Cat Sitting in Litchfield

winslow

I am struggling with naming our top adjective to describe Michael and Jeanne.  "Conscientious" will likely be it but then again, "personable," "reliable," "organised," and "animal-loving" are top contenders. 

If you are reading this review and contemplating inviting this couple to watch your pets, then look no further. We have had a number of excellent house sitters but this pair was next level in terms of the love they showed our cats, Maxx and Nala.  When we came back, we could our animals already missed them.  These cats, who have never slept with anyone other than us, were getting in bed with them each night -- and that meant climbing stairs! 

The day before our trip, Nala got an ear infection and had to be put on steroids for asthma.  Michael and Jeanne did not sign up for that when the sit was booked but they took it in stride.  In the last-minute rush, I relayed that Nala needed her oral steroids morning and night.  Michael read the RX label, indicating one dose a day, and contacted the vet to clarify.  So you can see why "conscientious" is right up there.  They saved Nala from an overdose!

We were gone three weeks and they sent us just the right amount of pictures and videos.  They bought cat toys (I forgot to put ours out!) and actively engaged with them, including 20-minute massages for Maxx.  I truly believed them when they said they fell in love with our fur babies.

The house was spotless (which was not important to me but truly appreciated) but I smiled when all six water stations in our yard were filled.  They took seriously my love for and the needs of the wildlife in our yard.  Our plants were all in good condition as well.  

Sensing they were "next level" when I met them, I predicted they would want to leave a meal for us upon our return.  I asked them not to but they found another way to bow out with class.  They made a donation to a nonprofit I work with instead.  This I learned from the lovely thank you note they left. 

I hope they will consider Charles and I friends because we certainly feel that way about them now. What special people.  If you book them, treat them well because they are going to do that for you for sure.

Phil

Anna was an excellent sitter - she took great care to understand all of the intricacies of taking care of the house and cats, asked lots of questions, and arrived on time and ready for the sit. During the trip, she checked in with updates, and upon returning home, left the space tidy and clean. The cats were happy and healthy, and seemed to have had a great time during the sit. Thanks Anna!

Steven

Our review is written by Steven (house owner, host + my father) + also by Kim (the daughter).

Written by Kim: This was our first house sit since the passing of my mother in late Dec 2023.  I was helping my father Steven (whose profile it is) manage all the emails + try + find a great house sitter + came along Gretchen’s profile! Not only is she a cool cat + someone you might want to get to know, I found myself quickly talking to her. I shortly found out her profile is just a glimpse of how interesting she is but talking to her was so much better!  She is a world traveler with many experiences + stories to share. We quickly became conversationalists who could talk forever + probably will continue to do so! Thank you TH! 

She is easy to communicate with + continued the consistent communication all along our journey of having her as our *first* guest after my mom’s passing. It was clearly a time filled with anxiety + sensitivity so there were some sensitive topics to go over + Gretchen got it right away.  A few of our rooms in the house were off-limits (as they housed my mom’s things) but we reassured her the house has ample space for her to enjoy + there are many lovely outdoor spaces to boot!  When she arrived she felt she was in paradise + really relished in the outdoor beauty + the indoor coziness. We were happy to share it with someone who appreciated it so much! 

She also was very understanding with the fact that both my dad + I would both be involved as we both handled different parts of the stay. Me, writing + setting up the Welcome Guide + would go over the situation but then upon her arrival my dad would take over + answer any questions mostly during her sit. The good part of having 2 people is she had accessibility to us both, in the case she needed it + sometimes it came up! She juggled all the communication oh so well.  My mom usually handled most of the logistics so this being our first time we were nervous something would come up we might not know but it didn’t!  It was new territory for us + we wanted to make sure she had everything. 

Gretchen handled it all with such ease, seamlessly, really respecting our wishes/desires + taking all the information into her hands + making it seem easy on her end to do so. 

She was easy to coordinate schedules with!  There was a gap in her 1st + 2nd sit but everything went seamlessly even when my flight had a day long delay. She was able to coordinate schedules with me arriving in between, then leaving, my dad arriving different days + us extending the trip too. It all worked out! We were all a good team!

She absolutely loved our older cat, Benny + he fast + furiously fell in love with her oh so easily. When I saw him, he looked oh so loved + after saying hi to me went over to ‘her’ bed + slept there waiting for her to come back. She sent many pictures, videos + even cute creations + toys she made for our Benny + it was obvious the house + our Benny were her first priority. 

She even asked us if she could help prune our flowers/shrubs, something my mom used to do + honestly it was an honor to hear her ask that. She was welcome to set up her art studio + play away. She was very communicative when our house cleaner, landscape gardener + house manager showered up for different reasons. When I arrived back for a short stint before she came back the 2nd time our mail was so well organized it was an assembly line! She also offered to take down our xmas tree (as we were a bit behind in taking down our xmas decorations) + she was sensitive to the fact that we were adjusting to a new normal. 
Thank you so much Gretchen! You made our first sit in a long time so seamless + such a relief that we are ready now to host again. We only wish we could have more Gretchen’s! (She’s also a super talented artist!)

Written by Steven: Overall, Gretchen has been an absolute treasure.  She has fulfilled our goals for a house sitter perfectly - she took good care of the house, great care of our treasured pet, Mr. Benny + took care of the grounds such as watering a few plants + trees.  She excelled in all the above + is welcome back anytime I will be out of town in the future.

Joel and Esme

Kathy and Ron have sat for us several times in the past and have always been excellent. They are our "go-to" pet and house sitters and we always check their availability before we post a sit. They are trustworthy, organized, communicate very well, and take great care of our cats and our house. We hope they will continue pet sitting for many years to come!

Julie

Sabre is a sweet, honest person who stepped up at the very last moment (after the prior sitter flaked out) to watch our dog and cat for 17 days. When there were a couple minor accidents, she informed us of them right away. One involved a burnt pan (easy to do if you’re not familiar with an induction stovetop) which she offered to replace. 
   Sabre also washed the towels and sheets, and made up the bed before we got home. The yard was pooper scooped and litter box was clean. Pets seemed well-cared for.
   When she had to leave town for several hours one day, she made sure to arrange for our neighbor take care of the pets.
   Additionally, I appreciated how she didn’t assume that it would be ok to bring her cat. When we found out she was going to keep her cat in a kennel during her stay here, we told her she could bring him which worked out fine. 
   Overall, I would confidently recommend Sabre to watch your pets and house.

joby

Amanda is truly our trusted sitter "find"!  She comes back regularly, so much so that our kitties think she is their secondary owner!  Always reliable, clean, responsible and most of all loves our cats as much as we do!  Good communicator, self reliant - all in all a perfect "10"!

Sean

Kimberly was a wonderful sitter who watched our two cats for us while we were out. She was willing to come a day early to help acclimate herself with the animals, and this was exceedingly helpful in making sure the cats would be comfortable with her during our absence. I would highly recommend Kimberly if you're looking for a responsible, caring sitter.

Mary & Shane

My husband and I are so grateful for Cendy staying with our ~1yr old cat for nearly a full month. We were nervous to leave her for so long but Cendy had Wilma literally eating out of the palm of his hand and snuggling with him in no time. Cendy was incredibly communicative with us and attentive to Wilma consistently for the entire duration of the sit which was such a relief and gave us the piece-of-mind needed to fully enjoy our trip. We returned back to an impeccably clean apartment and a very content kitty. For the first few days back Wilma was definitely looking around for Cendy, missing her buddy. We (and Wilma!) would welcome Cendy back any time, especially for a longer stay knowing how responsible of a sitter he was. Couldn't recommend enough!

Nancy

If you are looking for someone to take care of your fur babies and your house while you're away, Daniel is your guy!  I had discovered zeewoi just a couple of weeks before I was to leave on vacation and I was not only apprehensive if the website was too good to be true, but also under a real time crunch.  I reached out to over 100 local sitters and several possibilities fell through.  I was confident I would find the right sitter and when Daniel applied for the sit and I started to text and converse with him, I knew I had found the perfect sitter for my two cats!

Daniel was upbeat and positive, articulate and personable, warm and caring, and he asked all the right questions about Lilly and Eli (I hadn't had the time to complete my Welcome Guide, yet!?!).  I shared that I had an easy cat and problem cat -- Lilly,  who is sweet, social and eats dry food, and Eli who is skittish, was periodically pooping outside the kitty litter box and was eating prescription canned food twice a day mixed with a probiotic and stool firmer.  I asked if he thought he was up for the job and he happily said he was.

Since he flew all the was from Chicago, I thought the least my husband and I could do was pick him up at the airport.  When he arrived, he pulled out his notebook.  He patiently walked with me as I reviewed kitty care, showed him around the house, and where he would be sleeping.  He immediately picked up Lilly who was excited about meeting her new friend and Eli bugged out and down the stairs to the basement (his favorite hiding place!).  We got Daniel connected to the internet, set him up at our dining room table and headed off to airport, leaving our house and kitties in the best of hands.

Daniel wanted to make sure I felt comfortable and assured while we were away.  He made sure to text with me every other day (he had asked my preference earlier), sent photos of Lilly being her cute self while Eli hid during the day although he gave me assurances that he was eating his food and using the litter box (there were a few accidents, but Daniel never complained about these additional duties).    When we returned from our vacation, the house was also spotless and well cared for and Daniel had even washed the sheets for me!

It is with utter happiness and complete confidence that I recommend Daniel as a fantastic Sitter.  He is trustworthy, responsible, caring, and competent, and you can rest assured that both your house and sweet pets will be watched over and treated with TLC -- and will truly be in the best of hands while you are away!

JANELL

We've had many pet/house sitters over the last few years and Cat and Eugene will reside at the top of the list of favorites!  From my first email with Cat I knew I liked her.  She has all of the qualities of a good house and pet sitter:  Reliable, a good listener, organized, flexible, caring, and honest.  She and Eugene arrived exactly on time for our pre-sit visit, where they got to meet Maya and become familiarized with the house.  It was a delight to visit with them and become comfortable knowing Maya would be in good hands.   Our scheduled dates changed somewhat and they were extremely flexible and easy going about the changes.  Upon our return home, we found the house pretty much in the exact condition we left it in.  I can tell that great care was taken for Maya and for the house.  Maya seemed to still be looking for them the next day, wandering around the house wondering where the other people who loved her went.  I would recommend Cat and Eugene for anyone looking for reliable, kind, respectful, caring, tidy, and honest sitters.  If I am lucky, I will get to have them back to sit for me again.