Pet Sitter in Highland, New York

My dog and cat are the center of my universe; my life revolves around them. As such, going out of town hasn't been an option for me for a long time, since I haven't had anyone I can trust to care for them in my absence. Then I met Amanda. Full disclosure: My initial contact with Amanda was when I hired her to work for our small CPA firm. I immediately liked her for her intelligence, warmth, humor and insight. Working with her, she quickly showed herself to be a competent, quick learner, as well as responsible and trustworthy. She was also, very clearly, an animal person. Almost everyone in the firm is a dog owner, and we all bring our pups in to the office fairly regularly. Amanda obviously loved the dogs, and they - including my dog - responded in kind. Obviously, having a rapport with animals is essential for a pet sitter, as is common sense, a fundamental understanding of their needs, and knowledge about how to keep them safe. Equally important is an ability to understand animal behavior, and respond appropriately. Dogs are, essentially, like toddlers with teeth and fur. They need tons of affection, stimulation, and interaction. They also need rules and boundaries, and someone who can enforce them gently but firmly, with humor and love. Amanda doesn't have a lifetime of experience with dogs, but she does have a 10 year-old son, whom she's raised as a single parent. He is well-behaved, respectful, affectionate, engaging, resourceful, clever, and more than a little mischievous - never openly defiant, but will test limits and see how much he can get away with. He is, in fact, a lot like my dog. Watching Amanda interact with her son, I was confident that not only I could trust her to keep my animals safe, fed, and well cared for; she also wasn't going to be manipulated into feeding my dog french fries if he laid his head oh-so-adorably on her foot while she was eating dinner. I recently flew all the way across the country for a 6-day vacation, something I haven't done in years. Although I missed my boys every day, knowing that they were in Amanda's capable hands gave me the gift of not having to worry about them. That knowledge, and the pictures which Amanda sent me daily, allowed me to relax and enjoy myself. I highly recommend that anyone who loves their animals as much as I love mine have Amanda care for them while you're on vacation... so long as it's not when I'm on vacation, because I call dibs on her!