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2 weeks .... cattery? .... or minded at home?

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  • 12-05-2009 10:45pm
    #1
    GeturGun
    Registered Users Posts: 289 ✭✭


    Hi - I am going on holidays for 2 weeks in November. I had booked my 2 kitties in to a cattery - which i used last year and was EXTREMELY happy with. However it turns out that that particular place is now going to be closed during those dates :( Was chatting to my friend about it the other night and she offered to call in on them daily when I am away. We have 2 cats each and call in on each others when we are away for a couple of days etc.
    Anyway - so I have no idea what to do for the best and I'm trying to weigh up the pros and cons of each option
    • If she calls in on them, they will be in their own environment - but will they be lonely and bored?
    • Is it too much to ask someone to do that for 15 days straight (I will buy her a HUGE present!!) But she might hate me by the time I come home for making her have to call in every day!!!!
    • If I leave them home they will probably wreck the place (although i don't really care about that - I will do what's best for them full stop)
    • If I leave them home it will save a fortune (as above though - not concerned about the money, more about what's best for them)
    • They were very well taken care of last year in the cattery but I don't know if they were sad and miserable and I couldn't stop thinking that they might be thinking that they had been rehomed (they can't tell me!)
    • They were very cuddly when they came home and one especially didn't let me out of her sight for days.
    • If they are in a cattery there will be activity around, at home they will be alone probably 23.5 hours every day - for 15 days.
    • They are indoor anyway so it's not like they will be dying to get outside if they're at home.
    • I booked them into last years cattery about 2 months ago and have not been in the least concerned about the thoughts of them going there - so perhaps this new angst is just about not thinking another cattery would be good enough???
    Anyone here left their cats at home for this length of time? Is it a really terrible idea? Is there anything else in the list of pros and cons that I haven't thought of?
    If I do go for the cattery option, can anyone recommend a cattery within, say, 30 minutes of Templeogue. Somewhere that they will get lots of love and affection and not just fed and ignored.
    It's not peak holiday season so I probably have more time to think about it, but any thoughts would be appreciated.
    Oh, and there is no one that can mind them in their own home as all the possibles have cats of their own. (I don't think I'd trust anyone anyway - too much chance of escapage!!)
    Thanks for reading :)


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    #2
    Lauragoesmad
    Closed Accounts Posts: 842 ✭✭✭Lauragoesmad


    Hi
    I work as a petsitter myself and I think cats are always happier in their own home. Yes, their noses will be a little out of joint with the lack of company but they should be fine. In my experience it is much more traumatic for a cat to be taken from their home then to get limited attention for a week or two. Why dont you get someone you trust to stay in your house while you are away? Let them treat it like their own for the two weeks. Then the cats will have lots of company.


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    #3
    anniehoo
    Registered Users Posts: 6,596 ✭✭✭anniehoo


    +1 for what Lauragoesmad said too.
    Im also a petsitter and would advocate pets staying in their own home too. Cats will do absolutely fine for 2 weeks with someone calling in once or twice a day to spend time with them than 2 weeks in an unfamiliar size restricted cattery.


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    #4
    GeturGun
    Registered Users Posts: 289 ✭✭GeturGun


    Thanks a mil for the replies. It's good to hear they should be fine at home - it will make it easier to make a decision
    Lauragoesmad wrote: »
    Hi
    Why dont you get someone you trust to stay in your house while you are away? Let them treat it like their own for the two weeks. Then the cats will have lots of company.

    Ooooo, I hadn't thought of that. That's a great idea. I'll have a think about who I can offer a holiday in my home to ;)


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    #5
    ISDW
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,378 ✭✭✭ISDW


    Agree with the others, before we moved here, I used to always leave my cats at home, and they were much happier in their own home with someone going in to them every day. I have used a cattery near here, and they enjoyed that as well, but I think they preferred staying at home.


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