Max & Emily v.
Newport Beach, CA
Services
Max & Emily can care for
Availability
Emily is a PhD student working on her dissertation. I recently defended my PhD and now I run a small startup. We both almost always work from home. We are both also enormously active. Emily qualified for Kona in the Iron Man and she has planked for more than 10 minutes at a time (don't tell her I told you that). I am not a super-athlete, but like to get outdoors. We love exercising and will happily exercise with your pets if they are the types of pets that enjoy walks/runs/dog parks. But if not, our dog Shaka would love to have a buddy to hang out with! His favorite game is tug, so we play a lot of that in the back yard. We unfortunately are not currently living in a place that allows dogs other than Shaka. So any care we provide, other than outdoor adventures, will need to be at your home.
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About Max & Emily v.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
We closely follow whatever instructions we are provided. As academics we are both extremely accustomed to closely following instructions in an academic or laboratory context. Animals are much easier than lab work. We give animals plenty of attention and, when appropriate, plenty of exercise. If we think there is something wrong we alert the owner immediately and, if necessary, take the animal to the owner's preferred vet. Most importantly, we know how reassuring it is to get nice photos / videos of a happy pup during their stay. So we like to make sure we send those smiles along.
Information Max & Emily v. would like to know about your pet
We need to know which vet you use, and who your emergency contacts are. We also need to know about any preexisting conditions and what to do if the pets have any kind of medical emergencies while you're away. We'd also want to know about any weird quirks your pet has, especially towards other dogs. Lastly, let us know if there is anything we can do to make your precious doggo have a great time, and make sure you feel at ease leaving them with us :)
A typical day
If we're dog sitting and the dogs are large/fit enough to run, we will absolutely take them for a run, of whatever distance and speed they feel comfortable with! Besides that, I like to walk dogs at least three/four times a day, realistically more like five, because I need breaks between meetings and research papers to let my brain relax. Our dog Shaka is a high energy dog that is still too young to join us on runs ... so we usually hike him for at least 3 miles a day ... plus additional walks to get fresh air. It would be really fun to have a dog join Shaka on all his adventures.
Location
Newport Beach, CA
Pets
Available full time until August :)
Pet care experience
I grew up in Anchorage Alaska where I made money on the side by caring for and exercising my neighbors' hunting dogs. I also took care of chickens, honeybees, and at times stickleback fish (although that was in more of a lab environment). Emily grew up in South Africa in a household with two dogs, a dozen or so semi-feral cats who meander in and out, and a large number of genuinely wild monkeys who help themselves to the kitchen when nobody is looking. She also rode horses all her life. We just (July 2025) added the newest member to our little fam. Shaka! He’s a Staffordshire Bull Terrier who is the sweetest little nugget. He loves loves loves other dogs and all humans, especially the girls, who he knows go gaga over him and guarantee belly rubs.
Reviews
Max & Emily took great care of our pup. She went on multiple walks each day and got lots of attention. Their dog was also a sweet playmate!
First, Max and Emily took great care of our pets. They were responsive, sent photos, and followed the specific needs of how we care for our cat and dog. We appreciated their attention to detail in this way. The unfortunate bit about their stay with us was how they existed in our home. They ate our food and even went looking for some of our more expensive items to consume without our permission. I did not like how they assumed this would be ok. They also hosted a gathering in our house without permission. The worse of all is that they moved around some of my personal effects which resulted in the loss of something very sentimental to me. In general, when I am in someone else's home, I respect their space by not touching or removing things. They did not operate in this way which is why I cannot recommend them for overnight stays. I do recommend their pet services though.
Max did an excellent job taking care of our house and our cat while we were out of town for 5 months. He even had to deal with a broken pipe in the house - which he handled quickly and professionally. Highly recommended.
About Max & Emily v.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
We closely follow whatever instructions we are provided. As academics we are both extremely accustomed to closely following instructions in an academic or laboratory context. Animals are much easier than lab work. We give animals plenty of attention and, when appropriate, plenty of exercise. If we think there is something wrong we alert the owner immediately and, if necessary, take the animal to the owner's preferred vet. Most importantly, we know how reassuring it is to get nice photos / videos of a happy pup during their stay. So we like to make sure we send those smiles along.
Information Max & Emily v. would like to know about your pet
We need to know which vet you use, and who your emergency contacts are. We also need to know about any preexisting conditions and what to do if the pets have any kind of medical emergencies while you're away. We'd also want to know about any weird quirks your pet has, especially towards other dogs. Lastly, let us know if there is anything we can do to make your precious doggo have a great time, and make sure you feel at ease leaving them with us :)
A typical day
If we're dog sitting and the dogs are large/fit enough to run, we will absolutely take them for a run, of whatever distance and speed they feel comfortable with! Besides that, I like to walk dogs at least three/four times a day, realistically more like five, because I need breaks between meetings and research papers to let my brain relax. Our dog Shaka is a high energy dog that is still too young to join us on runs ... so we usually hike him for at least 3 miles a day ... plus additional walks to get fresh air. It would be really fun to have a dog join Shaka on all his adventures.
Max & Emily v.
Newport Beach, CA