Earlier I wrote about us living in a tent to help save money which we could then put towards paying off our debt. Of course, living in a tent for weeks at a time, no matter how much you love it, usually needs a break now and then. We didn't necessarily want to a whole lot of money when we were having this 'break' so we looked around for other alternatives, and the alternative for us was house-sitting. In a nutshell house-sitting is where you stay at someone's house for free in return for taking care of the house, the rest of their property if needed, and any animals they may have left behind.
The two house-sittings we have done so far have not only included dogs and cats, but also livestock in the forms of a pig, some sheep, horses, chickens, and a whole load of cows. For the people we were house-sitting for it was really important that we were comfortable dealing with these animals and that they felt like they could trust us, so they wanted to meet us first before they made the decision of actually letting us look after so many lives. It's quite a trust and a responsibility.
To be honest, I'd been around quite a few large animals when I was growing up so I didn't find them particularly daunting and that definitely made a difference for me. However, it was still a very good learning opportunity, especially when moving them to different fields, and has given us a really good idea as to what types of animals we might want to have if we do ever go into having a homestead in the future.
So what have been the pros of house-sitting. Well the most obvious is that you get to stay somewhere (and use the WiFi, TV, lighting, etc) for free, and because you're staying in one location for a longer period of time you actually get to know an area a bit more like a local instead of a tourist. We were also lucky in the fact that both places had chickens and a vegetable patch and the owners of both told us to eat all the produce that became available when we were there. Fresh food daily is definitely a win.
There is, of course, the fact that you get to interact with animals pretty much the whole time. As someone who really can't justify having a cat or dog at the moment, getting to cuddle them for a few weeks has definitely been an enjoyable experience. Another pretty big pro for me was the building of my confidence. I knew that I was capable of looking after the animals, especially as I care enough to get to know them and therefore notice if there are indicators that something is a little wrong, but how easily I found falling into the routine of doing it and the way I enjoyed it definitely gave me more confidence in what I was capable of. The compliment I got at the end also helped.
Now for the cons. There really isn't many. In fact I can only think of one and that's the lack of freedom we had to visit some of the 'wilder' areas we wanted to see. Firstly, not all the dogs you're looking after are capable of walking the distance we would want to walk on these visits, and leaving them and the other animals under your care alone for that amount of time would be utterly irresponsible. Also, in New Zealand at least, dogs aren't allowed to go to most of the nature reserves I'm wanting to travel to. This is absolutely great for the wildlife, but has meant that I've had to wait until we're not house-sitting before I could go to them. It isn't a complaint as protecting this rare environment is really important, just something you'll need to take into account.
Overall it's been a really enjoyable experience and I do like getting to have the opportunity to know a country more as a local rather than just as a tourist. I would say that it was worth doing for anyone wanting to get to see an actual area properly. We won't be doing it that much more in the future as we want to have the extra freedoms we need to go and visit some of the sites around us. However, it has definitely helped us carry on saving money whilst getting to have a bit of luxury, and by luxury I mean having a shower, a flushing toilet, and a fridge. It's the little things in life.
No comments:
Post a Comment