In This Business Anything Can Happen!

November 21st, 2009

The weirdest thing happened to me today! A lady called me out of the blue who I have NEVER met in my life to tell me that she was at work, and has 3 dogs who needed to be taken out for a potty break right away.  She tells me that she left the back door open, the leashes on the kitchen table along with a blank check with the amount written out!  She asks me if I can go over right away.  Now mind you I have never met her dogs either, so I know absolutely nothing about the situation I’m walking into.  So I tell her yes, because the more I talk to her the more she seemed genuinely in a panic.  However,  I forced my husband to ride with me, because you can never be too careful with people you don’t know.  And by the way, I would NOT recommend ever doing this (I never let my clients leave doors open or keys hidden under mats, because its just not safe! But I decided it was legit.

I get there and walk right in, everything is laid out just like she said, and 3 cuties are there looking up at me. 

She had one sweetgolden lab who immediately brought me her toy, and then a yorkie and a snoodle.  They walked right out the door with me.  It was hilarious!  They didn’t bark, growl or anything.  So I played with them, gave them belly rubs and treats, took my check and left….and really had a great time with the dogs! 

When I got home I emailed her to let her know that I had gone to her home and taken care of the dogs and that all was well.  She was really grateful, and I got a new client! And I was happy that I could help.  I’ve never gotten a request like that before, but as I’m learning, with this business anything can happen :-) I like when a story has a happy ending!

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Why I DON’T Do “Every Other Day Cats”!

October 18th, 2009

Okay, so for those who don’t know it, in the pet sitting world there is this thing called “every other day cats” and that means that the pet sitter is willing to take on clients who only want their cats visited every other day while they are out of town.  Many people feel that due to the self sufficient nature of a cat, they don’t need human supervision on a daily basis.  However, it is my opinion that due to this very unique personality trait, cats must be seen every single day while owners are on vacation.

Cats have the ability to go just about anywhere they please, because they can jump high, climb, and squeeze into many places they shouldn’t be.  They have the ability to get themselves into the strangest of predicaments that can be life threatening at times.  Take a look at this picture:plastic This is Ralph about to suffocate himself with a plastic bag that he burrowed into.  As you can see their independent and curious nature can be a detrement at times.  Of course Ralph sticking his head into this plastic bag wasn’t life threatening, because he knew very well how to get out of the bag, but just the very fact that he did this at all just shows you the kinds of things these inquisitive creatures are attracted to, and will get themselves into.

Something happened this morning while I was at a pet sit that was a PRIME example of why “every other day cats” is a bad idea.  I’m watching 6 cats in one home.  3 are kittens and 3 area adults.  The house has 2 floors, the second floor is  a little strange, because you have to go up a spiral staircase, and then there is a high up window overlooking the living room.  The window has a curtain in it, and its a VERY high drop. 

Well…..this morning I was washing my hands in the kitchen sink, finished with feeding, scooping litter boxes, feeding the strays outside, etc.  when suddenly I look up to see Tasha pictured here:

tasha Walking around on the window ledge upstairs, and then I notice that one of her paws is stuck in the curtain, and she is struggling to get it out.  I immediately had flashbacks of my own cats Percy and Ralphie’s falls from our loft that overlooks our living room.  Right when I took a step to come to her rescue she slipped and plumeted to the ground, ripping the curtain down with her.  She hit the floor so hard that her break-away collar popped off and flew across the floor.  Tasha immediately jumped up, looked at the curtain as though it were alive, hissed at it, and ran away and hid.  Now she seemed to be fine when she finally did emerge from her hiding place, but what if she hadn’t been?  If I was doing “every other day cats” and she had really been hurt then it would’ve been the next day (tomorrow) when I would’ve found her.

I remember once when we had a friend watching our cats while we were in NY, and the day we came home, he had decided not to come by that morning.  We got back that evening and low and behold somehow the door to the closet which houses their food and litter box had gotten shut, and we were greeted with a torn apart bedroom and poop all over the floor.

So yes, it is wise to visit any animal that one is watching on a daily basis, preferrably every 24 hours to make sure they are alright.  Afterall, they are no different than children.

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New Animal Cruelty Awareness Classes In GA

October 18th, 2009

So I got an email today from someone named Pamela Manley who works at a place called “A Growth Place Inc.” and apparently its a counseling center in Henry County GA. They have implemented a new Animal Cruelty Program. They have sent me a newsletter to pass along to the animal loving community. Apparently their goal is to inform everyone about what is going on in GA; the abuse, the laws, and ways we can all make a difference.

I have added a new file folder to my yahoo group, and have also added the file to the front page of this web site.

It is my intention to do my part for spreading the word about animal cruelty by posting this newsletter whenever it comes out.

I hope everyone will take a look, and find ways you can personally make a difference.

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Funny Pets

September 29th, 2009

So whenever I gain a new client, I always have to do a “new client consultation” this is where I come in and meet the client and the furry “babies” I will be sitting for. I always enjoy these client consultations, especially when people start telling me about their pet’s funny little quirks.

It seems that cat parents always have something super hilarious to tell me about their feline friends. For instance, I had a consultation last week with a lovely couple who own 7 cats. The interesting part is that they went down the line and told me everything I needed to know about each cat’s personality. I have told people over and over that when you own cats, life is never boring. Don’t get me wrong, I love dogs as well, but cats are just DIFFERENT, and you really have to own one to know what I’m talking about.

So anyhow, my new clients told me that all of the cats, including the kittens despise the kitten food. None of them will eat it, LOL. They also told me that one of the cats, a black and white domestic short hair who just had babies scared the other cats so bad with her aggressive behavior after giving birth, that now that she is back to normal they are still frightened of her. Sometimes she wants to socialize with her fellow felines, but they scatter when she approaches, she has a “reputation” with them now. The funniest part about this cat is when they told me that she’s very moody, and when she’s had enough of the other cats, she goes in the bedroom and shuts the door. “How can she shut the door?” I ask, as though I don’t already know that these curious creatures are capable of anything. Then they proceed to tell me that she gets behind the door, and stands on her hind legs and “walks” the door shut. Unbelievable!! I told them they need to record it and put it on YouTube. But unfortunately, they never know when she’s going to do it, so unless they get really lucky one day and happen to have the camera rolling when she gets into one of her moods then there is no chance of that.  If my cat Percy ever learns this trick, doors will be slamming all day!

So while I’m thinking about the new interesting pets I will be watching, that brings me to the notorious Riley! The big black lab mix that I walk daily. His parents told me when I first started walking Riley that he loves to go for rides in cars. Well, it would’ve been good if I had remembered that last week when I had him on his leash and opened the car door of my TINY 2 door honda civic, only for Riley to jump inside and squeeze his giant body on through to the passenger seat and sit there like a human being! He kept looking at me like he was ready for me to put his seat belt on or something. It was a bit challenging to get him out of the car, but finally I convinced him that we were not going joy riding. :-)

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My First Hectic Week

September 18th, 2009

Well, its been a while since I’ve been able to write on my blog because things have been hectic lately. I have a new online store called Cutie Pie, which is designer clothing for dogs! Very cute stuff, I had some issues getting it all straight, but now many of the products have been uploaded and the shopping cart is working properly now. www.domesticcompanion.com/store

I also had several pet sits last weekend and then all through this week. I had a dog that was throwing up, a customer who’s UPS delivery was stolen and destroyed by a wild animal, a dog that stole my shoes and hid them while I was pet sitting, and a phantom house cat that I never saw almost the whole time I was watching her etc.

Despite all the stress it was a great week though, I like being busy so I’m not complaining and the pets were great! I especially fell in love with a female boxer that I was watching named Willa. She is a gorgeous sweet girl (she’s the one who stole my shoes). Today was my last day sitting for her, and I really feel that I’m going to miss her. She gave me hugs like crazy when I would come over, and every chance she got she tried to give me kisses. She has a special place in my heart now :-)

That’s one great thing about pet-sitting, I get to meet animals I otherwise would never have met. So anyhow, I hope I’m this busy in Nov, I’ve got openings so book your pet sit soon!

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Dog Tantrum

August 27th, 2009

Yesterday was an interesting day in dog walking. I have a regular dog that I walk Mon-Fri named Riley. He can best be described as a lab mix, he is black with tiny white patches on his paws, and a little around his muzzle like white old man whiskers. He has deep brown eyes, is 7 years old and a little pudgy.

Well he absolutely loves his walks, and has been the most well behaved dog I have ever seen until yesterday when we had a mishap exactly 4 seconds after hitting the streets for our walk.

When I was taking him past a neighbor’s driveway, I spotted a flat narrow square bone lying there, just the right size for him to get choked on. Unfortunately Riley spotted the bone the same time as I did, and before I could tighten his leash he had snapped the bone up in his mouth in a flash.

I immediately stopped dead in my tracks and demanded that Riley spit the bone out. I understand now why dogs are said to have the mental capcity of a 2 year old human toddler. He knew EXACTLY what I was asking him, because he clamped his mouth shut, and tried to pretend as though nothing was in there. Little does Riley know that I’m smarter than a 2 year old. I decided to bring him over to the “poop patch” as its called where all the neighborhood dogs like to go. The whole time we walked, Riley drooled as his mouth filled with saliva because he was trying sooo very hard not to allow me to see the bone he was hiding in his mouth. Therefore, he couldn’t swallow.

When we got to the “poop patch” I tried to open Riley’s mouth, but was terrified that I would inadvertantly make him swallow and choke on the bone. So I decided to wait for him to spit it out.

Like a bad child he plopped down in the grass and started knawing and chomping on the bone. Everytime I saw him put it on the grass I would lunge to grab it, in which case he would snatch it up and growl at me….THE NERVE!! This went on for about 15 minutes, for an older dog, he sure is fast, much faster than me.

So, I decided to let him continue laying there in the sun. I figured eventually he would get hot and want some water. So I waited a few minutes and took out my collapsable water dish. I poured the cold bottled water in the bowl. When Riley saw it, he dropped the bone (forgetting in an instant that I was trying to steal it from him). When he turned his back and started drinking I grabbed the bone, and put it in a plastic bag for posterity.

After he got his fill of water he turned around and started looking for the bone again, but it was already safe and sound in my back-pack waiting to be shown to his mother when she got home.

Once he went to the bathroom, I marched him back to his house instead of taking him for his usual half mile walk, all the while telling him how bad he had been. Then when we got inside I directed him to his water dish. When he heard me leave the laundry room, he ran out to the cabinet with his treats in it. He looked at me, and then looked at the cabinet, as if to remind me that I was forgetting something. I’m not forgetting anything I told him, to which he said Oh yes you are sitter.

I left a note for his mother detailing his deviant behavior while he watched me intently, and then I left the bone evidence on the counter where Riley couldn’t reach it.

When I left, Riley was halfway up the stairs peering at me from around the corner. He knew 2 things, that he hadn’t gone for his walk, and that he hadn’t got a treat. Hmmm what is going on here?

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Interestingly, when I went over to walk Riley today, I was greeted with a note written on Riley’s behalf. It said that he had gotten a stern talking to, and no treats before bed.  It also said that Riley was sorry and that he had baked me some cookies (which were lying next to the note) to smooth things over. 

So Riley and I are friends again, and he is back to being my favorite client. :-)

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Litter Box Mishap

August 23rd, 2009

I sold several things on ebay last week, and I was in my living room packing everything up to ship out. Percy who has an obsession with boxes was jumping in and out of the boxes and playing with his brother Ralphie.

I had just put a 12×12 wedding album in a box to ship out…the only box mind you that was JUST the right size. I also dumped lots of shredded paper on top so the album wouldn’t shift around.

While I was taping up another box, I looked down to see Percy jump into the box with the shredded paper and start diving around in it, having a great time. I told Percy to stop it because he was getting shredded paper all over the floor. Suddenly I looked down horrified to see Percy squatting in the middle of the paper.

I ran over and snapped him up, but it was too late! In response to my mortified gasp Percy took off up the stairs with eyes big as saucers, lol. Poor thing.

My husband asked Percy why he just couldn’t have gone upstairs to use the litter box? Percy had no valid answer. My mind quickly flashed back to all the times we have filled Percy’s litter box with shredded paper after his surgeries, and then I realized that really I had made the mistake by failing to realize that Percy would see a box filled with shredded paper as a litter box.

Good news though, I managed to save the wedding album, but unfortunately the box and paper were unsalvagable, lol! And Percy now realizes that not every box filled with paper is a litter box, and that he should beware of unfamiliar boxes that resemble litter boxes.

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Ralphie’s Traumatic Experience

August 15th, 2009

Well, friday (yesterday) my mother and one of her old buddies arrived in town from VA.  They are both crazy about cats like I am.  Percy (black cat) was thrilled to have new shoes to smell in the foyer, and Ralphie (orange tabby) was not so sure what to think of these “intruders.” He was very sceptical as they tried to coax  him over with his favorite toys, and high pitched cat voices.  By the end of the day yesterday, he FINALLY allowed them to pet him, but if they made any sudden moves it was ALL over!

So this morning we all got up bright and early to go to the GA Aquarium.  And mom and her friend Betty (especially Betty) played and played with the cats all morning as we were getting ready to go.  Percy has a game where he waits for you to remove his toy mice from the coat closet where he has hidden them from himself.  Then he waits in anticipation for you to throw them up to the loft.  When he sees your arm go back poised to throw, he crouches down and gets ready to launch himself up the stairs.  When the mice go flying up to the loft, Percy goes flying up the stairs, and tries to catch any additional mice you may throw.  Its really hilarious. 

Well Ralphie decided this morning to join Percy in the festivities.  I guess he thought it looked like fun, and he was getting more excited about having company in the house.  Well while Betty was taking pictures of Percy and Ralphie playing the mouse game in the loft, my mom hurls a mouse up while Ralphie is standing on the ledge. 

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Well, poor Ralph, he went for it and lost his balance and plummeted down to the living room.  Here you can see Percy watching him fall quite complacently. 

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Ralphie did land on his feet, I think much to his own surprise! And as quick as he landed he took off like lightening and hid behind the sofa, scared out of his wits from the fall and his HARD landing.

 

I  advised Ralph not to play with these women anymore if he wanted to live.  He has steered clear for the rest of the day since we have gotten back, except for when they lure him with the siren song of long ribbon being swung thru the air.  Below is a picture of the culprits.

As I write this entry, Betty is feeding Percy sweet potato pie crust which he shamelessly begged for after I said no.  I guess grandmas will be grandmas  even if the grand child (or in this case grandcat) is not theirs.

Mom is on the left, best quote of the day at GA Aquarium was "I would like to put that fish in the frying pan." To the right is mom's friend Betty, best quote of the day was "Thru that door is Titanic show, they will probably unlock it soon." (door turned out to be an exit)

Mom is on the left, best quote of the day at GA Aquarium was "I would like to put that fish in the frying pan." To the right is mom's friend Betty, best quote of the day was "Thru that door is Titanic show, they will probably unlock it soon." (door turned out to be an exit)

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The Cat’s Lack of Opposable Thumbs

August 11th, 2009

Okay so I have read repeatedly that cats are very intellegent and learn from observation and experience….and that cats will sometimes observe and imitate what they have seen us do to achieve a certain goal.  It has been said that the cat’s lack of opposable thumbs is what thwarts them from being able to imitate everything they observe us doing, but that doesn’t mean they don’t know HOW something works.  Now the observation part I know is definitely true, because every cat I have had has always been interested in watching my morning beauty regiment. 

For instance, for the longest time Percy would sit on the toilet lid and watch me put on make-up and comb my hair and brush my teeth in the morning.  He would watch so carefully, and I would wonder why he was so interested in what I was doing.  However, I have never observed any of my cats really imitating anything that I do (except maybe opening cabinets and doors).

Well, now I have become a believer in the cat’s observation and imitation skills.  I took an old pet water fountain down from the attic, because I thought my cats Ralphie and Percy might just drink more water if I hooked it up, because cats prefer to drink running water.  I’m really paraniod about them getting a urinary blockage, because male cats are prone to that, and I know that drinking more water prevents this from happening. So anyhow, long story short, I cleaned it up and reesembled it.

012Now the whole time I was putting it together Percy was super interested.  He watched the entire time I put it together.  After it was esembled he and Ralphie were both mesmerized by the running water, and trying to figure out what exactly this contraption was for.  They soon figured it out after some careful investigation work.  Percy also learned that he could wash his paws in the fountain as well, thus I started to find lots of cat litter floating in the fountain (and I know it was Percy because he is ALWAYS the culprit, by now I don’t have to catch him in the act to know what he is responsible for).

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Anyways, after the first time of assembling the fountain, Percy had watched enough to know how to remove the top.  So over and over again when I would happen upon the drinking fountain the top would be missing.  Then after a couple more times of Percy watching me refill the fountain, he learned how to remove the filter.  So now, I started to find the top off and the filter lying nearby in a wet heap on the floor.  Everytime I saw the dismantled fountain I would promptly put it back together and warn Percy to leave it alone.  He would look at me and walk right back up to it, and take it apart right in front of my face.

 

010Finally, Percy won the battle when I came upstairs one day to find that he had removed not only the top, and the filter, but also the big water resevior.  I put it back together again and again only to find it repeatedly stripped of all its parts.  So finally Percy taught me to stop putting the fountain back together, because he obviously likes it better this way.  So lack of opposable thumbs and all, I was defeated by a cat.

Something really humerous when I think about it is that at the Henry County Humane Society they have the same exact drinking fountain that I have for my cats.  However, they only have 1 for about 20 cats.  Yet time and time again when I arrive there, the drinking fountain is all in one piece.  Which makes me wonder, is Percy super smart or WHAT?  20 cats have no desire or knowledge to be able to dismantle this complex appliance, and yet 1 cat out of spite for me repeatedly does this?  Very interesting indeed.

I’d be interested to know if anybody else’s cats do things like this? If so, leave a comment about it, I want to hear!

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How I Started Pet Sitting

August 6th, 2009

My Humble Beginnings

Well I finally have my own blog! I’m so excited, now I can talk about whatever my heart desires. I’m sure you realize by now, if you’ve poked around on my site any at all that I’m a pet lover. Therefore, after 5 years as a banker, and 5 ½ years as a customer service coordinator for a non-profit that supported the traffic control industry I have finally decided to follow my passion for being a caregiver to animals.

During my last year at the non-profit, which by the way was, COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY BORING, and terribly overwhelming (I would literally sit in my office with tears in my eyes, and pains in my chest)! I started to volunteer with the Fredericksburg VA Humane Society, a no-kill shelter, as a foster-mom for kitties. The ones I fostered were either kittens that were sick or they didn’t have room for, or adults that needed a break from the shelter. Sometimes people don’t realize how long these animals have to stay at these no-kill shelters, sometimes its years. So yeah, they need a break at times.

I had 2 cats at the time, Winthrop and Zoe who I affectionately called Zoe Face! They were a bit irritated about having to share their home with other kitties, but they eventually got over it. Except in the case of Harley, a gargantuan black and white male cat with one brown eye, and one gold eye who was discretely bullying my poor girls so he could have all of the affection. Besides that and the daily morning trash can tilt he would do, I really loved him. I had him for quite a while, and when I got ready to return him to the shelter I was very tempted to keep him. However, much to my relief there was another foster-parent there who wanted him…..she did however ask me if he had any bad habits, and I conveniently had a brain fart about the early morning trash can dump Harley liked to do. And how I had spent countless mornings picking chewed up trash off the floor of my kitchen, and being late for work. I’m sure she found out soon enough though….tee-hee. So, I was happy he found a good home, and my girls were happy he was gone.
Long story short, I got married to a great husband who much to my surprise didn’t care for pets too much. So I moved from VA to McDonough GA, and placed Zoe in a new home (my poor Winthrop had run away by then). But then eventually my great husband realized that I need furry friends aroundPercy is the black cat on the right me constantly to be happy, so he got me Percy on our 2nd anniversary. He is the onery looking black cat on the right. Then about 9 months later I just came home in one day with Ralphie, the orange tabby on the left.

Anyhow, even though my husband claims not to be an animal lover, Percy has somehow become his cat, and Ralphie is my cat. We have daily discussions about which cat is cooler, and which cat is smarter. And when my husband is driving around town he informs of stray cats he has seen and how he wishes he had cat food with him so he could feed them. So being married to me, has reformed him from a former disliker of animals to a semi animal liker.

How I Got Out Of Banking

I worked at a financial institution up until June 2009. So why did I quit? Well, I have always prided myself on my work ethic. I hadn’t called in sick in nearly a year, I rarely ever made a mistake. The clients liked me. So when I was told after a massive company layoff that my position had been mysteriously eliminated, and that I was expected to willingly go work at a dysfunctional branch in a bad part of town the next county over that no other employees wanted to work at, I was LIVID. More than livid really! I was suspicious as to the reason why I had been singled out. My experience, seniority, and excellent track record out-weighed other employees by far, and yet the rug was yanked out from under me, and everybody else’s positions were safe and sound. I felt it was a funny way to reward a job well done.

It was a few days later after several people talked me out of quiting that I decided to make my dream of becoming a pet sitter a reality. I decided if I was my own boss then I would always be treated fairly, and rewarded well. I quietly bided my time while going about my new miserable position and saved my resources, and filed my paperwork and got my business license. I dragged my husband to a Small Business Administration meeting in Atlanta that was very helpful in guiding me on what I needed to do. I took a pet sitter 101 course, and then I went for the gold, a NAPPS certification. Then out of the blue, I get a call from a fellow pet sitter. Eindy Ramsey, the owner of Pet Shepherd Pet Sitting in Clayton County http://www.thepetshepherd.com/ wanted to meet with me. She said she normally liked to meet someone before she sent them any referrals. We met for lunch, and she gave me a lot of good information and guidance. Then we met for lunch again and she related more pet sitting adventures and experiences and more priceless advice. It made me really want to be a pet sitter even more. So I’m forever grateful to her for reaching out to me!
So a couple of months later, here I am with my own pet sitting company and meeting new clients and their pets just about every week. I still miss some of my co-workers from the bank, and some of the clients, but they all know I still love them!

A Big Surprise

One totally surprising thing about the pet sitting business is how much I enjoy meeting the pet owners! I consider myself an “animal person” and therefore, I sometimes feel like I’d rather be around animals than people. So I’m always surprised when I leave a new client’s home feeling great about the consultation and having met them. I’m even happier when they are genuinely happy that I did a great job with their pet. It makes me feel good about my career path and what I have chosen to do. Its exciting to me to make my business grow, and to see it grow as a direct result of the decisions I make, and the respect I have chosen to have for animals.

My New Volunteer Efforts

I have just started volunteering with the Henry County Humane Society. I really enjoy it. Since I can’t be a foster-parent without driving my husband out of the house, I choose to volunteer at the shelter instead. There is an awful lot of cleaning involved in volunteering with the shelter, but that is probably why the facility is so presentable, and such a great environment for animals. I really admire everyone who volunteers there, because you can see in their faces that they truly care about these animals, and they take out time from their full-time jobs IMG_0033to make sure these animals have what they need and a sanitary environment.

I try to offer reasonable prices so anybody can provide care for their pets. To me, this is also a form of volunteering my resources for the good of local pets. Maybe some might not see it that way, but I do. Making money is NOT my main objective, but it helps ! I’m confident that with my business experience, and knowledge of pet care I could charge more and still be successful, but I feel that if people can afford pet care, then they will be more likely to ask for help from a professional when they need it. That’s why I offer an economy membership so that people can afford daily care for their pets during the week while they are at work.

I’m also running a Presents 4 Pets Campaign to collect donations for the Henry County Animal Shelters. If you would like a list of the things needed for donation you can join my yahoo group by going back to the main page of this site www.domesticcompanion.com and a list will automatically be sent to you. The drop off point for these items is RBC Bank located at 210 Jonesboro Rd, McDonough GA 30253.

The End for Now

So there you have it, a little background on why and how I became a pet sitter. There is still more to come, so stay tuned to my blog!
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