What Makes an Awesome Pet Sitter?
Finding a pet sitter for your beloved fur babies can be a tricky business. Trusting the care of your pets into the hands of someone else while you’re away isn’t easy, but if you are able to find the right person to do the job, your travel anxieties will be alleviated considerably. We have been blessed with an amazing cat sitter, and what a difference that has made! Though we miss the kitties a ton when we go out of town, we can rest easy knowing that they are being incredibly well cared for.
So what makes our pet sitter so awesome? I’m glad you asked!
1. She has a sincere love for animals. It was obvious to me when Gena came over to our house for the first time to be introduced to the gang. She was gentle with them and didn’t force herself on them if they were being shy. The kitties warmed up to her and seemed to like her too, which is always a good sign. She also has a Facebook page for her pet sitting business, on which she shares posts about lost/found animals in the community in addition to various other animal-related things. It is clear how much she cares for animals.
2. She attends to all of our cats’ needs. With five cats, two of which are special needs, there are a lot of things to manage when watching our gang. Sophie is wobbly, Sassy has to be kept separate from everyone, there are multiple litter boxes that need scooping, Caster eats in this room, Sampson eats in that room, and God forbid DON’T OPEN ANY CANS UNTIL EVERYONE IS IN THEIR RESPECTIVE EATING ROOMS! When I explained all of this to Gena on her initial visit, she didn’t balk or run for the hills. She took it all in, asked questions, and genuinely wanted to be sure that she knew exactly what needed to be done. And she continues to manage it all flawlessly.
3. She texts me after every visit. “Hi Emily, the cats have been fed, litter boxes are scooped, and we enjoyed some play time. Everyone is doing great!” These short but sweet text messages give me so much peace of mind. I am a huge worrier, and I can sometimes let my imagination get carried away with all kinds of worst-case scenarios. Getting Gena’s updates is always a huge relief.
4. She is there for us at a moment’s notice when there is a family emergency. When Bobby’s grandmother passed away earlier this year or when my grandmother fractured her spine – times when we weren’t able to give her advanced notice that we would be in need of her services – we were able to call on Gena the day before we had to go out of town, and she was there for us. During difficult times like those, not having to worry about whether or not the cats were getting taken care of was such a blessing.
5. She goes the extra mile. Not only does Gena attend to the cats’ needs, she does all kinds of extra things that we didn’t even ask or expect of her. If there are dishes left in the sink, she cleans them. She sweeps and tidies up the litter box area. She opens and closes blinds (okay, I do ask her to do that, but I consider it an extra). I swear our house always looks better than how we left it. It is a pleasant surprise every time we come home!
I understand that finding a trustworthy and able pet sitter isn’t always easy. We didn’t find Gena right off the bat. We went through a few duds too. This is why, if you are in search of a pet sitter, I highly suggest interviewing them first – find out what services they offer, and have a checklist of things that you expect from them. And then once you find the perfect one, don’t. ever. move. And don’t let him/her move either 😉
*If you live in the Macon, Georgia area, I highly recommend calling up Gena the next time you need a pet sitter! You can get in touch with her on her Facebook page.
We love our pet sitter! I’ve only met her once, since my human usually takes me when she goes out of town, but Binga and Boodie have known her for years. She loves us. She quit pet sitting for a while, but she missed it and came back, and we were SO relieved!
Meowmy sure wishes we could find a pet sitter like yours!! Wow!
She sounds a true treasure:)
Your sitter sounds wonderful! It’s really hard to find a good sitter. I thougt we found a good one once…but turned out she was not very reliable 🙁 I wonder if she would make a special trip to north Georgia to take care of our kitties 🙂
Yes, it sounds like you’ve found a wonderful pet sitter! We’ve never had a sitter.
What a great post! I have been through many mediocre sitters. I do have a great one now, though!
What a great post, thanks so much for sharing it with us.
Dat’s wunnewful yous found sumpawdy yous can count on and twust. Mommy sez she wuld be tewwified to twust anypawdy wiff our care. She sez weez be so spoiled nopawdy wuld take care of us wight. Have a gweat day.
Luv ya’
Dezi and Lexi
guys…..de food serviss gurl haza friend out west who finded a reel lee good pet sitter on de site called CARE.Com.
they are nationwide
after goin thru sum crazed peepulz, R pals gleek Inky & Newman be blessed ta find ther current sitter …N her loves them & mor important lee…they like her !!
we iz happee ewe finded yur purrfect pet sitter…coz itz a lot less stress on mom, dad & ewe !!
Gena sounds great. Being a pet sitter, myself, I definitely agree with your points. I have a hard time when I hire a pet sitter, even though I am one! It’s tough to trust.
Many times, I walk into a situation where a client has not been happy with their pet sitter in the past, so I feel great when they are happy with me and recommend me to their friends.
Great post!
How wonderful to have a trusted caretaker you can trust, especially on a moment’s notice! That’s superb.
By the by, I nominated you to do an “8 photos of happiness” challenge blog post. You always have such amazing photos; I thought you might enjoy it.
http://dionjean.blogspot.com/2015/07/need-pick-me-up-try-8-photos-of.html
You are very blessed to have her.
We want your pet sitter! We’ve had a hard time finding a good one around here.
Wow, she sounds like a great cat sitter! We don’t have a regular sitter now, but the sittiner for our previous generation of cats was similar, only he had to send email since we didn’t text back then. It sure helps humans feel at ease when their cat sitter keeps them in the loop.
I know how important it is to have someone take care of pets whom you can trust to “do it right.” I used to have a great woman, but she decided to become a pet groomer after a while, and I haven’t found anyone who came near her in the care department. I’m still searching.
Wow, she sounds awesome! She’s got everything I would want in a pet sitter! If I ever need to find one, I’ll need one who can work with special needs kitties, too. Too bad your pet sitter can’t be all over the country at once, LOL! 🙂
You are very lucky to have found someone to pet sit. There are way too many cats here to get a pet sitter. So I just stay home which is just fine with me. That gal sure sounds terrific. You all have a great day.
You have a pawesome sitter! We had a sitter once but Angel hid so Mommy didn’t know if she was okay for 4 days! Now every time mommy and daddy go somewhere, our Grandpa from Kansas comes to Oregon to stay with us.
Purrs,
Isabella
What an excellent post, Emily. For years our humans had various friends who also had kitties and they would each watch the others, which worked purrfectly. Suddenly, several years ago, the last of these friends moved away, and the humans had to find someone else. We used a service for years that our neighbors recommended and it worked out fine, but, for various reasons, our housekeeper Chris now cares for us. We know her really well and she never lets our parents come home to a dirty house. And she brings us nip and treats. Finding the right person can be really hard. So happy that Gena takes good care of you. Astrid sends Sampy all her love and is blowing kisses in his direction. Love and hugs to all. XOCK, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth and Calista Jo
Great post, Emily! I pet sit too so I know how important it is to be able to give your clients peace of mind while they are away.
It is always so nice when you have someone you can rely on!
You are very blessed to have her.
You are very blessed to have her.