Elizabeth Jones
"It was 7:00 on a Thursday morning. I had been up all night the night before worrying about who was going to take care of my beloved dog, Astro Jones. The next day, I would be taking 15 high school students to camp and the camp was NOT pet friendly!!! Several family members and friends backed out at the last minute and I did not know what to do! I was beside myself. I discovered Thoughts4Paws on the Internet and made a desperate call to Lyn at 7:00 (I would have called at 6:00 but thought that would be rude). Keep in mind, I did not know Lyn and the LAST thing I wanted to do was entrust the love of my life to a stranger. What if he was scared? Or cold? Or hungry? What if she left him unsupervised and he escaped? What if she hopped a flight to Bermuda with him and I never saw him again?!? These are the kinds of irrational thoughts that were running through my mind.
Despite this fear, I called Lyn. She didn't answer so I left a message.
I figured I would hear from her sometime later and settled in for a few more hours of anxiety as I figured out what to do. But 15 minutes later the phone rang and a very friendly voice greeted me on the other line. I was immediately comforted (whereas most people would have been annoyed or made me feel ridiculous). Lyn set up an in-home meeting for me that night.
When Lyn arrived at my home, she did not think I was ridiculous about asking her to take off her shoes on the carpet (Most people look at me funny). She actually made a note of it and told me her husband (from the UK) was used to taking his shoes off in the house. Then she sat down and spent an hour with me, asking every question about Astro's comfort and safety and allowing me to ask every ridiculous question, as well (I know there are people like me out there!). She toured my home and yard to get the low down on Astro's favorite spots and walking trails.
You cannot imagine a person more anxious than me when it comes to my dog. He is everything in the world to me and I would be lost without him. But I left for camp the next day and did not spend one minute worrying about him. In fact, Lyn called me the next night to tell me how well he was doing. She even asked that I call her when I return home so she wouldn't worry about him.
Lyn put me at ease in every way. It wasn't just that she was
bonded and licensed. She really cared about my pup like she would
her own. She even left a doggie diary for me. There is a saying
that "love is in the details." Her love for animals was
impossible to miss and stayed in our home long after she left. I
will sing her praises to everyone! Thanks Lyn, from the bottom of
my heart."