Holly and Kera

I have been housesitting and travelling for the past 8 years with my best friend Kera throughout Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Ireland. We like house-sitting because it gives us the opportunity to truly experience living in different countries. Over the past eight years, my friend and I have done more than 95 wonderful house/farm-sits and have cared for and grown very attached to some wonderful animals. We have had the opportunity to look after dogs, cats, fish, small birds, parrots, chickens, ducks, geese, guinea fowl, peafowl, rabbits, hedgehogs, pigs, sheep, goats, donkeys, ponies, horses, cows, alpacas, deer, stick insects and even camels! We also looked after a privately owned wildlife sanctuary in Australia where we cared for injured and orphaned animals including two eastern grey kangaroo joeys, a swamp wallaby joey, and a wombat joey in addition to several birds. The animals in our care are always the priority and the amount of time/activity level depends on the specific pets. Young, active dogs who require lots of exercise will always get long walks and play sessions. Older dogs with mobility issues get the suitable walk for their ability. We are typically unemployed when we housesit and are thus available to be with the dogs 24/7. We do take dogs with us if we are going for a walk in the area or going somewhere dogs are allowed provided they are comfortable in a car and we have the owner's permission.

I was born in England but moved to Canada with my parents in 1999. In 2018, I worked as a supervisor for Animates in Auckland for 8 months. I learned heaps about animals and really expanded my fish knowledge. In Winnipeg, I worked full time for a financial institution as a supervisor and part time for a shoe store as a stock person. I graduated from the University of Manitoba in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in psychology. I volunteered with youth from low income families who were at risk of getting involved with gangs or drugs from 2010 to 2013. I also volunteered on a crisis and suicide line for a year in 2014. In the future, I would like to have a career as a counsellor or zookeeper. I have grown up with dogs but love all animals. My family currently has a 14 year old Labrador/Rottweiler cross named Chance who we rescued at age 3. Our dogs have always been larger breeds but I have experience with all sizes of dogs and love all breeds. Aside from travelling, my main hobbies include hiking, hot yoga, and reading. Friends and family would describe me as independent, caring, responsible, hard-working and reliable. 

Kera:

I graduated from University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts in International Development Studies. I completed a three month practicum for my degree in Tanzania, spent a month volunteering in British Columbia doing Orca whale conservation work, and then worked full-time for the Winnipeg Police Service doing administrative and security work. I was always very excited when the Canine unit came to visit! While working for the Police, I also worked as a part-time volunteer coordinator at the non-profit organization, Manitoba Harvest (the City's food distribution and training Centre). In the past, I have volunteered as a dog walker and also at our local Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, where most notably I got to help care for an orphaned beaver and took part in releasing four young raccoons back into the wild. I grew up with a cat named Goofy and a few hamsters, and also had some experience with horses and cows. My sister has a horse that she bought after I set off traveling. During visits home in 2018 and 2022, I was able to get some riding in, which was great! I absolutely love animals and would be excited to look after pretty much anything! Similarly to Holly, my main hobbies are hiking, kinstretch, reading, and of course, travelling! 

In 2018, I spent a few months working as an animal care co-ordinator at Central Bark (Doggy Daycare, Pet Hotel, and Grooming facility). I was responsible for monitoring groups of up to 50 small/medium dogs and up to 32 large breed dogs, cleaning up after the dogs and cats, bathing and drying dogs, walking dogs, preparing meals and administering any medications for the overnight guests. I also occasionally worked reception and stayed overnight once a week as the staff member on duty. I was also volunteering as a research intern with Auckland Whale and Dolphin Safari on the weekends, which was fantastic! More recently, I had the chance to go work (as a server/cleaner) up in Northern Manitoba at a fly-in lodge near Churchill for a company called, Churchill Wild that operates walking Polar Bear safaris. I had the opportunity to go on some of the excursions with the guests and it was incredible seeing bears out in nature! Upon returning to Winnipeg, I took on a job at Wooftopia Training and Recreation Centre as a Doggy Daycamp attendant and it was lovely working with dogs again. Hopefully some similar opportunities will present themselves in the future.

While traveling, we have both done quite a bit of volunteering with Wildlife. We volunteered at Devils at Cradle in Tasmania for five weeks with Tasmanian Devils, Quolls, Wombats, and Pademelons. We also spent 8 months volunteering at Orana Wildlife Park in Christchurch and did a short internship at the National Zoo and Aquarium in Canberra. In Scotland, we volunteered at Hessilhead Wildlife Rescue. We like to get as much experience with wildlife as we possibly can! 

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch! I would be more than happy to speak to you and to provide references. Thanks for taking a look at my profile! Hope to hear from you :)