Film and TV screenwriter turns to pet care, earning up to $15,000 per month, becoming main source of income

Stephanie Yuhas is the founder of the pet care service "The Funny Sitter". (photographed from the Internet)

[Financial Channel/Comprehensive Report] When the Hollywood film and television industry faces the impact of the epidemic, strikes, mergers and acquisitions, and AI, many people have to find new sources of income. However, for an award-winning film and television screenwriter and producer, a pet care job that was originally just to make a living turned out to be a more stable and even higher-paying side job than his full-time job, with a monthly income of up to US$15,000 (approximately NT$470,000).

Foreign media reported that Stephanie Yuhas is the founder of the pet care service "The Funny Sitter". She currently earns an average of about US$5,000 (approximately NT$158,000) per month from pet care. During the holiday season or special and high-demand appointments, her monthly income can reach up to about US$15,000. However, she emphasized that this was not a carefully planned career from the beginning, but a second career path that unexpectedly developed after the film and television industry fell into violent turmoil.

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Juhas is originally from the East Coast of the United States and had little experience raising pets in the past. After she moved to Los Angeles for development, she participated in the development of series and movies, and also worked on platforms such as Netflix. Her career initially developed smoothly. However, the epidemic and Hollywood strikes hit the film and television industry one after another, and with the end of her marriage, she lost most of her living resources and had to find new sources of income.

During the epidemic, she took her first pet care job online without even charging. Unexpectedly, her work quickly accumulated through word-of-mouth. Later, she joined Rover, an online pet care service matchmaking platform, and gradually became one of the top pet caregivers on the platform.

Today, she provides more than basic feeding and dog walking services. Some customers require round-the-clock care and even require additional services such as transportation and daily chores, so the charges are relatively high. Juhas said pet care work can sometimes be even more lucrative than film and television production, if you include the time spent writing books, producing TV shows and long waits for work to be developed.

Her pet care business currently earns an average monthly income of about $5,000, but it is highly seasonal. During peak holiday seasons or when she receives special, high-demand appointments, her monthly income can reach up to about $15,000.

The side hustle also changed her perspective on gig work. She admitted that she had deliberately concealed her pet care work in the past because she was worried about affecting her image as a "professional creator." However, she later discovered that many colleagues in the film and television industry also relied on pet care and other odd jobs to survive the epidemic and strikes.

More importantly, the steady income from pet care allowed her to regain her creative freedom. She no longer has to rely solely on service jobs such as ghostwriting, and has begun to reinvest in her own works. She is also currently developing a photo album, and the story is inspired by the pets she has taken care of.

Juhas believes that gig work is not inferior, and pet care is not just about making money. For her, the job provided a steady income during the most difficult of times and allowed her to rebuild her career.

She also advises people who want to get involved in pet care to start small, treat it seriously as a job, and choose their clients and service recipients carefully. Now, this side job that was originally started just for survival has not only become an important source of income for her, but also allows her to continue to pursue her creative dream in Hollywood.

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