For over a year now I have received calls or emails enquiring about pet sitters. Virtually every expat we know has one or more pets, and not enough of a local social network to rely on when traveling to take care of their pets. Expats don't have family members to call on, or maybe feel they can't ask for such a favor of people they have known for a relatively short period of time.
Do I know any pet sitters? No, not a one. When I mentioned this word to my Mom yesterday she replied "A WHAAAAAA?" That's right, it's not even a concept that's very understandable to many. So how bout some expats out there with too much time on their hands start a pet-sitting business, or a nice pet B&B?
If you do, please let us know, I have a request for services in December, and more requests will likely crop up.
In the meantime, if you do have any household staff, they are the ones supposed to do your pet-sitting. The advantage of this mode is that a) the pet remains in his/her/its home, and b) there is human life at your home during your travel absences, making it safer from burglaries than an empty, closed up home.
Absent that, see if you find any kids in your vicinity willing to do it for a few bucks. There are not many chances of child employment in Uruguay, so they may be particularly enthusiastic about it.
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The idea of household staff taking care of your pets (seems to be the norm here) is, in my opinion, a better choice than paying kids a few extra bucks to do it... unless it's on a case by case basis, depending on the kid being considered for the job and the pet(s) being cared for... You wouldn't want a young child taking on a (very important!) responsibility that they may not be able to carry to fruition and/or get hurt by rambunctious animals, or you losing animals because the kid couldn't close the gate as he went in to feed etc.... a million scenarios come to mind... including if an animal were to need veterinary care for whatever reason... a kid mot likely cannot call the vet and have him/her come out to your home to see the animal in question or even realize there's anything wrong with an animal in the first place.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of a group of expats training and paying someone (or a couple of people) to do the job of "pet sitting" as it is known in the USA and then be able to make use of this service is a great idea...
A responsible, reliable, TRULY animal loving person with transportation is needed. Someone who you know won't leave your animals without food/care because a great party crossed their path or there was a rain storm.
Someone you can trust with the key to your home and an alarm code all their own to enter and re-set your alarm if need be.
There's a young woman who fills those requirements that I know of that might be interested in doing this more formally on a part-time basis - she's already done this for me before and she is the only person I have come across since I've lived here that I would leave my animals' care to.
Because it isn't like putting an ad out there for just anyone - animals are not cared for here the way they are in the USA. People here are not "bonded and insured" and you don't give the key to your home to just anyone - and if you're like me, much less put the care of your beloved pets into just anyone's hands.
Most people here WILL laugh at the concept of a "pet-sitter", so a pet-sitting business might not be the most successful, for those who are thinking like entrepreneurs... But the expat community and other foreigners might be willing to pay for a service that is needed and lacking here.
Margarita & Anonymous, thanks for posting your experiences and thoughts on this topic. We are in need of a pet sitter, so are very curious about the young woman alluded to in your comment. Would you contact me, so that we can hear more about her and what she has done for you in the past? You can reach me at lpenny < at > biotecnicamundial < dot > com Thank you....
ReplyDeleteI've emailed you at the email you provided.. check your junk mail folder. The Subject line has "Pet Sitting" in it.
ReplyDeleteIt might be a good idea to differentiate between a "house sitter" (which might include taking care of the pets that live in it)... a "pet sitter" who only tends to the animals and just makes sure all is well in your home on the visits to your animals and a "pet B&B" ... these are all different.
ReplyDeleteThat I know of, there are no "five-star" pet B&B's in Uruguay, this might be something to look into for those entrepreneurs out there... You can find "caged-animal' boarding facilities at some veterinary clinics but they are quite "austere"... ie: small cages stacked one on top of another and maybe one or two daily potty breaks but no space to run or exercise etc. or outdoor kennels where the dog has an area to keep itself protected from the elements but is basically kept in there and has its kennel cleaned daily. As opposed to indoor large "pens" the size of small rooms where the animals can move around and are taken outdoors for potty breaks.
There is one veterinarian/boarding facility in Shangrila on the way to Montevideo that has a better set-up for boarding than most - but none in Punta that I know of.
Veterinaria Arambilla dos Santos - Contact: Fabiana dos Santos at email address: adsvet at adinet dot com dot uy or call six eight two zero two two five or zero nine nine six zero four two two seven. Other expats have used their services and were happier with the set-up and facilities in general.
Hope this helps.
The Animaladas clinic in the Riviera building in Piriápolis does not offer pet sitting, but I think the boyfriend of one of the vets (Carina) does.
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