Animal sitters required from 6th - 15th September near Elche, Alicante

Hi there. Firstly, a little bit about us...... We are Sharon and Jason; a couple in our mid fifties who are on our third renovation project in Spain. The house is homely and comfortable but not perfect.. It´s compact and bijou! The bathroom is has been refurbished, and the installation of the pool is complete. The garden is a work in progress and there are other projects we are hoping to start on when time allows. We are having a holiday in September. We would like someone to arrive early on the 6th to have a handover (we leave on the morning of 7th September). We return late afternoon on 14th September so you´d be free to leave on the 15th. Ideally, we would like a couple or friends around our age (a bit older or younger) who are experienced with animal sitting. We only ask this as we have recently adopted another rescue dog (our fifth one over the years) and she is very nervous and skittish. We need sitters who are confident to deal with this behaviour. Calima is absolutely lovely when she gets to know you, but we´re still getting her used to putting a lead on for walking, making sure the gate is kept closed so she doesn´t escape - that kind of thing. We would ask that you are comfortable with big dogs and enjoy spending time with animals in general. We unfortunately recently lost two of our oldest rescue dogs (Charlie who reached the grand old age of 16 and 14 year old Lola). Our remaining original dog fur baby is Zeus, a 5 year old German Shepherd, typically naughty and with a lot of energy. As mentioned above, Calima is a 2 year old smaller German Shepherd (crossed with who knows what!). She has a lot of energy and wants to play a lot, but when she sleeps, she sleeps! We´re still trying to understand what triggers she has that scare her (she was dumped with her 3 puppies and had to be caught in a trap before being taken to a rescue centre). By the time we go on holiday, Calima will have lived with us for just over 3 months. We also have 3 chickens and 1 cockerel who reside in a large complex so there is very little that needs to be done for them (aside from feeding and keeping water topped up). Mumma chicken has also just hatched 4 chicks! We also have a cat (Petra) but she will probably go to a cattery as she has sight issues and is nervous around people she doesn´t know because of this. Daily duties would be feeding the animals, poo pick up (sorry, but with dogs it is a necessity!); and walking Zeus and Calima mornings and evenings. If your intention was to go out for a few hours each day but mostly stay at the house enjoying the garden and the pool and home comforts, then this might suit you. We have a few plants, flowers and trees in the garden that will require watering (some a bit of a walk away with a full watering can). Additionally, if you came in the colder months, we have a log burner in the lounge which is lovely, but you would have to be comfortable getting wood and making open fires. We would also be very grateful if you were happy to keep the house clean for our return (or as clean as possible anyway!). It would be best if you have your own transport as we are fairly isolated and there is limited. The little village of La Hoya is a 15 minute walk away and a locally renowned restaurant is only a 5 minute walk away but it is only open in the day time. The outskirts of Elche are a 5 minute drive away, La Marina beach 15 minutes away, and other little surrounding towns just a little further than that. Unfortunately we cannot accept anyone who has their own animals . We do have a left hand drive automatic car that someone over the age of 25 can possibly use (clean licence required) - to be discussed further if you feel you may want to take us up on this offer. Warning- it is a work car / banger (a Ford Estate) so is purely a means to get from A to B (and not long distances). You would have your own bedroom and there's a good wifi connection. If you want excitement this may not be the place for you, but if you want to explore in the day time and then relax in the evening on the terrace and look at the stars then this may be just what you´re looking for. We don't have mod cons (only 1 air con unit in the main bedroom; otherwise ceiling fans, that kind of thing....); the house has a more 'homey' feel to it. But it would be as clean and tidy as possible before you arrived. No, sorry.

We would ask that you are comfortable with big dogs and enjoy spending time with animals in general. We unfortunately recently lost two of our oldest rescue dogs (Charlie who reached the grand old age of 16 and 14 year old Lola). Our remaining original dog fur baby is Zeus, a 5 year old German Shepherd, typically naughty and with a lot of energy. As mentioned above, Calima is a 2 year old smaller German Shepherd (crossed with who knows what!). She has a lot of energy and wants to play a lot, but when she sleeps, she sleeps! We´re still trying to understand what triggers she has that scare her (she was dumped with her 3 puppies and had to be caught in a trap before being taken to a rescue centre). By the time we go on holiday, Calima will have lived with us for just over 3 months. We also have 3 chickens and 1 cockerel who reside in a large complex so there is very little that needs to be done for them (aside from feeding and keeping water topped up). Mumma chicken has also just hatched 4 chicks! We also have a cat (Petra) but she will probably go to a cattery as she has sight issues and is nervous around people she doesn´t know because of this. Daily duties would be feeding the animals, poo pick up (sorry, but with dogs it is a necessity!); and walking Zeus and Calima mornings and evenings. If your intention was to go out for a few hours each day but mostly stay at the house enjoying the garden and the pool and home comforts, then this might suit you. We have a few plants, flowers and trees in the garden that will require watering (some a bit of a walk away with a full watering can). Additionally, if you came in the colder months, we have a log burner in the lounge which is lovely, but you would have to be comfortable getting wood and making open fires. We would also be very grateful if you were happy to keep the house clean for our return (or as clean as possible anyway!). It would be best if you have your own transport as we are fairly isolated and there is limited. The little village of La Hoya is a 15 minute walk away and a locally renowned restaurant is only a 5 minute walk away but it is only open in the day time. The outskirts of Elche are a 5 minute drive away, La Marina beach 15 minutes away, and other little surrounding towns just a little further than that. Unfortunately we cannot accept anyone who has their own animals . We do have a left hand drive automatic car that someone over the age of 25 can possibly use (clean licence required) - to be discussed further if you feel you may want to take us up on this offer. Warning- it is a work car / banger (a Ford Estate) so is purely a means to get from A to B (and not long distances). You would have your own bedroom and there's a good wifi connection. If you want excitement this may not be the place for you, but if you want to explore in the day time and then relax in the evening on the terrace and look at the stars then this may be just what you´re looking for. We don't have mod cons (only 1 air con unit in the main bedroom; otherwise ceiling fans, that kind of thing....); the house has a more 'homey' feel to it. But it would be as clean and tidy as possible before you arrived. No, sorry.