I have been an animal lover for as long as I can remember. Growing up I was never able to have pets of my own as my dad was allergic. Being an animal lover and not being able to have my own meant I jumped at every opportunity I could to spend time with animals. Whether this is playing with them at friends/relatives, taking them for walks, or simply feeding them (which is arguably their favourite time of the day) I was doing it! I have had several opportunities to dog and cat sit friends animals while they are away. Most of the time I have spent my entire time at the owners home spending time with the animals taking them for walks, taking them to dog parks, feedings them, playing with them, and attending to the animals personal requirements making the animal and owner feel as comfortable as can be. While I have had amazing experiences house sitting I have also had to deal with challenges. In my most recent experience the dog was experiencing anxiety being away from their owner and was experiencing bathroom issues and mood imbalances. To make sure I took the best care of the animal I paid extremely close attention to the animal and remained in contact with the owner the entire time giving them updates and communicating what the next steps that need to be taken are. In this case, I took the animal to the vet to check if there was anything going on further than just anxiety. Between the vet, owner, and I we promptly resolved the issue where I began giving daily medication to the dog and regular extra affection to relieve stress being away from owners. My goal for pet sitting is to always make sure the animal is as happy and comfortable as it can be as I understand it can be hard to be away from your owners. Bringing in a new human into the picture can be challenging for animals as it’s not what they are used to. As a pet sitter I value the importance of creating a strong relationship with the owner and the animal so both feel as comfortable and happy as possible.