Would you ever contact another provider for information?

[Judy Trickett]

I have never done it, but I have had it done to me. It's dishonest, and I don't condone it. I have no problem with other providers looking at my site for pricing etc, as they are not deliberately misleading me.

I agree. It IS sneaky and dishonest. But, would you condone it if you were highly suspect it was a warehouser or someone otherwise operating illegally? I say this because a few providers I know knew of someone who had THIRTEEN kids in her care (only 5 allowed in Ontario) and she left them with her 14 year old son to care for while she routinely went running errands. Eventually someone called on her and we got her shut down. Now, for THAT reason I do NOT think it is deceitful but more like detective work to keep our profession professional.

When it was done to me, I was desperate to sign another family, and the person who contacted me acted like they were ready to interview. I found it sneaky and to be honest, kinda mean. The person wasn't even smart enough to change her name.

I also agree. And the biggest kicker to me is that I will willingly help ANY provider if they had just called me up and asked. They didn't need to be sneaky.