Her career has gone to the dogs
Written by Staff Reports Wednesday, 07 December 2011 15:55
Former corporate manager runs top-rated pet-sitting business
MIDDLE TOWNSHIP – Vanessa Sorace of Goshen, owner of ZooSitters LLC in-home pet sitting, has traveled a long and winding road on her way to the perfect career.
The Pennsylvania native, who lived much of her girlhood in Cape May, studied psychology and animal behavior in college, interned at the Philadelphia Zoo, and later became a zookeeper at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska.
While she loved working with the animals – including big cats, bears, bats, lemurs and tapirs – she was troubled by several aspects of the work, including low pay and the frequent need for euthanasia. She also “saw the public at its worst” – the keepers once had to put down a Celebes ape when it swallowed coins thrown by zoo visitors.
So Sorace made an about-face and “went corporate,” she says. She rose through the managerial ranks at AmeriTrade, New York Life and Ikon Office Solutions.
Those jobs, too, had their good and bad sides (“lots of money, and tons of stress”). So she changed course again, selling multiple homes and cars and escaping to Costa Rica, where she considered opening a bed-and-breakfast.
That idea soon proved unrealistic, so she moved back to South Jersey, where she blended her business smarts and love of animals to found ZooSitters.
“It’s been a wild ride,” said Sorace, 37, of her circuitous career path. “I took a huge leap off the corporate ladder and went for something more fulfilling.”
Returning to Cape May County was an important step, she says. In her younger years, she says, “I couldn’t wait to leave. But as an adult I appreciate the simplicity of small-town life, where everyone knows you by name. It’s an awesome place.”
Sorace started her business with a website and business cards, which she placed in veterinarians’ offices and other businesses. Within six months she had to start hiring; among her staff members is her mother, Betty, a retired copy shop manager.
ZooSitters offers not just pet sitting but house and farm sitting. Sorace cares not just for cats and dogs but horses, ponies and alpacas.
The business has just been named one of the top five pet-sitting services in the U.S. by the industry group Pet Sitters International, along with business owners in Illinois, Georgia, California and Colorado. The winner will be announced in January.
Sorace acknowledges her service is one of the priciest in the area – $16 for a 15-minute “sit,” which includes play time, walks, feeding, etc.; $22 for 30 minutes; and $38 for one hour. An overnight sit is $77. Sorace says it’s worth it for some pet owners to keep their animals in the home, instead of in a boarding kennel. Her long experience with animals also counts – she and her employees are certified in animal first aid and CPR, and the business is bonded and insured.
Sorace has dealt with sick and aggressive animals, but says, “After working with exotics, there’s not much that can rattle me.” She doesn’t anticipate switching jobs again.
“As many years as I worked in corporate, you’re lucky to get a thank-you,” she says. “Now when I show up, the animals are so happy. They treat you like the best person in the world.”
ZooSitters LLC serves pet owners and homeowners from Cape May Point to Sea Isle City. For more information, visit www.zoositters.com.
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