Hi from Shropshire, UK

Hi - we (Mel & Margaret) are House Owners but with a difference! We have an 8 acre smallholding in an idyllic rural setting. When we look for sitters they have to be confident in looking after our rescue dog, sheep, pigs, chickens and ducks. Our dog has issues but all the HouseSitters have got on famously with him. One couple even said he was the best behaved dog they have looked after and they have looked after dozens! (Perhaps he has us wrapped round his big paw.) It is oft said that sheep look for ways to injure themselves or die. To date they have all behaved impeccably whilst we are away! Apart from feeding, back scratching and providing a wallow pigs don’t take too much looking after but they can be intimidating. (We haven’t lost a HouseSitter yet!) Poultry are fine and come with the bonus of fresh eggs.

We don’t have many Sitters apply for our listings, possibly due to the range of animals and I have had to actively contact members to see if they fancy a sit here. ALL the Sitters that have been here have been fantastic. Roll on next year when, perhaps, we can resume holidays. Good luck everyone

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I had the opportunity to sit at a house with 10 chickens this summer and was amazed at how entertaining they are! Different personalities

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Hi Margaret!

Welcome to the forum!

I’m surprised to hear that you struggled to get people applying for your sits! It sounds great!

What more can you want, a lovely countryside house, a well behaved dog, fresh eggs in the morning and the joys of looking after pigs and sheep! Definitely something we’d love to do again, next time you need sitters, send us a message! :blush:

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Hi Samson

Yes, they definitely all have different personalities. It’s a great feeling when the initially timid one comes over to you to wanting attention. Glad you had a good experience with the ones you looked after.

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Hi Chris & Suze

We have had half a dozen house sits and only received a couple of applicants. All the other times I have had to trawl through profiles and message people (always successfully). Hopefully holidays for us can resume next year so look out for messages!

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Hello @Margaret, welcome to our community forum, it’s wonderful to have you here and such a pleasure to share in your Trustedhousesitters journey and hearing about the sitter connections you and your menagerie have enjoyed, it’s the stories which are so special, thank you!

Enjoy the conversations and meeting new members … we can’t wait to see the family photos! :slightly_smiling_face:

Angela & #TeamTrusted

Oddly, the astonished feeling I had about chickens was the same I’d had about two tortoises for whom I sat. They had something of a coup at night they’d crawl into.

At one point one tried entering the house through the dog door.

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I’d love to have the opportunity some time of looking after your animals. The only animal I wouldn’t be confident with is a horse - I’ve absolutely no experience - but there are plenty of sitters who could

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I’m surprised you haven’t had many applicants, your sit sounds idyllic.

Dogs, sheep, pigs, chickens and ducks - how fun! I used to raise Kunekune pigs and jump at the chance to do sits with pigs when it fits our travel schedule, they are so funny, I just love them.

You live in a beautiful part of the world. My partner and I enjoyed a wonderful sit in Shropshire a couple of years ago and had so much fun exploring, especially the Ironbridge Gorge area.

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Welcome Mel and Margaret :wave:

We sat once for a couple who had :chicken:
It was a lovely week.
We were able to sit out side and watch them.
Within 5 minutes we knew who ruled the roost

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That sounds like a wonderful sit. We’ve sat for dogs and chickens before and I’d be very happy to sit for some ducks. I’d actually really like to have a go at looking after some sheep (although preferably not at lambing time). We’d apply for a sit with pigs too - it’s good to broaden our experience. We are tied to weekends and school holidays (school age children and I work in a school). If you advertised a sit when we were available I would definitely apply!

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I’d never thought I’d ever say this but chickens are too cool! I’ve done a few chick sits both in the US and UK. They do have unique personalities! 19 is largest henfest! Enjoy @Samson thanks for sharing!

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We are currently on a sit in the suburbs of London looking after chickens. They are great fun, very easy to care for and are keeping us topped up with fresh eggs daily - one of our favourite sits to date!
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