---
name: babysit
description: >-
  Watch an open PR/MR until it's green or merged — poll checks, kick stalled
  CI, rerun flakes, catch late review threads. Use for /babysit, "babysit it
  to green", "watch it", "keep an eye on CI", or any stay-on-it ask after a
  PR handoff.
---

# Babysit

Stay on the PR after handoff until it's actually done. Being asked to babysit
IS the ask to poll — but report state changes only, no heartbeats, no
per-poll narration.

## Loop

1. Snapshot: `gh pr view <N> --json
   state,mergeable,mergeStateStatus,reviewDecision,statusCheckRollup,autoMergeRequest`
   plus `gh pr checks <N>`.
2. Poll inside bounded shell loops (a single `for` with `sleep 30`–`60`
   between iterations), not one message per check. Keep watcher scripts, logs, and state outside disposable worktrees, and use a stable working directory; other sessions may remove a merged PR's worktree while its watcher is running. If a watcher fails, recheck the service directly and resume only the remainder of the original deadline. A failed monitor is not a failed deployment.
3. React by cause:
   - **CI never started** → kick it:
     `git commit --allow-empty -m "chore: kick CI" && git push`.
   - **Red caused by this branch** → fix it (the `pr-ready` loop), push,
     resume watching on the new SHA.
   - **Flake / infra red** → rerun the failed jobs; repeat until green. Note
     the flake in one line with the run link.
   - **New review threads** → handle per `pr-ready` (fix or reply, verify
     resolved via the forge API), resume.
4. Repeat until done. A push or rerun is progress, not an exit.

## Merging

Arm automerge only when the user explicitly asks to merge or enable automerge.
"Make CI green", "babysit", and "watch it" authorize checks and repairs, not
merging. End at green with threads resolved unless merge authorization is explicit.

## CI quirks

- `gh run rerun` refusing with "already running" → cancel the run first,
  then rerun.
- A cancelled run showing "no checks reported" is pending, not red — wait
  for it to re-report before calling it either way.
- Rollup gates ("All required checks pass") go red because a leaf did —
  diagnose the leaf failure, never the gate.

## Done when

Re-query the forge — don't trust that a push went green or a rerun stuck.
Merged, or every check green with no unresolved threads. Fail closed: any
red or open thread means keep watching. Wrap up with the PR/MR link and what
the watch consumed — reruns used, kicks, fixes pushed.

## Scope

- **In:** watching an open PR, kicking stalled CI, rerunning flakes, small
  branch-caused fixes, late review threads.
- **Out:** opening or refreshing the PR (`pr-update`, `cpr`), full
  rebase/red-CI overhauls (`pr-ready`), other people's PRs (`pr-triage`),
  merging unasked.