Alexandra C.
Concord, CA
Experienced & Competent Pet Sitter
Pet care experience
I am BONDED/INSURED- which goes into my pricing, as well as my experience! (Please take into consideration that ROVER makes a portion as well that is added onto my fees) PLEASE MESSAGE ME FOR AN EXACT QUOTE AS PRICES DO VARY DEPENDING ON EACH CLIENT AND YOUR SPECIFIC NEEDS! Please make sure you are in my service area as well- which is Concord, Walnut Creek, Clayton, Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Lafayette, Moraga, Orinda etc. PLEASE NOTE: Gas/mileage can go into estimates/pricing as well and will be assessed accordingly. The prices listed here are basic prices and do not factor in additional care, uncommon situations that may be more involved or less involved. If possible, I will try to tailor a pet sitting schedule to best fit you and your pet’s specific needs. When you first message me, please tell me the important parts of your daily routine with your pet(s) is and exactly what you are needing, wanting and expecting me to do. From there I will tell you if I would be a good fit and what my services include and if you would like to proceed, we can go from there and set up a meeting. I do prefer to meet potential clients and their pet to make sure it will be a good fit for all involved. I am flexible and can accommodate most situations but please keep in mind that prices are subject to change. PLEASE NOTE: I am bonded/insured which goes into my pricing along with my decade of experience of doing this kind of work. ABOUT ME: My name is Alex, I am in my early 30s and I grew up in East Bay Area and still reside here. Ever since I was little girl, I have been obsessed with nature and wildlife, which of course led to the path I am on today. As a little girl, one could find me with neighbors’ animals or stumbling upon injured or lost animals. Which then of course, led to my bringing them home and convincing my mother to let me bring them inside to help the animal in whatever way we could. Growing up, we had what you could call a small petting zoo. Over the course of my life I’ve had quite the range of animals, including but not limited to: Horses, dogs, cats, lizards, chinchillas, rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, hamsters, fish etc. My mother was gracious to say the least, considering she was the one who allowed me to cultivate and pursue my love of nature and animals by letting my have pets all throughout my childhood. This allowed me to get a head start on learning a lot about caring for animals and gave me a real understanding of what it means to actually do the work it takes to take good care of an animal, not just “own” them. I also learned what it means to love an animal and that I could love them as much or more as I do people. The point is, I love ALL animals, “Creatures Great and Small”, and that is why I decided to do pet sitting. I have around 10-12 years experience of pet sitting now and know how to take care of many different animals because I have either taken care of that type of animal or I have actually owned one. If I’m not very familiar with the kind of pet you have, I can learn very quickly and am not intimidated to take care of animals that I have not care for before. I grew up riding horses and I taught lessons at a ranch in Lafayette for many years to children and adults of all levels. I was a wrangler (guide on horseback) on a couple ranches in Montana for 4 summers in a row. About six years ago, I adopted a wild Mustang from the BLM (Bureau of land management) and trained and gentled her all on my own. I was the first person to ever ride her, which was an amazing experience. I still own her to this day. I also worked at the Rheem Valley Pet Shoppe, in Moraga, for 10 years on and off. So, as you can see, I have a lot of work experience and life experience working with and around various animals. I am experienced, mature, competent, aware, responsible, and knowledgeable. I also am bonded/insured just to give my clients a little more peace of mind and this is also reflected in my prices and might be the reason they seem high to some people. I definitely know how it is to worry about my pets when I go away. This gives me a lot of compassion and awareness for my customers and their pets when they are in similar situations. I try to look at things from the clients’ and their pets perspectives in order to give them the best possible care. I promise your animals will be not only well taken care of but given lots of love and attention.
Reviews
We are so glad that we found Alex to take care of our two dogs while we are at work! One of our dogs is very shy with strangers and Alex understood her and her quirks from the very beginning. We truly appreciate all alex and the comfort she provides to our family.
HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! Alex has taken care of my dog several times. We also just got an adorable kitty and Alex just cared for both our dog around thanksgiving time this year. I met Alex while shopping at the Rheem Valley pet shop, in Moraga as she worked there for several years. Alex has always been very real, kind and honest. She always puts me and the rest of the family feel at ease leaving our babies (pets) and home in her hands because she always does a fantastic job and is so responsible. She communicates daily and sends tons of pictures. We also love using her because our house usually ends up cleaner than when we left it (haha)! I have no complaints and always recommend her services to anyone I know needing a pet sitter.
Alex has always shown the highest regard for the safety and welfare of my two dogs and cat. She is passionate about animals, even down to recommending certain petfood that improved my little cattle dog's digestion after her cancer diagnosis. She has always shown politeness and sends me photos whenever she interacts with my furry family, and keeps me updated for any eventuality so I always know that they well taken care of. Highly recommended!
I implore you to not use this sitter. While yes, she is communicative and takes pictures of your pets to appear as if things are being done/going well, this not actually what is going on while you are gone. She snuck her husband(?) into our home and left him there alone on several occasions throughout her week stay. Apparently, they thought our home was their Airbnb for the week. She snuck him in the first night after she came by only one time (which was an extra charge) for SIXTEEN hours. Our poor dog. We were out of the country and felt completely helpless seeing her sneak an unknown man into our home that first night- unbelievable knowing our dog barely knew her and it was the first night of her stay! We didn't know what their plan was/who he was/what was going on, but what could we say? They were in our home and had our pets. She can be seen trying (and failing) to block the Ring camera/walk in front of him to block the Ring camera on multiple occasions- such shady behavior. Obviously, she did not have permission to have him in our home at all, let alone leave him in it while she was gone. I left very detailed instructions for her and she did not follow a majority of them (and it was obvious she never read them either). Our cats were not fed their food as directed, our dog (who was to be walked daily) was only walked 3 times in 7 days. She didn't feed our dog the food we left in the fridge. Our cats litter box, which was to be cleaned daily, was barely cleaned the entire week- we have multiple cats, so this is disgusting. Mail was not picked up. Dog poop was all over the upstairs- we can see her picking it up on the camera. She was paid $800 for the week for basically keeping our pets alive. We wanted them to be cared for and we paid a lot for her to do these tasks. We wanted to feel someone trusted and responsible was in our home. This was not the experience at all. It was beyond stressful when we were on vacation. When I confronted her with this information upon our return, instead of taking responsibility and understanding this was completely wrong and unprofessional to have someone else in the home, she blamed us for "insisting" she get to the house that first night (again, dog alone but for one visit for 16 hours) and said her husband "had to" come with her based on our demands she get to the house. Obviously, this doesn't explain why he remained in our home that night until 1:00 a.m. and then continued to return and spend the night throughout the week. Apparently, she also thinks because she lounged around the house all day that she did her job. We did not pay her to lounge around the house. We paid her to take care of our animals to keep them in as much of the same routine as possible. We had no plans to go back over the Ring footage, but given her dishonesty from the start we did. We are positive that she only did 3 walks because we can see it. We can see how many times she came upstairs where our shy cats stayed- supposed to be twice daily for feedings/clean the litterbox. She only came up a handful of times the entire week. Very awful experience all around. Also, Rover expressed that we would get a full refund, but that did not happen. We are leaving this review because my guess is the others did not have cameras/know what was going on and we don't want this to happen to anyone else.
About Alexandra C.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
I care for pets in my clients homes the way a client would care for the pet. I try to tailor a schedule/plan for each client to the best of my ability. Meeting clients beforehand is key- so that I can meet the client and their pet(s) to make sure it is a good fit for all involved. I will take this time to get to know exactly what a client needs. Such as: meeting their pet(s) and making sure they feel safe and comfortable with me, learning where things are in the house, learning how the client likes things to be done/and when etc. While I am in the clients’ home, I can assess a house to make sure it is safe and appropriate for overnights etc.
Information Alexandra C. would like to know about your pet
PLEASE NOTE: You will need to tell me exactly what you are wanting in terms of care and play. Some activities/more involved situations are subject to added fees. Each client is different in terms of what they want/ need and I will do my best to cater to those needs. The more info you can give, the more it will help me to give your pets the best care. I am fine with all sizes, breeds and ages of dog. However, if a dog/cat requires more care for whatever reason, there may be additional fees. BASIC INFO: I would like to know the age of your pets, about any vices, quirks, extra attention, or extra care your pets may need. I would like to know about any pre existing medical, physical, psychological conditions your pet may have so I can be aware prior to taking the job on and during the job. IF APPLICABLE: I would like to know how they behave on walks/ in public, if he/she gets along with other dogs or should be kept away etc. Typically I will keep them away from other dogs/ animals regardless. I also want to know if your dog gets aggressive over food, when someone knocks on the door, or for any other reason.
A typical day
PLEASE NOTE: You will need to tell me exactly what you are wanting in terms of care and play. Some activities/more involved situations are subject to added fees. Each client is different in terms of what they want/ need and I will do my best to cater to those needs. The more info you can give, the more it will help me to give your pets the best care. For example: I will play with your pet in their favorite way if they have one! Just be sure to let me know so that I am aware of what their favorite things are. I typically don’t take my clients’ animals in my car unless specifically asked to or there is an emergency situation. For dog walks: Again, walks vary from client to client but typically the walks take place around the neighborhood where they client lives, or if close and accessible, I can walk dogs on a local bike path, park or trail. Please be sure to let me know where you like your dog to be walked. I also will not bring your dog around other dogs because I find that is the best way to avoid problems or bad situations.
Services
Alexandra can watch in your home
Availability
I am mainly pet sitting right now so my schedule is pretty open, giving me more time to spend with your pets. Please note: Prices can vary depending on amount of time per day any give. client needs me to spend at their house with their pet(s).
| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
About Alexandra C.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
I care for pets in my clients homes the way a client would care for the pet. I try to tailor a schedule/plan for each client to the best of my ability. Meeting clients beforehand is key- so that I can meet the client and their pet(s) to make sure it is a good fit for all involved. I will take this time to get to know exactly what a client needs. Such as: meeting their pet(s) and making sure they feel safe and comfortable with me, learning where things are in the house, learning how the client likes things to be done/and when etc. While I am in the clients’ home, I can assess a house to make sure it is safe and appropriate for overnights etc.
Information Alexandra C. would like to know about your pet
PLEASE NOTE: You will need to tell me exactly what you are wanting in terms of care and play. Some activities/more involved situations are subject to added fees. Each client is different in terms of what they want/ need and I will do my best to cater to those needs. The more info you can give, the more it will help me to give your pets the best care. I am fine with all sizes, breeds and ages of dog. However, if a dog/cat requires more care for whatever reason, there may be additional fees. BASIC INFO: I would like to know the age of your pets, about any vices, quirks, extra attention, or extra care your pets may need. I would like to know about any pre existing medical, physical, psychological conditions your pet may have so I can be aware prior to taking the job on and during the job. IF APPLICABLE: I would like to know how they behave on walks/ in public, if he/she gets along with other dogs or should be kept away etc. Typically I will keep them away from other dogs/ animals regardless. I also want to know if your dog gets aggressive over food, when someone knocks on the door, or for any other reason.
A typical day
PLEASE NOTE: You will need to tell me exactly what you are wanting in terms of care and play. Some activities/more involved situations are subject to added fees. Each client is different in terms of what they want/ need and I will do my best to cater to those needs. The more info you can give, the more it will help me to give your pets the best care. For example: I will play with your pet in their favorite way if they have one! Just be sure to let me know so that I am aware of what their favorite things are. I typically don’t take my clients’ animals in my car unless specifically asked to or there is an emergency situation. For dog walks: Again, walks vary from client to client but typically the walks take place around the neighborhood where they client lives, or if close and accessible, I can walk dogs on a local bike path, park or trail. Please be sure to let me know where you like your dog to be walked. I also will not bring your dog around other dogs because I find that is the best way to avoid problems or bad situations.
Location
Concord, CA
Pets
Alexandra C.
Concord, CA