Casual pet sitters saving enough for house deposits, overseas trips
Savvy Aussies are turning their love of animals into lucrative side-hustles, saving enough cash for house deposits and overseas holidays. FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN TOO.
National
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Savvy Aussies have turned their love of pets into steady income, with some seriously cashing in on jobs involving furry friends.
The days a long gone where cat and dog owners need to beg family and friends to look after them while on holiday.
A quick google search will deliver thousands of Australians eager to pet sit either at your place or theirs.
Sydney sisters Erika and Lucerito Munoz have been a pet sitting tag team since 2017, looking after the cats and dogs of the city’s inner west.
They make about $1000 a month in extra income using sitter search site Mad Paws.
“We’ve had over 100 pets, all sorts … dogs, cats, even a rabbit,” Erika Munoz said, adding they charge about $60 a night and are never short of work.
The duo, dubbed the ‘Pet Sistars’, make enough to afford to take a yearly holiday.
Allysha Petrie, 32, tried pet sitting with hopes that it would cure her dog’s loneliness.
For the last two years her Husky Pippa has been smiling a whole lot more thanks to the rotating door of dog friends coming to their East Brisbane home.
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Ms Petrie turned their place into a ‘dog hotel’ which regularly has guests such as Kelpies, Maltese Terriers and Pugs.
She charges $40 a night for pets to come and stay, but for her the cash is a bonus to the success she’s had in lifting Pippa’s bout of the blues.
“I’ve made $12,000 in the last two years and have cared for over 60 dogs, a lot of those are repeat customers,” she said.
Ms Petrie recently relocated to Bendigo for work and she’s hoping to reopen ‘Pippa’s playhouse’ there soon.
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In Canberra public servant Daniel Witteveen wanted dogs around the house for his kids to play with but didn’t want the full-time responsibility of a pet.
The father of three signed up as a pet sitter so his family could get part-time dog cuddles at home.
In the last four years his home as welcomed more than 100 pets.
“People are really happy to have their pets looked after in a family home,” he said.
“My boys love playing fetch and feeding them and they like having the responsibility of playing with the dogs.”
Mr Witteveen charges $30 a night and he says his side-hustle is booming to the point where he’s turning away potential clients.
Melbourne couple Tegan Stait and Jarred Aubert have saved $30,000 for a house deposit by pet sitting for free.
While that might sound impossible, the couple use house sitting service MindAHome to trade their time and pet care for a rent and bill-free life.
Ms Stait said for the past Two-and-a-half years the couple have hopped around Melbourne, helping out families on holiday.
“Most people have pets, that’s the main reason they want their house sat, I’ve done a few where the people just want someone in the house so it doesn’t look empty,” Ms Stait said, adding many of her clients are reoccuring.
Ms Stait, 30, works full time in medical research, she started sitting as a side-hustle when she moved back home with her parents.
For her it’s a win-win as she doesn’t feel like she’s living in their pocket and she gets to try out living in areas where she may look to buy in the future.
“We’re pretty much booked out until October, with only two weeks at home,” she said.
Ms Stait said she doesn’t charge for house sitting as she lives rent and bill free.
“All we have to pay for is food and petrol, that’s the only expenses we have,” she said.
“Pet sitting lets us stay in places that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford. I work in the city, so staying in homes close to the city reduces my commute to work, but also means I can enjoy the city lifestyle.”
Originally published as Casual pet sitters saving enough for house deposits, overseas trips
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