Sandy Robson was stewardess for three decades before Covid gave her the chance to change career.
After he had taken a resignation from the work that “defined her”, Sandy came across a Facebook advertisement in search of drivers – for pets.
The 58-year-old now works for a pet service and transports animals between their houses and their sitters around Sydney/Gadigal Country.
“I’m just around my boss’s car, talk nonsense to dogs and cats all day … everyone is very jealous of that than when I was a stewardess.”
We spoke with Sandy about her career switch, which also included a stint in the retail trade and bartending on a vintage train.
These are her words.
‘I loved the comradeship’
Sandy was in the service of Qantas for three decades. ((Delivered))
I started [as a flight attendant] In 1992, when Qantas was recruiting for Japanese speakers.
That is something I did in high school and at the university. It was the peak of Japanese tourism in Australia.
I started as a stewardess and went through the ranks to supervisor and eventually cabin manager.
The best was that we had many long journeys and for a long time in different gates.
But as soon as Qantas had been sold and they started saving costs, they started traveling shorter.
We called them SLAM-Clickers-where you get off the flight, go to your hotel room and only leaves to come out.
What loved me there were fun and the great people I worked with. We laughed every day.
And the cheap journeys.
Resign
I worked three years from Covid on short distance flights.
It was all about the handwashing and the masks and people who became Edgy on flights.
They offered a redundancy and I thought “writing is now on the wall – go out while offering money to do this”.
I was not one of those people who were very upset to leave, or felt forced. It was time.
One of the first things I did was get a pet, then the second book subscriptions was because I knew I would be home for shows, the theater, birthdays.
That was the first Christmas that I knew I would be home in 30 years, and I had to spend it with my sister and her husband, and my beautiful 19-year-old niece.
I had to leave the house
Sandy says that working with animals is rewarding. ((Delivered))
I had a good payout by Qantas, so the financial stability to experiment with work had. I own my house. I have no persons, only the cats.
I decided to do something to get out of my house because it was [during] Covid, and a lot of retail trade was considered essential work.
I worked in a household store, which was considered a vital industry. I don’t know why, I think people need sheets and towels!
I thought that was very different from the airline. People really did not treat you well in the retail trade, even if it was a nice store.
People were quite respectful for stewardesses. You had the strange Drongo, but [most passengers] Knowing that you did a tough job there and provided their safety.
After a few years in the retail trade, I was offered work in a vintage train. It was the old southern Aurora, a stainless steel diesel from 1962.
The owners knew someone from Qantas and he recruited his friends to work on it – it was taken over by Qantas people.
The owners of the train were delighted because they had trained this in advance … workforce.
We all knew the way each other worked and how we could move around each other in limited spaces.
I was the bartender.
I thought it was absolutely great and would do it now if it didn’t change hands.
A new breed of customers
Sandy says that people are jealous of her performance of pet transport. ((Delivered))
For the pet company I pick up the pets from the owners and bring them to the house of the pet cutter with their possessions. And vice versa when the owners return from vacation.
After 30 years of working with people, it is really nice to have customers who cannot talk.
I have lived in Sydney all my life, so I am not discouraged by traffic or parking.
You have a number of hysterical moments. I have this golden retriever that gets sick … throws up, tries to eat it and then is in it.
Then I have a Maine Coon [cat] Who lives in the positive house and is sent to a fairly small apartment. He shouts all the way against me.
People comment on how great it should be. I say: “It’s not well paid, but it’s very emotionally worth it.”
I just love animals.
I get so much out when I see the dogs reunited with their owners.
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