What to do with Mufasa while away

SuzeQuze · #1 04-22-2006, 08:25 AM

Hi guys, I have a vacation coming up and will be away for a couple of weeks. Those of you who have cats and have gone away, how have you made sure they were taken care of? Do you have someone stay at your house or do you bring them to someone's house?

golden braid · #2 04-22-2006, 08:49 AM

My parents have recently had a pet sitter come to the house to take care of the cats. That way the cats are at least in their usual environment and seem to stay happy. My parents used to send the cats to a kennel but they didn't like that very much.

Miss Vicky · #3 04-22-2006, 09:08 AM

I've always just left a house key with a trusted neighbor and had them come over to feed/water/check on my pets while I was away. This works especially well for me, because my animals get to stay at home and, since they know this neighbor well, don't have the stress of being handled by a stranger.

The drawback to this strategy is, of course, that you have to have a neighbor that both you and your animals trust.

jannieC · #4 04-22-2006, 09:24 AM

I've always just left enough food and water and a litter box (even though my cat is indoor/outdoor- she knows to use the litter box). But for a longer vacation, we found a company that will come in and check on your pet for something like, $8 day. We had to do that once because of our dog and it worked out really well. For a cat, they probably wouldn't have to come in *every* day, maybe every couple of days to check on your kitty.

skcin · #5 04-22-2006, 10:05 AM

We've always had neighbors or friends come at least once a day to give them food & water. I think Amber leaves food & water out for hers, but mine would eat all of it in the first day.

stargazer99 · #6 04-22-2006, 11:16 AM

In the past, I've left a key with a friend and had them come in and feed them. However, when I went on vacation a couple months back, I hired a pet sitting service, since I don't have anyone here in Dallas that I felt comfortable asking to watch them.

I was very happy with the service. They charged $14/day for up to 2 pets. (I have 2 cats.) They came in every day, fed them, cleaned the litter boxes, changed their water, and played with them. They stayed for at least 30 minutes each time. They actually totally emptied the litter boxes, washed them down, and refilled them twice during the week I was gone!

Before I left, they conducted a detailed interview with me to get all pertinent information about the cats, and what I wanted them to do while I was gone. They will even come in at different times every day if you want, and open/shut blinds, turn on/off lights, etc., to make it look like someone's home. They also brought my mail and newspapers in for me, took out my trash, etc. And they filled out a "daily report".

I was very pleased with the service. And it cost less than boarding them would have, while allowing them to stay in their own environment. I also made sure they were licensed/bonded, and they offered me references as well.

HomerMcvie · #7 04-22-2006, 11:23 AM

I've left my two cats alone, for up to 12 days. I just put out tons of food, and an extra litter box. And they were FINE.
As far as my dog, I could never BEAR to kennel him(it'd kill him I think, he's such a spoiled baby). I even tried leaving him with my friend once, who he loves! Nope. He cried all night(even though he was in their bed!). I had to cut that weekend getaway back to the first night only.

So, since then, I've only taken vacations that are dog friendly. He's been to TN like 20 times, and FL once. And I can only go during the cooler months. It's too hot for him to stay in the car more than a couple of minutes, during May-Sept.
Dogs are great. This will be my last one. I'm sticking to cats from here on out(I LOVE to travel).

DavidMn · #8 04-22-2006, 04:27 PM

Well, I usually bring mine to a neighbors that I can trust.

tynan88 · #9 04-23-2006, 01:50 AM

I normally put out tins of cat food...and write the days on them and leave one for each day.

Oh yer and don't forget the can opener...make sure you leave enough toilet paper too.

SuzeQuze · #10 04-23-2006, 09:21 AM

Thanks for all of your input guys, I appreciate it. I would probably just leave him with a ton of food if he had a sibling but he's alone so that would be bad. Plus he was left alone when he was a kitten because his gaurdian was hospitalized and left him behind. Someone was feeding him but after about a month he was really depressed and a neighboor went and rescued him. That's how I got him. I couldn't leave him alone for that long.

I was going to have a friend just feed him and hang out with him but then thought of my roommate's friend Arianne. She stayed here once and he slept with her. Haha, he likes to spread his love around. He was just a kitten. She fell in love with him and he's like a myth at her house, her kids talk about "Mufasa" and they've never even met him! So he's going there. I think he'll love it. He's been to my Mom's and my Dad's and he adjusts to new environments fairly well, it only takes him about 6 - 12 hours.

There are 2 cats and a dog in their house but they are all friendly. Plus Arianne is laid back so if they don't get along she'll just separate them and not worry about it too much. I'm so excited because I think this is going to be an adventure for him too! I would love to bring him with me but it just isn't possible to bring a cat on safari, hehe. I'm going to miss him so much though.

HomerMcvie · #11 04-23-2006, 11:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuzeQuze

Thanks for all of your input guys, I appreciate it. I would probably just leave him with a ton of food if he had a sibling but he's alone so that would be bad.

That's why I'll always have two cats. I'm gone alot, and it's so nice to come home, and see them all intertwined(sp) together. They're never lonely. Lucky bitches!

SuzeQuze · #12 04-23-2006, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

That's why I'll always have two cats. I'm gone alot, and it's so nice to come home, and see them all intertwined(sp) together. They're never lonely. Lucky bitches!

I would LOVE to get another cat but I would get evicted! When I get my own place I will.

amber · #13 04-23-2006, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuzeQuze

I would LOVE to get another cat but I would get evicted! When I get my own place I will.

I thought it would be great to get my cat a friend to hang out with. I thought "he's only six months old, if I get another one now, they'll surely get along as if they were brudders!"
So, that was about six years of them not getting along EVER ago....The first one still hisses at the other. Still.
And since I rescued Oyenge last year, he now has two other cats to hiss at.

Just a little reminder that cats are territorial...you know, I wanted you to be sure you had considered the ugly side of multiple cat ownership...

I'm glad you got someone nice to take care of Muf. I was going to ask why your roomate couldn't do it, but I guess they are going to Kenya, too?
I've never been away from mine that long - just five days or so at the most, which is still okay for just leaving them food. Although, a few times my friend went and let them in and out while I was gone, because they hate to be cooped up together for so long. But for longer than a week I would definitely have to get someone to watch them.

I can't believe you're going to Kenya. When do you leave? You better take hella pics!!!

Um - Edit - I just went to let my boy out and found a dead mouse on my porch.

Suck. He was in all night, I guess he must have left it for me last night and I didn't notice. Poor mouse.

jannieC · #14 04-23-2006, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuzeQuze

I would love to bring him with me but it just isn't possible to bring a cat on safari, hehe. I'm going to miss him so much though.

Words cannot even describe the jealousy I have for you right now. I have always wanted to go on an African safari. My God woman, take loads of pictures.

P.S. Sounds like Mufasa will be in good hands.

Miss Vicky · #15 04-23-2006, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by amber

Just a little reminder that cats are territorial...you know, I wanted you to be sure you had considered the ugly side of multiple cat ownership...

That really should be edited to say that SOME cats are territorial. Others get along wonderfully with other felines. When I adopted my youngest cat, I already had three other cats in the household. Two out of three of them accepted the new guy without any problems, the other didn't, but he was a basket case anyway.

I'm down to just two cats now, but they still get along really well. They spend a lot of time grooming each other and playfully chasing each other around the house. Tiny Tim, my youngest, has also made friends with one of the neighborhood tom cats, and they can often be found sleeping beside each other on my deck. Or if Tiny's inside, he'll lay next to the back door and his buddy will lay on the other side.

So it really just depends on the individual cat's personality.