Taking care of your home, property, animals and pets is the most rewarding service we can offer. Large or small: we have experience in minding residential houses with (vegetable) gardens to rural properties around the world!
We, Marianne and Erwin (Dutch/Australian), have outstanding reviews and references through other housesit networks (approx 18 sits by the end of the year) which are captured in one word document on this page and also have a police check from 2014 that we can send on request. Our professional background includes business development, not-for-profits, copy writing, coaching and publishing. We've worked in Amsterdam, Canberra and Sydney and lived in cities and small towns.
As property owners ourselves it will be our pleasure to give you peace of mind and treat your home and loved pets as our own. We've cared for pets who needed medication or the gentle treatment due to age or arthritis.
We are a semi retired couple in our early fifties who sold their belongings to travel and to find our next purpose in life: perhaps it is full-time housesitting! We are fit, non smoking, calm and love giving quality time to your animals and relaxing with them while reading or writing or go for healthy walks.
After caring for a hobby farm with 3 horses, 3 cows, 3 chooks, 2 Bulldogs and 2 cats in Nova Scotia, Canada, we took on a 10 months sit at a homestead (with guest facilities) on a 400 acres nature reserve in the jungle of North Argentina with 2 German Shepherds, 2 cats, 25 chooks and 7 ducks.
We maintained a property of 7 acres in a small beach town on the South Island of New Zealand for 7 months (March to October with one senior Parson Russell Terrier dog (14 yrs), then a home with a cat, goldfish and separate rental property in Oamaru welcoming 116 guests. Followed by 4 other sits in the same town, one with an older Black Labrador dog (12 yrs), chooks and cats and 1 on the North Island with a cat, followed by a sit at a resort for a senior cat (17 yrs) on the South Island. Another repeat sit on the South Island from 6 April to 7 June approx, onto the North Island of NZ 8 June to 6 July, then onto WA from mid July to mid August 2019, followed by a sit in ACT August -September and a NSW country town sit from 25 September to 13 October. All these sits include caring for dogs, cats, chooks, fish, gardens and properties.
From mid October to 3 December 2019 we had a sit in Thailand with 3 cats and 4 large dogs, lucky us! A long-term sit mid December to mid-January 2020 will take us to country Victoria, Australia a property on 15 acres. Next a 2 week sit with one dog in Christchurch until 29 January 2020 after which we'll return to New Zealand for an indefinite period.
So our first probable availability is from 1 July 2020.
We seek clean properties in a quiet and nature environment, country areas or the quieter city suburbs. We love all animals and have cared for large dogs, horses, cats, cows, goldfish, chickens and ducks.
We are responsible drivers and have driven the owners' car at most sits without any problems. Have used ride-on-mowers, weeding devices and spraying, have cleaned stables and managed veggie gardens and guest accommodation (Air BnB).
Love to hear from you soon how we can be of help!