Desiree
Professional animal hugger
Antwerpen
About Desiree
I'm an Antwerp-based biology student with years of experience with raising and taking care of cats, dog-sitting and walking, horses and several types of rodents. I just love animals! I discovered my love for them at a very young age and read more books about animal behaviour and how to take care of pets than I can keep track of.
Most of my experience comes from cats, which I've had my whole life. Some of them (four to be more precise) were rescues that were either abused and abandoned by humans or simply grew up on the streets. I found that with enough time and patience as well as understanding and empathy and most importantly love, all of them turned out alright in the end and were able to live their best and happy lives.
Of course, not all pets of mine were rescued. But all of them are happy just the same! I also have experience with raising several kittens from birth.
When it comes to dogs, I love them just as much and have a lot of experience with house sitting and taking dogs on walks. I am not a trainer though, but as long as the dog is friendly towards people, I am happy to look after him/her and walk and play until your friend is feeling satisfied. I also recently (august 2022) adopted my very first own dog! Darco is an old guy, 13 years old to be precise, and when i took him in he was very sick and nervous, although even then he loved to be around people. At his age and with his health related problems, nobody wanted to adopt him and there was talk of him being put down. Needless to say, I couldn't let that happen! Fast forward a couple of months and he's doing so much better.
I also used to ride horses for four years and took many camps during that period in which I was taught how to take care of them. Although I wouldn't feel comfortable going back to riding a horse just yet, I know how to feed them, clean them or just walk with them.
On top of that, I have experience with hamsters and chinchillas, and I'm not scared of any other type of rodents or even pet insects and spiders or toads and frogs.