Want to spend some time in the beautiful West Limerick countryside in March? We are looking for someone to look after our delightful young cat for days in mid- to late March. This is a great place for a writing retreat or as a base for exploring the (south-)west of Ireland and our cat will steal your heart. Our dates are not set yet, so we’re happy to come to an arrangement with the right person.
Our home
We live in a detached house in the countryside, 15 mins by car from the town of Newcastle West. It’s quiet and rural (you will need a car!) and has lovely views over the surrounding fields. Despite being rural, within 5 minutes, you are on the main road to Limerick and Kerry. We love our house. It has a beautiful kitchen, a lovely living room, and you’ll get your own bedroom with ensuite bathroom (the main bathroom downstairs has a rain shower!). We have excellent WiFi (good enough for video calls with multiple people, so you can work from home). We don’t have a TV. We do not have a garden yet, but we do have a little patio outside the back door, with bistro set and BBQ and views over the fields and perhaps the cattle.
The surroundings
At five minutes’ walk from the house, you will find the Limerick Greenway, where you can walk or cycle all the way to Listowel (you mightn’t actually be able to walk all of that in one day though!). We have bikes you can borrow.
The nearest town is Newcastle West, 15 min. drive, for supermarkets, pharmacies, banks and ATMs, etc. The vet is also in Newcastle West, but let’s assume you won’t need them! The nearest city is Limerick, 25 min. drive, for more shops, including the biggest independent bookshop in the country. Limerick also has a lovely castle and a very nice museum. To the north, the lovely town of Ennis, Co. Clare, is an hour’s drive, the stark limestone landscape of the Burren (great for hikes!) is an hour and a half, as is the Cliffs of Moher. Bunratty Castle and Folk Park are also about an hour away. A little further up is Galway, at about two hours’ drive. To the west, Killarney and Killarney National Park are just over an hour away, and if you want to see the sea, Ballybunion is less than an hour’s drive. Other parts of Kerry are also within driving distance (Valencia Island is 2.5 hrs). To the south, Cork City and Fota Wildlife Park are both an hour and a half away.
In terms of airports, Dublin is 2.5 hours, Shannon about an hour, and Cork Airport is an hour and a half away.
Our cat
He is an indoor cat who is excited about toys and chicken (the food, not the animal). We have adopted him from a shelter in the beginning of this year and he is beginning to come out of his shell. Progress is not a straight line, but we hope that in March, he’ll be well settled in.
Requirements
You do not need to have experience with cats, but you must be excited about taking care of our cat. Your job will be to feed him twice a day, make sure he has clean water, scoop out the litter box once a day, and clean the litter box once a week. If you want to spend the day exploring the country, he will not mind, as long as he gets fed. Playing with him is appreciated! There are also some plants that would benefit from watering once or twice a week.
The weather
No promises there – could be lovely, but bring rain gear!
The small print
We are still being COVID cautious. In practical terms, that means the following:
- You need to be fully vaccinated and boosted
- If you want to visit crowded indoor spaces (pubs, restaurants, busy tourist spots) during your visit, please do not do so the last two days before we come home
- Please test before/upon arrival and before we come home (we can provide tests)
No guests without our express approval.
If you’re interested, message us via this site! We have plenty of photos to share :)