Pet sitting is all about pets! Do we have time to explore the areas we have chosen to sit in?
YES! We make time to explore, meet up with friends and acquaintances and make new friends. Of course, it’s easier to get away from the house if you’re only sitting with cats. But you can have wonderful experiences exploring with a dog or two by your side.
After a long winter in High River, Alberta waiting for James’ doctor to give him the green light to travel, we started our 2023 sitting tour in Winnipeg. Actually, I did this repeat sit on my own. James wasn’t comfortable flying yet and didn’t yet have clearance from his doctor.
So, February 23rd off to Winnipeg I went, to stay with a lovely German Shephard Freya and cat Bob for 9 days while their parents went off to Florida. Freya is getting on in years, so it meant frequent gentle walks. Bob the cat doesn’t require much and as long as I fed him on time and provided a lap to sit on in the evening, he was a happy cat. I managed to get in a few family and friend visits while in Winnipeg. I’m happy for the time I spent with Freya & Bob this year as Freya crossed the rainbow bridge on June 6th, at home with her pet parents by her side.
James joined me on our next pet sit scheduled for March 25th – April 1st. This one was in SE Calgary with a lovely dog named Sadie while her pet parents Eric & Keeva went to Mexico to celebrate their nuptials. Sadie loves the outdoors; we shared lots of lovely walks in Fish Creek Park and her home neighborhood. It was an icy time in Calgary, so walks were frequently a slip slide away event. We did get out one afternoon to meet and have coffee and baked goods with fellow Trusted House Sitters and members of Facebook group GoWithLess – Nomadic Life Karen & Peter Pecksen. Karen & Peter have been nomads since 2013 and had plenty of valuable information to share with us newbies. Turns out we’re going to be sitting a pair of dogs they just sat, in July. Thank you both for taking the time to share with us. We look forward to crossing paths again.
After a few days back in High River we moved on to Kim & Dave’s in the Tuscany area of Calgary. We booked this sit through House Sitters Canada. This was our first pet/house sit within the House Sitter Canada platform. Pet parents, Kim & Dave were off to Mexico to get married. Hmmmm seems to be a theme pet sitting for newlyweds. Kim & Dave were kind enough to let us look after their dogs Memphis & Neko from April 6th until April 13th. Memphis is very energetic doodle; he loved his long walks and provided us with hilarity daily. Neko is quiet and reserved and only likes shorter walks. Worked for us as I like long walks and James could only do the shorter ones (still building up his stamina). We had a little excitement during our stay when the house next door caught fire. The CFD quickly put it out and there was no damage to the home we were caring for. During our time here we checked out the Calgary Farmers Market – West and met with another member of Trusted House Sitters. Mary Fletcher and her husband have done sits all over the world. We were happy to have the opportunity to meet Mary and pick her brain. Mary and her husband are now back at home in Cypress although not for long as they have a sit booked in the UK. Who knows, we may make it to Cypress one day.
We headed back to High River for a couple of days so James could meet with his doctor. Great news! James was given the, all clear to travel. We immediately booked a flight to Winnipeg for early July so James could go see his grandson Jacob and I could see my older brother Gerald.
Next on our calendar was a sit in NW Calgary with a cat named Lucy. We thought it funny every time we arrived at the house, we called out Lucy, where are you? And then, Lucy, you have some splaining to do… This sit was only for a few days while cat mum Vivian was off to a work conference. All the same we enjoyed Lucy’s company and exploring Calgary’s northwest communities of Rosemont, Cambrian Heights and Mount Pleasant. Specifically, walks in Confederation Park.
Another couple of days in High River to rearrange our suitcases with weather appropriate clothing for where we were heading.
We did an extended weekend in Priddis, Alberta looking after a yellow lab Milo, cat brothers Boss and Banana and horses Teddy, Scarlett, Sweet Pea and Edward. Little did we know that we were going to arrive there with snow. Guess you always need to be prepared for snow at any time when you’re in the foothills. Milo had free range and didn’t require walking but loved to do them all the same. The cats Boss & Banana are normal cats pet me, don’t pet me, we’re fine. Just don’t forget to feed us! The horses just required that we check on them a couple of times a day to make sure they all had four uninjured legs.
April 24th, had us heading to our next sit, in Sicamous, BC. This is a repeat sit for us and was the 4th pet sitting arrangement in our initial year of pet sitting. It is one that we talk about often. Our first sit in Sicamous was in October 2021, during that sit we had 3 dogs Brooke, Jessie and Twiggy and 3 cats Jag, Gabby & Buddy to keep us company. This year the pet parents took Brook & Jessie on holiday with them. Unfortunately, Twiggy crossed the rainbow bridge in 2022. We were somewhat disappointed only having the 3 cats to watch over as we love Brook and Jessie.
With less pets to care for we felt compelled to do some gardening. After all it is spring, and we both enjoy getting our hands in the dirt. You can see, James especially loved driving the lawn tractor. We babied Wendy’s seedlings in the garage and pulled dandelions from the lawn daily. James dug out the quack grass from the tree bowls and I the flower beds. We did a few hikes here and in Salmon Arm so that we could say we did something other than gardening and pet sitting.
Mid-May we took some personal time and headed up to Stony Plain, Alberta for my daughter’s graduation and to see my grandchildren. Spent 3 days visiting, then headed back to Calgary for another repeat sit. This is our 2nd repeat sit this spring! It’s good for the ego to have homeowners appreciate what we do and invite us back.
We’re happy to have been invited back to this lovely, well-appointed home in the Mystic Ridge/Springbank area of SW Calgary from May 19th until June 1st. We enjoyed our two weeks with an adorable Bichon named Rosie and her cat sister Bunny. Rosie remembered us from our sit here in the spring of 2022 and greeted us at the front door, tail wagging, and lots of kisses. Rosie has aged some and has had surgery on both of her hind legs, so walks are a lot shorter than our first time sitting, but just as frequent. Rosie likes her walks. I think it’s because of the treat she receives when we return, lol. While on this sit we took some time to meet with Coral & Ken Pearce, also members of GoWithLess – Nomadic Life at the Lady Bug Café. Ken & Coral have been travelling the world since 2016 and they happily shared stories of their adventures with us.
So, as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, we do have time to explore and meet up with friends, acquaintances and make new friends. James & I decided we would host a meet & greet for GoWithLess nomads and pet sitters from other groups we belong to at the Calgary Farmers Market – South location on May 25th While the turnout was small, we gained some valuable information from fellow nomads Debbie Marie and David Kristensen and shared information with new to pet sitting, Diane Bruce. Debbie & David have been nomadic since April 2022 and have already travelled to Spain, France, Germany, Austria, Montenegro, and the UK. I believe they also said they had been to Turkey before returning to Canada in May. Thank you, Debbie & David, for sharing the tidbit about Alberta Health. Good Luck Diane in securing your first pet/house sit that is not for friends and family.
Back in NW Calgary we are sitting two adorable felines Rhea & Clio for Melisa and Thilo who jetted off to get married in Turkey. Our sit here was from June 4 – July 4.
With just two cats we had plenty of time to explore. We walked from 27 Ave NW to downtown Calgary, via the stairs at McHugh Bluff and went to the Devonian Gardens at the CORE Shopping Centre. Another walked took us down Memorial Drive from 14 St NW to 4 St NE we did this walk a couple of times. There was time wandering around Prince’s Island Park and Kensington Village. There are nice pathways to take In Confederation Park.
I was very excited to find out that Spruce Meadows was holding the National ATCO Cup the weekend of June 16th. The last time I attended this event was with my Mum probably 15 years ago. This was James’ first time at a national horse show event.
Well, that is the first 6 months of 2023, gone in a flash of time!
Watch for our next blog post “What it’s like to live in someone else’s home”