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Old July 13th, 2010, 04:48 PM
Lil Brown Lil Brown is offline
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Cat sitter- Best at my home or at sitter's home?

Greetings all,
I am new to this forum and glad to have found such a wonderful community of animal lovers! I would like your thoughts on something.

My bf and I are going on vacation for 3 weeks. It is not possible, for a number of reasons, to take our two 1.5 year old cats with us. I have two highly trustworthy people who will be splitting the cat care duties while we are away. One lady will do the first 12 days of care, and she has to come to our home every day to play awhile, change water / ensure all is well. The second lady can either come to our house every day OR she can take the cats to her own home (she doesn't mind either way), where I feel they would get lots of love and attention.

Our cats are sisters, they are in perfect health (knock on wood) and they have been boarded at a kennel before, with no adverse effects. However, that was for one week - this will be for three. Do you think it willl be less stressful on them to keep them at home, where they will be alone most of the time but in familiar surroundings, or in this lady's home (they are all cat lovers there with no other pets)?

I'd really appreciate your feedback or experiences you have had with your own pets. (I just want to stress that I know both my cat sitters well and have no doubts about them.) Thanks so much!

Lil B
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Old July 13th, 2010, 04:56 PM
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Love4himies Love4himies is offline
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Welcome to the forum.

If you can keep your kitties at home, do it. They will fare well without human companionship as long as somebody is coming in to check on them daily
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Old July 13th, 2010, 05:08 PM
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It is much better to keep your kitties in their own surroundings. They are much more comfortable in their own environment. They will do well as long as they have fresh food, water and some play time. And if their litter is kept clean.
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Old July 13th, 2010, 07:49 PM
Lil Brown Lil Brown is offline
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Thank you both for your speedy replies! We were originally leaning towards keeping the cats at home, but then I began to wonder if they would be super lonely for such a long time. Their basic needs will all be looked after and they'll get some play time every day, as well. I think we will stick with the original plan, then. Thanks a lot for making me feel better!
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Old July 14th, 2010, 03:09 AM
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I totally agree.
In my experience cats suffer from some stress when their owners are gone but they suffer even more stress when owners are gone AND their environment has changed.
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Old July 14th, 2010, 05:32 AM
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keep home

I agree. keep your cat at home where they will be comfortable and not have stress. if they go to another's home they can be stressed and disoriented (thinking you gave them away). they also try and escape.
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Old July 14th, 2010, 08:15 AM
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Certainly,cats are always happier in their own home
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Old July 14th, 2010, 12:35 PM
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I seem to be the odd opinion on this one .

I would probably take my cats to the other house assuming there are no other pets there. My cats adjust fairly quickly to other places and we often take them with us for a weekend to my mom's and they have been to other condos we rent (holidays) etc with us. I would not move them for just a weekend or possibly a week but three weeks seems like a long time to me to leave them alone.

I think it mostly depends on the personalities of your cats. If they are very fearful then I would leave them home but if they adapt okay then I would take them.
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Old July 14th, 2010, 12:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TeriM View Post
I seem to be the odd opinion on this one .

I would probably take my cats to the other house assuming there are no other pets there. My cats adjust fairly quickly to other places and we often take them with us for a weekend to my mom's and they have been to other condos we rent (holidays) etc with us. I would not move them for just a weekend or possibly a week but three weeks seems like a long time to me to leave them alone.

I think it mostly depends on the personalities of your cats. If they are very fearful then I would leave them home but if they adapt okay then I would take them.
I think Teri, the crux of this is what you said. You take them with you. If you are around it's a whole different story. They know you haven't simply taken them to someplace strange and dumped them. They know you are around.
My fears would be if Lil Brown and her bf take the cats to another place while they are away the cats, no matter how laid back they may seem at home, may freak and try to escape. They are in a different place with people they may know slightly but not that well. They have nothing that is familiar. Their familiars are gone. That, to a cat, is very stressful.
I think as long as the kitties are getting attention and their needs met they are much better off at home. Their toys, scratching posts, litter boxes, scenes outside the window..... they are all there. Their smells are there. Their humans' smells are there. That's the important thing. They will survive three weeks on their own in their own home quite well with food, water, and clean litter. I'm not so sure they would do as well in a strange home. JMO
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  #10  
Old July 14th, 2010, 12:50 PM
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Since the caretaker during these 3 weeks of vacation is someone other than yourself, leave your kitties in their "'hood". They will be fine with each other's company until you return!
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Old July 14th, 2010, 12:57 PM
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I agree with the majority here. If at all possible, keep the cats in their own home. It sounds like you have good people to check in on them and they will far less stressed in familiar enviroment.

I have 5 kitties and have always had someone come in twice a day for fresh food, water and litter duty. It only took a day or two before they realized I was gone and they had to adapt their "mooch" methods to the babysitter!

I would also leave your bedsheets unchanged before you go and leave a t-shirt or nightie with your smell to provide comfort that you are still around.

This summer I am doing something completely different as I am leaving 4 of the kitties at home with twice daily visits and taking one - chronically ill and needing meds - with me to the cottage. I was very unsure whether to do this or not because of the long drive and his being in unfamilar surroundings, but I am doing the reverse of leaving my smell at home and bringing his bed, blankets and toys with us.

Good luck and enjoy your vacation. I always worry too much about the guys at home and for the most part, they are just carrying on the same as always!!
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Old July 15th, 2010, 06:36 AM
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In this case I agree, it's best to keep the cats in your home.

In other cases, depending on the temperament of the cats, if they are easy going and adaptable, cats enjoy a change of scene. Some cats travel well and others hate it and are stressed by it, so it depends on the cat(s). If you plan on travelling regularly and want to take your cats with you, as kittens get them used to short trips, so they don't think they're always going to the vet when they get put in a carrier and car.
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Old September 30th, 2010, 05:15 PM
Lil Brown Lil Brown is offline
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Hi folks,
I know this is an old thread that I'm reviving, but I thought it would be good to let people know how our cats made out while we were away for 3 whole weeks

We left them in our home and had a trusted lady come over every day to play, clean up after them, etc. She emailed us several times to update us and we were relieved to know that they were doing just fine. She said she thought they were getting kind of lonely towards the end and getting much more affectionate with her, which I can totally understand.

When we came home, one cat was instantly purring and happy to see us, while our other cat took a few hours to warm up, and a day or so to "find her meow" again (she's a real talker, which we love).

The only bad point to all this is that the cats now expect a good solid hour of playtime every day! LOL Our friend was really, really good to them and she set the bar high. That's a pretty good "problem" to have, right?

All in all, a big success (and a fabulous, worry free vacation).

Meow!
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Old September 30th, 2010, 05:37 PM
Chris21711 Chris21711 is offline
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Thanks for coming back and updating us, I'm glad that everything worked out.
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  #15  
Old September 30th, 2010, 05:38 PM
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Love4himies Love4himies is offline
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That's wonderful news Ummmm, can we ask for pics now
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Cat maid to:


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Jasper RIP (2001-2018)
Sweet Pea RIP (2004?-2014)
Puddles RIP (1996-2014)
Snowball RIP (1991-2005)

In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats.-English Proverb

“While we are free to choose our actions, we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions.” Stephen R. Covey
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