Jess & James

Hi, I'm Jess and I've spent the last 13 years sailing around the world with my husband, James, and our 3 kids, who are now 11, 9 and 5.

We love animals, in fact our children would adore a pet but it's not been practical with our sailing life. Although we did foster a mama cat and helped raise her 8 kittens on our boat, finding forever homes for all of them - an amazing experience that all the kids were very hands-on with. We have just sold our boat, in Malaysia, and will be back in the UK over the summer and autumn to touch base with our extended family.

We can be very flexible with timing as our kids are currently homeschooled and we are freelance, able to work anywhere, which means we can spend a lot of time in your home on-hand for your pets.

We are experienced house-sitters having looked after peoples' pets in New Zealand, the UK and Singapore. We have only used Housesitters UK once before, when back in the UK on a flying visit, so only have the one review here but we are happy to provide references from our previous sits if needed and you can look at our reviews and references on Trusted Housesitters by asking for the link.

We completely understand the need to feel that your fur babies are being well taken care of so you can relax and enjoy your holiday. Trust me, they will be fussed over, petted and stroked a lot; our kids are very gentle with animals but also incredibly attentive. We are more than happy to give regular photo / video updates if needed.

As well as being boat-owners we are both architects, with property in London that we rent out. As landlords and homeowners we understand how important it is to keep a home well-maintained and are happy to clean and take care of your home in any way that makes you feel comfortable.

We can be available at short-notice with flexible dates and are happy to FaceTime or meet in person ahead of any commitment in order to further discuss your needs and pet requirements. Living aboard a boat all this time means that we do not necessarily need a lot of space, all happy to bunk in together if needed or adjust to whatever space you are comfortable for us to use.

We have already used pet-sitting websites as well as having had many experiences looking after friends' animals while they were on holiday as part of our travels. Plus 9 years of cloth nappies on board our boat means we are not too squeamish about poop!

We and our children truly do love all animals. My husband grew up with dogs and various small animals and later rode his own horse for several months across Mexico when he was in his twenties. I grew up with a succession of very needy Burmese cats as well as small animals, including a stick insect! As a family we have looked after dogs, cats, chickens, hamsters and small animals and all all devoted followers of every David Attenborough nature program.

As home-owners and landlords we are used to maintaining a property. A boat is an incredibly demanding home to look-after so nothing surprises us in terms of what it takes to keep a place running.

Please get in touch, we'd love to make some new friends x