Thanks, Amy and Jerry!  I should add: you'd have to stay here, as Jackson will terrorize cats and can get cranky with other dogs.  As a hook, here's our handsome guy, perpetually waiting for a toy to be thrown his way:

Thanks, folks, for the help and willingness!

We've always had people stay with Jackson, for many of the reasons Peterlili laid out.  I'm very comfortable having people stay in our home.  It saves a lot of money, too, as rates around us start at $40/night!  YIKES!  I've been hoping now that's he's Jackson Version 3.0, we'd find someone "extra" special.  The people we've gotten before are either friends (and members of the Jackson Fan Club) or graduate students.  Yep, I live near Yale and so those are most of our sitters.  If I don't hear anything for about a week, I'll begin the usual route: posting a request on a Yale-only, closed forum.  I know we'll find someone, it's just one of these things that's weighing me down.  He'd be miserable and uncomfortable in a kennel!

~ Katy & Jackson

Hi folks,

I'm happy to report that we've found someone!  Wahoo!  He just dogsat for us for a quick weekend and all went well.  To be honest, I'm not going to be 100% with anyone, as we all know of all the scary things that can happen, and happen suddenly to our furbabies.  I fear Jackson will tear a ligament.  I am worried his breathing will become labored.  I'm petrified he'll have a stroke or heart attack.  Truth is, all these things would/could happen to us, but at least we're armed with knowledge of the condition and Jackson's needs to tend to these issues....unlike Aaron.  Aaron has a super flexible schedule, so vet appointments won't be a problem.  He'll have both our cars to help with transport.  He'll have access to our CareCredit account at both vet hospitals, and both hospitals will soon have a letter from us detailing our trust and concerns, even with permission to euthanize if, say, Jackson is undergoing massive, internal bleeding due to ruptured tumors....oh, please, let that NOT happen.  Not while we're away.  PLEASE!

I am replying to this request, as I want to disclose what I've found in my quest for the right dogsitter.  May this help others:

1. Advertise to your veterinary hospital or to a few others in the area.  A vet tech was interested, but she'd charge $10 more a day, plus be in/out of the house A LOT.  She's our "backup" in case something happens with Aaron.  At first I was really comforted with a vet tech being our sitter, but her daily schedule of ins/outs would be a pain and cause stress.

2. Check out: DogVacay  http://dogvacay.com/  Awesome site!  Awesome idea!  If Jackson weren't a grump around most other dogs, we'd totally sign up to be a dog-hosting home.

3. Check out: Housecarers http://www.hous.....arers.com/ This service and site is fascinating.  There are people who are spending their retirement living in others' home, caring for their home, and all for free!  This "swap" means they get free boarding in exchange for chores and seeing a new part of the country or world.  Brilliant!  And it's supposed to be FREE!

4. Advertise on school boards.  This is where I found Aaron.  This is where we find all our dogistters.  This time, however, was tough as we're looking for a 3 week stay vs a shorter weekend or week away. 

5. Advertise early!  Provide pictures.  Be trusting, but trust your gut first.

We wanted a house/dog sitter because: kennels here are quite pricey here (~$40/day); the smooth surfaces in kennels are tough for tripawds and may encourage injuries; no one really watches your pet in a kennel, so if breathing issues start it may be DAYS before something is done; managing your furbaby's stress level while fighting cancer is important and there's no more relaxing place than Home; and even though kennels require vaccines, there's no way to make sure your buddy won't come home with a sniffle or more - why add to the list of conditions to manage?  Isn't cancer enough?!

~ Katy & Jackson