Around a hundred Finns have found a cheap way to travel abroad. They come to look after pets in their homes when their hosts are away. In return, they get free accommodation.
He is looking to see if Trusted housesitters can find another suitable property somewhere in the world. Lehtola already has experience of looking after dogs in the UK and cats in Greece.
The idea is simple. Those who sign up to the service offer free accommodation on the condition that they take care of the pets living in their home. Pet owners get low-cost pet care, and the pet can stay at home and not stress about moving to a strange place.
A nurse’s job was arranged through Whatsapp messages
Both those applying to become carers and those looking for carers pay an annual fee of just over €100. Carers pay for their travel and food. Additional services can be purchased through the portal, such as the possibility of consulting a vet if your pet falls ill.
Essi Lehtola from Tampere joined the service on the eve of last Easter. Coincidentally, it was the best time to get a position of trust without recommendations from previous gigs.
– In London at Easter time, there were more places available than nurses, he recalls.
Lehtola finally ended up on the side of the French bulldog Ralphie’s home. The service found reviews of the destination from those who had taken care of the dog before, and he dared to go on the trip based on them.
Everything was arranged with just Whatsapp messages. Lehtola kept Ralphie company without ever meeting its owner.
Marjatta gets full marks everywhere
Getting the first pet grooming gig based only on a profile picture is often hard to come by.
Aarnio only focuses on cats because he has taken care of his daughter’s cats as well. He has already visited some homes twice.
– The cat must be treated well. It is necessary to ensure that both the cat and the home are in order when the hosts and hostesses come back from their travels, Marjatta Aarnio describes the secret of her popularity.
Both Aarnio and Lehtola have seen the most different homes and host practices.
For example, Lehtola found a place in Athens where the owner of Angie and Boulis cats was looking for a sitter for a week. The owner’s principle was to give new members of the ring an opportunity without previous recommendations.
To make sure of Lehtola’s suitability, the cat owner from Athens first conducted a video conference with her. In addition, the owner stayed overnight before leaving the cats in Lehtola’s care.
Marjatta Aarnio’s last gig abroad was in December, when she spent three weeks in Rome as a housekeeper for cats.
– In this activity, I get to be with the animals. It’s very soothing.
A service dog’s swimming ability came as a surprise
As housekeepers for pets, you can step into someone else’s shoes, Lehtola and Aarnio estimate. Local life opens up more authentically than living in hotels or Airbnb places.
There may be surprises in treatment facilities. For example, Ralphie’s mistress forgot to tell what kind of water beast the dog is. So when Lehtola unsuspectingly walked the dog on a long leash by the river, it suddenly jumped into the river. Harnesses with handles made it easier to rescue the swimmer.
Marjatta Aarniota was once bitten by a cat when she touched it with her hand in her sleep. In Dublin, on the other hand, the nurse twice carried a live mouse home.
A Perisuomalainen home does not open its doors
From Finland, the service has a little over a hundred people. There are a dozen people in different parts of Finland who open their homes to caregivers.
Essi Lehtola and Marjatta Aarnio have both done only one domestic gig. Both have been caretakers of the Mochi cat in Tampere.
The international caregiver portal is a good solution for him, because he has no relatives in Finland.
Xuan Ton insists that the companion Mochi, a Scottish straight breed, changes the water every day, feeds the cat and cleans its toilet, and plays with it a lot.
There are only a few Finnish homes like Toni who open their own homes to guests on the Trusted housesitters platform.
Marjatta Aarnio thinks that the reason is that Finns are prevented from taking a stranger into their home.
– In the Finnish homes included in the portal, one spouse or both are often foreigners. Very rarely does a native Finnish home look for a nurse.
A system based on trust
There are several pet care websites. Essi Lehtola chose the Trusted housesitters service because she thought it had the most members.
The pet care circle is based on trust and openness. The service checks the identity of pet caretakers and owners. It promises to hide members’ information and says it will also check the criminal record.
The openness stems from the abundant exchange of photos and videos and the reviews left by both parties.
Essi Lehtola also considers the fact that all parties pay annual fees as a guarantee of reliability.
– No one goes along for fun if they are not serious. It helps a lot, he reflects.
It’s fun to see how different homes people have from Lehtola. This way of traveling also alleviates the loneliness of a solo traveler.
– There is already a contact at the destination and the animal is also in company. That’s the reason I’m going along.
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