How House Sitting Became Our Bridge Between Both Worlds

We are Neil and Lacey, husband and wife, lovers of travelling and having adventures! Also lovers of our precious pets, who aren’t just pets to us, but family. And so here lies the problem; our two passions sadly do not align.

This is how we came across house sitting. From a simple search online five years ago for ‘who will look after my dog while I’m away’, to now, we have had the best time both doing house sits ourselves and having people do house sits for us.

We started off just as home owners. We had a dog, two cats and chickens, and our first sitter was a retired head teacher who wanted to see the UK in her spare time.

‘What if they trash your house!?’ our friends said! I’m an optimistic person, so I wasn’t overly concerned about this, but to be on the safe side, I always choose sitters with good reviews and always have a video call prior to agreeing to the sit. That way you can see if you’re a good match for each other.

After hosting a few really successful sitters I wondered whether this was something we could do as a couple, and as a family. I ventured off on a solo sit to test it out and met some lovely dogs for the weekend and their company enriched my time away, so I guess you say ‘the rest is history!’

Since then, we have had some wonderful opportunities to travel the world as house sitters and see new countries through the eyes of locals, something staying in hotels doesn’t give you. We’ve looked after fluffy cats, dogs large and small, a herd of sheep, many chickens and had homes with private pools in the Arizona desert to cosy fireplaces in 2ft of snow in Sweden.

In each place we have met wonderful people, and welcomed wonderful people into our home. Each one has the same values as us; that our animals are our family, our homes are our safe spaces and that the world is there to be seen (just not through the window of an overpriced high-rise hotel!).

Neil & Lacey