Does not enter the flat while you are away, unless agreed.
Trusted neighbour	That they hold the backup key, and when the sitter might need it.	Only lets in the named sitter, or opens for an emergency.
Family in the city	The sitter's details, and that they are the emergency backup.	Calls ahead before visiting, so the sitter is not surprised.
Security desk	The sitter's name, photo and dates; approval on the visitor app.	Lets the sitter in; does not hold keys unless you have agreed with a named person.

If you have hired household help directly and never verified them, the Digital Police Portal and state police portals take verification requests for employees.

What are the ways to give a sitter access?

Each works. Pick the one that leaves the fewest copies of your key in the fewest places.

Simplest
In person, at the meet and greet or the day before
You see who has the key, show them the lock, and agree when it comes back. The best option when you can.
Backup
A spare with a trusted neighbour
Good as the backup, so a sitter locked out at night has somewhere to go. Make sure the neighbour knows the sitter by name and face.
No copies
A digital lock with a temporary code
No key to lose, and you can change the code when you are back. Check the batteries before you leave and know the backup key or override.
Use with care
A lockbox with a code
Useful if timings do not match. Fix it out of sight, use a code you change afterwards, and never label it with your flat number.
Avoid if you can
Keys with the security guard
Guards change shifts and staff. If you must, give them to a named supervisor in a sealed envelope and ask for a signature both ways.

What should you do at the key handover?

Do these in person the day before you leave, if you can.

Hand keys only to a sitter you have met with your pet and whose ID you have seen. RSPCA (England and Wales)
Give only the keys they need: the main door, perhaps the grille. Not the bedroom almirah or the car.
Show them the lock, any quirks, the grille or safety door, and how to lock up properly.
Agree in writing when and how keys come back, along with the dates and visits. American Kennel Club
Leave a backup key with a trusted neighbour and tell the sitter who has it.
Approve the sitter on the society's visitor app or with the security desk, with their name, photo and dates.
Tell your household help the sitter's name and visit times.
Put away valuables, cash, documents and spare keys that are not needed.
For a digital lock, set a separate code for the sitter and check the batteries.
Take a photo of who holds which key, so you can check when you return.

What can go wrong with keys, and what is the fix?

If The sitter is locked out late at night, with your pet inside.
The neighbour's backup key, with the neighbour's number on the sitter's sheet. Test that the spare actually works.
If The digital lock's battery dies, or it locks on a power cut.
Fresh batteries before you leave, and the sitter told where the backup key or override is.
If The guard does not let the sitter in.
Approve the sitter in advance on the visitor app, and leave your number and the sitter's with the desk.
If The maid opens the door and the dog runs out.
Tell household help a sitter is coming, and agree a rule: pet in a closed room before the main door opens.
If A key is lost.
Change or rekey the lock when you return, especially if the key was labelled. Decide in advance who pays for that.
If You come back and are not sure who still has a key.
Collect the sitter's key at the handback, or change the digital code, and check your list.

Where should you never leave keys?

Do

Hand keys over in person whenever you can.
Keep a written list of everyone who holds a key.
Use a plain key ring with no flat number or name.
Change digital codes after every booking.

Don’t

Under the doormat, in a shoe rack, in a plant pot or on the door frame.
In the electricity meter box or the fire hose cabinet on your floor.
With whichever guard happens to be on shift.
Taped inside a parcel or letterbox.
Labelled with your flat number, society name or address.

When does each step happen?

At the meet and greet
Check ID, talk through access, and decide how keys will be handed over. RSPCA (England and Wales)
The day before
Hand over keys in person, show the lock, and introduce the sitter to the guard and, if possible, the household help.
During the booking
The sitter locks up after every visit and tells you about any problem with the lock straight away.
When you return
Collect the keys or change the digital code, check your key list, and update the society app to remove the visitor approval.

What else should you secure before a sitter comes?

Not because the sitter is untrustworthy, but because a clear house protects both of you.

Put away cash, jewellery and important documents, and lock rooms the sitter does not need to enter. Tell the sitter which rooms are open and which are not. If a room is locked, make sure no pet can get shut inside it. It protects the sitter as much as you: nobody can later say something went missing from a room they never entered.

If you use home cameras, tell the sitter where they are. Cameras in shared areas can reassure you that visits are happening, but say so openly, and do not put them in a bathroom or a room where a sitter staying overnight will sleep.

What changes when the sitter stays overnight?

More access, so more to agree in advance.

A sitter who stays in your home needs more than a door key. Agree which room they sleep in, which bathroom they use, whether they can use the kitchen and the washing machine, and whether guests are allowed (the usual answer is no). Show them the main switch, the inverter, the water pump or tank switch if your building has one, and the gas cylinder's valve.

Tell the security desk that the sitter will be in and out at all hours, and that they will stay overnight on the dates you give. If your society asks for a form or an ID copy for anyone staying over, fill it in before you leave. Finally, agree what the sitter should do if something goes wrong with the flat itself, such as a leak or a power trip, and leave the numbers of your plumber, electrician and building manager.

Going away soon? Tell us your dates.

A checked local sitter feeds, walks and keeps your pet company at home, follows your care sheet to the letter and sends a photo every day. Petym is opening city by city: send your dates and we will tell you when a sitter can take them.

Find a sitter How it works

Meet your sitter first, free
PAN-checked, first-aid trained
A photo every day
Pay through Petym, never cash

Questions owners ask

Is it safe to give a pet sitter my house keys?: It can be, if you have met the sitter with your pet, checked their ID and references, and hand keys over in person with a clear plan. Give only the keys they need, leave a spare with a trusted neighbour, tell the security desk and household help, and collect the keys or change codes afterwards.
Should I leave my keys with the security guard for the sitter?: Avoid it if you can. Guards change shifts and you may not know who holds the key. Hand keys to the sitter in person instead. If you must use the desk, give them to a named supervisor in a sealed envelope, and ask for a signature when they are handed on and returned.
Is a digital lock better than giving a pet sitter a key?: It avoids copies of your key. Set a separate code for the sitter and change it when you return. Check the batteries before you leave, and tell the sitter where the backup key or override is, in case the lock fails or the power goes off.
What if my pet sitter loses my house key?: Change or rekey the lock when you return, especially if the key was labelled with your address. Agree in advance, in writing, who pays for a replacement. A spare with a trusted neighbour means your pet is not locked out of care in the meantime.
Should my maid or cook know that a pet sitter is coming?: Yes. In many Indian homes the cook or maid also has a key. Tell them the sitter's name and visit times, ask them not to feed the pet unless agreed, and agree a door rule: the pet goes into a closed room before anyone opens the main door.
Can I get police verification for a pet sitter I hire directly?: Usually, yes. State police services take verification requests for people you employ, and the Ministry of Home Affairs' Digital Police Portal lists verification for servants and employees. Check your state police portal for the exact process before you hand over keys.
What should I do with the keys after the pet sitter leaves?: Collect every key at the handback and check them against your list. Change any digital lock code you shared. Remove the sitter's visitor approval on the society app. If you use the same sitter often, agree in writing whether they keep a key and how it is stored.
Should I give the pet sitter my car keys or gate remote?: Only if they need them for the booking, such as driving your pet to the vet, and only with clear agreement on when they may be used. Otherwise keep car keys and remotes out of the set you hand over. For vet trips, an app cab or auto with a carrier or leash is usually simpler.

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Sources

Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources

RSPCA (England and Wales): Pet sitting (opens in a new tab)checked 21 October 2026
Ministry of Home Affairs (Digital Police Portal, NCRB): Digital Police Portal: citizen services, including verification requests for servants and employees (opens in a new tab)checked 21 October 2026
American Kennel Club: How to select a pet sitter (opens in a new tab)checked 21 October 2026