18/09/2023
A BIT ABOUT ME, CHRIS DAY t/a SIT STAY HOUSE & ANIMAL SITTING.
I have never had a dog to call my own; my ex-husband didn’t like dogs, and since our divorce it hasn’t been practical as I work and live away from home so often. My long-standing clients are in no rush for me to get a dog of my own either – as that will be the end of me living in with theirs whilst they are away! 😜 However, this has given me the opportunity to look after a large number of different dogs over the years, of a much wider range of breeds than if I had had one of my own.
I am a bit of a learn-aholic, so when my job gives me the opportunity of caring for different types of animals, in different locations, I am keen to learn and to gain experience. Reading a particular book, maybe 5-6 years ago now, really changed my traditional outlook of, and way of being, with dogs. There is a link to that book below. Without exception, I now use the basics of “amichien” with all my clients’ dogs; whether the owners have told me that they have “issues” or not. I have yet to meet a dog who does not understand this, and who is not grateful for my being calm, confident, and appearing to know what is important to them.
My interest in animal behaviour/psychology was sparked by a “challenging” young horse that I had, who sadly, was put to sleep during my divorce. But what I learned from and with Jasper, stood me in good stead for my rescue horse, Comet, and rescue pony Robin, who I still own now – aged 22 and 15 at the time of writing. Whilst what is important to dogs is very different to what is important to horses, learning first with horses developed my patience and observational powers, and I have since adapted that to dogs, and even to other species.
I started house and animal sitting many many years ago, when my children were still at the village school (they’re 41 and 42 now), just for people who I either groomed for or cleaned for; for cash, without insurance or security checks, which I subsequently obtained after my divorce, when I extended my services to the general public. I was house sitting the day that the 2007 floods hit Tewkesbury, which was an experience I would rather not repeat – the flood water came up to just above the ground floor door handles! 😱
I now regularly care for dogs, horses, cats, ducks, chickens, bantams, guinea pigs, kune kune pigs, pygmy goats and alpacas.
I am now past state pension age but need to keep working to pay my bills and to keep myself fit, and sane! But obviously I do not have the strength or stamina that I had when I was younger, so I am not taking on new clients who have large dogs, or dogs which pull on the lead a lot. Likewise, no new clients whose horse setup requires a lot of heavy lifting.
I look forward to meeting you and to serving you in future.
Best wishes,
Chris Day
The book;
You ve heard of the Horse Whisperer now meet the woman who uses similar methods to train dogs.Jan Fennell s remarkable gifts have earned her the nickname the dog listener . Her unique understanding of the canine world and its instinctive language has enabled her to bring even the most desperate a...
