709: Are You Prepared for the Emotional Weight of Pet Care with Jeanette Latter
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What does it truly mean to care for pets at their most vulnerable stages of life? In this episode, we talk with Jen Latter, owner of Nanna Jens Services, about her journey from nursing into holistic pet care and how that shapes her approach today. We explore the emotional labor involved in working with senior, disabled, and end-of-life pets, and why boundaries are essential in this deeply personal work. We also discuss how trust is built through consistency, communication, and professionalism. This conversation will challenge you to think more deeply about the responsibility and impact of the care you provide.
Main topics:
Emotional labor in pet care
Caring for senior and disabled pets
Building trust through consistency
Setting professional boundaries clearly
Holistic pet care and Reiki
Main takeaway: “Boundaries are essential, especially when working in clients’ homes.”
Boundaries are not a barrier to great service—they’re what make great service possible. In pet care, we’re invited into people’s homes, their routines, and their most vulnerable moments. Without clear boundaries, it’s easy for expectations to blur and for burnout to follow. But when you clearly define what you do—and what you don’t—you create stability. You protect your energy. And you give your clients confidence in the care you provide. Boundaries don’t push clients away. They build trust, clarity, and professionalism.
About our guest: Nanna Jen Latter is the founder of Nanna Jen Services, an award-recognized holistic in-home pet care business based in Queensland, Australia. With over 50 years of experience caring for animals and a background in nursing, she specializes in senior, disabled, and anxious pets. Jen integrates holistic practices such as animal Reiki and massage into her services to promote calm and well-being. As a solo operator, she is dedicated to providing consistent, one-on-one care that builds deep trust with both pets and their families.
Links:
Website: www.nannajensservices.com.au
Facebook: https://facebook.com/Nannajsservices
Instagram: @nannajensservices
TikTok: @nannajensservices
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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by our guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Pet Sitter Confessional, its hosts, or sponsors. We interview individuals based on their experience and expertise within the pet care industry. Any statements made outside of this platform, or unrelated to the topic discussed, are solely the responsibility of the guest.
A VERY ROUGH TRANSCRIPT OF THE EPISODE
Provided by otter.ai
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Collin 0:00
Welcome to Pet Sitter Confessional, an open and honest discussion about life as a pet sitter. Today, we're brought to you by our friends at Time to Pet and Critter. Being a professional in pet care and dog walking is a topic that we talk a lot about on this podcast, but we also need to make sure we understand the importance of setting strong boundaries and even the emotional labor that goes into the kind of work that we do, and how that adds up over time, and to talk about this, and so much more. I'm really excited to have Nana Jen, owner of Nanna Jens Services, on the show to talk about this, how she got into the industry, and everything in between. So, Nanna Jen, I'm super excited to have you on the podcast. For those who aren't familiar with you, could you please tell us a little bit more about who you are and what you do?
Jen Latter 0:49
Hi, I'm Jen. I'm the founder of Nanna Jens Services. I run an award-recognised holistic in-home pet care. I'm based in southeast Queensland, in Australia, um, I've had pets all of my life, so well over 50 years. Everything I've had, everything from dogs, cats, chickens, even turtles. Earlier in my career, I worked as a nurse. I think that really shaped how I care for pets today. I'm very focused on patience, observation, and making sure they feel safe and comfortable over time. I started to notice that a lot of pets, especially older and more anxious ones, really struggle in boarding facilities and environments like that, and I just thought there must be a better way to care for them. So that's how Nanogen Services came about. I focus on caring for pets in their own homes, where they feel secure and relaxed, rather than taking them out of the environment that they know. I've also trained as a holistic animal wellness practitioner and an animal reiki practitioner, and I include that when I feel it's right to keep the pets calm and balance. It's just me, I'm a solo operator, so every pet gets that one on one care and builds trust with me. And over the past few years, I've cared for more than 300 pets across Queensland and North New South Wales in Australia. At the end of the day, it just comes down to making sure pets feel safe and cared for, and that their owners can relax down there in good hands. Back to you.
Collin 2:50
Yeah, well, you mentioned that transition from being in nursing into running this business. What was that transition like for you? I my
Jen Latter 3:11
nursing career has had a huge influence on how I care for the pets. Nursing really teaches you to be observant, patient, and calm, and to pick up on the small changes that might mean something isn't quite right. Those skills translate directly into the animal care, because pets can't tell us when they're unwell. So, being able to read their behavior, their body language, and even subtle changes in their routine is really important. Nursing also shaped our approach compassion and emotional care. Whether I'm working with an anxious pet, a senior pet, or supporting a family through end of life care, I bring that same calm, supportive presence that nursing really instills in you. So, in many ways, the core principles I was saying in nursing humans and animals, it's about care, observation, patience, and respect for well-being. Just apply to the pets
Collin 4:24
you mentioned, the end of life care aspect is, do you have a lot of clients that that need your care in that moment of their life?
Jen Latter 4:34
I have had a couple of clients like that. I do look after a lot of senior pets from 16 years upwards who have dementia, sundowners, and that those sort of things,
Collin 4:53
and is that something that you have, like, intentionally sought after, or have they kind of found. You through various ways, because I, I think about the kind of clients that we have, and we also do in-home care for our clients, and I feel like it kind of, kind of lends itself naturally to serving those kind of clients, but is that something that you've reached out for, talked a lot about, or do people kind of find you on their own,
Jen Latter 5:21
I guess, over the years of having my business, it's just fallen into that category. People have found that I've had that nursing background, and they've incorporated it with their pets as well, because not only do I get the seniors, but I also look after the disabled pets, and ones like that, so
Collin 5:59
well, and I know you focus a lot on you've talked about it, like stability of the routine and making sure that anxiety and stress are managed really well in your visits, but practically, what does that actually look like when you're in a visit dealing with those pets?
Jen Latter 6:18
There have been moments when the emotional, like, Israel, I'm not going to lie there, especially with pets who are unwell and nearing the end of life. It's all about staying calm, compassionate, and present in the moment, especially in difficult situations, because you're not only caring for the pets, but you've got to think of the families as well. Losing a pet, losing a pet is so emotional for the families, so I focus on the comfort, the dignity, and supporting both pets and the family,
Collin 7:06
yeah, that's an aspect of this job, this career that we choose that we often don't consider, because many times I know a lot of us, we enter into the life of the pet and the owner at the aspect where that pet is, you know, sometimes you know, healthy, wealthy, and well, and then we stay with them over the years, and we see that decline in their life over time, or sometimes we do have those clients who have an emergency, and we need to step in, because they have to go on that trip to go see their family members, or they have to go spend an extra long day at work, or whatever that is, and and they need some help caring for this very medically needy and sensitive animal, and then we are walking alongside that owner with them in that moment of going, okay, like your pet needs this kind of care now I have to serve your dog or your cat well, but we do have to be sensitive to that. The owner is struggling in this moment, and they're processing this in a very real and anxious way, too.
Jen Latter 8:16
Correct. Yes. Correct.
Collin 8:19
What I know, you've, you talked about how you focus on, or you deal with a lot of those medically needy, those senior pets. What do you think a lot of other pet care professionals should know or understand about working with those kind of pets from, from your experience?
Jen Latter 8:34
Just, just remember that I always say to new businesses and new people entering this field, that just remember those pets are someone's family. You need to be calm, you need to show dignity, you need to show them respect, especially as they age, and it's not only to the animals, the pets, but it's also to their owners.
Collin 9:18
Well, and that can show up. I've seen that kind of thing show up in many small ways. Dignity may be in taking a little bit extra time to listen to the client when they're giving you those instructions. It may also be you reviewing the notes a few more times with them whenever they are giving, telling you how to do the medication, or where they like to lay down, and those things, and for the, for the dog, or for the cat, sometimes that dignity comes in giving them a little bit extra time and patience while they are outside, because they may take a little bit longer to do their business, or lifting them gently. And not rushing them up and out the door suddenly and allowing them to be stable before they start walking, and but that takes, like you mentioned, that takes like I have to be patient in those moments, and I can't be rushed, and I have to be calm, so all that really it starts with me.
Jen Latter 10:20
Yes, it does. Yeah, in seeing your pets, you, you may come across that they're that incontinent. You got to remember that's that's that's not their fault. So you just got to stay calm and go, just go about your day, you know. Look after them. It's.. it really comes naturally to to care for them.
Collin 11:01
Well, that takes extra prep time as well, and you know it also may shape the kind of services that you want to provide too. Of okay, maybe a lot of people may go, "I'll do a 30 minute visit. Well, that may be wholly inappropriate if you are dealing with a very senior dog, because that may be the amount of time you need to get up, and so right. It's, I mean, how do you have those conversations with those clients, though, who are like, when you're designing that care and what that's going to look like for them, and and helping them understand maybe some of those limitations,
Jen Latter 11:44
so I have different packages. I start from 15 hours overnight up right up to 24 hours, so when someone approaches me for care, I ask about their pets, ask them about their needs, if I find that you know that they're looking at the 18 hour, which is gives them six hours by themselves during the day, well, that goes back to their age and, and what actually their routine looks like, and I will suggest, oh, well, maybe the 24 hour might be better, 24 hours, me being with those pets all the time, and the seniors, I would say mostly over the age of 14, do need that 24 hours, the rescue pets need that 24 hours, the special, the disabled pets need that 24 hours, so I just suggest, oh, well, this is what my 24 hour gives, gives your pet. Do you think that this would be more better for them? And they can.. it's, it's up to them. Oh, no, no, they're okay for six hours during the day, okay. But when I go there, because pets act differently when, when, when their owners are away, so I thought in that first 24 hours you really notice what what they're actually right, or some owners don't realize they don't realize the extent of the care, because they're doing it every single day, so that first 24 hours will let me know, and then I'll go back to them. Go, well, do you mind if I hang around during those six hours just to keep an eye on your little one? So, yeah,
Collin 13:53
I love how all of that started, Jen, with you learning. You first learn about them and their pet, and then you can map that knowledge onto what you're offering, and, and that's something that I know, like, we have certainly struggled with in our business of being opinionated about our services, and I think oftentimes we, as dog walkers and pet sitters, can think, oh, well, the client will just select whatever option is best, and what I have found is that most clients, the vast majority of our clients, when they reach out to us, they are looking to us to give our professional opinion on what they need, but that takes us having that opinion of going, okay, well, this package is for xyz, then this package is for abc, and that means that they're not for anybody else, and that could feel really limiting from a business perspective of, oh, well, I want to serve everybody all the time, but what it does. Is mean, and like what you're talking about here, Jen, is when you have those clients with that specific need and that specific package solves it suddenly there they have to buy or they have to move forward because they immediately see how you're solving their solutions and just having that a little bit of definition about who your services are for and when to use one over the other just really helps those clients get over that decision hump a lot faster too.
Jen Latter 15:31
Yeah, absolutely.
Collin 15:33
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Doug Keeling 15:37
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Collin 15:57
If you're looking for new pet setting software, give Time to Pet a try. Listeners of our show will save 50% off your first three months by visiting Kind pet.com/confession One thing I did want to bring up here, Jen, is if you are working with pets who are near the end of life and you're dealing with disabled pets or medically or behaviorally needy animals, like that's that's a huge emotional toll on you, right? That's a very real emotional labor. How do you go about managing that side of the work that you're doing?
Jen Latter 16:33
There have been moments when the emotional light is real, especially if pets are unwell and they're in the end of life, but my nursing background prepared me for that. I spent over 20 years working in palliative care for humans, so no, you know, nursing - what I learned in nursing, I've just brought over into the pet care industry, so the same skills just carried over into pet care, so while it can be emotional, I approach it the same way. I stay calm, provide the best care possible, and support the family through the process.
Collin 17:17
You talk about those same skills, is that that staying calm and supportive. What other aspects are there? Because you know, when we like, that's just a huge weight sometimes of how do I actually process this and make sure I'm handling this in a healthy way, while also providing excellent care in those last few moments.
Jen Latter 17:39
Yep, so staying calm, showing compassion, being present in the moment, even in difficult situations, staying focused.
Collin 17:57
Part of that is in recognizing the importance and the gravity of the work that we're doing. Of okay, I'm here. This is palliative care for the dog or for the cat. We don't have a lot of time here, or it's a, it's a 15 year old doodle, and then they are, you know, we don't know how much more time that they have, which means that my time here is all the more important that, and it's imperative that I am in the moment. I think you mentioned that earlier, Jen, of like being present. How do you do? You have any techniques or things that you do to help you stay in the moment, instead of it's hard for me, me sometimes. I, I, my brain wanders right, or I get distracted, or I start thinking about other stuff, or it's maybe uncomfortable to be here, and so do you make sure that you, you stay present?
Jen Latter 18:53
I'm a Reiki practitioner.
Collin 18:55
Okay,
Jen Latter 18:56
so I do it for humans and for pets, so if I feel as if I'm becoming overwhelmed, I'll do a self reiki. If I feel the owners are becoming a little bit overwhelmed, I'll do a reiki on them as well, if with their permission, of course, and Reiki suit, you know, it eases those tensions, it removes those tensions.
Collin 19:30
When did you start doing the Reiki? Was that buff as you started doing dog walking and pet sitting, or were you involved in that prior?
Jen Latter 19:42
I I started doing that about, oh, would be about 18 months ago with the animals. I wanted to stand out from others, and I knew that. Benefits of Reiki, so I went and did courses, Rick Animal Reiki course, I went and did a canine massage course, so all those, all those sort of things, I just wanted to, I wanted to make sure the pets were comfortable.
Collin 20:30
Do you have clients who immediately understand that aspect of it? Because I know if I were to go to my clients right now and say, hey, we're gonna, you know, we're, you know, we've certified in Reiki, we've taken these courses, we like to do this with your dogs, like they take a lot of convincing. Do you get any pushback on this, or do you see a lot of clients who immediately are on board and ready to go?
Jen Latter 20:53
I, I include that in my media, I, you'll find videos of me doing Reiki and massages on the pets, I put all of my videos on TikTok, on my Facebook, Instagram, not so much, but I, and then I am caught, I incorporate it, and then if people are unsure, they'll come to me and go, well, what exactly is it? So I tell them and tell them the benefits of both.
Collin 21:33
I love that of putting it out there and be ready to answer questions. Absolutely,
Jen Latter 21:38
I still get, I still get clients that are unsure, but give me the permission, and then I just video it for them, and then they can see, they can see the difference in their pets from start to end, like they can see it. So
Collin 21:59
that's so important to do in any everything that we do as a business of of the kind of care that we give, again, have that opinion, have that definition, have that direction that we want to go, and and have that conviction behind it, of this is important. I'm going to put this out there, and then I'm going to be ready to answer questions, I'm going to show you. We're going to talk about it. I'm going to be open about this, and sometimes that's all it takes is just to.. is I found that clients who are.. don't know, we got a lot of clients who go, "Well, I've never used a pet sitter before, and "I saw you on Instagram. Okay. Hey, yeah, let me talk to you about that, and what we do, and how we do it, and just that conversation alone is enough to put people at ease, right? They just want to have their answers to their questions, and if we're not ready to have that, that just puts people off.
Jen Latter 22:59
Most owners just want the best for their pets, while they're away, and if you can, if you can show them that you're not gonna have any problems, are you,
Collin 23:16
when you have to understand, like, what's the motivating factor behind the client here? Like, why did they call me? Why did they message me? Why do they want me there? Well, they're looking for something. They have a need, they have a want. Sometimes it's expressed, sometimes it's not. We've got to kind of dig to find that out.
Speaker 2 23:41
Yeah,
Collin 23:42
but I'm sure you know, you get a lot of people who have this, that overwhelm or that unsure, they're looking for peace, they're looking for calm, and you're naturally kind of attracting people to them. And then you can talk about the Reiki practitioner side of things, and how you're spending all extended periods of time with them, and all of a sudden this, this dissolution is just facing them, and they go, yes, I absolutely..
Jen Latter 24:05
it's.. it's trust. Trust is a big word in.. in this field of work. You, you people have to trust you, that they visually need to see why they should trust you, so all, all that, all that goes on, you know, you call your qualifications, and, and, and your reviews, but other people put, I get a lot of word of mouth bookings. Oh, you should. I got a booking, a two month booking at the end of this year from word of mouth. She's a hairdresser. Lady came in, oh. We really want to go overseas to see our family, but we're just really worried about our pets. Oh, have you heard about Manager and Services? And that is that something families are still a bit concerned, you know, still a bit worried, they see that you're really good, but then I've got a list of clients who, who are more than happy, more than happy to speak to other people on the phone, so they're getting that verbal testimonials as well, and on my website I have video testimonials as well as written reviews and every everything like that, so that that builds that that helps build that trust because not only are families leaving their pets in your care, but they're leaving your, their home, their belongings, so yeah, trust is a really big, really big word in, in this field.
Collin 26:19
I really like the, the video testimonials that you have, and I think those are really powerful. I know that we have gotten clients, or potential clients, who they're, you know, we're going through the meet and greet and the interview process, and and sometimes they'll just kind of stop, and they'll ask questions, you know, well, how, how many clients do you have, and what is, and you know, how busy are you? And at first I thought, oh my gosh, they're prying into my business, they're trying to bubble, but really, Jen, I realized it was they just didn't want to be the only one using us, right?
Jen Latter 26:53
Absolutely, they wanted to know
Collin 26:55
that there were other people out there that social proof that trust that out there, so it made it easier for them, and so, like, you're doing, hey, literally call this person and talk to them, go read the reviews, look at this presence, look at this stuff, because people are looking to make sure that ultimately they want to know that they're making, you said they want the best for their pets, they want to make sure that they're making the best decision with their money, with their pet, with their home, all of that.
Jen Latter 27:25
Yes, absolutely.
Collin 27:30
Now I do know, with part of that, though, is as people are doing the referrals, and this is such a, this is such a personal kind of job, where we are working one on one with pets in people's homes, they're trusting us implicitly with everything. There, there comes times, though, where boundaries can start to, I don't know, disappear, maybe, or people struggle with boundaries. How
Jen Latter 27:57
have
Collin 27:58
you learned, or maybe do you struggle with setting boundaries. I'll just start there.
Jen Latter 28:06
Sometimes when I first started, it started my business, I did, but over the time, look, boundaries are essential, especially when working in clients' homes, so I found that setting clear expectations from the start makes the biggest difference. I write my terms, I have terms and conditions, you have to, so I have terms and conditions on the website, I direct them to the terms and conditions, and if they don't agree with them, then I'm not the right person for them, you know. I define my services, I let them know exactly what my services provide, and I have a structured booking process. I guess, I guess my nursing background really reinforce the importance of the professional boundaries, while still, while still being compassionate, when, when expectations are clear, it protects the pet, the client and me and my business.
Collin 29:26
You mentioned the terms and conditions. I know early on when we were starting out, we thought of it more of like a contract. Hey, here's my contract, go sign my contract.
Jen Latter 29:39
Yeah,
Collin 29:39
what I realized, though, was that no, what these actually are, are these are the these are the terms and conditions that you will agree to working with us, and you, this is how we operate. This is me explaining to you a little bit of how my business runs, and I love that you use that same phrase to. Because that really is going, if you don't like any of this. Hey, I'm not locking you into anything. This isn't a contract. This is not a like this is a I agree to terms and service every time I download a new app or I buy a new phone, right? This is a hey, by using this you agree to these things, and I that really just changed it for me, and made me a lot more confident in sharing that with people too.
Jen Latter 30:26
Yeah,
Speaker 3 30:27
yeah, and honestly,
Jen Latter 30:31
you're not going to be everyone's cup of tea. You can be the, you can be the best pet care in the world, but you're still going to come across people that you just, you're just not for
Speaker 2 30:49
them,
Jen Latter 30:49
and that's fine. That's okay, you know, because the next person could be the right fit for that family.
Collin 30:57
Well, and I, I love how you also mentioned how your background in and as a nurse helped you see that the kind of dividing line or thing that both of these can be true at the same time, maybe that's what more my brain is thinking of, of like I can be direct and straightforward while also being caring and compassionate for you.
Jen Latter 31:20
Absolutely,
Collin 31:21
and my goodness, I know, like, again, I just, this is just me confessing all of my problems, of I sometimes that's really hard, Jen, to go, man, I want to, I'm so emotional, I feel, I feel so strongly about this, I'm willing to let go of these terms and conditions, or this, these boundaries. Instead, what you're saying is no. I uphold my standards. I uphold my boundaries while also be in a loving way, right? I can say no in a kind, right?
Jen Latter 31:53
Yeah, when I first started my business, I didn't have terms and conditions. I literally really didn't know what I was doing, so I went and learned, you know, and then I realized, well, some of what I, some of what I, I did on my nursing could come across, and so, so now you, you know, years later, I do have this, I do have, I do have certain ways to, that I run my business, and I now know, because it used to upset me that they don't want, they don't want to book me, because they, I, I don't walk dogs, I don't walk dogs, they might book me because I don't walk dogs. Okay, so go back to the drawing board. What exactly else can I offer because I don't walk the dogs? So I do, I incorporate set work, half an hour set work equivalents to an hour of dog walking, so I incorporate that, and and people are happy with that, or while I'm there, they hire a dog walker, at least on the terms and conditions it sets them out, but none of Jen doesn't walk dogs, or she walk may walk little dogs, depending. Oh, but then she offers scent work, she does Reiki, she does massages, she got all these qualifications, she knows how to give medications, it's all written on her terms and conditions. Oh, well, I actually don't.. I'm, I'm actually going to book with her, I'm actually going to make her an inquiry with her, so yeah, so that in, in this terms and conditions are really important, are really important, and sell your boundaries.
Collin 34:19
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Speaker 3 35:48
how
Collin 35:48
have you handled those and reset those, so that they, because they are more appropriate?
Jen Latter 36:00
I find that unrealistic expectations come from misunderstandings about what the professional pet care includes, you know. Clients might expect full house sitting duties, but they might expect you to clean the whole house. Well, no, I'm not a house cleaner, I'm a pet carer or property maintenance. I've had someone want me to mow their mow their three acre lawn. I don't even mow my own lawn,
Speaker 2 36:40
I you
Jen Latter 36:45
know, other responsibilities outside the agreed service. I honestly handle these situations clearly, respectfully explaining what's included, and then refer them back to the terms and conditions, and it's all written on there. So, keeping boundaries clear ensures the focus stays on providing safe professional care for the pet. I'm there to look after the pet. Any extras that I do, amazing, but on their 100% 110% for their pets,
Collin 37:29
and that points back to all the more reason to have those terms and conditions of hey, I know you've asked me to do the whole house cleaning, I know when, when Megan and I first started, we did almost - we did exclusively live in care, and 24/7 you know, care for pets in the homes, and all that stuff. And those are kind of requests of, well, the here are the cleaning supplies, and I've canceled my normal house cleaner because I know you're going to be here, so you can take care of
Jen Latter 38:02
I I don't mind clean, like cleaning what I use. I'm not gonna clean that fourth bedroom. I don't even go into getting on a
Collin 38:13
ladder to clean the chandelier or the high lines. No, thank you. Being able to point back to the terms and conditions, and go. Do you see right here where it says I'm not a house cleaner? That's like, yeah, like, what a wonderful way to handle it professionally. You just don't, it's right here. You signed, you agree to this? That's not what they..
Jen Latter 38:33
and I actually, I actually give as part of my package, I actually have a list that I, I emailed them, and it's, you know, it, it states things, well, different things for the pets, for the house, everything like that, and I also have a, have a area down the bottom that's, do you agree with terms and conditions, and get them to sign it.
Collin 39:08
Yeah,
Jen Latter 39:08
that way, if anything comes up during the booking, I can go, but you signed
Speaker 2 39:15
it.
Jen Latter 39:15
But here, this is what I send on the right here, this is what you signed, so that goes back to the boundaries, as you know, keeping your boundaries as well, keeping them clear, so
Collin 39:32
at the at the beginning of the episode in our discussion here, you mentioned how you're your solo operator and you're very, you know, I see you, and in your, the entirety of your business, like it is very gen, it's very values-based, values-driven. Who you are is how you run your business, and who you're supposed to be serving. I was curious, like, this is a very. Again, a very personal, open way to run a business. And from your perspective, what kind of advantages or challenges do you see in running a business this way?
Jen Latter 40:13
Oh, running a solo value based business has a lot of advantages. Every pet received consistent one care from me, which builds trust with both the pet and their owner. I work as, as I've been saying, I work a lot with rescue pets, senior pets, disabled pets. I do look after every other pet as well, but they are my main, they are the main pets I look after. So the pet, not only do the owners need to trust you, but the pets do too. So it allows me to maintain clear standards and a calm approach, because I'm personally responsible for every booking, anything that goes wrong, it's on me. So, of course, I'm going to go out and give it 110% because I don't want anything to go back on to me. And you know the schedule and the communication, that yeah, the care, it's all me, but I guess the biggest benefit is that clients know exactly who is caring for the pet, and it's consistent, and most pets thrive on that
Collin 41:35
well, especially when you have those medically needy or those rescue pets that are still adjusting, especially like you've got those nervous and anxious dogs and cats who are adjusting to a brand new environment, or maybe they have a background or history that we don't really know a lot of those things, that kind of consistency is just so important for them to develop to develop that trust, like you said, like, yeah, owners have to trust you also. Spoiler, the pets have to trust you too, otherwise things go not so well. So that doesn't go well for anybody. So being able to have that, it's the same face, the same person, I act the same way, I go through the same routine, I do the same things, they know the sound of my voice, all that goes really a long way.
Jen Latter 42:22
I asked my clients, I call it the Bible, so I asked them to buy an exercise book, and the week before, week before I arrived, I asked them to write every single thing that they do with their pet, because when I come, I, I'm standing in as them, so everything that's in, in the Bible I follow, because, especially, especially with rescue pets, because you don't know what has happened in their past, so everything needs to be the same, everything right down to the time that you feed them, right down to the time that you take them out for that last toilet, everything everything, and that, that, that there builds the trust in the pets, because can you.. it's a bit like I know with me, if someone came into, came into my home and asked me to have dinner at 10 o'clock in the morning, it'd be like, what, what are you on about?
Speaker 2 43:46
Yeah,
Jen Latter 43:46
it's a site, it's the same as pets,
Collin 43:49
yeah,
Jen Latter 43:49
same as the animals,
Collin 43:51
yeah. I know we're we're working with a client right now, and we're not doing living care, we're doing drop-in visits, where we're coming over for an hour at a time, and just even giving them sometimes the permission, the client the permission to be picky with the care, and what we found out is that a lot of clients are used to using friends, families, neighbors, and acquaintances, you know, obviously people who they already know, like, and trust, but the relationship is this: the client is used to settling for whatever care the other people could provide, and, and weren't they didn't care about times, they didn't care about specifics, they didn't care, they just were like, they were just okay, whatever, you can take it, great, thanks, and when they come to us, a lot of times, I don't know if you get this, gentle clients will say, well, I'm, you know, I don't, I don't want to be, I don't want to burden you, or I don't want to be too, too, too picky, and I'm like, oh no, you get to be picky, like this is your time to shine, like if you want it at 333 30 it shall be,
Jen Latter 44:58
that's. Absolutely, absolutely, and you know that those, those I do, I have over the years had clients come to me that Terry and since they've never used a pet sitter before, and then I say, well, going through, I message you in the morning, I will message you in the afternoon. If you want to Facetime your fur babies, you're quite welcome. What is the sometimes the response that gets well? They're yours. I'm just saying, look after them, but and they feel as if they're burdening me. No, if you have a good holiday, if, when you know your babies are doing okay, so even just random photos, what, like wake-up photos with them scruffy or whatever, yeah, it makes their day, wherever they are, so much better, or have a night time before we go to bed, have them tapped and have their babies tucked in bed, take a photo, it helps them sleep better, so they can have a great day next day on that on their holiday, or wherever they are, or in hospital. I sometimes get clients that are in hospital, you know it. it's, it's all really, it's all really important, important, and, and if they want to Facetime their baby, they're, I call them babies, because that's what they are, they're their babies, if they want to Facetime them, then they're more than welcome, it's their family.
Collin 46:45
Yeah, yeah. I wouldn't, I wouldn't deny you to Facetime with your sibling or your child or grandma. If you, if that's what we need to do, right, we can arrange that
Jen Latter 46:56
we've never had someone do that before. That sounds so good, and it's like it's your, it's, it's your per baby, it's, it's your pet, yeah,
Collin 47:09
yeah, it's that, it's that, giving them permission to get the care that they've always wanted, and, and now it does mean, like, we do, like, there is this balance of, yeah, that you are paying for the service, but since you're paying for it, what do you want the service like? How can we customize this for you now? Again, you can run up to some boundary issues here, of, oh, I need you to, you know, clean or maintain, do all the maintenance stuff, but no, no, look at the terms of service, CFO mentions,
Jen Latter 47:39
I always say I'm sorry, I'm not a cleaner. I do clean up after myself. I do clean up after your pets, but yeah, I'm not gonna get up on a ladder and clean the ceiling, or or whatever. And at the end of every long booking, I will run the vacuum over the floor, I will mop the floor, everything like that, but I don't call that housekeeping, I don't call it house cleaning, I call it every day occurrence, so of course I'm going to do it, but I'm not going to go and clean up that fourth bedroom, but the door's been closed for the last three weeks,
Collin 48:27
but when it comes to your pet, be picky, right? And I think giving owners that freedom, and that you see a lot of shoulders like relax when they can finally understand that again. Yes, you are paying for this, but that's why I'm here. I'm offering this service, so that you can be picky, because I want to make sure that you have, like you said, like a wonderful holiday or a peaceful, non-stressful night, when you're in hospital, or all this stuff, like you focus on that, I'll take care of this, and that means write everything down. That means we're going to have a lot of communication. That means that you can be picky, and I'm going to stick to that, because that's what you and your pet both deserve. And that is just so foreign to a lot of people, and and it's weird, because again, what we do is weird. Being being pet sitters is weird, and a lot of people, for a lot of reasons, but like a lot of people don't understand that, and we're going, no, this is this is part of that, this is part of that relationship, and the service that I get to provide to you, and it's okay if you want to be specific, Jen. And in closing, here I was curious, of you know, you've been doing this for many years, and you've served, you know, a lot of different clients. What, maybe one or two lessons have you learned in your time doing pet sitting that have really shaped how you run and operate today?
Jen Latter 49:58
So I want that. Repet is different, just like humans. Every human is different. Every pet is different. So, learning to read their behavior and adapt the care to their needs is really important. Have clear communication, and again, I'm going to go back to the professional boundaries with clients have everything, have everything written down, get them to sign, put it on your website, show them what your business is, because that's what, honestly, that's what people want to see, and be calm and consistent, and build the trust. They all make the biggest difference for both the pets and their families. Jen,
Collin 50:53
I want to thank you so much for coming on the show today, and sharing with us the lessons that you've learned, and encouraging us to be present, to be calm and to listen to our clients and their needs, so we can serve them well. I know that there's a whole lot more here, and so if people are interested in getting in touch with you, following along with you, or just kind of picking your brain and answering questions, how best can they do that?
Jen Latter 51:18
So they can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, even on Threads under Nenegen Services, and I also have a website. I'll, we'll give that to Collin to share, and yeah, always happy to answer questions, or even meeting, do meet and greets, okay. yeah.
Collin 51:44
Jen, absolutely, absolutely a pleasure having you on the show today. Thank you so much for coming on.
Jen Latter 51:49
You're welcome. Thank you.
Collin 51:52
My biggest takeaway from a conversation with Jen was when she said that boundaries are essential, especially when working in a client's home, and this goes both ways. One, what is my boundaries for what I will and will not do? What will I not allow the client to dictate to me, and where will I draw that line for my safety, for my comfort, and for the longevity of myself in this business? And then the other boundary is, what boundary will I not cross going into the client's home? What door will I not open? What will I not look at? What will I not snoop? What questions won't I ask to respect them and their privacy? When we have mutually beneficial boundaries as a business owner, it helps us be successful, and it helps our clients be at ease, because they know they can trust us. And at the end of the day, that's what this is all about. We want to thank our sponsors today, Time to Pet and Critter, for making this show possible. And we also really want to thank you so much for listening. We hope you have a wonderful rest of your week, and we'll be back again soon.
