I am an animal lover and the first pet I wanted was a German Shepherd like Rin Tin Tin. Unfortunately, my siblings had allergies that prevented me from having any pets other than turtles, small frogs or fish which were more to my brothers liking. But I made up for my lack of warm blooded pets later on in my life.
Actually my first dog turned out to be a German Shepherd very similar to Rin Tin Tin. Throughout the years I've had various breeds and sizes of dogs, some puppies, as well as several cats, and found that dogs and cats can co-exist together. My first experience with a kennel was not a good one. I had a week vacation planned to San Diego, California and had two dogs at the time.
One was a nervous puppy who I had recently found abandoned in a park in Philadelphia. She was a miniature German Shepherd and quickly attached herself to Peter, my older German Shepherd. So I thought that if the kennel would put them in crates next to each other the puppy should be okay. Needless to say I never enjoyed my vacation constantly concerned about my beloved pets. When I returned home and went to the kennel to pick up my sweethearts I was very upset. The puppy was distraught and nervous and the older dog wouldn't eat even after the kennel gave him pills to increase his appetite.
They both quickly perked up upon returning home.
After that experience I narrowed my vacation trips to places where I could drive to and take my pets with me. Needless to say this restricted where I could travel especially since I wouldn't fly with my pets, not trusting the airlines which still proves true today unfortunately. When I retired 6 years ago I decided to help people have the option of going on vacations and not having to put their pets into kennels. I found that staying in their own home, among familiar surroundings and having a loving person care for them is the perfect solution for both the pets and their owners.
I treat each pet whether dogs, cats, rabbits, rats or lizards, as if they are my own. I feed them, play with them and most importantly give them individual attention and, of course, lots of loving as if they were my own.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pets of my own now but I love being a surrogate grandmother to other people's beloved pets. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved.