Our family lives in a small house in Ridgewood, NJ and we are looking for a cat, chicken and garden sitter while we are overseas visitng family from mid-July to mid-August.
I am an avid gardener, and our fenced-in yard has raised beds, various berries, flowers and perennials. I'm looking for someone who has organic gardening exerience as well as experience with home composting. We need someone to make sure the plants are well-watered, to keep up with hand weeding, and of course, to harvest and enjoy anything that is in season! Likely blueberries, strawberries and raspberries while you are here. Also things like protecting the berries with netting, some pruning, etc. We have a bi-weekly mowing service so lawn mowing is not necessary. There are some indoor plants that will need weekly watering as well.
You would be caring for our indoor-only cat, Lina, who is a lovely 3-year-old rescue. She is curious and friendly and is not at all skittish. She loves to be around people, but is not super cuddly. We also have two retired laying hens, Bowie and Counterpoint, who live outside in a coop. They no longer lay eggs, and have slowed down a lot recently. We are keeping them comfortable and happy as they enjoy this last phase of their lives. They are friendly and can be picked up if needed. The coop would need to be kept clean and the hens need food and water, as well as to be let out daily into their run area so they can forage and explore. We also have a baby grand piano in the living room as a bonus for any musicians--my husband is a classical composer.
Ridgewood is a suburb of NYC with a great downtown and restaurants. Our house is a 12 minute walk (0.6 mile) to the train station, which will take you into NYC in about an hour. Or you can drive due east to the Upper West Side in about 35 mintues. We are within walking distance to a Whole Foods, downtown shops and restaurants, as well as to an arboretum with a lake and walking trails. Our neighbors are friendly and live very close by; Ridgewood has a "village-town" feel and is not spread out/rural.