Melanie & Chris
Melanie & Chris
Loving Care for your Pets and Home, the Same as our Own!
About Melanie & Chris
Hi, we are Melanie and Chris, a semi-retired couple. Our two passions in life have always been sharing our lives with our many companion animals and traveling the world. We can't think of a better way to see the world than enjoying the companionship of your furry friends while lovingly caring for them and your home.
It is important to us to ac...
Hi, we are Melanie and Chris, a semi-retired couple. Our two passions in life have always been sharing our lives with our many companion animals and traveling the world. We can't think of a better way to see the world than enjoying the companionship of your furry friends while lovingly caring for them and your home.
It is important to us to accommodate ourselves to your pet's routine and personalities when being allowed into their home and lives. Their well being, care and exercise is always our top concern. We completely enjoy spending a lot of time with them to be able to learn their personalities and special characteristics, and tend to become quite fond of all the pets that we sit for. You can be certain that your well loved companion will receive plenty of attention, exercise and cuddles while you are gone to ensure their well being in your absence.
We will enjoy updating you regularly with pictures (and I do mean quite a few!) and stories about how they are doing. Of course your home, plants and garden will be looked after as well, with the same attention to detail for their care and upkeep, allowing you to have a wonderful worry free vacation.
We are both very active, fit non-smokers and prefer to house and pet sit in non-smoking homes.
Why we want to house sit
Traveling as a tourist and staying in hotels is a far different experience than "living" in a community. We have always enjoyed our travels and explorations so much more when we're somewhat rooted into an area. We also love animals and miss ours a lot when we are gone. So to travel and have the added richness of staying in a home with the warmth of pets while we are away from home is ideal for us. We truly want to care for your home and pets the same as we would for our own, and yet, because we have four pets of our own, we are unable to consider pet sits of more than 3 weeks in duration.
Our experience
We have had rescue cats and dogs our whole lives, as well as some fish, turtles and hamsters. Several of our pets have been medically compromised, requiring medications, IM and subcutaneous shots, renal drip hydration and other modalities of care beyond the usual scope of pet care. We've both worked as volunteers with our local SPCA and in the months after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005, we worked for three months with an animal welfare group (with only 3 of us!) caring for 287 cats rescued by the National Guard and placed into our care. We feel completely capable of handling ANY personality and breed of cat. Our personal canine experience is with larger breed (very strong) dogs with assertive personalities and high energy exercise needs, although we are comfortable with smaller dogs as well.
We recently had a thorough background check (including fingerprinting) done by both the US Army and the German Government which allowed us to access and work on a secured US military base in Germany for 18 months.
As owners of our own home and also rental property, we are well versed in getting unexpected repairs done on the fly. Chris is quite handy with small household repairs, lawn care, and pool maintenance. Melanie is a top-notch "cleaner" with very good communication skills who loves photography. And while certainly not experts, we both enjoy gardening.
We are both willing and able to care for your home and pets, allowing you to enjoy your travels without worry for their care and well being while you are away :)
Reviews (18)
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Judy - Newton, Massachusetts, United States
24 March - 02 April 2018
Wow! Melanie and Chris are wonderful house and pet sitters. My two dogs were so lovingly and attentively cared for, and my house was cleaner when I returned than it was when I left. Its great to have people in your home who are so reliable and sensible and who love dogs so much. They are both gra...
Wow! Melanie and Chris are wonderful house and pet sitters. My two dogs were so lovingly and attentively cared for, and my house was cleaner when I returned than it was when I left. Its great to have people in your home who are so reliable and sensible and who love dogs so much. They are both gracious. intelligent and resourceful people. You will be very blessed if they do house sitting/pet sitting for you. Highly recommended.
- 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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Response from Melanie & Chris
We greatly enjoyed our time at Judy's remarkable historic (1885!) home and the lovely town of Newton Center. It was an easy 10 minute walk from there to the restaurants and shops of Newton, as well as to the T train station into Boston ($2.75 each way, about a 25 minute trip into downtown). Judy's dogs Skugga and Bella were loving, easy and fun to care for, and a pleasure to take for several daily walks through the neighborhood. The house was quiet and peaceful, with us seeing squirrels and bunnies in the back yard daily, as well as a wild turkey on one occasion! Judy herself was so kind as to pick us up and drop us off at the airport, as well as to prepare a meal for us. We enjoyed several friendly and interesting conversations with her too. Thanks Judy for allowing us to care for Bella and Skugga and to make new friends with you:)
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Miss T - Wimbledon Park, United Kingdom
22 December - 13 January 2018
Our first experience with Trusted Housesitters was 5 star thanks to Chris and Melanie. They looked after our house and our cat Olly so well that he didnt even realise we had left. Our house was left in an immaculate state on our return, possibly better than when we left!. Melanie sent me updates ...
Our first experience with Trusted Housesitters was 5 star thanks to Chris and Melanie. They looked after our house and our cat Olly so well that he didnt even realise we had left. Our house was left in an immaculate state on our return, possibly better than when we left!. Melanie sent me updates of olly every couple of days which made me very happy and worry free. Melanie and Chris are extremley well organised and simply dam great people. We can highly recommend them to any one who is thinking about choosing them. Thanks both for a great experience and holiday!!!!!
- 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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Response from Melanie & Chris
We had a wonderful time caring for Olly over Christmas and New Years at Tennille and Mirco 's very comfortable home. They were so kind to as to decorate a Christmas tree and leave a much appreciated food and wine present under the tree for us! Sadly due to travel plans we didn't get to spend much time together, but they did leave a very helpful house and cat manual for us, as well as a listing to some of their favorite area restaurants. It was an easy 10 minute walk to the Wimbledon train/tube station(s) from their home and about a 25-30 minute travel time into central London. Olly was a superb companion to us during our three week stay...an amazing little athlete, full of personality and playfulness, as well as our sleeping buddy. We truly have missed him since we left. Thanks so much Tennille and Mirco (as well as baby Ines) for allowing us and Frank to enjoy your home in your absence and to reacquaint ourselves with one of our favorite cities...London :)
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Jerry - Annapolis, Maryland, United States
03 July - 14 July 2017
If you are looking for a house / pet sitter absolutely look no further Melanie and Chris and Melanie's father Frank were fabulous while we were away for 12 days. They were so good that we were concerned that our cats would want to go home with them rather than stay with us. The level of comm...
If you are looking for a house / pet sitter absolutely look no further Melanie and Chris and Melanie's father Frank were fabulous while we were away for 12 days. They were so good that we were concerned that our cats would want to go home with them rather than stay with us. The level of communications they had with us was great between all the pictures as well as the text messages etc. We were out of the country and were able to easily phone them via WhatsApp The house was in perfect shape upon our return and they even had prepared a wonder diner for us. This is the perfect house sitters and wonderful people. Thanks Melanie Chris and Frank and we look forward to meeting up with you in the future.
- 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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Response from Melanie & Chris
Thanks Jerry to you and Maryann for making our time in Annapolis and at your lovely home so enjoyable. Your generosity and hospitality was truly appreciated by all three of us. Even though we're home with our own pets now, we sure do miss Morgan and Parker...two of our favorite cats ever!! Please give both of the boys a head scratch from us =^..^=
About Melanie & Chris
Hi, we are Melanie and Chris, a semi-retired couple. Our two passions in life have always been sharing our lives with our many companion animals and traveling the world. We can't think of a better way to see the world than enjoying the companionship of your furry friends while lovingly caring for them and your home.
It is important to us to accommodate ourselves to your pet's routine and personalities when being allowed into their home and lives. Their well being, care and exercise is always our top concern. We completely enjoy spending a lot of time with them to be able to learn their personalities and special characteristics, and tend to become quite fond of all the pets that we sit for. You can be certain that your well loved companion will receive plenty of attention, exercise and cuddles while you are gone to ensure their well being in your absence.
We will enjoy updating you......
Hi, we are Melanie and Chris, a semi-retired couple. Our two passions in life have always been sharing our lives with our many companion animals and traveling the world. We can't think of a better way to see the world than enjoying the companionship of your furry friends while lovingly caring for them and your home.
It is important to us to accommodate ourselves to your pet's routine and personalities when being allowed into their home and lives. Their well being, care and exercise is always our top concern. We completely enjoy spending a lot of time with them to be able to learn their personalities and special characteristics, and tend to become quite fond of all the pets that we sit for. You can be certain that your well loved companion will receive plenty of attention, exercise and cuddles while you are gone to ensure their well being in your absence.
We will enjoy updating you regularly with pictures (and I do mean quite a few!) and stories about how they are doing. Of course your home, plants and garden will be looked after as well, with the same attention to detail for their care and upkeep, allowing you to have a wonderful worry free vacation.
We are both very active, fit non-smokers and prefer to house and pet sit in non-smoking homes.
Why we want to house sit
Traveling as a tourist and staying in hotels is a far different experience than "living" in a community. We have always enjoyed our travels and explorations so much more when we're somewhat rooted into an area. We also love animals and miss ours a lot when we are gone. So to travel and have the added richness of staying in a home with the warmth of pets while we are away from home is ideal for us. We truly want to care for your home and pets the same as we would for our own, and yet, because we have four pets of our own, we are unable to consider pet sits of more than 3 weeks in duration.
Our experience
We have had rescue cats and dogs our whole lives, as well as some fish, turtles and hamsters. Several of our pets have been medically compromised, requiring medications, IM and subcutaneous shots, renal drip hydration and other modalities of care beyond the usual scope of pet care. We've both worked as volunteers with our local SPCA and in the months after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005, we worked for three months with an animal welfare group (with only 3 of us!) caring for 287 cats rescued by the National Guard and placed into our care. We feel completely capable of handling ANY personality and breed of cat. Our personal canine experience is with larger breed (very strong) dogs with assertive personalities and high energy exercise needs, although we are comfortable with smaller dogs as well.
We recently had a thorough background check (including fingerprinting) done by both the US Army and the German Government which allowed us to access and work on a secured US military base in Germany for 18 months.
As owners of our own home and also rental property, we are well versed in getting unexpected repairs done on the fly. Chris is quite handy with small household repairs, lawn care, and pool maintenance. Melanie is a top-notch "cleaner" with very good communication skills who loves photography. And while certainly not experts, we both enjoy gardening.
We are both willing and able to care for your home and pets, allowing you to enjoy your travels without worry for their care and well being while you are away :)
Verifications
Verification level
Enhanced level
Email Address, Phone Number, External references (24), Identity & Document Check, Criminal Background Check (issue date: 21 Jan 2018)
All Standard and Enhanced 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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Fish
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Poultry
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Farm animals
Availability
Preferred Countries
- Belgium
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Italy
- Netherlands
- Spain
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Austria
- Barbados
- Bermuda
- Cambodia
- Cayman Islands
- Chile
- China
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Dominica
- Estonia
- Gibraltar
- Guatemala
- Hong Kong
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Japan
- Laos
- Luxembourg
- Madagascar
- Maldives
- Mexico
- Monaco
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Poland
- Portugal
- Reunion
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Thailand
- Vatican
- Vietnam
Profile Details
Age
Occupation
Travelling as a
Previous house sitting experience
Member benefits
Member since
House & pet sitting timeline
Melanie and Chris have done 18 house sits since 2013
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NewtonUnited StatesMar - Apr 2018 -
Wimbledon ParkUnited KingdomDec 2017 - Jan 2018 -
AnnapolisUnited StatesJul 2017 -
OviedoSpainMar - Apr 2017 -
RochesterUnited StatesSep 2016 -
BoulderUnited StatesAug 2016 -
CharlestonUnited StatesJun 2016 -
San Miguel de AllendeMexicoMay 2016 -
DurasFranceFeb 2016 -
Fort WorthUnited StatesJan 2016 -
Broadview HeightsUnited StatesNov 2015 -
RiverdaleUnited StatesSep 2015 -
MelbourneAustraliaJan 2015 -
WendoverUnited KingdomOct 2014 -
Chevy Chase VillageUnited StatesSep 2014 -
RiverdaleUnited StatesFeb 2014
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DunedinNew ZealandJan 2014 -
Chevy Chase VillageUnited StatesJan 2014
