We are a very experienced house/petsitting Canadian couple who were able to retire early. We have been married 47 years and are looking for house sits in interesting cities and locations. We have handled backed up pipes in New Mexico, strong winds and heavy rain on top of a mountain in Spain and pedigree show dogs in Scotland. Not much fazes us and we have the energy, ability and enthusiasm to house sit just about anywhere.
Harry is a freelance writer and skilled handyman. Having maintained two homes for years (one of which is our stone house in Provence that is almost a thousand years old), he has come up against and coped with just about anything that could happen in a home...meaning peace of mind for you. He is also an accomplished auto mechanic having kept an aged Triumph Spitfire running and on the road for over twenty-five years.
Liz is a retired business professional, bird watcher and avid gardener who has turned a Canadian clay backyard into a colourful three season blooming garden. (As every Canadian knows, winter is quite a challenge to get colour into any garden) An accomplished 'cat whisperer' who is currently feline free, Liz is very experienced acting as 'staff' to animals - ready and willing to cuddle, comb and care for your pets as if they were her own. The litter box can hold no surprises for me. Older cats who need a bit of extra special care has become a bit of a speciality. One of our feline princesses, Maggie, enjoyed a twenty-one year pampered life.
We are experienced housesitters, having completed housesits in Toronto, Washington DC, Rome, Geneva, Paris, Cap d'Antibes, Berlin, London, England. We have house and pet sat in Scotland, Spain, France, Sweden, Monaco, Switzerland and throughout Canada, England and the USA. We have been asked (and agreed!) to return for repeat housesits by many of our homeowners. Our philosophy on house/pet sitting is that both sides benefit. You get to go away knowing home, pets and possessions are in capable and caring hands. We get to experience a new city or town by living there and experiencing local events like natives. This means we accept no payment for our services, nor do we pay any fees, rent or utility bills. We provide our own groceries and will replace any household supplies we use during our stay.
As you can see by our references (not all of which are visible here), every one of our homeowners are very satisfied with us and every one will be glad to chat with you about their experiences with us. We are quite proud that we have 100% positive recommendations from our homeowners and individual contact details will be supplied on request.
Harry and Liz both have RCMP police clearances and both have been bonded. We have owned and maintained five homes over the years and know the importance of your biggest investment and precious possessions - home and pets. We have had and loved pets for almost 40 years. Your pets will be glad to see you come home, but sorry to see us leave. We also provide regular updates regarding the fur family you are leaving behind.
If we sound like we are the house sitters you are looking for, we can be reached through our Housecarers profile.