Sophie

✳️ Depending on the type of booking you'd like to place, extras may apply.

Hi there! If you're looking for someone to take care of your pets with love and a big sense of responsibility you've come across the right profile!

First, let me introduce myself. My name is Sophie and I come from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Back home I enrolled in the Veterinary Medicine career due to my love for animals but after two years, I had to drop off to be able to come to live in The Netherlands. My love and respect for animals is such that I try to live a lifestyle that doesn't involve their suffering, that's why I chose to become a vegetarian 🌱 (vegan in the making). 

I’ve had contact with animals all my life, starting with my first pet when I was 5. He was called Pepi (see picture gallery), a cat we rescued from the street, and after him dozens of animals followed, from injured wild birds to horses. Animal caretaking is something it’s embedded in me since my early age and I’ve always enjoyed very dearly. Not only that, but I count with all these years of passion and experience in it. 

📚Education

I finished up to year two of the career of Veterinary Medicine back in Buenos Aires. 

I have completed a Veterinary Auxiliary course at the Centro Médico Escuela in Buenos Aires which gave me the knowledge to be able to assist your pet if an emergency were to arise, as well as being able to pinpoint if something out of the ordinary were happening. 

I also count with an international certification from ACES which enables me to perform CPR on cats and dogs as well as providing first aid. The QR code of my diploma can be scanned for verification (see last picture in my gallery). This means that I have the skills to be able to assist your pet in case of a life threatening situation. 

I've completed a course on Animal Behaviour given by the University of Wageningen, in which I learnt key contents regarding how animals act and interact with their fellow mates and their environment. I'm currently enrolled in the Animal Behaviour in Conservation course given by the same university. 

And last but not least, in January I'll start an introductory course on Nutrition for Cats & Dogs as well as a course on Puppies and Dogs, Behaviour and Training, taught by a veterinarian from the University of Buenos Aires. 

So, I’m not just an animal lover that enjoys pet sitting, I’m a person who has studied, and continues to do so, about animal care and handle. 

👩🏻‍💻Experience

I have worked as a dog walker/sitter for 4 years in my hometown, having had more than 15 doggie clients and really good relationships and reviews from their owners, and I even still have contact with them nowadays. Even though I’m pretty new on this app I have a lot of experience taking care of animals. I've also worked as a pet groomer in several pet shops. 

My love for animals takes no days off and I love to be able to help animals in need, wherever it is that I am. Their well-being is super important to me. Recently, while I was on holidays in Sicily, I came across a large group of stray feral cats. Since I met them, bringing them food every day became a key pit stop during my stay there (see picture 5). 

I also do volunteer work for the local shelter in Eindhoven. I'm a volunteer photographer for ROZE (Regionale Opvang Zwerfdieren Eindhoven) and my task is to take pictures of the animals that are ready for adoption. In this way, the pictures can be uploaded to the website of the shelter and the animals can find a forever home. 

💬 My services 

I can provide home company for your little one, play time and some cuddle time of course, as well as going for walks if needed. Everything for your pet to feel at ease while you're away. I can administer shots as well as oral medication. Even though I’m not a professional in animal behaviour yet, I’m super interested in it and I know my ways around it. I speak Spanish, English, a bit of Dutch and a bit of Portuguese. I’m also a photographer so besides of excellent care for your little one you get also really nice pictures. I can take care of any animal, both big and small, and for sure they will be treated as my own. Animals are no different to family for me. I treat them with love and respect and see them as equal, sensitive beings.

I will text you when I arrive to your home to say how I found everything when I got there. I understand that being far away from your pet is not easy at all, so I want to make sure you’ll have peace of mind while you’re away by having daily updates on how your little one is doing. And because of the fact that I’m a photographer I’d love to snap a pic of your little one and send it to you. I can also trim your pets nails if needed. This would be a typical house visit but if another service was needed it could always be discussed, just let me know!

If you'd like to see my work more in detail I have and Instagram account where I post pictures and videos of my activities as a pet sitter as well as useful information related to animal care:

https://instagram.com/petsittingbysoph?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Dogs 🐶 

Regarding the service itself, I can provide home visits with a 30 minute walk to exercise your dog’s body and mind depending on the weather . If the weather is really bad we only do the basics of a hygienic walk so they can go for a potty break. Or I can also stay for that time in your house playing and keeping your dog company. 

Cats 🐱 

If you were to have a cat, a home visit would consist of me making sure they have food, water, a clean sand box and cuddles. I know cats love making use of clean sand boxes beyond anything.

 Last but absolutely not least, some play time and cuddles in order for them not to lack human contact. The visit's length goes between 30 and 40 minutes, but this will depend on if your cat feels comfortable interacting with me or not. I always give the animal the chance of choosing because I wouldn't force an interaction with an animal that doesn't feel at ease doing so. The price is up to two cats, if it's more it should be discussed.

I will always drop by at the same time of the day. For example, if my visits are around late morning/midday, they will always be at that time (any unexpected change will be informed to you first). Cats love a good old routine so I will create one with my visits. 

I have experience dealing with really shy cats. So that won't be a challenge for me. My approach upon this type of behaviour is just to respect the cat's timing for interaction (I do so with every cat but with shy ones it's especially important) and to let them be in their personal space without overwhelming them. Patience and respect for the animals willingness to interact are key things that need to be kept in mind in these cases. 

Even though I'm still studying, I can do my best to asses with litter box issues (this also includes recommending types of sand, litter boxes and placements of them) and other behavioural problems your cat might be going through. I can also recommend different types of eating and water bowls based on what would be best for your cat. 

If you were to have other pets we can plan a visit upon their needs 🐰🐓🐀. All pets are welcome! 

❗️The activities listed above are what's included in a home visit or a walk with a dog. Taking care of extra animals such as hamsters, fish etc. is not included in the basic fee. For that an extra fee will apply. ❗️

What I kindly ask from pet owners is:

✅ If you don't mind leaving a review about what you thought about my pet sitting services, it would help me enormously. As a pet owner you probably want to know what past clients thought about my work, so I think future customers would love to read about your own experience. 

✅ The passport at hand of every pet I'll look after and emergency numbers such as vets or an acquaintance/neighbour that I can reach in a case of an urgent situation. If you were to have an animal carrier it would also come in handy. 

✅ Basic cleaning supplies such as wet wipes in order for me to clean anything you pet might make dirty. 

✅ I'm super up for a meeting to get to know each other before the booking (pets included of course). I kindly ask that if the key of the house can't be provided upon the first meet up, that it's later on brought to me instead of me going again to pick it up. 

✅ Because of a privacy policy, I want to be notified if there are cameras in the house and if they record with sound. 

✅If you were to arrive home earlier than expected, it’s possible that I may not be able to adjust the time of the visit of that day to a time before you get home. That visit will have to be skipped and it won’t be refunded. 

✅ My goal during the booking is between other things, to ensure your pet's well-being. It is know that letting you cat out brings up many dangers such as your pet being lost or killed by other animals or cars. This is why I would rather keep your cat indoors during the length of the booking, even if he/she is used to going out. But if while being aware of the risks, you were to choose for your cat to still go out, you become responsible for what may happen during the duration of the booking.

✅ If you were to return home sooner than expected, I would like to get notified with a clear message. I will go to your place until the last day of the reservation, so please let me know if you're home before the booking has ended. Plans can change unexpectedly, that's why communication is key. I don't want to intrude in your home if you're there and also I get really startled when I find someone unexpected inside. 

✅ If it were possible, I'd rather if someone from your inner circle could have a copy of the key to your house just in case. A copy could also be provided to me and I can keep it safe in my place until the end of the booking. 

✅ If the key is not provided upon the initial meeting, it will have to be dropped in my mailbox. If you're worried about safety issues related to this, there's no need to! My mailbox falls diagonally into my house so it's not possible to retrieve anything that falls into it. After the keys have been dropped, I'll send a confirmation message with a picture of them for you to be sure that I have them with me. ❌ please don't come unannounced and ring the doorbell❌. 

✅ If the keys need to be picked up at my place, there is a time window of 10 minutes of delay. Once that time frame is passed, we will have to reschedule. I work as a freelancer so timing is really important for me and the tasks I need to perform in a day. 

✅ Even though I don't mind keeping the main things from your house in order like collecting any mail that may arrive, but tasks such as cleaning and watering the garden or your indoor plants are not included in the pet sitting fee. Of course, I will clean after your pet if they throw up or if there are any potty incidents, but mopping or vacuuming the hair from your pet is not part of my main tasks. I can do that but for an extra fee. 

✅ Every household has different sets of rules of do's and don'ts with their pets, so it's handy if I'm told beforehand what they are allowed and not allowed to do. For example, for some people playing on the couch is a big no and other's don't really mind. Same for letting the cat scratch the couch. If I'm not told the rules beforehand, I can't follow what you'd rather me to do. 

✅ I've created a form to be filled out by the client before the booking in which there are questions regarding key information for a visit such as : feeding schedule and vet information etc. All these things will be talked during the meeting, but I like having everything on paper ready because the clearer information, the better!

✅ If a specific visiting schedule is needed, it should be asked in the initial contact message before the meeting. After that, I will make the visiting schedule and I will send it to you before the booking, but it can be that I can't accommodate it to a specific request by then. 

⚠️ IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER ON MODIFICATIONS AND CANCELLATION POLICY⚠️

If a booking has to be modified before its start, and Pawshake doesn't allow to do so, that booking can't be used for later in the month/year. Those modified days will be charged even if I'm asked not to come. This is because I save the dates/time slots for visits specially for the confirmed bookings, thus I'm forced to cancel new bookings if the day it's too full. Thanks for understanding. 

Regarding the cancellation policy, I'm using Pawshake's guidelines of a moderate policy. This means that you'll get a full refund if you cancel more than 7 days before the booking, 50% refund if cancelled within 7 days.