When you’re planning a vacation, pet care may not be foremost on your mind. But it deserves your close attention well before the day of departure.

If kenneling doesn’t suit your buddy, you’ll need to set up home care that’s both reliable and pet-friendly. While it may be easy to turn to a neighbor, friend or relative, they might not be up to the task. For example, will they commit to taking your dog out three times a day — or be willing to regularly change your bunny’s bedding or your cat’s litter?

A good pet sitter will do all these things and more. They’ll be familiar with animal behavior, know what to do in case of an emergency and have experience giving medication, if that’s necessary. Above and beyond these things, they’ll want to spend time with your pet in order make the stay-cation a fun one.