Holiday house sitting in Sydney: Haylee & Shane's story

Updated 04/12/2024

While every house sit is special in its own unique way, for many of our members, it's the first sit experience that really stands out. That certainly rings true for travel enthusiasts and sitter members, Haylee and Shane, who began their TrustedHousesitters journey in the most magical way possible: spending Christmas in Sydney, Australia, while caring for a sweet pup called Tino!

Read on as they tell us all about why this sit experience is one they'll never forget - and how house sitting and caring for cute pets has enriched their travels ever since...

"Tino was the perfect pup, and his mom was a wonderful host"

If you’re craving something a little different, house sitting over the holidays provides the perfect opportunity to see in the festive season somewhere new and to experience new traditions. For Haylee and Shane, it ticked many boxes - and they even picked up some important life lessons along the way!

"Our first house sit was with little Tino, a Maltese Shih Tzu mix, in Sydney, Australia. Throughout our time with Tino, we got to discover one of our favorite cities, enjoy our first warm holiday season, and learn the dangers of leaving the window open past dark in Australia!"

Avid travelers, Haylee and Shane, had their hearts set on exploring more of the world, but longed for a much-needed pet fix along the way.

"We traveled through Southeast Asia for a few months before flying to Australia. Throughout this time, we were looking for house sits in Sydney. We had joined TrustedHousesitters before we left home and crafted our profile throughout our travels.

Our first video call with a potential house sit did not go very well... we treated it like a professional interview and probably came off much too intense! We weren’t familiar with the process and had no idea what to say."

Luckily, after some research and planning, their application to sit for little Tino was a roaring success - and they instantly clicked with Tino's pet parent.

"It was the “click” you hope for when applying for a sit"

"We had a Skype call with Tino’s mom via a shaky Wi-Fi connection on Cat Ba Island. Her personality put our minds at ease, and we had a wonderful conversation. She offered us the sit on the condition of meeting us in Sydney beforehand. We quickly agreed and were scheduled to be on a ferry an hour later. I can still remember that feeling of complete joy on the ferry through Ha Long Bay after just securing our first sit!

We arrived in Sydney about a month after our initial call. We had kept in touch to reassure Tino's mom that our travels were going smoothly and arranged a home visit. I still believe that communicating with the owners before a house sit can be the deciding factor in whether or not you are chosen."

Related article: How to secure your first sit

"We were confident we'd have a great first house sit"

"Meeting Tino was everything we imagined and his mom was a dream host. She was welcoming, kind, and understanding of our nerves. And Tino was a little prince! He loved to play but was not a fan of walking. His food was handmade (his owner was sure to arrange and freeze these for us). We loved him and left the home visit feeling great! We knew we had a connection with Tino, and we were confident that we would have a great first house sit."

After two wonderful weeks of caring for Tino and getting used to life 'down under', Christmas Day rolled around - providing Haylee and Shane with a real change of festive scenery!

"I was happy to ditch a snowy, Massachusetts winter for a gorgeous 26°C day in Sydney! We forgot about turkey for a year and fired up the BBQ. After an amazing lunch, we headed to the beach! I never thought we’d be swimming in December. It was magical. We’re so happy we got to share the experience with a perfect, little pup!"

Of course, no house sit is without its surprises. Whether it's your first sit or your fiftieth, one thing remains true: our furry friends sure know how to keep their sitters on their feet!

"I remember panicking one afternoon - I couldn’t find Tino! There were not too many places in the apartment he could hide. I checked the balcony, communal hallway, and bathtub. I decided to scour the bedroom one more time. Surely he’s under the bed…

I walked in the room just in time to catch a pillow moving. Tino was nestled so far into the decorative bed pillows that I could hardly see him! He was always making me laugh."

As well as broadening your horizons and opening the door to newfound adventures, travel also provides the perfect opportunity to learn more about the world around us - although, some learnings are more pleasant than others!

"Traveling sure does teach you things, and that night I learned why you can’t leave the windows open past sundown in Australia... I'm from Massachusetts - there are a lot of bugs there, so I’ve never known windows to not have screens on them. That’s why I didn’t even notice when I opened the window that it didn’t have a screen on it.

It wasn’t very long until I saw something move out of the corner of my eye - I turned to witness the biggest spider I had ever seen crawling into the bedroom window. It was the size of my hand! It still haunts me to this day - I sat on a chair in the middle of the living room holding Tino until Shane got home from the shop. It took the whole night to find that thing."

"House sitting has enriched our travels"

Some ups, some (eight-legged!) downs - but all in all, a first sit to remember. So, any final parting words from Haylee and Shane?

"I know we will house sit in Sydney throughout the holidays many more times in the future. We absolutely loved it. My favorite part was that you could escape the city and find a coastal walk around every corner. It was gorgeous, and we were always outside."

With house sitting, there's so much to love: the chance to explore new places, spend time with adorable animals, and make memories you won't find anywhere else. But as any pet sitter will tell you, saying goodbye to new furry friends is never an easy task...

"Saying goodbye to Tino was so difficult! We didn’t want to leave this cute little pup that stole our hearts. He had shown us the city and cuddled me through the traumatic spider ordeal! We were close. It was the best first house sit we could have hoped for.

Tino was the perfect start to our house sitting adventures over the next two years. Since then, we've sat in Sydney, Brisbane, Townsville, Cairns and Auckland. Whenever I remember diving in the Great Barrier Reef, I think about coming home and snuggling up to India and Sammie, two gorgeous Ragdoll cats! House sitting has enriched our travels and introduced us to a community that has changed our lives forever.”

An Olympic sit with a cat companion

We all have our bucket list of places to see and things to do: Climb the Eiffel Tower, stay in a quintessential Parisian home, and spectate the Olympic Games in person. Find out how pet sitter Emma managed to tick all three of these off her list when she found herself cat sitting in Paris during the 2024 Olympics!