While the popularity of side hustles grows with Britons trying to bolster their funds in the course of the present interval of excessive dwelling prices, a lady from Caversham is making hundreds of kilos a month further by cat-sitting.

Gemma Khal, 38, began her side hustle in 2019 after her pal really useful she strive an app referred to as Cat in a Flat to make “a bit of extra cash” whereas she was on maternity go away.

Mrs Khal, who could be very keen on cats, didn’t finish the aspect hustle after returning to work in her function as a senior press officer, and now rakes in over £3,000 a month further taking care of the felines.

Mrs Khal informed Express.co.uk: “I've always loved cats, they've been around me all my life and I have two rescues of my own, Rowley and Dora who my husband and I rescued from Cats Protection in Newbury in 2014.

“I also used to volunteer for the Blue Cross before [the COVID-19 pandemic] and I loved meeting all the cats and socialising them before they went off to their new homes. Sadly, the rehoming centre was permanently closed during the pandemic, so I was missing my kitty fix.”

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Mrs Khal began gaining enterprise by means of Cat in a Flat, which allowed her to arrange a profile and set her personal costs and availability, after which matched her with potential prospects within the space. Now, she has her personal web site, Caversham Kitties.

Mrs Khal stated: “I tend to visit cats once or twice a day, depending on what their owner wants, and then spend around 30 minutes with the cats making sure they have fresh food and water, clean out their litter trays, and then play with them or give them cuddles if they want.

“I also have my own website and my own Facebook and Instagram, so people find me that way too. A lot of the time, my customers recommend me to their friends so my client base has grown really organically, which is lovely.”

Since Christmas, nonetheless, issues have “really taken off”. Mrs Khal stated: “I'm not sure if it's a combination of more people going away now restrictions have lifted, or that I have a solid collection of reviews, but I have been taking between £1,500 to £2,000 in an average month.

“Because of all the bank holidays and half term in May, I took £3,500 after fees but before tax. Cat in a Flat takes a commission on all bookings through their site, and I set aside 20 percent from each booking for my tax return each year.”

Mrs Khal stated she now has over 100 cats to take care of and typically, this may see her are likely to eight completely different households in in the future.

She cat-sits just about ever day, including: ”It's very uncommon for me to not be seeing no less than one cat a day in the mean time. During faculty holidays, I do get very busy and have been identified to take care of eight completely different households per day.

“It isn't so bad at the weekends as I have a bit more time, but fitting them all in during the week before and after work can lead to some very early starts and late finishes! I now have over 100 cats who I look after, some more regularly than others, but I love visiting them all.”

According to Mrs Khal, the idea is that it's a substitute for a cattery, which some cats “really don't get on with”.

She stated: “With cat-sitting, they get to stay in their own home with their own things, their own food. I appreciate how much trust it takes to let a stranger come into your house while you're away, which is why I always do a meet-and-greet beforehand so the owners can meet me.

“But I also do things like watering plants, putting bins out and making the house look lived in while the owners are away, so I guess it adds a bit of security for them as well!”

Mrs Khal added: “I've made some genuine friends through cat-sitting, and it's just lovely to be out and about in my local area and bumping into people whose cat I've looked after. Sometimes at the end of a long day, my face hurts from smiling so much. If I've had a bad day at my full-time job, knowing that I get to cuddle a cat or five at the end of the day makes it all seem a lot better.”

Despite the odd 5.30am wake-ups and the enterprise being “tricky” to handle at occasions, Ms Khal stated that along with her fundamental wage “just about covering” her payments, the additional cash has actually “taken the pressure off” of her, financially.

She stated: “All of my cat-sitting earnings go into my holiday fund. I love travelling and I've been able to afford to go on some really lovely holidays because of this extra money. I went to America twice last year, Madeira in February this year, and I’m going to Norway this summer.”

She added: “It's also been really great not having to worry about money on days out with friends or when it comes to Christmas or birthdays. Having this extra 'fun money' has taken the pressure off.”