Cattery recommendations

Heroditas

Hi folks,
We're off on our honeymoon in May and it looks like we need to put the two cats in "accommodation" for the three weeks we're away. I really hate having to do this because I don't like the thought of them being locked up in cages for that time.
Does anyone have any recommendations for where we could leave them? We're in Lucan so anywhere in the Dublin/Kildare region would be ideal.

I really worry about them being looked after by strangers and not having a lot of freedom for a few weeks though.

The Sweeper

Would you try hiring someone to mind them in your own home?

Cattery fees are high enough, and two cats do cost extra, though not double. If your cats are indoors-only, put an ad up in the supermarket or in your local paper for someone to mind them by changing their food and water once a day and poo-picking their litter trays once a day.

This won't work if your cats have outdoor access and are used to outdoor access. I'm firmly of the opinion that if your cat is attached to you, and you go away on holidays and it's an outdoor cat, there's a high chance that after four or five days it'll piss off. I reckon they go looking for you - but that's a little romantic, more likely they can't take the change in routine and end up going further afield than normal and get into a pickle. They'll definitely piss off if you vanish and a total stranger starts letting themselves into your house.

If they're indoor-only cats, or you're willing to work on keeping them indoors only for at least two weeks before you go away, you could put an ad out for a cat sitter.

"Wanted: cat sitter required to visit two cats in their own home on X road once a day for three weeks in May. The right person will be a cat lover who will happily change food and water and clean out cat litter as needed. A character reference will be required. Cat's owner willing to pay X for the three weeks. For more information please call XXX"

Interview the respondents until you find someone you like, and you may find that if you're lucky enough to discover someone who lives nearby, you could undercut the daily cattery rate for two cats still make it worth their while dropping in to your house once a day.

In terms of who the 'right person' is, you need to make a judgement call on that yourself - I'd recommend only someone who owns a cat already and then introduce them to your cats to see how they interact with them. It needs to be someone who is 100% comfortable picking up, handling and interacting with a cat. They need to be able to spot if your cat is unwell while you're away, and you should have an agreement with them in advance regarding taking your animals to the vet while you're gone (e.g. they need to do what you'd do, so take them to the vet at first sign of illness, or wait 24 hours, or visit twice in one day to check the cat again so on).

You can decide whether or not you'd like the sitter to visit twice a day for the first few days - and pay them accordingly - and work out something about turning on and off the TV or radio (you could buy a timer switch at the local electrics shop) so the cats have background noise as company?

If you can find someone suitable your cats may be far happier, though they'll still miss you.

I like this idea so much I'm considering setting it up as a local business here where I live (which is nowhere near you ) - it has advantages:

Advantages

• Your cats don't have to be relocated, so they avoid the stress of two car journeys and settling in to a strange new place - a big advantage for nervous cats.
• Your cat's vaccinations don't have to be up to date. Many people don't do the annual booster with their adult cats, but catteries won't take your cat until their vaccs are up to date.
• Your cats will miss you, but their own familiar surroundings will be a comfort to them.
• Since you're not hassling your family and friends to clean your animals poo up or feed them daily, you could ask them to drop in every so often and make sure your cats are being looked after and your catsitter isn't partying in your house. If you ask three or four different people to look in on your cats they hardly even have to go to your house twice a week - big difference in going once a day, and they're an added insurance policy.
• It may even work out cheaper than a cattery, depending how many cats you have.
• Your cats don't run any risk of contracting anything contagious - which is always a problem with catteries, no matter how hard they work at keeping their premises free of communicable illnesses.

The Disadvantages:

• You're letting a stranger have the key to your home.
• A cattery pretty much 100% guarantees not to lose your cat while you're away.
• A cattery should have experience spotting ill cats - though this is a two way argument, as a nervous cat having just been relocated may hide all symptoms of illness or infection for days, and if the cattery is busy and the staff are inattentive, it's arguable that a home carer who has experience with cats will spot an ailment more quickly.

You'll have to weigh up the pros and cons and make an iron-clad agreement with the sitter - and don't be afraid to say to them from the outset that you're hiring THEM to mind your cats, so it's important that THEY do it - you don't want to hear that their teenaged kids have been carrying the can and doing a half-assed job. Also let them know you're family are going to be popping in occasionally.

(If I do pursue this as a business, I'll be openly requesting people get family to visit and check up on the animals.)

Jack B. Badd

Hi Heroditas,
I can't give you any recommendations for catteries in your area, however when I went looking for a suitable boarding cattery for a 2 week period this month I looked around online and in the phonebook. As far as I can gather a lot of catteries in the North London area had closed down due to cat-sitting being the preferred option (not for us though). I only ever found 2 sets of recommendations online (despite posting a number of places asking), one place in Wembley that was supposedly brilliant and a second place in Camden that was effectively run like a "battery farm". We rang a few places in the phonebook and booked visits to view them - any cattery that aren't happy to do an advanced visit should be avoided! In the end, we went for the one in Wembley
I'm not sure what the rates in Dublin are like but it varies a bit here and averages out at about a tenner a day. My suggestion is shop around in advance (some places book out early) and make sure you do a visit, ask questions re exercise/play, feeding, local veterinary surgeries, etc. Hope this ramble helps!

rachel

If you go down the cattery route, I would highly recommend Martinstown Cattery in Kildare. Cliodhna is great and very reliable.
http://www.martinstowncattery.com/index.html
I used to use the cattery for any trips away for my 3 cats but I've since moved house and am much closer to my family who I now use as cat sitters!

Totally agree with MAJD though, I hated uprooting them from their home but for me it was the only viable alternative at the time and could go away reassured that they were in a secure, safe place (didn't stop me missing them though!).

Kitty_mom

Hello Heroditas,

I know exactly what you mean.. i would have looked after your cat in your home during that time but unfortunately we are going away as well during the last week of may. I am also not comfortable allowing strangers in my home.

I used deutsche once when i went for a month. They are good but my problem is they have rules on when to pick & drop and it is far off from where we live.

But i have found a great cattery near my home last week .. Its near dunboyne which is near you anyway.. from dunboyne its about 10-15 min drive.. I went & checked it out last friday and i am really impressed by it. I think i will prefer them because Anna Marie who is the owner is soo nice and she has a rescue cat living there named lily.. she has separate play area for them which is big and she does it all by herself so i am confident that they will be loved there. You can pick & drop anytime you like but you just have to tell her before ..

The best thing is even though the cage or cabin is small compared to deutsche you can combine 2 cabins as they have cat flap between them ... one cabin for 2 cats is 12E per night where as 2 cabin for 2 cats is 18E which is amazing.. I love it..

I have 2 big cats so they are perfect for me. But i think you should at least give this one a look before you decide. I will send you a PM message with details & phone number as she doesn't have any website..

Heroditas

Thanks a million! A friend had used the Deutsche home and he recommended it highly.
However, the other place near Dunboyne sounds really handy and also really nice. I think I'll have to pop out and have a look at it.
Many thanks.

Heroditas

Fantastic news, we have a kitty-sitter for the time we're away.
My fiancée's mum has offered to call around every day for a while to give them a bit of company and also feed the little monsters.
I'm really delighted with this. They're only 7 months old and are indoor cats. They're very affectionate and I was worried how they'd cope with minimal company in a different environment for three weeks.
At least this way they will have their usual surroundings and toys while someone who they also happen to like will come around every day to pamper and spoil them!
A happy ending!

The Sweeper

Excellent news! (Make sure you bring her back something extra nice from the duty free! )

kazzpop

Moggy Motel, Is an excellent Cattery for cats. :Dwe put both our cats in there and they are always happy to go. Audrey the owner is lovely person and cattery is excellent laid out i wouldnt faulter it in any way. Its worth thinking about next time when you maybe stuck. Moggy motel is near Navan.