Why didn't I think of this before?

If you love pets,  pet sitting is a wonderful chance to earn some bread and butter money while you labour to finish the novel.  You'll meet people from all walks of life and find characters and tales galore to garnish your stories and even contribute to your freelance writing income.

Unless you make it a full time business and run your own agency, pet sitting on its own will not make you rich.  But as a way of indulging part-time in a passion for pets and meeting people, putting food on the table and paying the basic bills, it's worth considering.

Those of us who are multi-pet owners know all too well what they cost.  It would be nice to be on the receiving end for a change.

Eddie -- a pet with attitude.  A border collie, he is excellent at herding hens and an optimistic herder of horses.  He is overenthusiastic about rounding up and keeping control of visiting children and house guests.  Not too good with sheep though.  After early skirmishing with several feisty ewes, he prefers to give them a wide berth.