We had an immediate change in plans. My husband and I shall be working in Italy for 5.5 months. During that time, we need an animal lover to take care of our 6 beloved animals: 1 65-pound dog, 2 guinea pigs, 1 tortoise and 2 cockatiels. They are all very sociable and enjoy lots of company. This position is for animal lovers only! It's a demanding position.
Responsibilities:
Primarily: Taking excellent care of our animals and watering the plants. This position is for animal lovers only! Their well-being is my primary concern! This is a demanding position.
The birds live loose in one room during the daytime and are very sociable. They like you to spend time with them daily in their room, while they are loose. The guinea pigs and the tortoise live loose in the same room as the birds.
In the evening, the birds like to hang out (in their cage) with everyone in our living room or sunroom. The birds are very sociable and love company. It is during this time that we set up the tortoise's heat and UV lamps. The birds will chat (in their language) to you excitedly during the first ten minutes, but then will calm down and busy themselves preening and making their happy crunching sounds. Of course, if you plan on being out regularly in the evenings, you could have them spend time with you during the day instead!
Our dog, Dante, is 65 pounds. We don't have a fenced-in yard, so he likes to go for a few walks daily. There are many dog-friendly trails in the area, as well as a 2-mile neighborhood walk that he takes daily. There are also two local dog parks. He is VERY strong. Usually he is a very good boy on walks, but if he feels threatened by another dog, he may pull very hard. You must be strong enough to walk him! We do not let him interact with children or other dogs, unless he is off-leash at a dog park.
If you are someone with a bunny, guinea pig, lizard, turtle, it's possible that your pet would be welcome. Unfortunately, we could not trust dogs or cats with our animals. As our animals don't live in actual cages, there would be too much risk for a terrible accident.
We are in Eliot, Maine, just 6.5 miles from charming and dynamic Portsmouth, NH, which borders the seacoast and the river. We consider Portsmouth our town. 5 miles in the other direction is Dover, NH, which in the past 2 years has become a pretty dynamic and trendy little town of its own.
Our house has wide pine floorboards, a pellet stove, sunroom, patio and gardens. It's located in a very nice woodsy neighborhood that makes a pretty 1-mile loop walk. There is also an 11-stone graveyard in the backyard from the mid-1800s. No, it is not haunted.
Portsmouth, NH is literally just across the river, a 6-mile drive. We consider Portsmouth our town. It's lovely and has numerous great bookstores, coffee shops, restaurants, local theater, galleries, etc.
The surrounding towns (Kittery, Dover, York, Portsmouth) all have farmers' markets, too, including organic produce.
Boston is 1.5 hours away by commuter bus. Newburyport, MA is 45 minutes away, and the beaches of Kittery, York and Ogunquit Maine are within minutes. There are lots of walking trails through woods and fields, preserved by our local land trust organizations. The land trusts also organize occasional hikes or other events through their conservation land.
As the five little animals (guinea pigs, cockatiels and tortoise) don't live in cages throughout the daytime, it is imperative to follow certain rules when in their room. Otherwise an accident would be bound to happen. If you think that you are so intelligent that you don't need to follow directions, then this job is not for you. For instance, in the animal room,
1. there are no shoes--- socks or barefoot only!
2. before stepping, you must have both cockatiels in sight! (although they fly, they love to walk around. You could step on them if you're not paying attention).