What it's like to have your own company and doing what you love?

Have you ever sat back in your chair, at work, looked at the files on your desk, your laptop open to speadsheets and emails that you don't want to open.  You look around the office at all of the tops of your co-worker's heads in their cubicles doing the same thing that you are. Maybe you're near a window and you stare outside while contemplating where you are in your life. Is this all there is for me? Fulfilling my job description for that paycheck to be auto-deposited into my account twice a month.  Then what?  If you tell me that it's never happened to you, I don't believe you. 

It happened to me more than a few times during my life in corporate America.  Then one day, I came home from work, opened the door and my two wonderful best friends came running to me, racing to see who would get to me first.  They were so excited to see me and I them.  Tory, my lab mix that I rescued from the Waveland Animal Shelter.  Tory was used as a bait dog for dog fights.  And Reggie, my Rottweiller mix that was so loyal, protective and affectionate.  Other than food and water, what else do you really need?

Fast forward to having my own company, doing what I truly love and being surrounded by people that love animals as much as I do.  I have trained, studied, webinars, Zoom Conferences all to be fully prepared for this and to make absolutely sure that my company will deliver the elite standard of care to your pets and provide you with the peace of mind while you are away.

But let's stop for a minute and let's remember all of the work that goes into owning and caring for a pet.  You know how much work it is.  Walking, feeding, brushing, bathing, vaccinations, muddy paws, flea control, chewing up shoes, blankets and pillows, just to name a few things.  So when our day starts, every morning, my teams are at multiple houses from Lakeview to River Ridge handling all of those things and more.  Washing their bowls to remove any bacteria so they won't get stomach aches, giving them fresh food and water, picking up piles of poop in the backyard or while we are walking your dog.  We are cleaning out litterboxes and cleaning up all of the scattered litter outside of the box as well, keeping your house clean.  We are cleaning out bird cages and making sure their living area is clean with fresh food and water.  Then we go to the next house and do it all over again, and then the next house and so on and so forth.  So by the end of the day,  which ends around 8:30 pm for us, we smell like a dirty dog towel, we've walked probably 4-5 miles and probably have a scratch or a bruise or two from a cat or an excited dog.  We then slide into a hot bath and soak our aching muscles. BUT we're on our cell phones texting each other sharing stories about "how much fun Lucy had on her walk today" or "how excited we were to see Fluffy the cat finally come out to see us and let us pet him" or even "Guido the guinea pig trusted us enough today to take the treat from our hands."  Those moments, for us, are special wins in our day that leave us with a smile on our face and a full heart as we fall asleep. It is what gets us up each morning and we do it all over again.

We know that these pets miss their families when they are gone.  But it is our goal, to not only care for them in our signature-special way, but to bond with them and make sure that they are happy and having fun when we are there.  Remember when I mentioned coming home and having my two best friends race to greet me at the door?  Well, they both have passed away from cancer recently.  But for all of us, when we connect with your pet, they learn that we are there for just THEM ONLY; and when they run to the door to greet us when we arrive, it's that same feeling. 

I sit at my desk in the office sometimes and I just smile and enjoy listening to the girls share their stories with each other about what pets they get to see today.  I am so blessed to have a wonderful staff that shares the gratification and love for our client's pets and I know as they leave and get into their cars, with keys and lockboxes, that there will be some happy and excited pets today when we walk through your door.

God has truly blessed me and I will continue to honor his blessing by making sure that ALL of our clients and their pets are well taken care of and happy with our service.  My door is always open for any body that would like to join our team or join our family of amazing clients.

Nonie
Author, ​By Liz Schneider, Founder & Owner of Nonie's Pet Care, January 22, 2023