5.0

We're Seb and Hannah, a couple in our early thirties living in a ground-floor flat with a garden in Leytonstone. Dogs have been part of both our lives for as long as we can remember, and looking after them is something we genuinely love doing. Between us we've grown up with all sorts: labradors, cockapoos, springer spaniels and cocker spaniels, so we're used to a real range of personalities and energy levels. Seb grew up in Cornwall, where walking dogs by the sea and across the countryside was just part of everyday life. Hannah grew up in Lancashire with spaniels who always wanted to be out on the hills, at the park, or playing fetch. The contrast between Seb's labradors, who were happy snoozing most of the day before wanting attention in the evening, and Hannah's spaniels, who wanted to be involved in absolutely everything, taught us early on that every dog is different and needs to be looked after on their own terms. That's probably what sets us apart: we're not just dog lovers, we're properly experienced with lots of different breeds and temperaments, and we know how to read what a dog actually needs rather than applying a one size fits all routine. Our flat makes this easy too. Our ground floor garden means toilet breaks are never a rush, and our quiet residential street is perfect for calmer, low key strolls throughout the day, whatever the time. We've lived in Leytonstone for almost three years and know it inside out, especially the best walking spots, so for dogs that need more space to run we're always heading out to Epping Forest, Hollow Ponds or Wanstead Park. We're keen walkers ourselves, so keeping up with even the most energetic dogs has never been a problem. We dog sit often, both for our parents and for friends, and we always try to keep things as close to a dog's normal routine as possible. We regularly look after a friend's whippet, who comes to stay with us because we keep him on his usual morning and afternoon walks with plenty of relaxing in between. We've looked after a friend's rescue Staffy, Lana, who preferred shorter walks and made up for it by wanting to sit on top of you given half the chance. And we've looked after Seb's brother's springer spaniel, Ted, who's probably the most people obsessed dog we've ever met and full of energy, which suits us fine as we're pretty active ourselves. Seb works four days a week for an architecture practice in Bermondsey, so he's free for full days of dog care on Fridays and all weekend, and Hannah works in communications for a local council. We can both work from home on Tuesdays and/or Thursdays, so we can take dogs from Thursday morning to Sunday evening. Between us we can be flexible, from a few hours to a full day to a few days once your dog knows us. We know how important it is to find people you trust, so we're always happy to meet beforehand somewhere you can see for yourself, and to keep in regular contact while we're looking after your dog.