Profile information
Host is looking for help immediately
Host rating
100 %
Last replied
27 Aug 2025
Reply rate
100.0 %
Usually responds within 1 day
Feedback
5
Email verified
Badges (3)
Details
Description
I live irn peri urban Kerala with my mother, on a half acre food forest and garden, started on fallow land 2.5 years back. I have a few rescue dogs, most of whom have been with me for close to 14 years. There is always room for a few more dogs here, if they come seeking help. In the past I worked as a graphic designer and illustrator. Now I'm trying to learn new skills and live a simpler life.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Interests
Sustainability
Politics / Social justice
Pets
Farming
Charity work
Gardening
Drawing & painting
DIY & crafts
Carpentry
Art & design
Animals
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
You could visit Sasthamcotta temple and the lake it's been built on, designated as a ramsar site and one of the largest fresh water lakes in India. There's Munroethuruthu (island) not too far (about 25 minutes) which is picturesque. Varkala, with is famous cliff beach is about an hour away. Culturally, you'd experience what small town Kerala is like. And in my house, you could participate in a host of farm and garden activities, wood working and animal care.
Help
Current project: I've just about (November 2025) started construction work for a tiny cottage for our house help. I'm seeking volunteers interested in participating in hands-on construction. I'm learning on the go. This is not a natural build, with which I've some experience, but uses earth blocks for the walls. My plan is to finish the construction in 2 months. Other than that, there's always garden tasks, a ton of weeding, mulching, fertilizing the plants, making beds, more planting. Ideally, we'd love for volunteers to also be animal lovers because the dogs demand a lot of attention.... so bathing, grooming, walking them sometimes, playing with them, belly rubs and scratches is par for the course. I also have small wood working projects ongoing. It's easy going on the whole and if you are interested in exploring places around here, I'd be happy to tag along, since Kerala is still pretty new to me.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Hindi: Fluent
Nepali: Intermediate
Malayalam: Beginner
Accommodation
Room with a shared bathroom, bed linen, laundry facilities, decent internet, pescetarian diet but you could opt for vegetarian or vegan.
What else ...
I'm just beginning to explore around me. Big cities like Trivandrum and Cochin are around 2-3 hours away. The coastal town of Varkala is an hour away. The closest town is Sasthamcotta which has an old temple and a large fresh water lake which has been designated as an important ramsar site. Kerala has a dense network of roads, many of which are rural, so traveling around is easy. Wayanad is about 3 hours away.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
One
My animals / pets
Christiane (12 years)
Christiane was born under an abandoned car in a parking lot near my house. She loves to talk and has mastered the art of coaxing others, including plants and bushes to be her personal scratcher.
Pilot (13 years)
Pilot was a stray who started visiting my home in 2013 when he was around a year and a half old. Like most of the others who are house dogs now, we fed and vaccinated Pilot for five years and when the opportunity arose to take him in, we sterilized him. He's always been a shy and serious boy who loves to eat and be scratched.
Tom Tom
Tom Tom is around 3 years old. He's a rescue who was living the wild life in the hills of Gorubathan in the lower Himalayas. He's been with us for just over a year and has decided to appoint himself bossman. I was amazed at how quickly he had everyone wrapped around his little paws.
Chat with Workawayers who've visited this host
Feedback (4)
So Girirsh. It is really difficult to find someone that actually cares and dedicate love to help others, in this case the animals and being open to talk about how the humans can be so mean, and this is not only with the rescued animals, he also take care of the ecosystems in… read more
They have a simple and efficient system to take care of all the dogs, they know them, they know where they are, they know what they need. All the dogs around the neighborhood are in perfect condition thanks to them.
They do… read more
Photos
Chat with Workawayers who've visited this host
Feedback
So Girirsh. It is really difficult to find someone that actually cares and dedicate love to help others, in this case the animals and being open to talk about how the humans can be so mean, and this is not only with the rescued animals, he also take care of the ecosystems in… read more
They have a simple and efficient system to take care of all the dogs, they know them, they know where they are, they know what they need. All the dogs around the neighborhood are in perfect condition thanks to them.
They do… read more
They helped us a lot giving us big advices about how to move in India.
Stray dogs need a lot of love because a lot of people over there is not always so kind with them so if you have some time just go there. Remember to ask Girish and Cecile that you want to… read more
