Getting Your Own Dog After Years of House Sitting

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There is a French Bulldog in Athens that I am still thinking about. Not in a sad way. In the way you think about a holiday you once took that was so good it rearranged something in your head about what you want from life. The moment I saw that dog, I was in love. The personality, the silliness, the way French Bulldogs carry themselves like they know exactly how ridiculous and perfect they are. If anything, that sit reinforced a feeling I have carried for years: one day, I want my own dog.

But not yet. Not while Caro and I are still living in a van, still traveling across Europe, still arriving at new homes every few weeks with new animals who need us temporarily and then let us go.

This article is about that gap, the space between wanting your own pet and actually being ready for one, and what three years of looking after other people's dogs has taught me about what that readiness actually requires.

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What House Sitting Teaches You About Dogs

The most important thing I have learned about dogs from 20 sits across 12 countries is not about dogs at all. It is about their owners.

Dogs are an incredible reflection of the person they live with. This is something I would never have understood from visiting a dog park or reading about breeds online. You have to live with a dog, in its home, following its routine, to see it. A nervous, anxious owner produces a nervous, anxious dog. A calm, relaxed owner produces a calm, relaxed dog. The correlation is so consistent across every sit we have done that I now consider it one of the most useful things house sitting has taught me about future pet ownership.

It means that when Caro and I eventually get our own dog, the first thing we need to get right is not the breed, the training, or the food. It is ourselves. We need to be settled, calm, and stable enough that the dog absorbs that energy rather than our current nomadic restlessness. A dog that lives in a van and moves countries every two weeks would not be a happy dog, regardless of how much we loved it. It would mirror the movement, the transitions, the constant adjustment, and none of that is fair to an animal that thrives on routine and consistency.

This is something I would never have known without house sitting. Our article on following the pet's routine covers why routine matters so much to animals. Living inside that routine across 20 different homes is what made the lesson real rather than theoretical.

The Athens French Bulldog

The dog that made the biggest impression across all our sits was a French Bulldog we looked after in Athens. The personality of that dog was extraordinary. Playful, silly, affectionate in a way that felt deliberate rather than reflexive. French Bulldogs have a particular quality that is hard to describe to someone who has not spent time with one: they are simultaneously ridiculous and completely self-assured.

Before that sit, I already wanted a French Bulldog. After it, the feeling was cemented. Every other breed we have looked after, and there have been many, has been wonderful in its own way. Labradors are loyal and uncomplicated. German Shepherds are intelligent and attentive. The toy poodle in Sydney was so endearing that it waited at the guest bedroom door after I left. But the French Bulldog in Athens is the one that stayed with me most.

That said, if I am honest about what I actually want, the answer has shifted over three years. The French Bulldog remains the dream. But practically, if Caro and I were to get our first pet, it would probably be a cat. An outdoor cat specifically. Despite the fact that I am allergic to cats, I have come to appreciate how simple and low-maintenance they are. They give affection when they feel like it, they have incredible personalities, and they do not require the level of daily commitment that a dog does. After 20 sits involving cats, many of them outdoor cats, I understand why so many people choose them. They fit into a wider range of lifestyles than dogs do. Our not bonding with a pet article covers the surprising ways cat connections develop differently from dog connections.

Why We Are Not Ready Yet

The honest answer is that the travel bug has not been shaken off. Caro and I are nomadic people. It is not a phase. It is part of who we are. Even on our current six-month sit, the longest we have done, we know this is not permanent. We have five months left and we are already thinking about what comes next, where the T4 goes, what countries we have not seen yet, what sits are available in places we have not been.

A pet needs something more permanent than that. A dog in particular needs a property, a routine that does not reset every few weeks, and an owner who is not mentally already on the next drive. The property in Tavira, where the dog had free roam of the land and could explore its own territory with a GPS tracker, is the kind of setup I would want. Space for the animal to run, a settled base, and the security of knowing this is home rather than a stop along the way.

We are not there yet. We might not be there for years. And that is fine, because the lifestyle we have right now does not require us to be.

House Sitting as the Alternative

This is the part that most articles about "getting your own pet" do not address, because most articles assume that pet ownership is the goal and everything else is a stepping stone toward it.

For Caro and me, house sitting is not a stepping stone toward having our own pet. It is a parallel path that provides the animal connection we want without the commitment we are not ready for. Every sit gives us time with animals. Every sit lets us experience the daily routine of living with a pet, the morning walks, the feeding, the quiet evenings with a dog at our feet or a cat on the couch. And at the end of every sit, we hand that responsibility back and return to the freedom of the van.

That cycle works for us right now. It has worked for three years. It may work for another three or four, given the referrals and confirmed sits we already have lined up. The animal connection is real. The love for the pets is genuine. The only thing missing is permanence, and at this stage of our lives, permanence is the thing we are not looking for.

If we ever feel the need for something to look after, for the comfort of an animal in the house, for that specific feeling of a dog greeting you at the door, we can always do another sit. The option is always there. The long-term sits give us months with an animal. The short sits give us intense two-week relationships that end with a goodbye and a drive to somewhere new. Both versions satisfy different parts of what pet ownership would provide, without requiring us to stop being who we currently are.

What Needs to Happen Before We Get Our Own Pet

The travel bug needs to wear off first. Not disappear entirely, because I think it will always be part of us, but settle enough that staying in one place for years rather than months sounds like something we want rather than something we are enduring.

After that, we need a property. Not an apartment, not a rental, not a temporary arrangement. A place with land, with outdoor space, where a dog can have its own territory and a cat can roam. The kind of property we have sat in and thought "this is what I want someday." Three years of living in other people's homes has given us a very specific picture of what our own home would need to look like, and our portable monitor article mentions how Caro and I have been unconsciously assembling a list of what we want (a bidet, a dishwasher, a proper desk setup) from the best features of every home we have sat in.

Then there is the practical reality of breed choice. A French Bulldog is the dream. A German Shepherd is the alternative if we end up on a larger property where a bigger dog makes sense. But the actual decision will depend on where we are living, what our daily schedule looks like, and whether the lifestyle supports the specific needs of that breed. The Athens sit taught me that wanting a dog is not the same as being ready for one. Being ready means the environment is right, the routine is stable, and the energy you bring to the relationship is calm enough for the animal to absorb.

For Sitters Who Are Feeling the Same Thing

If you have been house sitting for a while and the pull toward your own pet is getting stronger, here is what I would say.

Do not rush it. The sits are not going anywhere. There will always be another dog to walk, another cat to sit with, another animal that needs you for two weeks. That connection is real and it counts, even though it is temporary. The fact that you hand the animal back at the end does not diminish what happened during the sit. The Sydney poodle waiting at the bedroom door proves that.

Use the sits as preparation. Every dog you look after teaches you something about what breed suits you, what energy level you can handle, what kind of daily routine you are actually willing to maintain rather than just imagining. By the time you get your own pet, you will have more practical experience than most first-time pet owners could dream of. That is one of the genuinely underappreciated benefits of house sitting: it is the most thorough pet ownership trial programme in the world.

When the time is right, you will know. Not because you had a particularly moving sit (those happen all the time), but because the rest of your life has settled into a shape that can hold a permanent animal. A home. A routine. A lifestyle that does not depend on being somewhere else next week.

Until then, keep sitting. The animals are waiting.

Conclusion

Three years, 20 sits, dozens of dogs and cats and four chickens named Kiwi, Clucky, Coocoo, and Snowy. The French Bulldog in Athens is still the one I think about most. The toy poodle in Sydney is the one that proved animals remember you long after you leave.

Caro and I are not ready for our own pet. We are too nomadic, too in love with the road, too far from the kind of settled property life that a dog or a cat deserves from its owner. But house sitting gives us everything we need in the meantime: the connection, the routine, the morning walks, the quiet companionship, and the freedom to keep moving when the sit ends.

Someday the travel bug will settle. Someday we will find a place with land and a view and a front door that belongs to us. And when we do, we will already know exactly what kind of dog, or cat, is coming through that door with us. House sitting taught us that.

Caro and I have completed 20 house sits across 12 countries, driven 19,000km across Europe in our 1998 VW T4, and saved over $26,500 in accommodation costs over three years of house sitting. If you have questions about pet ownership, house sitting, or the space in between, send us a message on Instagram, we read every DM.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Can house sitting replace having your own pet?

  For many people, yes, at least for a period of time. House sitting provides genuine animal connection, daily routine with pets, and the emotional bond that comes from caring for an animal, without the permanent commitment. For sitters who travel full-time or are not ready for pet ownership, it satisfies the need for animal companionship while preserving flexibility.

• Does house sitting prepare you for pet ownership?

  Yes, and more effectively than most people realise. After 20 sits with different breeds, energy levels, and care requirements, Caro and I know exactly what kind of dog and lifestyle we want. Each sit is essentially a trial run for pet ownership, teaching you what you can handle, what suits your routine, and what kind of animal matches your personality. Most first-time pet owners do not have that depth of practical experience.

• What has house sitting taught you about dogs specifically?

  The biggest lesson is that dogs reflect their owners. A calm, settled owner produces a calm dog. A nervous or inconsistent owner produces a nervous dog. This has been consistent across every sit we have done and it means that the first thing to get right before getting a dog is your own stability, routine, and energy, not the breed or the training method.

• Should I get a dog if I still want to travel?

  Probably not, unless your travel style can genuinely accommodate a dog's need for routine and stability. A dog that moves constantly between homes, vehicles, and countries will mirror the instability of that lifestyle. If you are not ready to settle in one place for extended periods, house sitting is a better way to have animal connection without compromising the dog's wellbeing.

• What kind of dog would you get after house sitting?

  A French Bulldog remains the dream after the Athens sit reinforced everything I love about the breed. A German Shepherd is the alternative if we end up on a larger property. But the honest answer is that the decision depends on where we eventually settle and what lifestyle we are living at that point. The breed needs to match the environment, not just the preference.

• When will you know you are ready for your own pet?

  When staying in one place for years rather than months sounds like something we genuinely want. When we have a property with enough space for the animal to have its own territory. And when the travel bug has settled enough that the routine of permanent pet ownership feels like a gift rather than a limitation. We are not there yet, and we are at peace with that.

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