Cat Sitting in Red Hook

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.

KATHLEEN

I was fortunate to have Hillary return for a second sit. She took excellent care of both my cat and my home. She got on well with my neighbors and even allowed my friend to come visit Suley while she was there. I especially appreciate how flexible and accommodating she was regarding arrangements for a sitter who would be taking over for the second part of my very long absence. All in all, Hillary is a gem!

Matthew and Cheryl

Amber is as good a sitter as you will find anywhere! She treated our cats with such love and care, as if they were her own. She left our house in perfect tiptop tidy shape, and made sure to wash all the towels and linens before she left. She even cleaned out our coffee maker and took up our weekly trash without us even mentioning it! Amber is super kind and personable and we welcome her back to sit for us anytime! If you are looking for a sitter, you should definitely accept her application!

Chelsey

Windy & Dustin are some of my top go-tos! They are wonderful sitters who I can trust to take care of my cats and goats and love them like their own! They are so respectful of my house and are always flexible with me when plans change last minute.

Joanne

Catherine was a wonderful sitter for our 17 year old cat Zabba. She sent us pictures twice a day and kept us informed about Zabba’s daily activities. We came home to a clean  home and would definitely recommend her as a pet/ house sitter. My only concern was that she doesn’t drive and with an older cat, I just prayed that Zabba didn’t need to go to the vet…. And he didn’t 🥰. We will ask her again for sure.

Monica

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.

Carrie

Oh wow! Everyone should be so lucky to have Nicholas and Veerle watch their house and pets. These lovely people are pros! They communicated early and often, were super accommodating to some last minute changes (it was originally going to be only our cats to watch but we decided to keep the dog home as well so that added to the schedule and care needs) and they left the house spotless and all set up for another sitter who came in after them. 

We didn’t get the chance to meet because my departure and arrival times but I dearly hope I get to in the future because they were just great! I even heard how nice they were from My neighbors who say them out walking our dog. :-)

They also sent regular pictures of the pets which look like pro-photography! 

Cannot recommend this couple enough! Your pets and house will be in good hands!

Julie

My husband and I reached out to Toby & Chloe after reading their profile and impressive reviews only a week before our trip, since our scheduled sitter had to cancel at the last moment.  They were very friendly and quick to respond to chat from the very beginning, and ended up exceeding our expectations during their two week stay.  It was evident they had thoroughly read our Welcome Guide beforehand, as they arrived knowledgeable and prepared to care for our home and pets.  They were very willing and happy to take the necessary time with us to walk through the house and meet our cats, as we got them acclimated with our daily routines and answered any questions.  Shortly after we left, our city had a heat wave come through, and after immediately notifying us, Toby went beyond the call of duty and inspected our struggling AC unit to pinpoint the issue.  As far as cat care is concerned, we have two seniors (who have more sensitive tummies) that can get irritated after a fur ball or swallowing anything out of the ordinary.  When this occurred, Toby & Chloe stepped in and took wonderful care of our cat duo; softening their food and even cradling while hand-feeding them for extra comfort.  We truly could not have asked for more affectionate and responsible sitters.  We returned to a spotlessly clean home, happy cats, and well maintained plants and pool.  (They even cleaned our dusty Kitchen pendant lighting, which requires a steady hand and is definitely a time-commitment …We felt like professional housecleaners had been there!)  On our way back, Toby & Chloe stayed in communication with us to monitor our arrival time, allowing them to care for our cats until just before we got home.  Overall, they are very reliable and trustworthy sitters whose genuine goal is to provide a top-quality sit, while maintaining your household and seamlessly transitioning to your pets daily schedule.

gretchen

Tonya was great and filled in after our other sitter had to cancel. She was very self sufficient and navigated acclimating herself to everything since she arrived after we left. She gave thoughtful updates on my cat and I could tell she really enjoyed her, so that means the world to me! She left the place immaculate and we will certainly have Tonya back!

danica and ajit

Super nice sitters and extremely flexible. Really enjoyed their company and I only regret that I was too frazzled to chat with them more and get to know them!
Kept the house super clean, pets loved them. Dog especially.
Had a little problem with my new kitten not meshing well with the older cats (which was not too surprising since cats can be territorial). Pennee was very patient and gave me constant updates and tips. And the older cat was much more calm when I came home. Highly recommend and welcome back anytime!