Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK
Cat General => General Cat Chat => Topic started by: Mymblesdaughter on September 22, 2013, 19:04:56 PM
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I'm hoping to go on holiday sometime in October and am not sure what to do with my cats. In the past a friend came to stay but she's ill so won't be able to help. Do people think it's better to get someone just to come in and feed them and clean out their litter trays or someone to stay with them? They are both very scared of any visitors and hide under the bed. When my friend stayed they came out after the second day and were sitting on her lap by the time we returned. So they do seem to get used to people after a while.
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We have a wonderful professional catsitter, she comes twice a day and makes sure to seek out the cats, checks every room in the house and opens/closes curtains etc.
It's lovely to come home knowing the trays will be clean, the cats happy and healthy and she writes a little report so we know all that's gone on. She's an absolute treasure and we wouldn't swap her for the earth.
Our experience with other cat sitters has varied from utterly appalling to barely sufficient so it does pay to get references, and I've been delighted to provide references for my catsitter in the past.
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Cat sitters are definitely the way to go. I felt much more comfortable when we went away earlier in the year for a few days with Cleo on medication for cystitis than I would have done asking a friend or neighbour to pop in.
We used a company called Animals at Home and the two local ladies were lovely and didn't mind at all me bothering them with daily texts checking my girls were ok.
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I'm so fussy about the cats, probably shouldn't worry so much. I'll look into animals at home. What sort of price does an animal sitter charge?
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my cat sitter is £13 per visit
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Our eight cats cost (total) £19 per day for two visits, £11 for one single visit.
Weigh this against cattery fees and you can see the benefits instantly (although cattery usually includes all food, litter etc which you still need to provide for your sitter).
Catteries also insist on full vaccinations being administered at least 3 weeks prior to admission. Not an issue when they're staying home.
My sitter is Kathy from Feed & Fuss (Walthamstow), always happy to plug her services. ;D
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Our pet sitter charges £25 per night, but for that she stays at ours for the whole week/fortnight/long weekend/whatever. As Sheila points out, yes, you do have to provide your own food, litter etc, and whilst she's there it's our utilities that are used, but I think that's a small trade-off.
The charge is the same regardless of the number of pets she sits for, so when we had the dog and the cat, the fact Tess required walking and Paddy didn't, didn't affect the sum paid. She also feeds the birds for us and keeps the place ticking over nicely. We also get a little report of how everything's been. :) I'm also fortunate because I dont pay the full £25.00 per night - we get mates rates as we've used her since her business started. :Luv: We love her, we do. :Luv:
I agree - some pet sitters are hit and miss, and we interviewed a few who were quite unsuitable before finding ours, but we wouldnt swap her for the world. She came to see us a couple of times before we first engaged her services, so she could be a familiar face to the pets, and we knew from the way they behaved with her they liked her. It's been no difference since we lost Tess and Paddy and resumed with Mac, Ross and Tinky (although Tinky was a bit of a scaredy cat at first - he soon settled down with her though)
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My sitter is Kathy from Feed & Fuss (Walthamstow), always happy to plug her services. ;D
Is that Walthamstow North London? I tried to Google Feed & Fuss but it only returned results for SW London. I'm in Edmonton N9 and have been looking for a reliable cat sitter for a couple of years. If Kathy covers my area please would you pass on her details
Thanks :)
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I had a look at animals at home but nothing in wales.........typical!
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Gill, Am not sure how near to you this would be, but found this one:
House Martins
59 Myrddin Crescent, Carmarthen, Dyfed, SA31 1DX
Tel: 07527 283696
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My sitter is Kathy from Feed & Fuss (Walthamstow), always happy to plug her services. ;D
Is that Walthamstow North London? I tried to Google Feed & Fuss but it only returned results for SW London. I'm in Edmonton N9 and have been looking for a reliable cat sitter for a couple of years. If Kathy covers my area please would you pass on her details
Thanks :)
Kathys on holiday but I've messaged her to see if she will travel that far. She doesn't have a website as far as I know because she usually has more than enough work on! If you want Christmas, you need to book early as she gets booked up ;) I'll let you know what she says. :)
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It would be 15 or more miles away Sue but once on M4 only about 12mins if doing 70 LOL
Intersting cos expected not know bt neighbours.
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Louise I'm near Broxbourne so I can ask my cat sitters if they cover Edmonton. It's not that far. I did have a number for some in Cheshunt but they never got back to me. Have you asked at your vets? They often have cards for cat sitters.
Mine charge £8.50 per visit for the first cat then £1 per extra cat per visit.
It's going to cost us the same as a cattery when we go away as I want them to come in twice a day but I know they will just get on with Simba's raw food and trays will be clean when we get back.
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Gill, have also found this one
Home 2 Home - cat, dog and house sitting services
3 Ffordd Cottages, Llangynog Rd, Johnstown, Carmarthen, Dyfed, SA33 5BL
Tel: 01267 220644
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Thanks Sue :hug:
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Although my cat sitter has been tending to my furry family for, gosh, must be 6 or 7 years now, they still sulk and hide for the first day or two, then gradually come out of hiding when they realise its Aunty Kathy and she has treats in her pockets. ;) ;D By the end of our hols they are waiting by the gate for her. ;D
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Thanks LouiseJ & Sheilarose, if your cat sitters cover my area please let me know as I really need to make arrangements for Christmas. The last one I tried charged £25 per visit over Christmas/New Year, my neighbours said they only saw her once and when I got back one of the water bowls was dry and the litter tray had several days worth of waste... clearly won't be using her again! >:(
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Will do Louise, my siiter is due back from her hols today and is coming round to check on the Club and test her keys etc tomorrow night. I'll ask her if she covers your are and if not she may know someone who does.
Do you want Christmas cover then? I can ask her.
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I've asked mine. They cover EN and CM postcodes. Edmonton is N9 isn't it?
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Yes I'm N9 :'( Thanks for checking though
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Kathy doesn't cover N9 either, sorry :( ask at your local vet though, they usually know who is good locally.
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Bah, worth a try :( Cheers anyway and I'll ask at the vet