Michael C.
Clyde Hill, BELLEVUE, WA
Services
Michael can host
Availability
About this sitter: Primary care provider for the greatest Golden Retriever who ever lived: Duke (1997 to 2010) Duke was active up until the final year of his life, doing some form of swimming, running, walking, or close quarter play like tug of war or wrestling every day. Together he and I learned a bunch of great ways to break out of the confined space of suburban and urban life. Duke’s lifestyle, including his diet, was more like that of a farm dog despite our Bellevue location. His health and happiness flourished because of it. When he was ten years old, hardly anybody believed it. I’m a strong believer in the superiority of off leash exercise. Assuming you want that for your dog, I will do whatever it takes to provide a plentiful amount of it, drawing from a decade of experience with numerous suitable locations, an intimate knowledge of the patron demographics, and the rhythms of these places, both time of day and season. If off leash exercise is not possible I am still capable of providing anaerobic speed burst / recovery training technique on leash as well as play in the back yard. I don’t think slow jogs are effective or natural for dogs. They want to sprint! My goal when feeding your dog will be to preserve as much of the routine as possible. Substance, amount, and timing. I should mention that Duke’s diet did not consist of a lot of dog food. He ate raw meat and bones, raw eggs no shells, and pulverized veggie mulches intended to mimic the contents of a herbivores stomach. If your dog has similar needs I know exactly where you are coming from and I have the experience to accommodate you. I’m looking to restore a bit of the dog time I have lost since Duke passed away. Because of current career demands, it would be unwise for me to take on raising a young pup right now. Being a part time dog sitter is the next best thing. Fun exercise and lots of it is my strategy for helping dogs conquer the separation. It also scratches me where I like it. It’s a very mutually beneficial arrangement. All my rover.com gigs so far confirmed that hands down!
About Michael C.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
Why I love dog sitting I grew up in a family that always had a dog. Breed history goes Pomeranian (my toddler years), Cocker Spaniel (elementary), Basset Hound (elementary to college), and finally Golden Retriever (college to middle age). I consider Duke my first dog. He and I both started back at the nest together and he and I both left the nest together. I'm looking to restore a bit of the dog time I've lost since Duke passed away. Due to current career demands, it would be unwise to try to tackle house training of a young pup right now. Being a part time dog owner is the next best thing and I intend to be just as serious a part time dog sitter as I was a full time dog owner.
Home
Information Michael C. would like to know about your pet
I want to know all about their routine. How to best minimize the change and stress for the animal. That's the goal of this whole enterprise. All the standard care logistics are a given. I also want to know if the dog is obedient when off leash. If they prefer the company of other dogs or if they want to be alone. Duke went through phases of each through his life and I can work either either.
A typical day
Here's where we'll take our walks Weekdays we go places close: tracks and parks. We use the quite roads according to me, a Clyde Hill pedestrian expert. Morning, noon, and night. Weekends: We go somewhere for off leash adventure and we take our sweet time about it. Your dog's sleeping arrangement Provided your dog knows the drill about inside and outside and doesn't have a medical condition that causes more than normal wear and tear on the floor, carpet in particular, he/she sleeps where they want indoors. I got 3 bedrooms 2 baths, 1410 sq ft rambler. Mix of hardwood and carpet. Otherwise, blanket bed roll in a detached garage with access to back yard and patio. Thus far my guests have all brought their own bed. I think this helps with the separation. Gives them something familiar. As the bachelor king, there isn't any furniture off limits to dogs in my house. If you want your dog to stay off the furniture so he/she stays in the habit of that when you return you will need to let me know. Otherwise its all fair game. Time I'll spend with your dog Thus far I've spent the entire time together with all my guests. There have been a few exceptions where I was gone for just under an hour and the pooch was left home alone. Two of those times were because I was driving the same family who's dog I was sitting to and from the airport. In order to dog sit on a weekday I will clear working from home with my employer. That is always going to be the first step in determining my availability. The down side is I may not always get clearance to work from home depending on what is happening at work. The up side is, once I do have it cleared, it is extremely unlikely your dog will ever be alone in my care.
Location
BELLEVUE, WA
Clyde Hill fully fenced backyard
Pet care experience
1410 square feet of indoor home. I also have a detached garage that is a gym when I am using it. Otherwise, it's a 650 square foot luxury dog house with a raised ceiling, two windows, and a propped open back door for access to fully fenced backyard. No cars allowed! The backyard is flat, natural grass and moss with an absolutely chemical free history since I bought the place in 2003. Duke used to to roll on the tree roots of a on old maple to self massage his back. No grantees your dog will be that smart. If I'm home, I assume the dog will be where ever I am, unless he/she prefer to be outside all the time. When I'm not home the dog has the yard and the garage as described or can also remain indoors since it's unusual for me to be gone for more than a few hours. There is a small concrete patio between the lawn and the garage. The backyard and patio are highly visible from the inside. The backdoor is a solid window top to bottom. Next to that are large windows, low enough for a medium size dog to see out into the back yard, that span the entire hallway. Being able to see the backyard from so many inside places will help a guest dog succeed in letting me know he/she wants to go out.
Reviews
Awesome as usual! Thank you, Michael!
Micheal was very professional and made me feel at ease during the meet and greet and at drop off. We had only been gone a few hours and Michael sent photos of our dog playing and having fun! He sent numerous photos each day and called every evenings with updates. Our dog came home happy and tired! I can only hope Michael will be available for our next vacation!
Our pup has stayed with a ton of dog sitters and doggie day care places, and his stay with Michael was, hands-down, the best experience ever. He was so happy and tired when we picked him up!!! We loved getting updates via email and phone the whole time we were gone, and we know he had tons of fun running next to the bike and swimming with Michael. I'm SO thankful we found Michael thanks to Rover.com!!! :) Tynan can't wait to go back!!!
Michael is absolutely the best! He took our energetic dogs running and swimming. Not only was he attentive to the dogs, he sent us email updates and photos so that we always knew how they were doing during their stay with him. The dogs came home happy and exhausted from their perfect stay! Thank you, Michael!
About Michael C.
Communication
Skills
Safety, trust & environment
Why I love dog sitting I grew up in a family that always had a dog. Breed history goes Pomeranian (my toddler years), Cocker Spaniel (elementary), Basset Hound (elementary to college), and finally Golden Retriever (college to middle age). I consider Duke my first dog. He and I both started back at the nest together and he and I both left the nest together. I'm looking to restore a bit of the dog time I've lost since Duke passed away. Due to current career demands, it would be unwise to try to tackle house training of a young pup right now. Being a part time dog owner is the next best thing and I intend to be just as serious a part time dog sitter as I was a full time dog owner.
Home
Information Michael C. would like to know about your pet
I want to know all about their routine. How to best minimize the change and stress for the animal. That's the goal of this whole enterprise. All the standard care logistics are a given. I also want to know if the dog is obedient when off leash. If they prefer the company of other dogs or if they want to be alone. Duke went through phases of each through his life and I can work either either.
A typical day
Here's where we'll take our walks Weekdays we go places close: tracks and parks. We use the quite roads according to me, a Clyde Hill pedestrian expert. Morning, noon, and night. Weekends: We go somewhere for off leash adventure and we take our sweet time about it. Your dog's sleeping arrangement Provided your dog knows the drill about inside and outside and doesn't have a medical condition that causes more than normal wear and tear on the floor, carpet in particular, he/she sleeps where they want indoors. I got 3 bedrooms 2 baths, 1410 sq ft rambler. Mix of hardwood and carpet. Otherwise, blanket bed roll in a detached garage with access to back yard and patio. Thus far my guests have all brought their own bed. I think this helps with the separation. Gives them something familiar. As the bachelor king, there isn't any furniture off limits to dogs in my house. If you want your dog to stay off the furniture so he/she stays in the habit of that when you return you will need to let me know. Otherwise its all fair game. Time I'll spend with your dog Thus far I've spent the entire time together with all my guests. There have been a few exceptions where I was gone for just under an hour and the pooch was left home alone. Two of those times were because I was driving the same family who's dog I was sitting to and from the airport. In order to dog sit on a weekday I will clear working from home with my employer. That is always going to be the first step in determining my availability. The down side is I may not always get clearance to work from home depending on what is happening at work. The up side is, once I do have it cleared, it is extremely unlikely your dog will ever be alone in my care.
Michael C.
Clyde Hill, BELLEVUE, WA