We are very happy to walk the dogs. We actually really love it.

I am happy to clean up after they have “left a message”. Not so much Mick though, as he finds the warm sensation just too much to deal with.

And, we are both okay about washing muddy feet when we return from a walk, and mopping the floor and cleaning the dogs’ bedding, to ensure the mud does not get traipsed through the house.

When we agree to house sit for people, we usually have a good idea of their expectations for the care of their animals well in advance of our arrival, whether they be dogs, cats, sheep or horses – we’ve cared for them all so far. Beforehand, the owners have provided details of the daily duties and the little ‘quirks’ each animal has – and they all have them!!. And, usually Mick and I can accommodate the expectations very capably and very happily. After all, that is why we are at these homes – to care for the much-loved (and often spoilt) pets, and quite often we get very attached to them as well while we are with them.

But, this current house sit and the last one, came with a few surprises and a few new experiences we had not ‘signed up’ for.

At the last one, near Montréal du Gers, we knew in advance that the dog needed to go with us everywhere. She could not be left at home alone. Usually, when requests like this are made, the owner provides his or her car for us to use. But, on this occasion, we had to hire a car.  We were happy to do that because it was for only a short time. We thought we could easily cope with taking the “well-behaved dog” with us to every market and sightseeing activity we undertook. And, it wasn’t too bad at all; she was actually well-behaved. The only problem was that she shed huge amounts of hair and Mick had to spend a good hour vacuuming the (hire) car before we returned it.

So, all that was expected.

What wasn’t expected was that the dog expected to sleep with us. She was used to spending every night with her owner in her king-sized bed, and so when the owner left for her skiing trip in Spain, the dog decided our (double) bed would do. Now, I am sure you would say we should have closed our bedroom door, and we did try that. But, the dog just cried and scratched at the door, so we gave in.  She would jump onto the bed and sleep (thankfully) at the foot of the bed, until Mick or I rolled over and she lost her place. She would then spend some time asleep next to Mick on the floor beside the bed, before crying again, waking us up, and jumping back onto the bed. This was repeated many times each night, and even during the day, when she expected to use Mick as her bed.

And the worst thing about this was that the little dag suffered from sleep apnea. The first night we spent at the home while the owner was still there, we slept in the room adjacent to hers. I thought she suffered from sleep apnea because of the stop / start loud snoring that was coming from her room.

But she didn’t have the problem….It was the dog!!

Okay – we survived that.

Not the end of the world.

But, the owner would have known in advance that the dog would expect to sleep with us. It would have been nice to let us know is all I am pointing out. And, possibly to have offered us her larger bed where all three of us could have fitted more comfortably.

At this current house sit, we have had a similar experience.

We were told that these two (who look terribly cute and are very nice dogs) were very good travellers, loved the car and could go with us wherever we wanted to go, including to restaurants. But, there certainly was no expectation that we could not leave them at home from time to time.

We have taken them on quite a few trips to neighbouring towns, but after our last experience, it could be the last.

Yes, they do like the car, and they travel happily for about 50 minutes. Any longer and Mr H starts to cry a little. That is all fine – but once we are in a village or a town, both of them – the little girl included – like to pee on every previously-dog-peed-upon spot in the street. The little girl dog is absolutely terrified of feet and so is hopeless to walk in a built-up area where there are other feet and even mine are too close to her. I think she must get carried in these situations. Mr H, except for the need to pee on everything, is excellent on the lead.

A few days ago, we travelled to Pontgibaud with the dogs to go to the markets (and there are no photos because it is too difficult to take photos while trying to prevent a dog from peeing).

We had only just found a park (which can be very difficult in these tiny villages), helped the dogs out of the car and located the markets, when I was ‘accosted’ by a woman. At first I did not realise she was talking to me. But, I could tell that she was extremely unhappy about something. She pointed out to me that the little dog on the end of my lead had just peed on the footpath in front of her shop. Now, I was acutely aware of that, but had no idea what I could have done about it, either when the little dog did it or when the woman was yelling at me. As it happened, I had lost my voice the day before, so when I tried to ask (in a whisper) what she wanted me to do about it, she said “rien” (nothing) – before walking off in a huff.

I have heard of ‘road rage’ but thankfully have never experienced it. But this was my first taste of ‘footpath rage’!

I do carry plastic bags in case of “Number 2s”, but in future it appears, if indeed there will be a future outing in a village with this pair, a bottle of water to wash away any pee.

Do other dog owners actually do that?

This is France – the country where dog shit is absolutely everywhere on every footpath, and dog pee too for that matter.

We found out the day before the owners left for Australia that the little dog also sleeps every night with them – again in a king-sized bed.  Something which was not explained to us when we applied for the position.

So, each night as Mick and I head to bed, the little dog runs in with us, her tail wagging, waiting to be helped up onto the bed (her leg is still sore from her operation, but sometimes she does jump up all by herself). She then cuddles herself up next to me (and not at the foot of the bed!) where she will stay for as long as Mick is happy to squeeze into less than half a double-bed-sized space.

I am actually in bed in that (above) photo, hiding under the covers – not a pretty sight first thing in the morning, so I’ll spare you from that image.

Thankfully, she has found the lounge chair quite comfortable as well, so she spends more than half the night there. But, around 6.00am, she comes in and joins us again.

Mick doesn’t miss out either.

But, we are both grateful that Mr H is happy to sleep in his own bed!!!

However, he comes with a few surprises as well. He suffers from the occasional nightmare and when that happens he howls loudly and scarily – like what I would imagine a baying wolf sounds like. It doesn’t even wake him up, but Mick and I and the little dog all get a fright.

Mick and I are getting a little smarter though.

We have just agreed to house sit some springer spaniels later in the year. During our Skype interview, I did ask where the dogs slept, and once I knew they slept in the laundry I was happy (because there are four of them). I am pretty sure that could have been the straw to break the camel’s back.

Sometimes extra tasks arise as well – and most of them Mick handles them really well. He actually loves a challenge.

E.g. Remember this pile of wood?  It only took him a few days to stack it!

The final thing I will say on the matter is that we are not complaining.

We love these experiences, some more than others, and without the opportunity to house sit, we would not get the chance to spend a year in France.