We sat down with Emily Morris a few days ago to talk with her about pet sitting work in Sarasota and her growing business, The Fur Nanny Professional Pet Sitting, LLC. It quickly became clear that Emily’s family and professional life are very much a team effort. Emily is joined by her Mom, Myrna (a former Registered Nurse) in the pet sitting biz. Husband Raymond and her Dad pitch in with 3 and half year old twins, while Myrna and Emily tend to caring for pets.
Starting formally in 2007, but with loads of experience – Emily has worked as a veterinary technician up in New York and has a BS in Biology from SUNY Stony Brook.
She takes a unique approach to working with new clients. Each new assignment starts with a personal consultation with the Pet Sitter, Owner and the Pet. For about an hour this consultation allows Emily to become familiar with the animals, the owner and the home.
Although there is a fair amount of paper work in the initial consultation, Emily always recommends and encourages the Owner to leave notes for the Pet Sitter. Does your Dog like a little snack before bed? Leave the bedroom door open just a crack? Write it down and it shall be done! Knowing that your little ones routine’s will be the same while you are traveling can help make your trip less stressful and easier for your dog or cat (bird/fish/snake/horse) to cope while you are away.
By the way, being Emily’s client also means that you’ll share in her wealth of knowledge about new technology and research. Each new client receives an information kit with tips and information that Emily has gleaned on-line, journals and from networking with other pet professionals. Emily also heads up the SW Florida Network of Pet Professionals. This informal alliance allows for an exchange of ideas and information between those in the pet business community.
Of course I couldn’t help but ask what some of the most offbeat requests made of the Fur Nanny. “We have a client who requested that when we visited in his absence that we kiss his bird upon arrival and when we left”. . . .and another who asked us to visit his cat while he worked and place the cat in a Snuggly – like a baby papoose and spend a few hours with the kitty” . . .that was a job that The Fur Nanny opted not to take.
While pet sitting is very much a real business with all of the attendant concerns and issues, it’s apparent that Emily’s love for animals is at the core of her mission. She lovingly groomed Skyler, a huggie-bear of a dog, a Shepard/Husky mix, while we talked. Emily’s natural ease with animals makes her uniquely suited to be the Fur Nanny.
We asked Emily what the most important aspect of choosing a pet sitter is, and she said, “Make sure that both you and your animal have good chemistry with the sitter”, and that makes total sense to us- knowing that your pet is comfortable and that the sitter is too will help smooth out the time while you are away.
The Fur Nanny is available for drop-ins, daily dog walks, overnight stays, 24/7 care for your pets and home and other pet related duties. For more information, visit www.furnanny.com or call Emily at 941-315-1156.
