Have you ever wanted to travel the world but didn’t have the money to do so? Well, Madolline Gourley, a travel writer from Australia, had the same issue before she found an interesting solution. The woman offers to take care of cats in the homes she stays in while traveling. Gourley chronicles her cat care adventures on her blog “One Cat a Time”. She thinks she’s saved around $28,000 by taking care of kittens living in homes in Australia and North America.
Madolline spoke: “I first heard about house sitting one day at work. I went home later that day and googled it. The first website to come up was TrustedHousesitters. I signed up and have continued to renew my membership with them every year since 2017. TrustedHousesitters is where I get most of my house and cat sits, but I also use other ones.”
Meet Madolline Gourley, who travels the world by providing a cat sitting service
“I have mostly focused on house and cat sitting in the USA, but I got my first Canadian sit starting 1 July. I’ll be sitting in Montreal for about two and a half weeks before going on to Ottawa for another sit. I’d love to get sits in Toronto and/or Quebec City while I’m in Canada. In the future, I’d like to house and cat sit in Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, and New Zealand. Plus, other parts of Canada in the cooler months.
I’ve also done sits around Australia (I’m from Australia). I’ve visited Launceston, Darwin, Newcastle, and Sydney thanks to house and cat sitting. I’d like to also cat sit in other parts of Australia, but I’m more interested in international opportunities now that the world is starting to open up again.”
Madolline has taken care of dozens of cats while traveling
“I’ve looked after about 50 or so cats since December 2017. Most of them have been rescue cats adopted from shelters. I didn’t realize how popular rescue cats were until I started house and cat sitting. It’s great to see so many people opting to adopt a cat rather than buying one from a breeder. I’ve looked after breeds like Ragdolls, Birmans, and Persians,” she says.
Madolline remembers the names of all the cats!
“I’ve also looked after a lot of older cats—one was as old as 20. His name was Bones and I looked after him in Salt Lake City in February 2022. I can remember the names of all the cats I’ve cared for.”
Check out some of the cutest cats Madolline has met on her travels
“I’ve visited Launceston, Darwin, Newcastle, and Sydney thanks to house and cat sitting. I’d like to also cat sit in other parts of Australia, but I’m more interested in international opportunities”
A new friend in every city
Madolline says: “I travel by myself so coming home to a cat each day makes it feel like you have a friend with you in whichever city you visit. Caring for them gives you a sense of responsibility and some kind of routine. Routine can be good when you’re traveling for up to two or three months at a time.”
“Caring for cats gives you a sense of responsibility and some kind of routine”
