Lynnwood mom shocked when dog sitter was caught smoking something on home surveillance

A Lynnwood mom is still reeling after what home surveillance cameras revealed a dog sitter doing inside her house this past weekend.

While 100 miles away during a trip to Leavenworth, Brooklyn Gallison watched through home surveillance as the hired sitter through Rover brought a strange man into her home, as well as another dog. Then this strange man pulled out a torch lighter and started smoking something from a pipe.

It is a nightmare for any parent or any homeowner to see a stranger abusing your trust inside your own house.

"It just feels gross," she said.

Rover’s website states, "book trusted sitters and dog walkers"-- something Gallison thought she was doing. 

"I feel violated every single day so far. I go to bed thinking about that guy in my house, sitting where my children sit," said Gallison.

The incident happened in Gallison’s garage, where she and her husband had all of their children’s Christmas gifts.

Gallison hired a professional crew to clean and test the area for hazardous material. She says she is worried her young family’s holiday will be ruined and that the gifts could be contaminated with whatever they were smoking. 

"My kids don’t understand, and I don’t want to disappoint them," she said.

According to Rover’s website, safety is their top priority. Rover’s website states they offer two different kinds of background checks for their sitters, which look into things like criminal history and records.

FOX 13 News reached out to Rover regarding this incident. They responded with this statement:

We understand the trust that Ms. Gallison placed in her pet sitter, and we are deeply upset this trust has been violated.

Our Trust and Safety team is actively investigating this situation and we will continue to support Ms. Gallison and her family. In addition to fully refunding the service, we have removed this sitter from the platform while we continue to communicate with Ms. Gallison about ways we can best support her. Our pets are part of our families, and earning and maintaining our community’s trust is a top priority for Rover.

While even one negative experience is too many, this is far from the typical experience on Rover. In the Seattle area, over 850,000 stays have been booked with 97% of reviewed stays receiving five stars.

-Dave Rosenbaum, Public Relations Rover

Gallison said she is sharing her story to warn other families.

"This has put my entire family and mental health at a high," she said.

Gallison says her family is out thousands of dollars already just for the cost of cleaning and that number will only increase if they have to clear out parts of their home due to this incident.

Gallison says she contacted police. The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office told FOX 13 News they are aware of the situation.

The pair have not been charged.

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