Finding the right sitter for Maisie the Therapy Dog - Deb & Scott's story

Deb and Scott are two proud pet parents to a remarkable little therapy dog called Maisie. When they first joined TrustedHousesitters at the end of 2022, they understandably had a few anxieties about finding the right person to care for the kindhearted Maisie. Luckily, this story took a real turn for the better - not just for Deb and Scott, but for Maisie (and her sitters) too! Let’s begin our story down under on the north coast of Tasmania...

Masie the Delta Therapy Dog

Maisie is an 8-year-old Maltese/Shih Tzu mix who lives in the gorgeous coastal town of Burnie in Tasmania, Australia, with her two pet parents, Deb and Scott. The three of them have been together since Maisie was just 8 weeks old.

“She is very calm and accepting of everything happening around her and very much lives in the moment, taking most things in her stride as they happen.”

Their precious princess was born with an affectionate, loving, and caring personality, bringing joy to everyone she met. So, when Deb and Scott attended a dog festival when Maisie was just 12 months old, she was quickly head-hunted by a local dog therapy group.

“We came across the Delta Therapy Dog display. The coordinator asked if we would consider Maisie joining the program as a Delta Therapy Dog as even at that early age, they could see her love of people and attention.”

Even from that brief encounter, Maisie’s beautiful love for people and life shone through. And so began her career as a Delta Therapy Dog. 

“She was properly assessed when she was 18 months old, successfully passing the required assessment criteria, and has been a Delta Therapy Dog ever since. We began her journey as a Therapy Dog visiting Aged Care Homes, but for the past year or so we have been visiting the North West Support School here in Burnie, which is a school for children with disabilities both physical and intellectual. 

We also visit the North West Regional Hospital where Maisie is now a celebrity in her own right, being recognized as soon as she enters or even if we are just out walking near the hospital. She is greeted eagerly by Doctors, Nurses, admin staff, and patients in all wards of the hospital. She has even been invited into the canteen if there are nurses in there as we walk past. All eager for a chance to pat or belly rub as a stress relief for them from the busy schedule of their day.”

Finding the perfect sitter for Maisie

So, what does this have to do with TrustedHousesitters? Well, great question! Well, Deb and Scott are retired school teachers who enjoy visiting their children in Perth on mainland Australia, particularly around Christmas and New Year. That’s right, they needed to find a pet sitter for Maisie! Specifically, a person (or people) who could love and care for her in her own home, as well as keep her safe. And a faithful Google search led Deb directly to TrustedHousesitters!

“On reading all the information and reviews on the website I was impressed with what I read and thought it sounded really good, so we joined and advertised our dates. The responses to our dates were numerous and all sounded really positive and great sitters.” 

However, as a first-time pet parent seeking a sitter, Deb understandably had a few reservations. 

“My concerns were that they were overseas or interstate and this made me a little hesitant to be only able to confirm someone via a Facetime call, message, or email. I wanted to be able to do a personal meet and greet and get a feel for the sitter and how they would interact with Maisie.”

Luckily, Deb managed to find the perfect sitters who were much closer to home.

“I then saw the profile of a couple, Noelene and Udo, who lived in Tasmania, had outstanding reviews, and were available for the dates. I reached out and invited them to sit for us, subject to a positive meet and greet, upon which they promptly replied that that worked for them and they would be in Burnie the next weekend! We did our meet and greet and as they say, the rest is history.”

“To have such wonderful people as our first sitters was a godsend”

Sitters, Noelene and Udo, went above and beyond for Maisie’s first-ever in-home pet sit.

“To have such wonderful people as our first sitters was a godsend, Maisie adored them and they adored her. We were able to go away knowing she was being well cared for, loved, and totally spoiled, and she didn’t miss us at all while we were away. We could relax and enjoy our time with family knowing Maisie was safe.”

Unsurprisingly, Deb and Scott were keen to invite Noelene and Udo back to sit for them for their next trip away - and even managed to coincide their travel dates so Noelene and Udo could sit for Maisie on multiple occasions! Unfortunately, on a planned trip to the Maldives,  the dates proved tricky for Noelene and Udo, but luckily Deb felt more than comfortable with TrustedHousesitters to find some new sitter friends for Maisie.

“We do have a trip to the Maldives coming up next April 2025 and as this was an unexpected venture, Noelene and Udo were unavailable to sit Maisie. But because we had such a positive first experience, we had no hesitation in advertising our dates for this trip, and once again TrustedHousesitters has been amazing and we have now confirmed sitters for Maisie for that trip.”

That is paw-some to hear! Do you (or Maisie) have anything else you’d like to say before we finish?

“We strongly recommend TrustedHousesitters to anyone and everyone who will listen, we have had such positive experiences. It certainly has been a great way for us to be able to happily leave Maisie and relax while away knowing she is living her best life.”

We’re delighted you and Maisie have had such a great experience, Deb and Scott! We’re excited to hear more about how your next sit goes, as well as keeping up with Maisie’s amazing therapy adventures.

If you’d like to read about other remarkable members' (or their pets) stories, you should check out Sloane the rescue dog’s tail. Or, hear about one super sitter who went more than an extra mile to protect cats Noni and Mandarin during Hurricane Helene.