Etiquette Dilemma: Should You Bring a Gift for Cat-Sitting?

AITA for not getting a gift after someone watched my cat? Reddit post sparks debate on proper pet-sitting etiquette and showing appreciation.

Damjan

Published in Interesting
9 Mar 2026

Etiquette Dilemma: Should You Bring a Gift for Cat-Sitting?

Some friendships run on “no big deal” energy, until a tiny comment turns it into a whole etiquette debate. In this Reddit post, OP thought she was doing the normal, low-stress thing: asking a friend to watch her cat for a quick weekend while she was gone for a wedding.

[ADVERTISEMENT]

OP’s cat is low maintenance, the friend lives about 10 minutes away, and the favor was accepted pretty casually. Before leaving, OP stocked everything up, made the apartment easy to navigate, and even told her friend to relax, use the streaming services, and help herself to snacks.

[ADVERTISEMENT]

But when OP got back and thanked her, the friend later dropped the line, “Usually people at least bring back a gift or something.” Now OP is stuck wondering if she broke an unspoken rule, even though it was never discussed.

Original Post

I (24F) asked my friend (25F) if she could watch my cat for a weekend while I was out of town for a wedding. It was about two and a half days total.

My cat is pretty low maintenance. My friend lives only about 10 minutes away and said yes pretty casually when I asked, like it wasn’t a big deal.

Before I left, I stocked everything up and made it as easy as possible. I also told her she could h**g out at my apartment, use my streaming services, snacks, whatever.

When I got back, I thanked her and told her I really appreciated it. A few days later she made a comment like, “Usually people at least bring back a gift or something when someone pet-sits for them.” I was kind of caught off guard because she never mentioned expecting anything beforehand.

I didn’t think of it as a paid or formal favor, more like a normal friend helping another friend out. Now I’m wondering if I accidentally broke some kind of unspoken rule?

Some of my friends say a thank you is enough, but others say it’s common to bring back a small gift or dinner as a thank-you. AITA for not getting her a gift after she watched my cat for the weekend?