Michelle

Hi! My name is Michelle, and I'm a responsible, reliable, but free-spirited adult who loves to travel, and adores other people's animals and kids, because while I LOVE kids and animals (and they usually love me) I'm just not up for the long term parental/pet owner commitment thing, myself. But, I pet-sit, house-sit, and baby-sit pretty frequently, and I can provide glowing references (from clients not from this website, as well as HSA members) upon request. Please check out my reviews!

Consequently, I'm everybody's favorite fun aunt and pet sitter when they need to get away for awhile, which works out GREAT! I get my temporary kids fix (furry & non), and then I'm back to my non-tied down life. I love it, and my friends & family (and now you guys) get someone who can confidently handle any situation, provide all the TLC their pets need, and provide them the sure knowledge they won't come home to find their house rented out to a lovely family from Norway, and their pets and furniture sold in a wildly successful pop-up yard sale.

I recently wrapped up a six month, cross-country road trip, and am now back home in Tacoma. It's good to be back, but I had the most amazing time on this trip! I've especially enjoyed experiencing cities and neighborhoods I never would have, otherwise, thanks to expanding my pet/house sitting circle. And it's due in no small part to the interesting people (and their awesome pets) that I've met since I started using this website. In fact, I've loved it so much, I've decided I don't really want to stop, yet. So, I'm going to keep taking the occasional pet/house sit in the Washington/Oregon area, for now. I've lived in the Pacific Northwest for ten years, but there is so much I've yet to see and do, here. This should be a great way to change that.

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Ok, some random, somewhat relevant details about me, so you can (hopefully) get a sense of what I'm like, in no particular order:

I have a great sense of humor, and really appreciate that in others.

I'm a pop culture freak (especially as regards books, art, tv & film), and a voracious reader. Really loving British television shows, right now...feel free to share your faves, as I love to find new ones!

I love the art of food, and the wonderful diversity of cuisine I get to experience while traveling, but I hate to cook...mainly because I'm terrible at it. So, as long as you have a microwave, fridge, and wifi (for ordering delivery and streaming Netflix), I'm good. As a bonus, that means you're much less likely to come home to a smoking pile of rubble, and a hastily scribbled apology note. Yay!

I will walk your dogs as often as you like, wherever you like. One of the things I hate about not having my own, is they're a great way to get my own exercise, and there is absolutely NO getting out of it. If your dog is like most dogs I've pet-sit, it's not putting up with any of my couch potato nonsense, which I LOVE!

I'm a non-smoker, and except for the occasional visit with certain relatives, a non-drinker, so you WILL come home to a house that smells the same as it did when you left, AND a fully intact liquor cabinet. IMPORTANT: I really don't do well with cigarette/cigar smoke, so I'm afraid I will have to decline if you are not a cig/cigar smoke-free home. I should clarify that while I'm not a pot smoker, myself, that kind of smoke doesn't seem to bother me. So...oddly...I can handle that smoke smell. In other words, seeing the bong you forgot to hide won't make me clutch my pearls in horror, and the slight aroma that sticks around in the homes of heavy pot smokers doesn't kill me. PLEASE don't feel the need to Febreze, Glade Plug-in, or otherwise deodorize....that actually will kill me. I'm the girl who can't walk down the laundry aisle at the grocery store, unfortunately. Instant headache.

Ok. That's all for now. I'll cheerfully answer any questions you have when we FaceTime, Zoom, or phone. I look forward to hearing from you! I promise, your pets will love me, and I can honestly say my human clients (in all my varied work endeavors) enjoy working with me. Largely because they know they can depend on me, I think. :-)