Marta

Hello everyone, I am Marta, a 21-year-old student. I have been living in Maastricht for two years. Since I was little, I have always had a special connection with animals. I have been living with animals for as long as I can remember. For example, when I was little and still lived with my family, we had all kinds of animals in the house: parrots, cats, hamsters, canaries, turtles, rabbits and especially dogs. I grew up in contact with animals, learned their bounderies and got to know and respect them. For example, when I was 11, our two parrots escaped, leaving in the nest two eggs that my father and I looked after and warmed until they hatched. After they hatched, we reared and fed, through a syringe, the two baby parrots that, once they were grown, flew freely around the house, often resting on my shoulders. My greatest passion is undoubtedly dogs and cats. Since I was 16, I have volunteered in kennels, where I have come into contact with all kinds of dogs. I often had to deal with dogs with a history of abuse and mistreatment. I have had to develop skills to deal with these kinds of dogs, who are often violent and frightened. I have also been dog sitting, walking dogs of all breeds, from cockers to Maremma shepherds. I am not afraid of sizes, because I know that every dog has its own unique soul, which you can get in touch with through love, patience and respect. On the contrary, very often it is the big dogs that are the best, sweetest and kindest. My cousin is a dog trainer and growing up I learnt a lot from her about dogs, how to relate to them and how to train them. To this day I also consider myself good at dog-training, but of course I am not a professional. 

I also grew up with cats. Cats are obviously very different from dogs, but they also need to be understood. You have to give them their space and grant them the independence that is innate to them. However, cats are also endowed with a good and loyal soul. You just have to understand them.

Living in Maastricht as a student, I do not have any animals. I miss being in close contact with furry friends. That is why I am looking forward to getting to know your animals.