I'm looking for a housesitter who loves animals and can commit to caring for 2 dogs, 2 cats and 3 horses. Since the house is about twenty minutes from downtown Santa Fe, in a country setting, the housesitter needs to have a vehicle and should be comfortable living just outside of town. Also, please consider this an 'active' housesitting position, meaning you should be able to lift a bale of hay, walk on uneven terrain, and be able to breathe easily at 7000 feet above sea level. If you'd need to stay for an extra couple of days on either end of the housesit to make it work for your schedule, it could be possible to arrange that.
The main responsibilities will be feeding and caring for 2 dogs, 2 indoor/outdoor cats, and 3 horses. Since we are on 10 acres and have dog doors, leash walking usually isn't necessary, though the dogs are much happier if they get some exercise. In general, the dogs and cats roam free all day, but are brought in at night. The dogs need to be fed twice a day, morning and night. The cats just need to have food in their bowl and have their boxes cleaned daily. And the horses require feeding on a fairly regular schedule, once at about 8 am and again at about 6 pm. Please don't consider this if you have your animal along, we want to avoid potential pet chaos and have an environment that works for everyone.
The house is a two-story, two-bedroom home, with a finished basement. The house is in very good condition, with a newly re-done kitchen, and has great character, with wood ceilings and unique details - overall, it's quite nice, but very casual feeling - it is a house you can relax in. The best thing is the location - about 20 minutes from the Santa Fe Plaza, it's on ten acres, covered with juniper and pinon trees, and is backed up against wilderness. The house is close to town, but still rural. If you like to walk, there are trails behind the house, as well as about a five minute drive away. We have a couple of great wood stoves, and lots of passive solar gain, that add warmth and ambiance to our regular heating system if you're here in winter. The tv gets Netflix/Amazon/Roku. ATT mobile phones get good service at the house. Not sure about other networks.
The main thing is committing to the horse feeding schedule. If you're here in winter, experience with a wood stove is a plus.
It was such a pleasure housesitting for Michael. I love their house, thier furbabies and the area was amazing. Loved going on hikes with the dogs, they were so easy to watch over. We had a great routine down going to feed the horses, going on hikes and just living the ranch life out there. Would recommend :) they are great communicators as well, it was an overall pleasant expereince and made some new friends along the way! Thanks Michael!
