Questions to Ask to Promote a Happy House Sit

     Tell us about garbage pickup, recycling and composting in your area.

“Every second Tuesday is garbage pickup and you set out the black container. You use the black bags for garbage. Every other Tuesday, you set out the recycling stuff and that goes in the blue container. You use blue bags for that. Also, you set out the compostable stuff with the recyclable things but you have them in a separate white bag.”

“Oh, we don’t have garbage pickup out here. Just burn it. You can put the returnable bottles and stuff in the back of the car port.”

“Please put the compost material in the compost bin in the garden. I’ll deal with it when I get home.”

Learn about the neighbourhood garbage cycles

Tell us about your neighbours.

“You may not have much luck with the guy in that house. Last year, his dogs attacked ours and he blamed us for not building a proper fence. Since then, we’ve put up a double fence which has prevented any more problems.”

“The neighbours below us are great and know everything about the dogs. They have a key to our house. I’ve written their phone number on the routine document we prepared for you.”

“The neighbours next door were aggressive toward my husband while we were building this house. You should just ignore him.”

Learn about the neighbours

Please let us know about any medications you give your pets.

“We’ve prepared a card for you showing who gets what, how much and when.”

“Oh, we didn’t write anything down. We’ll explain it to you when you get here.”

“Clem has a half dose of meloxicam each morning for arthritis. Give it to him in a small one inch long piece of banana. Bella also gets a half dose of meloxicam each morning for arthritis. It also goes in a small piece of banana. In her piece of banana, Bella also gets a half dose of methocarbamol muscle relaxant.”

Learn about the pet's medications

    Happy house and pet sitting.

Two Blind Dogs

Two blind dogs,

Two blind dogs,

See how they run,

See how they run,

They bump into each other

In all kinds of weather

And they all fall down.

These two well-trained Labrador Retrievers don’t miss a beat while they are being walked, but they are blind. Their owners have been issuing voice commands for the older one for years and the younger dog has only recently been diagnosed with vision loss. The older white-coloured lab knows her way around but we must watch her when she gets up from her bed as she tends to wander toward the stairs to the basement and on one occasion, as told to us by her owners, tumbled down the steps. Now, there is a gate to block access to the stairs. 

Frank with two blind dogs

Our view walking the dogs

 We’ve been witness to them both bumping into objects including each other, exaggerating their stride with a high-step gait, walking with great caution and rambling with their nose to the ground. The older one’s eyes are coated white while the yellow-coloured younger one has enlarged pupils.

Refreshing hike with the dogs

We talk to them regularly and spend time with them throughout the day in the front room where their beds are located. The younger one swishes his large tail to indicate his cooperation while the older one remains still. We are left with the impression that they are each other’s best friend. They grew up together in Australia and travelled with their owners here to Canada.

Their walk ends at the gate

They are a magnificent breed and we love them.

Happy House and Pet Sitting

Big Valley - Big Hopes

Wooden grain elevator & Red River cart

“There’s a small house just across the street and down a bit,” the woman says. “It just went on the market.”

Frank and I look at each other and we seem to lock into the same idea. Hmmm. Let’s go have a look.

We are excited about the prospect of purchasing a place in this animated town of Big Valley. It offers a wealth of volunteer and possible employment opportunities. At this posting time, there is a call for part-time bus drivers, a part-time town Administrative Assistant, and various opportunities to entertain the visitors who arrive by train each weekend during the summer months.

We learn a great deal of the history of the town from the Mayor, the librarian, and the shopkeepers at the local café.

Replica of a Red River cart

“The grain elevator is not an official Alberta Historical Society colour but it is one of the last preserved examples of a traditional wooden grain elevator. We’re satisfied with its colour,” the Mayor says. “Also, to answer your question about the Red River cart, it’s not authentic. We do use it in our parade, though.” 

“The building we’re in was purposely built in this rustic theme to bolster the history of the town and more specifically to show off the Jimmy Jock story,” the shopkeeper says. We learn that it was once a Chinese café.

Jimmy Jock Boardwalk beside historic bank building

This morning, Frank is hiking up the hill to St. Edmund’s Church. It’s fully restored, operational and under the care of the Big Valley Historial Society – another volunteer opportunity.

Blue Church on the Hill

Big Valley Railway Station

Together on the street, we are greeted by ‘Eddy’, a local who offers us a tour of the Big Valley Railway Depot. The artefacts and displays are well laid out. The visitors are greeted by the locals and given a tour of the town and a meal. Yes, another opportunity to volunteer dressed in period costume.

We are met later by a realestate agent from Stettler, who shows us the small house. We are surprised and intrigued by it, and put in a bid. We haven’t heard from the lady since.

Big Valley is a community filled with enthusiasm and hope. Travel north of Highway 56 from Drumheller or south from Camrose, and enjoy the ambiance.

Devocalized in Calgary

We arrive at our Calgary house and pet-sit in early September 2016 and are introduced to a dog that has undergone devocalization.

“Her name is Shar. She’s a gentle, well-behaved 13-year-old Sheltie,” her owner says.

“She’s lovely,” I say and pat the top of her head.

She nuzzles up to Frank and he responds with a stroke down her back.

Shar follows her owner, Frank, and me into the front room. We sit for a while before the homeowner introduces us to all the procedures he needs us to follow with regard to maintaining the pristine condition of his house. He has prepared a procedure bullet list for us which makes it much easier to follow the house rules. For example, 'put the garbage out on Thursday evening for the early Friday morning pick up.'

Frank and Shar on her daily walk

Another daily routine at this house and pet-sit arrangement includes Shar’s morning walk. She is leash trained. She is very cooperative and stops when we stop, rests regularly to relax her arthritic back leg, and uses her nose to identify what’s going on in her neighborhood.

Suddenly, she spots a large rabbit and lunges at it. Frank holds onto the leash and makes a comment. 

White Tailed Jack Rabbit

“Is she barking?” he says.

We listen and watch her head move forward. The noise coming from her throat sounds like a muffled Crow’s caw. We learn later from her owner that the breeder apparently got in trouble from her neighbours for all the noise her Shelties made. She took the bylaw warning seriously and decided to have all her dogs ‘devocalized’. Here’s the definition we found on the Internet:

Devocalization (also known as ventriculocordectomy or vocal cordectomy and when performed on dogs is commonly known as debarking or bark softening) is a surgical procedure applied to dogs and cats, where tissue is removed from the animal's vocal cords to permanently reduce the volume of their vocalizations.

Susan with Shar

Shar barks at squirrels, other dogs, cats, rabbits, and whatever is outside her house belonging to the animal kingdom. We believe that she thinks that’s her true voice, and for her, since her young years, it is.

We consider our daily outings with Shar the Sheltie  as mini-adventures. She is captivated by her surroundings. While we admire lawn ornaments, parks, signs, and stuff people put in the back alley, she trots along with her nose wide open, her limited vision, and her sensitive arthritic legs. She’s a wonderful dog and is very grateful to arrive home after her walk to rest on her padded bed.

A sample of neighbourhood lawn ornaments

A sample of  a back alley item

A local park

Questions to Help Promote a Happy House Sit

"Please tell me about the rodent problem in your area."

Rodents come in various sizes, shapes, and categories. They are small mammals which have sharp front teeth. Rats, mice, and squirrels are rodents.

We sat a house and five animals on an acreage in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island and several of the rat-beasts got into our recreational vehicle. They made a nasty mess.

As our problem continued, we learnt from the locals that the rodent problem in this area is considered an epidemic situation. Sadly, we had not thought to ask the homeowner about the rodent problem in their area and regrettably, they did not inform us of the wide-spread critical condition.

Rat damage under the hood

We spent several hundred dollars to have all the holes in our RV filled, some tubing under the hood replaced, and a new windshield washer tank, and many hours cleaning our home back to its original condition.

Be a wise and confident house and pet sitter and ask as many questions as you like of your next client. An open-ended query like the one above will show diligence on your part as a competent home and pet carer.

“You stated in your advertisement that you are offering a car. What is the make and model of the vehicle? Is it a standard or automatic transmission?”

Standard or automatic?

Our experience with a homeowner offering a vehicle turned out to be false. We took their online offer to be of value and did not question their proposition of a car during our phone interview. When we arrived there was no mention of a vehicle. They left for the airport in one.

We’ve discovered that if you ask about the vehicle, the owner will have to explain the situation and make it clear to you that there is a car for you to use or there is not.

Open-ended questions will initiate a conversation between you and the pet/homeowner and lead down a path to clarity.

“When was the last time you left your pet in the care of someone else?”

It was explained to us by one of our pet owners that they had never let their dogs on their own for any length of time. They always brought them along, no matter the short-distance destinations. “This will be the first time we’ve ever left them alone with anyone,” this pet owner said.

Dog's comfort stations

This conversation is essential for you to overcome any obstacles to your having the best experience with their pet. You might like to suggest that they try leaving their pet alone for a short time with a favourite toy or laying comfortably in their cage. Usually, the pet owner will come up with their own ideas, as they should, and this puts the training responsibility on them.

Our pet sitting policy is to attend to the animals as carers and not trainers.

What are some of your pet and house sitting policies?

A Mouse in the House

"Honey, what's that noise?" I say.

"It's mice chewing on the mattress. Grab your pillow, we'll sleep on the couch upstairs," Frank says.

Three days prior, we had arrived at a scheduled house and pet-sit on a small farm just outside the Hamlet of Islay, Alberta.

“Hey. Hi. Welcome,” says our newest client. She extends her hand to me and I shake it enthusiastically. She turns to Frank and says hello. Her young daughter, a mystery breed of cat, and a Mai-shi dog are standing with her.

“We’re so happy that you’ve come. That’s Koda.” She is pointing to the male Staffordshire Terrier tethered to a large tree by a thick chain and barking at the top of his lungs.

“He’s harmless although he does have a pretty ferocious bark,” she says.

I release her friendly grip and walk with her and Frank toward the dog. His tail is wagging and he seems happy. 

Frank and I have learnt not to approach a strange animal, especially if it is tied up or on a leash. We hold back and wait for its owner to stand beside it and grip its chain close to its neck.

Susan with Koda

“You can pet him if you want,” the little girl says.

We move a bit closer and immediately it puts its ears back, curls its tail between its legs and lets out a large yelp spewing saliva between its lips. The owner laughs but does not correct the behaviour. Days later, on our own with the animal, we earn its trust by taking him on long walks and rewarding his cooperation with scratches under his chin.

“Come into the house,” the homeowner says.

Great Pyrenees

She steps through the porch area where the Terrier sleeps at night. We can hardly hear what she is saying – the yapping of two over-the-top excited Great Pyrenees-Border Collie cross dogs are drowning her out. They leap recklessly at Frank and me. They’re held back by a plastic door gate. One is beige with caramel coloured ears and the other is white with a black patch on its left eye. They’re working hard at getting over the barrier – their intention is to get to us.

“You can pet them if you want,” the young girl says.

Frank puts his hand on my shoulder to relax my anxiety. I don’t like lunging, jumping, barking, uncontrolled dogs and here are two of them.

Border Collie

“These are the puppies I was telling you about,” the owner says. “They are very excitable.” 

She turns to her 19-year-old son and directs him to get their leashes. I hear the click of metal on metal but I’m not reassured that they are under control. In a flash, my worst fear comes true. The homeowner opens that gate and both dogs lunge at us pushing us back with their paws. They are standing on their hind feet. Instinctively, I raise my knee at Dot and then at Sophie. The teenager is struggling to control them.

“Dot, Sophie, stop!” the owner says. She takes the leads and pulls them both toward her. “They’re just puppies and are very excitable. I’ll bring them outside. They can go into their kennel.”

Frank the Dog Walker

Throughout our stay, they pushed, pulled, barked, and lunged at one another, Frank and me, and Koda. Koda’s gentleman-like mannerisms on a leash did not influence the two wide-eyed sisters. We walked all three large dogs every day.

“We also have three cats. Joker stays outside and hunts for his food; Charley eats mice and stuff and also comes inside for the cat food. Tipper, who we think is a Siamese, is sick with ulcers. We feed her the soft food. And, Baby, our little white dog, has cancer. We’ve stopped bringing them to the vet,” the owner says.

Frank and I exchange a straight-faced glance at one another. We hope for the best.

Sunny the Arabian Horse

Outside again, the owner brings us to meet ‘Sunny’, their lame Arabian mare. She’s a brown beauty with that strong bone structure common to the breed. She approaches us in a friendly stroll and stops at the well-chewed fence. We are instructed to feed her specific nutrient-filled pellets and to keep her water trough full.

“You can pet her if you want,” the sweet girl says.

Frank and I stroke her narrow face and sleek neck. She remains still and takes in the admiration and touch of the human race.

It was the best of times. The panoramic view from their front porch was breathtaking. The pitch-black nights presented a sky filled with star constellations, and the evening silence was broken only by the scampering sounds made by mice between the basement and upstairs floor.

The owner’s whispered message to me in their backyard, ‘We have mice’ comes to mind now. It never occurred to me that they lived in her house.

View from the front porch

Blessed Is The Spot

For The Love Of Pets

Rescued Dog

Why do some pet owners seeking pet sitters identify their domestic feline, canine or other members of the animal kingdom as a ‘rescue’? Are they under the impression that we, the pet sitter, will love them more?

According to animal psychologists, “It will always be a mystery to us precisely how our [pets] think of us and what their relationships with us mean to them.” ~ Psychology Today

Guess what I'm thinking now

Humans have the capacity to consider the past, be in the here and now, and contemplate the future. An animal lives in the flash, instant by second. They are instinctive and are moment by moment thinkers. 

As pet sitters, our duty is to care for the cat or dog or bird. Some of the advertisements for pet sitters we’ve read online put up a number of insecure requests and we sometimes roll our eyes at the demands expected of us. 

Some ads are enticing and encouraging, while others are unappealing and uninspiring.

See if you can tell the difference.

• Must love dogs
• Pet sitter needed for our rescue cat
• One horse requires meds daily, by mouth
• Must allow our dogs to sleep with you on our bed
• Pet sitter must be alpha or dog will disrespect you

Kitten's instinct is that a human's mouth may contain food

In the case of the must love dogs advertisement, we will care for your dog, cat, bird or horse, but we can't say that we will love them the same way you do. We take dispensing of love very seriously. We humans love each other, for example. We can look into each other's eyes and receive acknowledgment and reciprocation verbally, physically and spiritually. The animal you love stares back at you but it is likely waiting for a command or better yet, a food reward.

Carla Safina says Life is very vivid to animals. In many cases, they know who they are. They know who their friends are and who their rivals are. They have ambitions for higher status.  They compete. Their lives follow the arc of a career like ours do. We both try to stay alive, get food and shelter, and raise some young for the next generation. Animals are no different from us in that regard and I think that their presence here on Earth is tremendously enriching.

  

Cat Days in Luseland

Chapter One

Luseland, Saskatchewan is located on Highway 31 south of Denzil. Both towns are worth exploring.

This morning, we drive to our house and pet sitting job in Luseland. The new large farmhouse has been built around the original 100-year-old home. It is surrounded by a twenty-five-hundred-acre organic farm. We pull into the well-manicured property of Pearl and Allen and are met by them, their one dog, and a large cluster of cats. We learn that it’s Allen’s inherited haven and recently Pearl brought her three cats and her enthusiasm for hard work to the marriage.

Barn Cats

“The first thing I want to show you,” Pearl says, “are the cats in the barn. We’ve got twenty-five.”

I look to my right and watch as Frank follows Allen to where the large farm equipment is stored.

I sense a matter-of-fact tone in Pearl’s voice. I can tell that she keeps track of the exact number of felines in her care.

Before we reach the barn door, the scent of cat urine, feces, cat food, dead rodents and birds, birth, rotting wood, soiled carpet and fabric chairs fill my nostrils. Bile forms in the back my throat. I barely step over the threshold and the cat owner is deep into the building. I stand firm and look down at cats – too many to count. All eyes follow their provider as she makes her way to the feeding centre. The moment she opens the large dry cat food bag a stampede of cats encircles her feet. She pours their food into several metal containers and within seconds the eating frenzy begins. A little black kitten wobbles over to the trough and struggles to squeeze between the stronger ones. Pearl scoops a fistful of food into her left hand and brings the small feline to her face and kisses it.

“This little one needs lovin’”, she says. We want her to get used to humans so that she doesn’t stay feral. We feed them all, but I’m partial to this one."

Pearl thrusts the kitten at me.

"Here. Do you want to feed her?” she says.

More Barn Cats

The fragile feline is fur and bones. Its hair is slicked back from constant licking by its mother and perhaps other maternal females in the bunch. I see that its eyes are oozing with clear liquid. At that moment, it sneezes mucus onto my bare arm. I hold back my inclination to toss it to the ground. I continue to offer the little rascal morsels and it nibbles a few.

Pearl removes a rag from her jean pants pocket, wipes the goo from the mutt’s face and stuffs the wet cloth back into her pocket. She takes the kitty from me and presses it into her face.

“I’d like you to come to the barn a couple of times a day and cuddle with ‘Mixy’. She’s so cute”, she says.

I blink. Pearl sets the kitten back among the others.

“Let’s go into the house. My special cats are in there,” the homeowner says.

Once inside the cat-scented home, the training begins. She picks up each feline and reports on its medical condition. One has heart issues, another is depressed, a large black cat, I’m told, is friends with Toby the dog and sleeps all day on his cushy dog pad.

“This one doesn’t like to go outside much”, she says.

 A fourth indoor feline is old and never meows beyond a purr so Frank and I would have to watch for her scratching at the door to be let out or in. Its needs are quite evident based on the missing paint on all three doors.

Pearl walks throughout her three-story house and points out the various pee-pads taped securely to the walls. The fifth cat, apparently, has bladder issues and tends to spray the walls. I nod my head in approval.

Patio Garden at Farm House

We step outside so that she can have her cigarette. We are met on the patio by Frank and Allen. Allen is lighting up.

Later, that evening, Frank and I tuck into our motorhome and fix ourselves dinner. Frank explains his outdoor duties and I share my looking after the cats and dog obligations.

To reiterate, our purpose and duty are to care for the homeowner’s pets and property. Their duty is to provide us with a detailed list of chores and pet habits. We were negligent, in this instance, to ask for a policy and procedure document before we arrived. This particular couple had no such paperwork prepared. We’ve learnt another lesson.

Cat Days in Luseland

Chapter Two

I wake from a comfortable sleep in Big White. Frank is holding his clipboard so that we can record the farm sitting duties. When we do meet with the couple, what we hear is mostly about their illnesses and their long list of medication. Frank's face presents a sense of foreboding. 

Lillies Welcome Us At The Front Door

It’s day two of training at this Luseland house and pet sit arrangement. We knock on the house door and are welcomed in by the owners.

“Oh, Stinky,” Pearl is speaking to one of the house cats.

“This is the one with the bladder issues I told you about yesterday, Susan. I see that he’s now peeing beside the pads.” She’s bent over wiping away the urine.

We step over the kibbles and bits spread across the kitchen floor. Frank steps out the back door with Allen. Pearl asks me to join her in the basement. We approach the stairwell and I’m engulfed in the stench of what I guess to be cat-urine-soiled carpets. I learn later that two of your cats died downstairs.

“If one of our cats dies while we’re away, please use this”, she says and holds up a white plastic bag. “You can fold the cat in half and it fits perfectly into the bag; tie it up secure and put it here.”

Strawberries in a Bag

She reaches for the handle of the freezer and begins to pull it toward her. My mind swirls with ideas of my having to look at a packaged dead cat. She shuffles clear bags filled with berries from one side to another. “This is a good spot. There’s room enough for two”.

I release my breath.

Outside, Allen is teaching Frank how to operate the over-sized riding lawn mower. 

We hear a grinding sound and then a clunk. Pearl charges up the stairs, out the door and stands on the patio. She remarks to Frank that he’s ripped some bark off the tree. He ignores her because his ears are covered with muffs. She turns to me and tells me that Frank wasn’t very careful. I ignore her comment.

Later that day, we hear a tap at our RV door.

“We are sorry to tell you that we are both too sick to go on a vacation. You are welcome to stay as long as you like, but we won’t be needing your pet or house services,” Allen says.

Sadly, there was no offer of a stipend or compensation for our long distance of travel to care for their animals and property. We had turned down several other sittings to experience this one. Namao, AB to Luseland, SK -  387 kilometres. Too bad, so sad. 

We exchange niceties with the couple and advise them that we will be leaving the property today.

We are now left to ourselves and begin planning our three and a half weeks of travel adventure throughout Saskatchewan to visit family, friends and make new acquaintances. 

Ah, life is grand on the road

Our Luxury Home Sit

Sample of luxury home

Just a few kilometres north of the small hamlet of Namao, Alberta, is a dynamic series of paved roads leading to a panorama of luxury homes.

We were originally scheduled to care for a large dog at this home, but at the last minute, the owners advised us that they would be taking their pet with them. They still wanted us to manage the house – good for us and a wise decision on their part.

We feel strongly about the serious job we are performing as house and pet sitters. For one thing, the homeowner's insurance policy becomes void after the property has been vacant for 30 days.

Insurance policies offer limited coverage for vacant properties due to the increased risk of potential damage. Policy conditions vary widely but there is typically no coverage for vandalism, theft, water escape, or glass damage starting on the first day of the vacancy. After the property has been vacant for 30 days, the entire policy becomes void and there is no coverage for any damage, not even fire or windstorm. ~ http://www.brokerlink.ca/blog/vacant-properties/

We drove past a number of homes which we dubbed the rich and famous. We knew nothing of this home owner’s wealth or their celebrity status, but we imagined what income bracket they must be in to satisfy the creditor of their capacity to manage the payments on their mansion.

2016 BMW

The entrance alone of this particular place, projected opulence, and their three car garage, along with a large motorhome housed in its own Quonset Hut told of their love of materials things – big ones. We were invited into the garage to view their his-and-her motorbikes and their matching off-road all-terrain vehicles. Their massive truck is used to haul either the bikes or the ATVs to and from adventure sites. I smile at the young couple. Their run-to-town vehicle is a new sparkling BMW. 

Big White - Our home on wheels

My mind wonders to our home on wheels, or as Frank calls it, our poor man's motorhome. We’re very proud of her and its capacity to satisfy our humble needs for a place to enjoy a meal and a game of crib inside when it’s raining, and a comfortable place to sleep on our drop down Murphy Bed.

My thoughts are interrupted by Frank’s hand on my back guiding me to follow our homeowners into their household. It is extravagant without being overdone. Their decorating ideas are simple and each seating room almost looks the same because of the matching furniture.

Sample black leather sofa

“If I’m going to buy one sofa, why not buy two,” she says. They are identical pieces covered in leather. It seems that she also applies her theory to the coffee tables, end tables, TV stands, light fixtures and accent carpets.

Our hostess prepares a wonderful dinner meal and after a discussion about what tasks they expect us to do while they are away, we trot off to our assigned room. It is one of four bedrooms including the master suite, and ours has its own bathroom. We chuckle and whisper that we have a toilet in our motorhome and it is very near the bed.

Fill your heart

Home is where your heart is.

When we are caring for someone's home, we treat it with as much respect as our own. Frank tends to the outdoor chores and I perform the household tasks. For example, if we use their oven during our stay, we clean it afterward no matter its original condition. Together, on this last morning of our stay in a stranger’s house, we strip the bedding, wash it and stuff it into the dryer, fold it afterward and set it on the bed they so kindly provided us during our stay.

Pride and integrity come to mind when we look for a homeowner. We want to feel as safe, sound and secure about them in exchange for our offer.