What we Love…….
House sitting first and foremost is all about caring for other people’s pets and the security of their home while they go away on holiday. If you love animals and also love to travel this is an amazing combination that brings a whole new dimension to seeing the world around you whether that is just in your local area and home country or as far across the globe as you wish your travels would take you.
For us the most enjoyable aspect of house sitting is the ability to live life like a local, to settle in to a home having pets around us with time to explore local haunts and even get to know the neighbours.
As a house sit can range in length of stay from 1 night to 6 months (or even more) there is plenty of scope for variety. Our shortest sit was for 3 nights and our longest sit for 4 ½ months – though most sits are been between 10 days to 3 weeks.
Depending on what pets we are caring for determines our daily timetable with some places allowing us lots of free time to go out and roam alone.
However there is nothing we love more than to wander off into the woods or out along the beach with one, two, three or more dogs in tow then stop at a local cafe or pub (inside or outside……as you can do that with a dog in the UK & Europe) for a drink or two.
So you start to get the picture of how this lifestyle is very enjoyable and somewhat addictive.
We also love the fact that you can house sit almost anywhere in the world…….as we have done over a period of three plus years.
Beginning right here in our local area then across the globe to the UK and also to countries where English is not the native spoken language.
Caring for pets is such a heart warming and rewarding lifestyle. We find that every animal (well maybe not the tortoises and hens) we have looked after so far have taken to us immediately and bonded with us as trusted carers. Even when home owners tell us their cat is shy and won’t sit on our knee we often find that they do.
House sitting means regularly meeting new people and most often making new friends which is also something we love. As well as meeting new home owners, we also meet other dog walkers while we are out walking the dog(s) and then there’s the local cafe (or pub) staff, supermarket staff and even people at the bus stop or train station. People who were total strangers at the beginning of a conversation have even given us their contact details and invited us to stay in their home should we pass by their way.
One evening as we were traveling towards our next destination we saw a gorgeous country pub with a grand array of beautiful hanging baskets lit up in the rapidly looming darkness. Peter quickly turned around and stopped to take some photos.
While Peter was taking photos I got talking to a man standing outside the pub who just happened to be the pub owner – next minute we were inside clinking our glasses with a free drink on the house surrounded by a few of the locals which made for an interesting end to our day.
Last and by no means least is the fact that we love house sitting because it is a very cost effective way to travel when you are an animal lover. Free accommodation in return for pet and house care duties is a win/win situation of everyone.
What we Don’t Love…….
Naturally there is often a downside to most aspects in life and although we do love house sitting there are a few negative points to note.
One of the hardest things for us both (even harder for Pete than me) is the fact that we very quickly become attached to each pet we are caring for so when it comes time to leave and say goodbye…….we really don’t want to say goodbye and we honestly do miss the pets we have cared for so the tears flow as we say our farewells and travel off into the distance to our next house sit.
It is not just the pets who we feel sad to be leaving. People who we’ve just met and have only had a brief chance to get to know often leave us with a longing of wishing we could have spent more time together.
Moving on means sorting, rearranging and packing bags…….AGAIN!! This isn’t my favourite task; in fact I (Liz) have tetchy days for the last two days of a house sit. Having to pack and clean does bring about a few tears at times depending on the exact timetable. Once we bought our own car it became easier in some ways but that also meant we ended up accumulating a lot of extra ‘stuff’ which made packing take even longer.
Living life on the run, which is exactly what we do, can get a bit lonely for Liz. This is not so for Pete as with a dog at his side he is in his element of man with companion! When we don’t have dogs to look after Peter doesn’t feel isolated as long as he can get out in the fresh air and walk a mile or ten.
On the other hand Liz is very community focused so always being on the move means that Liz feels like she doesn’t belong anywhere and there’s not usually enough time to join a local club or group. As much as social media can connect you with friends and family far and wide it does not fill the void of a sense of belonging!
As we are now in to our fourth year house sitting we are learning new ways to minimise the negative effects and finding ways to belong in an ever changing community.
No-one ever said life would be perfect so, like with all things, we take the good with the bad and make the most of everyday while we can.