House Sitting in Almena

Julia is so kind and extremely patient. My dog has extreme separation anxiety and this was my first time leaving her with a sitter after adopting her two months ago, so it was a really big deal for us. I really appreciated that Jlia didn't force bonding, handled a very messy crate accident with grace, gave Pillow her meds on time, and was communicative about how she was doing throughout the experience. She was also available extremely last minute and helped me attend my uncle's funeral, which I am eternally grateful for. That said, there were a cuple of flags that may signal she's not the best fit for a super anxious dog in the future. Would 100% recommend her for your dogs that love people and don't mind when you're gone, so if your dog is not a walking bag of anxiety, look no further! You've found your sitter! Julia had to leave for a 30 minute meeting about 15-20 minutes away while here, which she'd been transparent about at the meet and greet. It was quick turnaround and while I was nervous about it, I was cool with it because the meeting was so short, she'd be gone for less than 1.5 hours. She texted me over an hour after I would've expected her to be back from that meeting to tell me that my dog had a massive anxiety-inspired poop accident in her crate, and asking what to do with the poopy bed/shirt that I'd left behind for her. I asked about the timeline and she said she'd gotten back almost 1.5 hours prior, had just been busy cleaning up. That didn't quite track for me because she was asking specifically what to do with the poopy things in question, which seemed like something to ask sooner than almost 1.5 hours after discovering the poop... I'm not sure why it took so long to ask. I was happy to give her the benefit of the doubt though, because she graciously cleaned it up and didn't bail. However... I did discover an acute lack of attention to detail after I'd gotten home. When I got home, I noticed almost immediately that Pillow had a cut on her nose, likely from the panic attack in her crate. Julia had brushed it off as something she'd noticed, but wasn't sure if it had happened with her there or not, so hadn't pointed it out to me. I would've appreciated being asked about it when she noticed it so I could've asked her to do her best to clean it to avoid infection. There is stuffy-fuzz stuck in the scab. After Julia left, I realized she did not have a nose for pee. The whole back portion of my house smelled extremely strongly of pee, with the epicenter coming from my bedroom. I texted to ask her if she'd noticed Pillow peeing in my room or where she had hung out in there so I could find it and spray it down, the response was that she hadn't ever noticed Pillow in there. I found two mostly-dry pee spots. I then stepped in another mostly-dry pee spot by the back door that Pillow goes to when she has to potty. I then noticed that Pillow's crate fully smells like pee, which likely happened during the massive poop-explosion incident but was not caught by Julia. I've also noticed that my dog smells like pee in spots, likely from sleeping in the pee crate all night, and will be getting a bath before bed. I'm still wondering if I've found all of the spots, because parts of my house still smell overwhelmingly like urine (they didn't smell before, she's been potty trained for a month and a half, these are fresh urine smells). I expected accidents when I was gone because of the nature of this very last minute trip, her anxiety, the fact that it was my first time leaving her, etc. I even left out Nature's Miracle and paper towel on the counter with hard-copy notes for Julia about what to do in case of an accident - just in case. However, I expected the accidents to be noticed (even when they weren't crazy poop blowouts). It's one thing to give a dog space to be anxious, it's another thing to pay attention and stay alert to what they're doing while giving them that space. That second part seems to have been missing from this visit, which I believe mostly comes from lack of experience with anxious dogs. It's not just about companionship and presence, it's like babysitting a toddler that wants its mom. It requires active awareness, not just a passive presence. Again, this is all hyper-specific to my clinically anxious bean. I would fully recommend Julia for dogs that don't have behavioral issues, she is so kind and my dog liked her immediately (which is rare!). It just wasn't quite a fit for us once we stacked up the little things.

Karlee was great with our dog. We are hoping to have her come again in August. We really appreciated her for her kindness, communications, timeliness and professionalism. Thanks Karlee. Will be passing your name on to others. Lynn

Amie is wonderful! She is very trustworthy and responsive. She was attentive to my pets and respectful of my space. She is also apparently a cat whisperer! On day one both my Lucy and Rozie were out of hiding and snuggling with her. I was shocked! I am already planning on booking again this summer. It’s a relief to have someone you can trust that loves and cares for your pets like Amie!

Morgan house sat with our 4 dogs for 11 hrs straight for my son's wedding and she was awesome! With 4 totally different personalities and temperaments when Rocky & Ladybug (sons dogs) come to visit Scooby & Freya (our dogs) - it can be challenging at times and chaotic other times. Morgan not only accepted that challenge but she was awesome throughout and took great care of them. Morgan is super kind and you can tell she genuinely loves animals and her ease and comfort with our little pack put me at ease and allowed me to enjoy my son's wedding without worry. I would highly recommend Morgan!!!

I asked Anissa to stay with my 16 week-old puppy, Max, while I was gone for three days. She agreed, and cleared her calendar so she wouldn't have to leave Max and could continue with the potty training. I would definitely recommend Anissa. She came over to get acquainted Max and learn things about my house.She was responsive when I needed to reach her, and she took marvelous care of my home. I'll definitely use her again!

Troy did his.usual fabulous job with Dory!

So, so pleased with Leah! She is sweet and conscientious. And it's so obvious she loves animals. She took such great care of my kids! ❤️

Morgan is awesome! Highly recommend!

Vanya and her daughter were amazing! I was running out of options after many failed attempts at finding a sitter and it was becoming last minute. They did so awesome with my babies and my schedule. She kept me up to date the whole time and it looked liked my dogs had a blast. Beyond happy with this experience!

Emily did a great job for us. Good communication, would use again!