Furry freelancing
by Stephanie Ernst
03-18-2008

Friends, family, and acquaintances often shake their head and comment, “I don’t know how you do it” when they learn that, as a freelancer, I work at home. And though some of them mean, “I don’t have the discipline for that” or “I have to get out of the house,” just as many mean, “I don’t know how you work with all those animals around.” And often, I don’t know how I do it either. Have more than a couple conversations with me, or ask me about my schedule, and you’re likely to hear me say I can’t get anything done or describe in flustered detail some animal disaster that derailed my work plans that day or week.

There’s the constant shuffling of animals back and forth, in an effort to give the dogs and cats, who are kept separate, equal time in areas of the house and with people. The bark-heavy wrestling matches between Ella and Chance. The hairballs the cats expel and the tumbleweed balls of hair that float around the house and the almost constant sense of needing to clean. The periodic random vomiting or tear-into-something episodes from the dogs.

There’s the distraction of Sara maniacally barking once every half-hour because she thinks she heard someone at the door. The constant mopping up of the floor and refilling of the water bowl because Sara is absolutely incapable of lapping up water without splashing three feet in each direction—and then dripping it from her mouth for another ten feet as she walks away.

There is the lovely scent of the litter box when the cats don’t want to be bothered with covering up their business and the sweet, but not work-conducive, habit of the cats to want to sit on my hand or keyboard. There are the dog walks. The animal-related errands. And then, of course, there are the periodic emergency vet visits. In short, half the time, the Furry Five drive me nuts.

But the other half the time, there’s nowhere I’d rather be or work than the House of Hair, with the Furry Five as my colleagues. We don’t have political disagreements. No one asks me to do anything to which I’m ethically opposed. No one gossips. I don’t have to listen to anyone tell sexist jokes, smell anyone’s meaty meal heating up in the microwave, or explain what a vegan is.

It is absolutely true that when the Furry Five’s other human and I merged households, my work productivity took a serious hit. It is absolutely true that I almost never get as much done as I plan to. But it is also true that I love the stinky, messy hairballs and that working at home with animals has its benefits.

When I need fresh air, exercise or just a mind-clearing break, I can leave my work and grab a leash and a dog—and even when I don’t feel like it, I still have to take those breaks and those walks. When the ground is covered in 10 inches of snow, and others are driving through it to work, I can stand in the yard in my snowboots and pajamas, holding a warm mug of tea, and laugh and snap photos while the dogs play like toddlers, Sara and Chance bounding and rolling gleefully until covered in white and Ella barreling full-speed through the frozen layer, kicking up cold, wet dust. When the sun is warm but the insects have not yet arrived, I can throw open the kitchen door and either sit in front of my open office window or lug my work materials to the deck table and let the canines wander in and out of the house as they please, all of us—whether working or lazing—happy to feel sun and breeze.

When I’m feeling stressed over a project or client or schedule, I need only meander to a couch and tap the cushion next to me, and within seconds, I have instant calming comfort in the form of a purring cat on my lap.

The dogs keep up my movement and energy, the cats provide calm and comfort, and they all supply laughter and love. Yes, I love my animals and love living with them for the same reasons we all do, and maybe working with them in addition to living with them isn’t always so bad after all. Maybe it’s better for my mental—and even physical—health than I always realize. In fact, I might even recommend it.

You can e-mail Stephanie Ernst at mail@stephanie-ernst.com. You can read the Furry Five’s bios and see their photos by visiting www.TheFurryFive.com.

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