Gentle Hands Pet Care? Who are you?

My name is Lisa Overocker and I am the proud owner of Gentle Hands Pet Care. I am going to tell you a little bit about who I am and also a little bit about who I am not. I am a professional pet care provider. I have been doing this for 26 years. I am 38 years old and have a wonderful husband and two children, ages 15 and 19. I have one dog, 2 cats, a bearded dragon, 5 turtles and many fish. I am an outdoor person who loves going for long walks, gardening, kayaking and sometimes just like to sit outside and listen to the animals (birds, squirrels, nearby dogs, etc).

I currently reside in Wichita Kansas. We have been here a little over a year. We moved from Cookeville Tennessee where my business really grew fast. We moved to Wichita to be closer to my sister and her family and also for better employment for my husband. I had a very hard time leaving the many clients I had in Cookeville and even after a year of being gone, still have some of them wishing and asking me if we are ever coming back. Oh how I miss them. I am not just an ordinary pet sitter/dog walker. I am not in this as a quick way to make some easy money. It's not always easy that's for sure. I don't do it just because I think animals are cute and want to make money playing with animals. It's way more than that. I am passionate about animals and work very hard at building great relationships. Yes I do love playing with the animals, but I am also deeply concerned with their well being, health, safety and happiness, along with giving the people peace of mind knowing their animals are well cared for and loved while they are gone.

There is part of my business that I so greatly miss. I had a doggie day care in my home in Cookeville. I had many clients, some full time and some part time... but there were many. I was able to help raise some awesome puppies and helped work on house training, sit, stay, walking on a leash, socialization, etc. It was heartwarming to hear the stories of how the dogs would learn where they were going and the owners would tell me that once they drove near my house, the dogs would get excited. I heard that many times. Some even learned my name and as soon as they would say it, they knew where they were going. I was their second home. I was their safe place when mom and dad weren't home for long periods of time. I was the place they could go to learn things and play with their friends. I was the place they went to where they never had to be afraid. I miss it...

I am just starting to get my business going again here in Wichita. I was never a big city person and this is the biggest place I have ever lived. We just recently moved farther south, away from the center of the city, so it feels more like home to me now. It's much quieter and almost feels like we are in our own little town our here. But we are renting right now and I cannot run my doggie day care out of here. I hope to someday maybe rent a place where I can once again invite people to bring their dogs to me when they need a place to go to play, learn or spend the night. I look through the thousands of pictures I have of the hundreds of dogs I cared for. Bittersweet moments...

For now I will offer my mobile services. The services that allow me to come into your home to care for you pets. The pet sitting, where I come in as many times a day as you need me to to make sure your pets are fed, watered, clean, happy, and healthy. The dog walking, where I come to your home to take your dog for a walk while you are working or just because you can't do it yourself for some reason. The nail trimming, where I come to your home to trim your animal's nails to make sure they are comfortable for them to walk on. The K9 massage, where I come into your home and try to relax your tense dog with some soothing techniques. All of these services I offer to you to help make sure your animals are cared for when you need it.

For your sake and mine, as a professional, I do have individual contracts that I go over with you at our initial consultation. They are simple and easy to understand and I have them just to cover all basis and make sure all the important information I need to know for the well being of your pets is covered. However, I understand that some people do not like contracts. For those of you who do not want a contract involved it is nothing personal, but I cannot serve you and I am truly sorry.

My fees are base fees and may vary depending on the distance I have to travel and how much time I will need to spend. My visits are all based on 30 minutes and a 10 mile radius from my home. There are never any surprise fees as these are all discussed during our consultation. I do require half of the total to be paid at the time of contract signing and the other half after the completion of our service dates. After the balance is paid in full, your keys will be returned to you unless you give me a spare set to hold onto for future dates or in case of emergencies, which many clients do.

I do have a referral program as well. For every person you refer to me that use one of my services, you will receive a free visit, nail trim, or walk.

I also love to get involved in the community I live in. When I lived in Cookeville, I was a member of the Chamber of Commerce, a member of the local BNI, a an adoptor of Cookeville High School. I also set up every Saturday at our local Tractor Supply and set up nail trimming clinics so people could come and get their pets nails trimmed. I donated 10% of my nail trimming clinics to the local animal shelter. I became a big part of that community and I am hoping to do the same here in Wichita.

So that is a little bit about myself and my business to give you an idea of the kind of person I am and the kind of business I run. I really hope to see you all very soon! If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.

Lisa Overocker

Gentle Hands Pet Care

Wichita, Kansas

(316) 680-4455

GentleHandsPetCare@yahoo.com

https://www.facebook.com/GentleHandsPetCare/

Animal Shelters Need Your Help!!!

Where am I... what did I do?  Did I do something wrong?  Did I not love them enough?  Why did they leave me?  Who are these people?  I'm hungry, will they feed me?  What is this small box I'm in?  Will they ever take me back outside?  Will I ever be loved again? Is this my new home? 

Unfortunately, these questions are all too real for shelter pets that are surrendered by their families or lost and never found.  They are terrified.  They don't know where they are and don't know any of the people that are there to care for them.  Sometimes the animals are able to adapt to the shelter life, but unfortunately, most do not.  They are taken from their families, put in a cage or kennel and are surrounded by stressed out dogs and/or cats.  Most don't do good with all the commotion.  Some get sick and some get aggressive.  They do not act like themselves in these types of environments.  The shorter the amount of time they spend in the shelter, the better off they are.  There are shelters all over the country that are overfilled with animals.  There are thousands of foster homes keeping the overflow of animals, but there are never enough.  

I know euthanasia is a very touchy subject to most and is not something people like to talk about, but it is real.  It's a real situation many shelters are faced with on a daily basis.  Are you one of those people that get angry when you hear about shelters euthanizing animals?  Do you throw harsh words at those that have the toughest job in the shelters?  Let me ask you this, what do you do to help the problem?  If that question hit your gut like a rocket, then you are part of the problem.  So many people run their mouth about this topic, but most of them have no idea what it's really like.  Do you think shelters like to euthanize animals?  If you answer yes, you are sadly mistaken.  Do you volunteer at your local shelter?  Do you donate to them?  Do you do ANYTHING to help the shelter out or do you just run your mouth?  If you have never been in a shelter and are one of those that get angry but have no idea what it's like... I urge you to spend a day at your shelter following one of the workers to see how things go for the day.  See how they have to make the horrific decision about which one to put down that day because they don't have room and all their fosters are at their max and the rescues are full as well.  All their resources are exhausted and there is only one other option.  It's sad... it hurts everyone involved...

Shelters need your help.  Whether it's going in to walk dogs, help socialize the animals, clean cages, feed, water, groom, donate things they need (towels, newspaper, food, bowls, leashes... the list goes on) or donate monetarily, there is an endless list of things that you can do to help your local shelter.  Don't want want to see an animal get euthanized?  Consider opening your home to fostering an animal or two.

Shelters across America are absolutely overwhelmed as animals are surrendered daily.  Please, instead of making rude remarks about shelters and euthanasia, maybe look in the mirror and ask yourself... 

"What can I do to help my local shelter so maybe less animals are put down?"

I'm so glad I adopted my mom!!

My name is Panda.  I really don't want to talk about my previous owners because I don't remember much about them.  I will start with my 2 month stay in a cage with my partner in crime Little Bit.  We were too big for the cage we were put in and it was so hard to get comfortable.  We had a small litter box to use inside the small cage.  I hated it!  I hated every minute of it.  It seemed to last forever.  I had people poke at me through the cage and the smaller people were so loud and not so nice.  Most people would walk by and go right to the little kittens.  It felt like we were going to be there for the rest of our lives.  

No one seemed to want us.  That was until I saw her.  I saw her go to the counter where all the other people were and then they walked straight to us.  She didn't even look at any other cats.  Somehow I could tell that she was there for us.  While she was in front of our cage she spoke so quietly and calmly to us.  Just by how she was talking, I just knew inside that it was going to be ok.  A nice man brought her a carrying thing that I had seen other cats leave in.  I couldn't have been more excited.  I meowed so much as that was the only way I could express how happy I was.  She opened our cage and I went right to her.  She held me so nicely and I knew she was the one I wanted to adopt.  Little bit was put in the same carrying thing as I was and I have to tell you, I think she struggled carrying us to her vehicle.  Little Bit seemed nervous on the way to our new home, but I was ok because I found my new mom.  I could just tell that she was going to be good to us. 

 She carried us into the house and opened the door to the cage.  There was so much room!  I instantly rubbed up on her and purred like crazy.  I wanted to let her know that it was ok now and that I was here.  Little Bit even purred for her too and he started to calm down when he saw how calm I was.  I was a lot older than Little Bit.  

I explored the house and found the litter box, which was nice and big and clean and also some cat toys with my favorite thing, Cat Nip.  I was having so much fun, until I saw the dogs.  I didn't know how to tell her that I was afraid of dogs.  I had some horrible things happen to me with dogs.  I hissed and hissed and scratched at the dogs to let them know to stay away from me.  

After I settled in, I knew I had to take care of my new mom.  I mean I did adopt her to take care of her.  So when she was in her office working on stuff, I had to make sure the dogs stayed away from her so I would hiss at them and back them out the door.  They seemed to listen to me too.  I also have to jump up on her desk to make sure she takes a break from working and pays attention to me for a while.  I don't want her to get burned out by not taking a break.  I did that often so she doesn't over work herself.  

My mom seems to get a kick out of me sometimes.  I don't know why, but I like to lick tape and plastic and play with the weirdest things.  But most of all, I like to sit on her lap and keep her company.  If she is having a bad day, I want to be there to make it better.  We have moved to a couple new houses but she always takes us with her.  I'm never going to leave her side.  Well, It's getting close to my bed time so I better stop blogging for now.  I just wanted to let you know that I have adopted the best mom I could have ever adopted. 

A Sincerely MEOW...
                    Panda

I wish they could hear me...

Oh how I love my humans!  They are so nice to me by playing with me, feeding me, and giving me fresh water several times a day.  They even pet me for no reason Sometimes and I just sit there and enjoy every minute of it. I wish I could speak their language and tell them how much I love them and how thankful I am to be in their home instead of being locked in a cage somewhere, tied out in the cold, or beaten for no reason.  I really wish I could tell them in their language so they could understand me.  I also wish I could talk to them in their language to let them know how uncomfortable I am.  I have been walking on sore paws for almost a year.  My nails click on the floor, which really annoys me, and hurts more than I can explain.  I cannot walk normal and they do not seem to even realize it.  I hear them say a lot that my nails are long, yet nothing gets done.  My human mom had trimmed my nails a long time ago but she had a bad experience.  She used the nail clippers and made me bleed.  It hurt really bad but I was not mad at her, in fact, I gave her a kiss to try and tell her it was okay.  As much as I was hurting when she cut my nail too short, I hurt far worse now because they are too long.  They are so bad that they are almost cutting the bottom of my paw.  My nails have curled and make my toes go sideways.  I use the bottom of my paw to test terrain and because I cannot walk normal, it throws my sense of touch off and I cannot seem to walk straight.  It throws my balance off.  I cannot run or jump as it hurts too much.  This has been going on for a long time.  I know she is afraid to cut my nails again because she is afraid of hurting me.  I wish I could tell her it is okay and that she should either cut them or take me somewhere to have them cut.  I want to run and play again.  I do not want to hurt any more.  I want to tell her so bad but she cannot hear me.  I do not know how to make them aware of my pain. They comment on my nails all the time and I am still hopeful they will get them cut somehow.  Maybe if I could stop wagging my tail around them and not act happy, they would see that something is wrong.  For some reason, when I'm with them, I cannot be happy.  I love being with them so much and it brings me such joy.  The happiness they give me seems to cover up my pain and they really do not even know I hurt.  Oh how I wish I could talk to them.  Oh how I wish they could hear me...