We’ve been house and pet sitting full time since January 2018, caring for over 100 homes and more than 300 pets in that time! No two house sits are the same and we love that our days look different from week to week – there’s never a dull moment! We truly believe that hiring pet sitters to stay at your house is the best option for your pets when you’re away from home, instead of asking friends or using kennels. Here are just 3 reasons why having a live-in pet sitter is beneficial:
Personalised care for your pets
Live-in pet sitters are there to slip seamlessly into the routine that you have with your pets, ensuring that all animals are happy and cared for 24/7. It’s a pet sitter’s job to focus on the wellbeing of the animals in their care no matter what this entails. We once completed a house sit where a Border Collie was used to 4 or more hours of exercise a day; in contrast we’ve also completed house sits where the dogs aren’t walked at all, and instead need a watchful eye as they freely roam the grounds or garden. Whether dogs get fed raw food, cats are used to sleeping in their owner’s bedroom at night, horses need daily grooming or any pets need hours of playtime, it’s a pet sitter’s responsibility to tailor the care they give to each animal’s individual needs. It’s win-win for everyone – animals get to stay in their routine, and you can relax knowing they’re safe and happy at home!
Unlike kennels or other boarding facilities that house multiple pets at any one time, by hiring a live-in pet sitter your pets receive individual care and attention. We gladly provide updates, photos and videos while we’re at a pet sit, so owners can see how happy their furry/scaly/feathered babies are! For some animals, like alpacas, donkeys and snakes, boarding just isn’t an easy option – and these are just some of the more unusual pets we’ve cared for! The same goes for anxious, special needs, or reactive dogs – in these cases, there is a HUGE difference between hiring an experienced, professional sitter who is well-equipped for the task, and asking a friend or neighbour. Meeting every need of the pets is our job, and we’re happy to administer medications, reinforce any training and work with behavioural issues as instructed. When you hire a pet sitter to live at your home while you’re away, animals can stay surrounded by their familiar scents, toys and beds which helps to alleviate any anxiety about their owner leaving. Animals settle with new people much quicker than they do with new surroundings, and owners are often surprised to see how fast their pets are snuggling up with us!
House care
Another element of a live-in pet sitter’s job is to keep the house running as if the owner had never left. A sitter will be at home to receive any deliveries – taking in mail and parcels – as well as keeping everything ticking over with the house, including but not limited to topping up bird feeders, taking out bins and watering plants. Having a sitter live at your home is particularly beneficial in terms of security, especially for longer trips away – a sitter staying in the house shows passersby and potential burglars that someone is at home, by turning on lights and drawing curtains in the evening, and in some cases having a vehicle parked on the driveway. In terms of home care, on a few occasions we’ve been staying at a house when a boiler has failed or a pipe has burst, and we were able to communicate with the home owners to get the problem fixed as soon as possible. We dread to think what could have happened in these situations if no-one was home!
A good house sitter will clean and tidy up after themselves as they go, aiming to leave a house in the same condition or better than when they arrive, so you can come home and relax knowing everything has been taken care of! We always wash and dry our bedding and towels before we leave, and do a thorough clean of the house to ensure there’s nothing an owner will need to do to tidy up after our stay. Hiring someone to live in your home is a very personal arrangement, and it’s something that every professional sitter is mindful of – we never take for granted how much trust is placed in us. Which brings us to…
Finding someone your pets love and trust
As well as hiring someone that you are comfortable handing over your home and pets to, booking a sitter means finding someone that your pets will love and bond with too! As we now have so many years of pet sitting experience, the majority of pet sits we take on are repeats, with some feeling like second homes to us as the owners take multiple trips a year. In these cases, their pets greet us like family friends and are settled with us straightaway! If you have a particularly nervous pet, or a very structured routine, having someone who knows the drill will make all the difference to your pets’ wellbeing while you’re away.
A professional pet sitter is adept at being flexible not just in terms of adhering to a routine, but in the logistics of the house sit too. If you need someone to arrive at 7am because you have an early flight, that’s part of a sitter’s job! If you hire a professional sitter who is more than happy to carry out three dog walks a day as it’s part of their job, it’s a weight off your shoulders knowing you’re not asking a friend or family member to begrudgingly do so. Once you’ve found a pet sitter that knows your home and has truly bonded with your pets, it makes it SO much easier to leave for a trip without worrying if everything will be ok while you’re away!
We are Chris+Suze
