Today we’d like to introduce you to Missy Phillips.
Hi Missy, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Nomad At Home began in 2017 when I was traveling from place to place in my 1989 Chevy camper van, working on many various farms and properties around the country caring for animals. Eventually I settled on really finding my calling in this type of caretaking work and turned the services I offered into an official business! Today we have grown to a team of 25 people working with us and serve over 300 families providing dog walking, pet sitting, and farm sitting services.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I originally thought that running this business would open up more opportunities for me to travel and see new places which was something I truly loved to do and included as a theme of the company from the very foundation of our business name. It turned out that managing a team in a more concentrated area required my physical presence more often than not and travel became a less frequent part of my life. Now my regular travels, for the most part, stretch only about 2-3 hours from my “home base” which has been a change to adjust to but has also allowed me to plant some roots and think about the future and planning a little farm of my own that I can enjoy, with room for many dogs! Dare I say I’ve even become somewhat of a homebody now that I’ve gotten used to the peacefulness of staying still.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Nomad At Home offers customized petcare services to just about any pet you can think of that is legal to own in Pennsylvania. Every single member of our team is in this for our love of animals, some even taking this on as their second part-time job to help relieve the stress in their life that is caused by their full-time job – That is how much we love spending time with animals! We do not shy away from medically or behaviorally complex dogs and cats. Next year we will celebrate a decade in business, and with these years has come a lot of knowledge and experience in specializing care and tailoring it to each particular animal’s needs. We carry insurance and bonding coverage and operate in a way that surprises people sometimes that never thought there could be qualifications to be “just a dog walker”. We want pet owners to be aware of the risks that can come with leaving your pet in the hands of just anyone, especially if they are a minor or do not know what to do in the event of an emergency. We frequently take part in continuing education courses and are constantly strategizing about how to handle all of the “what-if” scenarios that could happen.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
One of the most important lessons learned over the years has been to go with my gut. If something about a situation is making me or my staff uncomfortable, I always say that safety is the most important and this goes for us, our clients, and the animals. We are going into people’s homes when they are not there, afterall, and this can make our provider/client relationship more intimate than a lot of other industries. Sometimes this means turning down a job or deciding that we are not the best fit for someone’s needs. Despite our desire to help, we will never take on a job if we are questioning whether it is something we can handle or if we are qualified to provide the level of care needed. If we ever feel that a pet is simply acting “off” even if we can’t give an exact explanation as to why, there is usually a reason and it is better to have a pet checked out by a vet than to let things go and hope for the best.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nomadathome.net
- Instagram: @nomadathomecaretaking
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NomadAtHomeCaretaking
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@nomadathome
