Cat Sitting in the Black Hills of South Dakota
Introduction
Hello! We're Laura and Dustin, and we'd love to host you in our cute house in Rapid City's historic West Boulevard neighborhood in the central Black Hills. Laura ran a bed-and-breakfast in nearby Deadwood for about ten years, and Dustin was a partner in a digital marketing agency. We sold our businesses just before the pandemic started, and now we do some freelance work from home, along with a little writing and photography - and as much adventuring as we can manage. We love hiking and exploring outdoor destinations, and we have friends scattered around the world who we can't wait to visit. We have one black rescue kitty here at home: Luna is a long-haired cat discovered living in a nearby forest. She's pretty skittish, but she warms up to new people after a few days, and loves to have her hair brushed and tummy scratched.
Show more...Home & location
The house is a craftsman-style cottage in Rapid City's historic West Boulevard neighborhood. We're just across the street from an elementary school and park, and within walking distance of almost anything we need: a grocery store, Starbucks, pharmacy, several restaurants, and veterinarian are all within a few blocks. It's less than a mile to downtown, so we typically walk there for more restaurants, bars, shops, and the library. Although our house is in a fairly urban neighborhood, Rapid City is relatively small with about 80,000 residents. We like the balance: the city is on the edge of a forest in a small mountain chain, which makes us a fun way to see some of the wild lands of America away from the cities. In fact, even though our house is right in the middle of the city, you can walk a few blocks to the west and start hiking up a forested hillside into a designated wilderness park. There's a great network of trails, and some fantastic views out over the city. We moved into the house during the fall of 2020. We've made several updates and renovations since then, including repainting the exterior and setting up a nice outdoor patio space out back. The house has about 1,800 square feet. The main floor has a living room with an art deco fireplace, Laura's office, a queen guest room, a bathroom, the dining room, and the kitchen. The lower level has a media room with a home theater, Dustin's office, and our bedroom and bathroom. There's a very small yard out the kitchen door, and a small one-car detached garage. There's speedy and reliable wi-fi throughout.
Show more...Responsibilities
Luna is a skittish cat. She was discovered abandoned in a nearby forest, and we're not sure how long she was living there on her own. She's always afraid of new people, but she usually warms up to them after a couple of days - sooner if the person has a quiet and calm personality. Once she gets to know someone, she'll ask for attention by flopping herself on the floor so they can scratch her tummy. She eats normal run-of-the-mill ho-hum cat food. We leave her some dry food she can access anytime, but she often comes to the kitchen to demand her favorite wet food a few times throughout the day. We also have a smattering of houseplants that need watering, plus some outdoor plants in the garden that need a little love. None of them are unusual or high maintenance: indoor plants need water once a week or so, and the outdoor ones need water every day or two, depending on the weather.
Show more...Meet the pets

Luna
15 years
Sitter Reviews (12)
Homeowner Reviews (1)
None
A review was not left by the sitter.
Show more...None
We had a very nice stay at Dustin and Laura's home. They were so welcoming and easy to communicate with both before and throughout the sit. Their home is very comfortable and in a great location within Rapid City. We enjoyed hearing the kids laughing and playing at the small school across the street. Kepler and Luna became our furry friends. Kepler was social and vocal with us right away. His tummy can be a little sensitive, but he was easy to care for...just don't feed him too much at once. He even let us put balm on his allergy spots with no fussing at all. Such a good boy. Luna took more time to warm up to us, but she did eventually. She loved her brush time once she felt comfortable with us. We enjoyed our time with them and would sit for them again if we were in the area.
Show more...None
We had the pleasure of getting to know Kepler and Luna for a month. Dustin and Laura are great hosts and were both very detailed in taking care of their home while on vacation. Their home is located in the heart of Rapid city. The surrounding area was safe and close to downtown. You also have several restaurants within walking distance. While watching Kepler and Luna we were still able to explore and enjoy the blackhills area. Mt. Rushmore and Crazy horse was within an hour as well as Custer St. Park and Badlands National Park. Kepler took right to us. He is very sweet and loves affection. Luna was a little more hesitant and took about a week to realize we were still there. She loves to be brushed so that helped with her getting comfortable with us but once she was comfortable she would be out more and even slept with us one night. The guest bed is very comfy with a bathroom right off the hall. There were 2 offices my husband could work remotely at. No issues with the wifi connection. Downstairs is a large living area with a big TV. Other responsibilities were to care for outside and inside plants. And I don't want to forget about Clementine. She is a Sourdough starter that Laura has had for 16ish years but she was easy to take care of. If we are ever back in the area we would pet sit for Dustin and Laura again! Thank you for opening up your home with us. This was a wonderful experience. We will miss Kepler and Luna.
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Maty and I arrived in Rapid City on New Years Eve and stayed the full month of January (2022). Dustin and Laura were very detailed regarding their expectations as far as taking care of the house and how and when to feed Kepler and Luna. The house is in a safe location, close to downtown, so it is was easy to walk to many places. They even set us up on the main level with our own bedroom (the bed was super comfortable) and bathroom so we had our own space. We enjoyed getting to know and love on Kepler and Luna very much. Kepler is very affectionate and sweet. He is always ready for cuddles or pets any time of the day. Prior to us coming we were told that he has kidney disease and he would need to eat many times throughout the day and night so we knew what to expect. He cuddled with us on most nights and slept on his bed in the kitchen while we worked. Luna is a bit more selective with her love but we can totally respect that. Since Kepler gets a lot of extra attention, due to his condition, we made efforts to give her special attention as well. We gave her treats or play time while Kepler slept and she seemed to appreciate that quite a bit. With the exception of the first several days, she patiently waited in the hallway for us to get up and hung out upstairs with us most of the time. The longer we were there her affection increased. By the end of our stay, she was giving us both full belly when we pet on her and jumping in my lap purring and rubbing against me. On the morning we left she gave me sweetest goodbye. Thank you Dustin and Laura so much for opening your home to us and letting us love on your sweet kitties, we are very grateful.
Show more...None
A review was not left by the sitter.
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Dustin
Kristi was fantastic! Very communicative, very tidy, and she took amazing care of our garden, indoor plants, and fluffy black cat. We really appreciated that she was so flexible with our changing plans, and we loved the frequent text message updates with photos of little Luna. We'd love to have her watch our place again!
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