Duane & Catherine
Duane & Catherine
Travel with peace of mind. Honest, reliable and trustworthy couple who love animals and provide expert care of your pets, home and property
About Duane & Catherine
We are a newly retired couple in our late 50's who discovered the absolute joy of house/pet sitting! We would be honoured to be given the opportunity to care for and pamper your pet(s), showering them with love and kindness as though they were our own. We consider the care of your pets and home to be a huge privilege and responsibility which we ...
We are a newly retired couple in our late 50's who discovered the absolute joy of house/pet sitting! We would be honoured to be given the opportunity to care for and pamper your pet(s), showering them with love and kindness as though they were our own. We consider the care of your pets and home to be a huge privilege and responsibility which we will commit to fully making it our highest priority at all times. This assurance will give you complete peace of mind to be able to enjoy your time away. We are financially stable, practical with good common sense and a genuinely caring couple. We are healthy (non-smokers), fit, and love exercise outdoors. We enjoy walking/hiking, especially if we have a four legged friend or two with us.
Duane worked as a Medical Social Worker, with Interior Health in Kelowna for 28 years until retiring in September 2014. Following his retirement, he instructed part time at the Okanagan College in the Adult Education Program. Catherine was employed as an Optometric Assistant and retired at the end of January 2016. We have two grown children aged 23 and 25. In November, 2017, our son graduated from UBC Vancouver and is working now as a Physiotherapist there. Our daughter is employed with Interior Health as a Therapist Assistant and maintains our home in our absence.
Why we want to house sit
We are pursuing our passion for house sitting in order to fulfill our love for pets and our desire to keep our lives interesting with new and varied experiences. We are particularly interested in exploring other communities within Canada initially before venturing to other countries. We both love animals and meeting new people and house sitting is a wonderful way to combine these interests. Our house sitting experiences thus far have well exceeded our expectations and we now must admit that we are hooked. Nothing makes us feel better than to have homeowners return expressing their complete satisfaction with the services that we have provided. This is our goal and what we continually strive for. We realize that a pet is best cared for in their safe and familiar surroundings and we receive tremendous gratification in knowing that we are providing them with the absolute best care possible. We take pride in the bonds that we form with them during our stays...which always makes it hard for us to leave.
Our experience
We began house sitting in January, 2013, and have been loving every minute of it! As of the time of this writing (January 7/18) we have completed well over 100 pet sits encompassing 49 different families.
We have owned our home for 30 years and are very familiar with the routine maintenance and repairs that go along with it. We have also owned several rental properties which we managed ourselves. We take great pride in keeping our home clean and tidy. We are a mature and extremely responsible couple whom you would have complete faith in while you are away. We are both avid walkers and would ensure that any pets receive the love, care and attention they require. We understand that each pet is unique and has its own specific needs. We will follow their routine and your instructions precisely while ensuring that they are well protected, exercised, played with and loved. Catherine likes to cook and we enjoy our meals at home. Evenings would entail a quiet evening reading or movie watching along side your pets. If they enjoy sleeping with us on the bed, there will always be room. We would be more than happy to maintain close communication with you while you are away. We enjoy sending photos or videos of the pets to the home owner when they are away to help them feel more in touch. We realize that having someone care for your home and pets requires a huge leap of trust and faith. We would be able to furnish you with excellent references. We want to provide you with complete peace of mind knowing that your most prized possessions in life are in the absolute best of hands.
We will always be mindful and respectful of your home, neighbors and surroundings. We are very security conscious and will always ensure that your home and property will be kept safe and secure at all times. We can collect your mail, forward messages and ensure all correspondence is communicated to you in a timely fashion and with the utmost privacy. We are adept at working through and handling any situation calmly and with maturity. We are adaptable and can fit into any situation easily to keep the continuity in your pet's life.
Reviews (15)
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Cheryl - Vernon, British Columbia, Canada
03 September - 22 September 2017
Duane and Cathy house and pet-sat from September 3rd through September 22nd, 2017. Their care of our home and dog Joey was exemplary. They agreed to meet us a couple of months in advance just to insure we were all comfortable with each other. They arrived at our home the day before we left so we ...
Duane and Cathy house and pet-sat from September 3rd through September 22nd, 2017. Their care of our home and dog Joey was exemplary. They agreed to meet us a couple of months in advance just to insure we were all comfortable with each other. They arrived at our home the day before we left so we could provide an orientation of the house and Joey. They even took us to the airport and picked us up when we had a late night arrival. They emailed us pictures of Joey and his activities. While here they took it upon themselves to wash windows, vacuum, wash all their linens and towels. They even remade their beds before leaving. They left no footprint. Our home was cleaner than when departed! AMAZING care and attention to detail! In our absence Joey enjoyed long walks, hikes and swimming. He was a happy and well exercised dog. Duane and Cathy continued to administer Joey's eye drops and cared for some minor foot issues. We highly recommend Duane and Cathy, and can't wait to invite them into our home again soon. Thank You so much. YOU ARE THE BEST!!!
- Organised
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- Reliable
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- Self-sufficient
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- Tidy
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- Pet care
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Cheryl - Vernon, British Columbia, Canada
03 September - 23 September 2017
Duane and Cathy house and pet-sat from September 3rd through September 22nd, 2017. Their care of our home and dog Joey was exemplary. They agreed to meet us a couple of months in advance just to insure we were all comfortable with each other. They arrived at our home the day before we left so we ...
Duane and Cathy house and pet-sat from September 3rd through September 22nd, 2017. Their care of our home and dog Joey was exemplary. They agreed to meet us a couple of months in advance just to insure we were all comfortable with each other. They arrived at our home the day before we left so we could provide an orientation of the house and Joey. They even took us to the airport and picked us up when we had a late night arrival. They emailed us pictures of Joey and his activities.
While here they took it upon themselves to wash windows, vacuum, wash all their linens and towels. They even remade their beds before leaving. They left no footprint. Our home was cleaner than when departed! AMAZING care and attention to detail!
In our absence Joey enjoyed long walks, hikes and swimming. He was a happy and well exercised dog. Duane and Cathy continued to administer Joey's eye drops and cared for some minor foot issues. We highly recommend Duane and Cathy, and can't wait to invite them into our home again soon. Thank You so much. YOU ARE THE BEST!!!- Organised
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- Reliable
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- Self-sufficient
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- Tidy
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- Pet care
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Carmen - Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
06 April - 09 April 2017
We were very fortunate to have Duane and Cathy looking after our hobby farm and couldn't have asked for a better couple to take care of our variety of feathery and furry family members while we were away. They certainly are very well organized and caring. Cathy had carefully read our detailed wel...
We were very fortunate to have Duane and Cathy looking after our hobby farm and couldn't have asked for a better couple to take care of our variety of feathery and furry family members while we were away. They certainly are very well organized and caring. Cathy had carefully read our detailed welcome guide and approached us with questions, when we met prior to the set date to introduce them to the farm. Unfortunately, our dog suffered an emergency health issue one day before we were leaving, but we had no doubts leaving Amy with Duane and Cathy, knowing that she would be in good hands, that they will monitor her closely and follow our instructions. We returned to a very happy dog and the other animals were as well perfectly looked after. Even the horses' pasture was clear of manure - which wasn't a task on the list, but very much appreciated =). The cottage was left spotless, with clean bed sheets and towels, the communication smoothly! Duane and Cathy are very trustworthy - we would be very happy to have them sit with us again in future!
- Organised
-
- Reliable
-
- Self-sufficient
-
- Tidy
-
- Pet care
-
About Duane & Catherine
We are a newly retired couple in our late 50's who discovered the absolute joy of house/pet sitting! We would be honoured to be given the opportunity to care for and pamper your pet(s), showering them with love and kindness as though they were our own. We consider the care of your pets and home to be a huge privilege and responsibility which we will commit to fully making it our highest priority at all times. This assurance will give you complete peace of mind to be able to enjoy your time away. We are financially stable, practical with good common sense and a genuinely caring couple. We are healthy (non-smokers), fit, and love exercise outdoors. We enjoy walking/hiking, especially if we have a four legged friend or two with us.
Duane worked as a Medical Social Worker, with Interior Health in Kelowna for 28 years until retiring in September 2014. Following his retirement, he instructe......
We are a newly retired couple in our late 50's who discovered the absolute joy of house/pet sitting! We would be honoured to be given the opportunity to care for and pamper your pet(s), showering them with love and kindness as though they were our own. We consider the care of your pets and home to be a huge privilege and responsibility which we will commit to fully making it our highest priority at all times. This assurance will give you complete peace of mind to be able to enjoy your time away. We are financially stable, practical with good common sense and a genuinely caring couple. We are healthy (non-smokers), fit, and love exercise outdoors. We enjoy walking/hiking, especially if we have a four legged friend or two with us.
Duane worked as a Medical Social Worker, with Interior Health in Kelowna for 28 years until retiring in September 2014. Following his retirement, he instructed part time at the Okanagan College in the Adult Education Program. Catherine was employed as an Optometric Assistant and retired at the end of January 2016. We have two grown children aged 23 and 25. In November, 2017, our son graduated from UBC Vancouver and is working now as a Physiotherapist there. Our daughter is employed with Interior Health as a Therapist Assistant and maintains our home in our absence.
Why we want to house sit
We are pursuing our passion for house sitting in order to fulfill our love for pets and our desire to keep our lives interesting with new and varied experiences. We are particularly interested in exploring other communities within Canada initially before venturing to other countries. We both love animals and meeting new people and house sitting is a wonderful way to combine these interests. Our house sitting experiences thus far have well exceeded our expectations and we now must admit that we are hooked. Nothing makes us feel better than to have homeowners return expressing their complete satisfaction with the services that we have provided. This is our goal and what we continually strive for. We realize that a pet is best cared for in their safe and familiar surroundings and we receive tremendous gratification in knowing that we are providing them with the absolute best care possible. We take pride in the bonds that we form with them during our stays...which always makes it hard for us to leave.
Our experience
We began house sitting in January, 2013, and have been loving every minute of it! As of the time of this writing (January 7/18) we have completed well over 100 pet sits encompassing 49 different families.
We have owned our home for 30 years and are very familiar with the routine maintenance and repairs that go along with it. We have also owned several rental properties which we managed ourselves. We take great pride in keeping our home clean and tidy. We are a mature and extremely responsible couple whom you would have complete faith in while you are away. We are both avid walkers and would ensure that any pets receive the love, care and attention they require. We understand that each pet is unique and has its own specific needs. We will follow their routine and your instructions precisely while ensuring that they are well protected, exercised, played with and loved. Catherine likes to cook and we enjoy our meals at home. Evenings would entail a quiet evening reading or movie watching along side your pets. If they enjoy sleeping with us on the bed, there will always be room. We would be more than happy to maintain close communication with you while you are away. We enjoy sending photos or videos of the pets to the home owner when they are away to help them feel more in touch. We realize that having someone care for your home and pets requires a huge leap of trust and faith. We would be able to furnish you with excellent references. We want to provide you with complete peace of mind knowing that your most prized possessions in life are in the absolute best of hands.
We will always be mindful and respectful of your home, neighbors and surroundings. We are very security conscious and will always ensure that your home and property will be kept safe and secure at all times. We can collect your mail, forward messages and ensure all correspondence is communicated to you in a timely fashion and with the utmost privacy. We are adept at working through and handling any situation calmly and with maturity. We are adaptable and can fit into any situation easily to keep the continuity in your pet's life.
Verifications
Verification level
Standard level
Email Address, Phone Number, External references (6), Identity & Document Check
All Standard Verification checks are carried out by a specialist 3rd Party
Animal Care Experience
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Dogs
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Cats
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Reptiles
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Horses
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Fish
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Poultry
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Bird
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Small pet
Availability
Preferred Countries
Profile Details
Age
Occupation
Travelling as a
Previous house sitting experience
Member since
House & pet sitting timeline
Duane and Catherine have done 16 house sits since 2013
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VernonCanadaSep 2017 -
VernonCanadaSep 2017
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KelownaCanadaApr 2017 -
KelownaCanadaJan - Feb 2017 -
KelownaCanadaOct 2016 -
LumbyCanadaSep 2016 -
North VancouverCanadaSep 2016 -
VictoriaCanadaAug 2016 -
VancouverCanadaJul 2016 -
OliverCanadaJun 2016 -
CalgaryCanadaMay 2016 -
EckvilleCanadaMay 2016 -
PeachlandCanadaApr 2016 -
KelownaCanadaFeb - Mar 2016
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CalgaryCanadaNov 2015 -
KelownaCanadaApr - May 2015
