Dunga, a Rohodesian Ridgeback who loves company!

He is of a gentle and sensitive nature, friendly with other animals, people and children, and has a gorgeous presence around him.

It was indeed an absolute pleasure hanging out with Dunga in this beautiful region in Sussex in England.

Dunga’s home is with a garden full of plants and large trees and in the centre of the village of Forest Row.  Within a 10 minute walk is a famous organic biodynamic farm and lovely coffee shops and restaurants.

One of the highlights of caring for Dunga, was the amazing walking trails in the Ashdown Forest.  Ashdown Forest is famous as the magical woodland that inspired some of the world’s best loved children’s stories, the adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh being one of them, 

I found the village to be a large supportive community and the friendliness of the local people was well felt.

Apparently, East Grinstead and Forest Row are located on the crossing of multiple ley lines, which are ancient straight paths or routes in the landscape which are believed to have spiritual significance.

It certainly felt like this was the case with the lovely energy that I experienced for the duration of my stay.  This combined with the wonderful hospitality of my hosts, Petra and Steven, made for a most pleasant experience. 

Max is a very happy and sociable dog. He is usually up at 7am wanting to go out into the garden, then breakfast at around 8am, and a walk in the neighbourhood during the morning.

With plenty of areas for walking, we had a fabulous time exploring the nearby forests, golf resorts and equestrian centres in this beautiful area of Cascais. 

The Cascais village center is only 10 minute away and offers fantastic cafes, pastelarias, restaurants and beaches

Angee moved to Portugal from the U.S. to realise her decades-long dream of living here.

She owns her own business (recruiting and career coaching) and felt fortunate to be able to work from anywhere.
Leo, is a GoldenDoodle and Angee’s trusty side kick for her great adventure.

The Ericeira village center is only a 10 minute walk away and offers fantastic cafes, pastelarias, restaurants, beaches, yoga and surfing and the ideal place to enjoy with Leo as your shadow!

It sure was an excellent time taking excellent care of Leo while Angee was away and hanging out with him and enjoying the area together. 

This grand home is amongst 5 hectares of land and boast a majestic pool pool and guest rooms.

Matt and Sandra are a family of four who  moved to Portugal 5 years ago, after falling in love with this property.
They have been renovating the house and the grounds since, and have opened a part of the house as a guest house.

It certainly was a delight to care for Duke and provide peace of mind to the owners by ensuring the garden was adequately watered and the security  of the property maintained at all times during their absence.

Darcy, the eldest dog has diabetes and is on a restricted diet and also needs insulin injections twice daily…  she is happy to have them I think she knows the injections are helping.

Darcy is very loving kind dog that loves nothing more than a cuddle .

Maggie a 3 year old springer spaniel loves to play chase and tug with her new friend Louie.

Louie is quite a character and was new to the family and was recently adopted from the local dog rescue. Louie is a cross breed aged around 4 ..  A very happy independent little dog loves being with you and comes to you for a cuddle.

Amy is Asta’s pet parent and she  grew up in Canada, but have lived the last 15 years in Europe.

Having recently moved to Portugal to be more immersed in nature Amy is building a new home on a rural property in Central Portugal and is staying with Asta in an apartment in Abrantes while the property awaits approvals and building.

Travelling  internationally for work Amy required a reliable Pet and House Sitter for Asta while she was away and I couldn’t be luckier that Amy selected me to hang out with Asta. 

The most amazing companion, Asta just loved going for walks, playing ball and hanging out as my companion at many of Abrantes fabulous cafes.

Sam is quite a character and certainly, at first, did not like the idea of a total stranger coming to stay. After all….  this wonderful penthouse adjacent to Lisbon’s Parque Eduardo VII is HIS territory!  

To suggest that Sam was a little protective of his home and owners would be an understatement. However, a few hours after his owners departed for their overseas trip to Boston, he was very quickly getting used to the idea of someone else to cuddle up to and go for walks with.

Favourite Photos

Set at the end of a quaint village,  50 mtrs from forest with miles of tracks for walking cycling etc is the home of Floki,  a 3 year old, energetic mix breed and Tricky, a nine year old Estrela Mountain Dog

The location is 20 mins from lake and an hour from nearest beach and also just 45 minutes to Coimbra

Nico and Elsje have taken a few week to discover northern Portugal and Spain in their newly built camper leaving behind these three adorable cats, each with their very own, unique personalities.

Carregal do Sal is a small village located in the middle of Portugal about 55 kilometres east of Coimbra with the Serra do Estrella (The tallest mountains in Portugal) and the beach approximately one hour away.

The home I’m caring for is on the outskirts of a very traditional rural Portuguese village.

As well as the company and welfare of these three wonderfully affectionate cats, my responsibilities was to oversee the watering and maitenance of the owners spectacular botanic garden. Indeed, among the mass of colourful flowers, orange, lemon and fig trees was an particularly well laid out and abundant vegetable beds with everything growing from lettuce, tomatoes and courgettes to delicious strawberries.