Rachel and Justin

How we work

We are experienced in looking after high end houses that are the owner’s pride and joy and pets that are highly treasured furry family members . We are both non smokers, have Enhanced DBS checks that are updated annually and excellent 5 star references from house sits that we have completed over the last 6 years. We will happily provide this information for you. 

Our aim is for your dogs and cats to have a fun and happy time and to be well cared for until you, their parents, return. We obviously can’t be you (their preferred carer) but we can keep their routines, mealtimes, exercise and playtime as normal as possible. We love to spend time with pets outside walking, running around or inside snuggled up in the lounge together. 

With 6 years of housesitting experience we are very used to looking after precious furry companions and the beautiful homes they live in, as if they were our own. We are very familiar with using and looking after AGAS (and know that spillages are not desirable on the top or inside the AGA, so we are very careful). We are comfortable using and looking after wood burning stoves too, something we are often asked. 

We are early risers so that first trip out into the garden will happen between 6.30am and 8am. We like to walk outside in the garden with pets several times a day so that they have some company, if they want it, and at the same time we get some fresh air whatever the weather, though all sitting out in the sunshine for an early morning coffee is wonderful on sunny days, for all concerned!  

Making ourselves and our fur friends scarce so cleaning teams can do their work each week has been part of Housesitting for us. As is being available for gardeners, swimming pool maintenance operatives and other outside contractors that might need access or information. We are used to checking many exits before leaving the premises, and at night, and are diligent about using house alarms as instructed. We are detail people so love a good set of instructions from you and will follow those instructions to the best of our
ability. 

We are clean and tidy people, always use coasters and table mats and wear slippers in the house. We will always try hard to follow your instructions as to where your pets are allowed to go and not go and what they are allowed to sit or climb on and what they are allowed to eat. We pride ourselves in properties being as clean and tidy when their owners return home as when they left. We offer to strip the bed and wash our bedding and towels before leaving so you do not have extra work to do on your return, if you would like us to.  

We are used to looking after dogs that are trained to bark in order to guard their estate audibly and try our very best to keep them away from delivery couriers and others contractors coming to their home. We have become skilled at sensitively trying to avoid other people and dogs when we are out and about when that is a requirement. We also look after very socialised dogs and will endeavour to follow your instructions carefully about how they should interact with people, children and other dogs whilst out.

Many of the properties where we work have large grounds or several acres for us all to walk round several times a day. However, we are aware of the importance of sniffing the scent that other dogs leave behind so we try and prioritise going for walks offsite.

Our aim is for both of us to be with the pets in our care for as much of the time as possible. If we ever both need to go out we will let you know when we leave and when we return. Going out without the pets is always kept to a minimum during out house sits. 

We like to meet you and your pets either personally or on Zoom so we can all establish if we are a good fit to work together before making a booking (although we are happy to pencil in a date prior to the
meeting).  

Communication and Daily Updates

We are good at responding quickly to any communication from our clients before, during and after our House sits. If we are unsure of, or concerned about anything regarding the care of your pets, your home or the
contents we will ask immediately.  

Over the years our clients have loved getting photo updates (and occasional short videos) via WhatsApp so they can see that their furry family members are well and having fun. I do always say ‘if you want less photos
perhaps once a day do let me know’, no one has requested this yet but that would be fine too.   

If Things Go Wrong

Sometimes unexpected things go wrong. We have had to deal with several difficult situations over the years and immediately called the homeowner for them to instruct us as to what they would like us to do. The main electrical gates to an estate broke down in the closed position and we managed to safely override the mechanism so that we could open them manually. On another occasion a bird flew into an antique glass window and smashed the pane which we boarded up then liased with the Glazier regarding successful replacement of the glass. Also at another housesit a catch on an old external door failed which meant the door could not be opened. We managed to fix it avoiding the need to call out an emergency locksmith. Another example was when a very old alarm sensor failed and we managed to liase directly with the alarm company to disable it whilst on the phone using the alarm panel (this meant the rest of the house could remain securely alarmed until that sensor was replaced). Lastly a boiler started leaking 2 weeks before it was due to be replaced. We liased with the heating engineer then managed to control the water leakage using large old towels to protect the limestone floor. On our next visit we enjoyed the brand new boiler!

Our Background

We married in 1993 and have lived in a period cottage in Cheltenham for 17 years. Justin is now semi-retired having been a Managing Director of several international businesses. He is now an online Coach and Mentor and an Exam Invigilator at a local Grammar School. Rachel originally trained and worked as a Registered General Nurse in London and has had several part time jobs over the years whilst bringing up our 2 sons, including setting up her own Aerobics classes in a local Sports Hall, as a Mystery Shopper and running a Promotional Merchandise Company. She began retraining in 2017 to be a Counsellor /Therapist and is now a member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. . Rachel works as a part time Zoom Counsellor working from home but has lots of breaks between clients for walks and cuddles (with your pets, not Justin!) 

We started housesitting through a site in 2018 and have thoroughly enjoyed looking after pets and homes all over the UK and Europe (our profile photo was taken in Porto when looking after Ollie the cat who we have looked after over the last 6 years in London and Porto). We are proud to have been invited back to housesit for every housesitting job we have undertaken. 

Soon after commencing Housesitting we realised we loved spending all of our time with the pets in our care and were going out alone very little which is why we decided to start our own Premium House and Petcare business and dedicate our time to being with the pets in our care.  

Throughout our lives we have had our own dogs, cats, hamsters, fish, giant African Land Snails, stick insects, rabbits and guinea pigs. Since House Sitting we have mainly chosen to look after dogs and cats (although
several properties have had outside fishponds stocked with lots of fish too). We love Housesitting and returning time and time again to a wonderful welcome from the beautiful pets we look after.  

Hobbies

Whilst Housesitting we enjoy being able to relax in the evenings with our furry friends and love to be all together watching Netflix, Prime or Discovery (don't worry we have our own accounts so won’t upset your algorithms! ). We enjoy cooking and maybe having a glass of wine in the evenings too. (We have discuovered that dauphinoise potates cooked in the AGA are so amazing). We are very happy to have pets on our laps if they want a cuddle but won’t force that if they would rather be somewhere else nearby.  

When we are not Housesitting we often go away in our Motorhome and have visited many places in the UK and Europe over the years. We enjoy concerts of all kinds especially Jazz, 80s Pop and Classical. Going
to the theatre to see plays, musicals or comedy and going out for meals are all things we like to do between jobs. We also like to visit Art Galleries, Museums, Stately Homes and Palaces. However our favourite pastime is to meet up with our sons in London or Cheltenham and be together as a family. When we are all at home we love attending the Cheltenham Festivals, going to the Races and all that Cheltenham has to offer. 

Why Do We Want To Housesit?

We love animals but we are unable to have our own pets due to our hobbies and the amount of time we are away from home in places that any pets would be unable to join us. This leaves a fur shaped hole in our lives and so we have lots of love and attention to give to the fur friends that we look after. Whilst housesitting we have lots of time to play, cuddle, talk to and run around with the pets in our care. In short we love it and the time we invest means that they love it too. All the clients we have worked with have said words to the effect of ' we can see in the photos how much fun they are having and how happy they look and when we get home they seemed so happy and relaxed like they have had a holiday too!'

Feel Free to Contact Us

We are very to happy to have a no obligation chat to see if you would like to meet up and discuss the option of us looking after your treasured pets and home, so please feel free to contact us through this site.

We are reliable, respectful, honest, kind, energetic, warm, focused, affectionate, playful, good in a crisis, considerate and enthusiastic.