Matt Bradley Pet Sitting

17/06/2024

Hello, everyone! Summer is filling up fast and I already have several jobs upcoming. I will be offering drop in care and dog walking on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, beginning the second week of July until the end of August. Weekend house sitting will become available again in August. Please DM for more detailed and up to date availability. Have a great summer!

13/02/2024

Looking for dog walking, drop ins, or house sitting for your pet(s) in the Watertown area during February break? I am available from Sunday to Sunday, February 18th to February 25th! Private message me for more info and booking requests.

02/02/2024

05/11/2023

Quick and fun overnight stay with Piper and Calleigh the mini doodles! The three of us became fast friends. Thank you Joan for the great experience and I look forward to the next house sitting!

08/10/2023

Had a very nice weekend taking care of Gunner, Titus, and Zeus! Thank you, Andrea and Dan :)

08/10/2023

Last post I talked about my puppy going into a fear phase. With that, we had an interesting development. All of a sudden, pottying outside became a challenge. He was too nervous to go outside and we had a couple accidents, because of it.

Why are they doing that all of a sudden?

The quick answer?
They no longer feel safe to p*e and p**p outside. They are on edge, anxious about what is happening in their environment and will slink around, pulling back to your house, or the car, rather than relieving themselves.

Loud Noises such as loud motors, gunfire, artillery fire, thunder, helicopters or scary sights such as reacting dogs, that scary fire hydrant across the street, lightning (etc.) can all be a reason why your dog associates potty time with "something bad is going to happen". They can also chain certain events together, I'll talk about that in a different post though.

When dogs don't feel safe, often they will not drink, eat or even potty. All they can think about is "How can I get out of this situation." and go into "flight".

All we can do is to be patient, these phases can take time, but they won't last forever. You can play games at the door, to make the door a great space. Use truly high value treats. Fresh Pet, Homestyle Meatballs, Colby Jack Cheese, Chicken Breast, Bacon, Steak etc.
In the end, your puppy dictates what they think of as high value.

The best you can do is to find a quiet space for your puppy. An area that is more remote, quiet and peaceful. Where there is not much going on. A place where your puppy feels safe to go potty.

If you have a self assured older dog, recruit your older dog to go out with your puppy. This can give your puppy security and a safety net and sometimes, they just have to see "Hey, when we go outside, this is what Mom/Dad wants me to do."

Another thing you can do is to give them more space. Personally, just to go potty, I like to use a retractable leash, however, my dogs are trained to go potty on a retractable leash and know how to walk on it. To potty a puppy, a longline or a retractable leash are perfect. Just don't take them on a walk with it. You don't want your puppy to end up getting into an unfavorable encounter with another dog, while they are 10ft away from you. This is strictly for pottying purposes.

If all else fails, sometimes talking to a veterinarian about calming aids may not be the worst idea. If they have a certain age, medication can be of help. Some people have great success with Thundershirts, Calming Caps, Mutt Muffs or supplements such as Rescue Remedy, Composure (VetriScience), Virbac or Anxitane M-L Dogs etc.

As for my puppy, three days into the fear phase, we have less issues with pottying outside and the fire hydrant is no longer a fire breathing monster that wants to swallow him whole. I will continue to share our journey since it is something everyone can relate with. 🙂

13/09/2023

Gatsby is a happy client! Book your house-sitting or drop in visit today!

21/08/2023

🙏🏼

21/08/2023

Another successful stay taking care of Diggs at his cottage! Thank you so much Patrick and Sara for being wonderful new clients and friends! 😁

24/07/2023

Growing old together!!

07/07/2023

Another job done! Lots of fun was had with Buddy and Polly this week 😁 thank you to my new clients!

07/06/2023

Dogs are family ❤

07/06/2023

One of the hardest parts of breeding is to let go of your favorite dogs. Jeejee is my favorite female and today she went home with Hannah one of our “Jefferson County 4H Furry Friends” Kids.
Jeejee deserves to have her own person and is so good with Kids. She is the perfect dog to learn and compete with.

Good luck Hannah & Jeejee, I can’t wait to see what you accomplish together. ❤️

07/06/2023

Adorable. Truly adorable.

30/05/2023

Summer is right around the corner! Start planning for your July and August getaways now! Find me on Rover and use the code MATTB74966 when you book, Rover will take $20 off your first booking! PM me with any questions :)

27/03/2023

Got a busy work week and not enough time to walk your dogs as much as they'd like? I can help! I am available for weekday evening walks after 3 PM and all day on weekends! Find me on Rover and use code “MATTB74966” to get $20 off your first booking!

My family has owned several dogs since I was a child and I have helped take care of them since I was about 12 years old. I also gained a good amount of experience working at the local SPCA for 2 summers, where I learned about proper dog walking, bathing, nutrition, and cleaning methods for both dog....

10/02/2023

Clever dog! 😂😂😂

06/02/2023

Limited-time open availability coming soon! Starting Saturday, February 18th, I will be available during Winter Recess for house sitting, drop ins, and dog walking 7 DAYS A WEEK through February 26th!

Rover is offering $20 off the first booking for new customers if they follow the link and enter the code below! (This does not affect how much I am paid by Rover for services, this is special savings just for you! )

Use code “MATTB74966” to get $20 off your first booking with me on Rover:

My family has owned several dogs since I was a child and I have helped take care of them since I was about 12 years old. I also gained a good amount of experience working at the local SPCA for 2 summers, where I learned about proper dog walking, bathing, nutrition, and cleaning methods for both dog....

25/01/2023

Attention all clients! Get $20 off your first service if you choose me to take care of your pet(s) while you're away! You can click the link and enter the code below to claim your referral offer. Thank you for your business!

Use code “MATTB74966” to get $20 off your first booking with me on Rover:

My family has owned several dogs since I was a child and I have helped take care of them since I was about 12 years old. I also gained a good amount of experience working at the local SPCA for 2 summers, where I learned about proper dog walking, bathing, nutrition, and cleaning methods for both dog....

25/01/2023

I am now live on Rover! I will be using Rover to keep an up to date availability calendar. Visit the desktop site or the app for mobile devices! You can contact me here or through my sitter profile to request a service :)

My family has owned several dogs since I was a child and I have helped take care of them since I was about 12 years old. I also gained a good amount of experience working at the local SPCA for 2 summers, where I learned about proper dog walking, bathing, nutrition, and cleaning methods for both dog....

01/01/2023

Hello! I am now accepting new clients that need someone to take care of their dogs, cats, rabbits, ferrets, or other small animals while they are away from home, while allowing their animals to remain in-home. I have experience in dogsitting since 2021, as well as experience working in an animal shelter and as a teaching assistant for 1 year in a small animal care program at Jefferson-Lewis BOCES. I am available to provide petsitting services for clients in Watertown and nearby areas. Please message me here or e-mail me at [email protected] with any questions or to schedule a service. Please leave instructions or discuss your animal's care with me prior if they have any special needs. Thank you for your interest! :)