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.
Sharon and Milton are two of the nicest people I've met in my life. This is my first time having a sitter fly in from out of state and it was so simple, stress-free, and didn't affect any part of me getting ready for my trip, leaving for my trip or returning from my trip. Sharon was very communicative before, during and after I returned. It just couldn't have been more wonderful! If you're considering applicants stop looking and choose Sharon and Milton. They are just delightfully wonderful wonderful people!! They go above and beyond just housesitting and pet sitting! Tidy, clean, respectful down to earth and the most kind and loving people. I do believe Milton really is a cat whisper!! They slept with my sweet babies, and even followed silly grooming instruction on one of my cats. Would have them sit for me absolutely anytime.
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.
Nathalie and John were great! They were great house sitters to watch our two dogs, 2 geckos, our old cat and bull frog. Their two girls took good care of the animals as well. The house was exactly how we left it. We really appreciated their help!
Summer was a very top-quality pet sitter and house sitter. She not only took excellent care of all four pets (three cats and a dog) but even achieved a very close bond with one of the cats. She went over and above the call of duty with our dog, who developed a serious skin condition while we were gone. We're so grateful that Summer was able to identify there was a problem, took the dog to the vet several times, and ended up having to apply topical medication and give pills and even keep the dog dressed in a t-shirt, which she did flawlessly. She communicated with us frequently, sending photos and updates, and the house was spotless when we returned, even cleaner than when we had left. She did an amazing job, knew how to handle any situation, always had a very upbeat and positive attitude, and we really enjoyed getting to know her right before we left and right after we returned. We would very very highly recommend Summer in all respects!
We can not exaggerate the care and love Juliet and Laurent gave to our cat, Piero, during his the last few weeks of life. While we left for our trip thinking he merely had a bladder infection, his symptoms turned for the worse a weeks into their sit and later revealed he had cancer. No one would wish their sitter to need to hospice their cat but Juliet and Laurent showed such compassion for Piero and volunteered to be with him when we made the decision to put him down. It was an emotional time for all of us and we will be forever grateful to our two caring cat and house sitters. We have had many fantastic housesitters through zeewoi but Juliet and Laurent top the list. Their professionalism, constant communication and compassion were exceptional. Should you have the opportunity to have them in your home, do not hesitate to book them, you will have no regrets. We do, however, regret that they had such a short time with Piero and had to experience such a painful event.
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!
Greetings Pet People, I am a bit late leaving my review for Kristine who is local to us and has taken care of our kitties Max and Luis a few times this year. After COVID-19 was announced in March, our travel plans came to an abrupt halt. We had to cancel a lot of trips we had planned but decided that it was safe to go camping a couple of times this summer. We called on Kristine as one of our favorite sitters on this site. We discussed safety protocols and agreed to cleaning that we would do to leave the house safe for her to enter. She shared protocols that she had taken with other homeowners and had sound processes to make us feel safe leaving our cats and our home in her care. She even purchased batteries for our automatic cat feeder when it failed to let one of our confused kitties to eat. Kristine is a smart, humorous and a thoughtful person. I would not hesitate to recommend her for your sit. She truly loves animals and taking care of your home. Highly recommended! Thanks Kristine!
Chris was a fantastic cat sitter for our elderly and high maintenance kitty. Chris was the perfect combination of responsible and on top of her medication needs while also being calm and relaxed about her picky eating habits and the need to monitor her food and medication consumption. He was prompt, easy to get a hold of, responsible, and overall, a great sitter. I would definitely recommend him and most certainly hope to have him stay with her again.
Pennee and Bill were the BEST pet sitters and guests ever! I really wanted them to stay forever ! Our cat, Miss Kitty bonded so much to them, that she really wasn’t that happy to see me when I got home .Our cat is a finicky eater and they tried all different types of food and treats for her. They sent me regular photos of miss kitty and I knew everything was great when most of the pics had miss kitty on their lap. Our cat doesn’t take to many people but she immediately fell in love with them. Pennee sent us our mail and prescription meds on a regular basis , and went out of her way to take care of any issues . They fell in love with the neighbors and community and just made our lives so easy . We experienced the Covid 19 virus outbreak quarantine during this time and Pennee and Bill agreed to stay a month longer at our home . They were extremely flexible with their travel plans so that everyone would be safe. Upon our arrival home, we were greeted with a bouquet of flowers , beautiful hanging basket of flowers for outdoors and a beautiful bottle of wine . And our house had never been cleaner ! Bill and Pennee are a pet owners dream couple !I felt extremely lucky to have found such a great petsitter and new friend . We will be visiting each other in the future .
Is it better to board cats or leave at home?
Veterinarians advising to leave cats at home with a pet sitter who will stay overnight in your home, boarding is not recommended for cats as they are stressed in a new environment, you can find a sitter who will care for your cats and home for free at Zeewoi.
How much should you pay someone to watch your cat?
At least $20 per visit, $60 per overnight watching in your home or $40 for a cat boarding, otherwise you can find a free sitter at Zeewoi.
What do people do with their cats when they go on vacation?
Inviting a cat sitter to your home, boarding the cat with a local business, asking a friend, family or neighbour to feed and check the well-being. The most efficient way to leave your cat during your vacation is with Zeewoi cat sitters for free, in this way, you will save cat sitting costs and make vacation not only for you but also for your cat sitter!