Sam

Hello :) I am Sam, born and raised in Sydney's Northern Beaches.

I'm currently planning my 2020 housesits so please feel free to get in contact for pet-sitting in 2020 or just to enquire :) Currently I am booked for all of April and May but all other dates are available.

About me:

- 32yo, Single, Non-smoker

- Work remotely as a software engineer

- Clean & tidy

- Quiet & courteous

- Love animals and have lots of experience looking after dogs and cats; checking for ticks, administering medication, feeding and general well-being.

- I enjoy gardening and am happy to do general house upkeep and garden maintenance whilst house-sitting (its good exercise aswell :)).

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I enjoy pet sitting as much as the pets do (I hope they do :)). So far I have done pet-sitting in West Ryde - Sydney, Bethania - Brisbane, Edmonton - Cairns and Highland Park - Gold Coast. I think my lifestyle suits pet and house-sitting; I'm a quiet tidy person (please view my airbnb reviews for cleanliness :)). I work remotely on my laptop so house/pet sitting allows me to see around Australia whilst also looking after pets/house which I enjoy doing.

My house-sit/pet-sit checklist:

If I were to pet sit your place these are some of thing we would organise to make sure your pets and house keep well maintained and for your peace-of-mind:

- What is the pets daily routine (when/where do they eat, how much they eat, walking routine - on leash or off, medications, any ailments to be aware of)

- Any gardening or house upkeep that should be done regularly

- Atleast 2 different methods to contact yourself. Preferably more than 1 person to contact incase one person isn't available.

- It's good to meet yourself before you go on your holiday to meet the pets with you there, get shown where their bowls are, etc.

- If your dog is anxious around new people it would be good to have an item from someone in the family that has their scent on it. With anxious, skittish cats it's sometimes best to keep them inside for the first couple of days to get used to me and so they don't go looking for you and get lost. But its all up to you, you'll know what works best for your pets.

- Do the dogs play nice with other dogs or kids? Do the dogs like traveling in the car? Can I take them to a cafe with me :) Does the fish tank need water changing, etc.

Feel free to organise a meeting to further discuss :)

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In my house-sitting experience so far I have pet-sat;

- 2 Whippets named Figaro and Hector

- 1.75 cats named Kimba and Kwuan (Kwuan only had 3 legs, was deaf and a little bit blind)

- 9 chickens

- 7 Koi fish

- 3 Gold fish

- 1 Shitzu x King Charles Cavalier

- 2 Border Collies (a brother & sister) named Chewy & Mae

- 1 Bullmastiff x Staffie (5 month old puppy) named Tani

I also have regularly pet sat my sisters dog Singe and my brothers dog Bella (for 2 weeks every couple of months); taking them for walks, administering medication in their meals or via water syringe and generally keeping them happy. Singe was adopted from owners whose house had recently caught fire, thus the name Singe :), she is a very friendly dog albeit a bit of garbage bin that will try to eat anything. Bella is a pug cross King-charles, friendly, a bit anxious, easy to look after.

I have 2 cats that currently live at my parents. Leo (14yo, Birman Ragdoll) was adopted from family friends moving back to the UK and Pickles (2yo, Ragdoll) was adopted from a local vet. Both are skittish cats, seems like Ragdoll cats always are, so I have experience building new relationships with shy animals - lots of patiently coaxing out cats from under beds, making sure they eat and stay in the house the first week they arrive, etc. I would do the same with your cats aswell.

I've grown up with lots of family pets such as a Silky cross Maltese Terrier named Pippi, and lots of family cats; Romeo, Grease, Chloe, Tatty, Ginger and Basil.