Case Study - Homesitters Paula and Gavin Rose

Posted on 27 February, 2017

Homesitter Paula and Gavin Rose

Retirement is often the ideal time to try something new. For many newly retired people, becoming a homesitter has real appeal.

Becoming a homesitter gives people the chance to explore parts of the country they have never been to before, stay in some fantastically grand homes and meet new people.

This is what attracted Paula and Gavin Rose, both 51 years old from Broadstone in Dorset, to the role. Previously, Paula ran a swimming lessons business with her sister, while Gavin worked for a company that designed and installed interiors for boats.

Whilst they no longer needed to work full-time, they still wanted to keep busy and were keen for a new adventure.

Paula explained, “We wanted a lifestyle change - to live in different parts of the country and meet new people and we researched different ways to do this. We discovered Homesitters Ltd and it sounded perfect. We love animals and are keen walkers, and being a homesitter involves travel and the new experiences we were looking for.”

The couple have been home and pet sitting for over three years now, and they do around 12 assignments a year, varying in length from three or four days to a month at a time. As well as the travel opportunities and meeting new people, the Roses enjoy looking after pets, and usually take on assignments which include taking care of dogs and cats.

They have also looked after chickens and a tortoise, and one of their assignments even involved working at a hedgehog sanctuary, which one of their clients asked them to help out at.

The job involved feeding rescued hedgehogs that were sick and injured and weighing them to check they were progressing well. Once the hedgehogs recovered they were reintroduced to their natural habitat.

“It was a really interesting homesit” said Paula, “we enjoyed learning to handle and care for the hedgehogs, it’s not often you get to see these little creatures close up and we took great pleasure in helping with their recovery.”

The Roses have also had the pleasure of staying in some amazing homes when on assignment. Whilst they live in a small bungalow, the places they stay are often far grander. They prefer country locations, and many of the homes they stay in are surrounded by land or woodlands where they can spend time walking.

Sometimes, there are swimming pools and table football or pool tables, so there is always something to do whatever, the weather.

Paula recalled one of her favourite homes, “It was like staying in a National Trust property, the gardens were very well kept and beautifully laid out, there were ponds and statues. It was such a pleasure to stay in that beautiful setting.”

As a growing company, we are keen to recruit more homesitters throughout the UK. Our services are in high demand as more people want the security of having their home and pets looked after by a professional and reliable homesitter when they go away.

If home and pet sitting sounds like something you would enjoy then please click here to find out more or call us at Head Office on 01296 630 730.

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