Cat Boarding ?

[TheSouthernBelle]

We have struggled to find good vacation coverage since we got our two cats. We tried our college student neighbor and that failed miserably to the point we cut two trips short (we gave her the benefit of the doubt the first trip). We don't have any close relatives that we comfortable asking. We used Rover in May for our WDW trip and that was FABULOUS. However, she is moving overseas with her military husband.

Has anyone had a good experience boarding their cats? I do not want to stress over them when we vacation and want to ensure they are being fed. However, I have heard that cats get depressed boarding, especially if they are pretty much confined the duration.

Any good cat boarding experiences? Options I am missing? I will look for a new Rover person, but then that means a new stranger coming in the house.

Thanks!

I would look for independent professional cat sitters if you are against boarding. My sister does this as her side gig and has built a very good network of clients that travel that don't want to board. Surely there is someone out there in your area that provides this service. Try looking at your local next door app or FB to see if you can search and find reputable sitters. I think sites like rover are fine but you have to still do the research to ensure they're reliable.

 

[tvguy]

I am really going back and forth on that. I love pets and can't imagine not having them. They brighten my daily life. But it must be blissful to just lock the front door and travel carefree, vs all the cleaning/prep to make sure the house is presentable for those visiting daily, getting food, meds and emergency info all set up, checking in daily (especially once the pets are older).

Once pets are in their final years or experiencing more chronic health issues, we've just avoided travel entirely, as I wasn't comfortable relying on others to administer complex med dosages or multiple treatments daily.

That'll definitely be a decision I'll need to make one day soon. Exchange the daily joy for occasional travel freedom? Or vice versa?

Yes, I miss my little fuzz face. But I don't miss fretting about her when we went out of town. And to be honest, I don't miss the expense. We spent $11,000 on vet bills the last year of her life. She was my daughter's cat and my daughter was away at school in England when the cat got sick. All I wanted was for the cat to be alive when she returned to the U.S. and it just didn't work out. It did impact my daughter's decision not to have any pets. Hard to balance the emotional attachment with a pet, with the financial reality if they get sick. She just has decided for now she will foster cats because if a cat of hers got sick, the vet bills would have a huge impact.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

She just has decided for now she will foster cats

Bless her, there is a def. need for foster households. I'm not sure if I could foster pets out of the emotional aspect (never say never though) but it's so appreciative for people to do that.

 

[tvguy]

Bless her, there is a def. need for foster households. I'm not sure if I could foster pets out of the emotional aspect (never say never though) but it's so appreciative for people to do that.

She also is caring for about 6 feral cats at her work, and one that lives in her neighborhood. One of the ferals got hit by a car last month and that was as devastating to her as losing her own cat I think.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

She also is caring for about 6 feral cats at her work, and one that lives in her neighborhood. One of the ferals got hit by a car last month and that was as devastating to her as losing her own cat I think.

Poor thing. Yeah there was a Nextdoor post last year with a bunch of people trying to capture this feral momma cat and her kittens because they were hanging out in some bushes right near a busy area. The bushes were on Burger King's property but they were fine with people putting food and water out and trying to trap them. Mostly to check up on them, etc. It took a very long time but they were able to get them sadly one kitten passed after being hit in the meantime. It was a very difficult update to that thread.

 

[aprilgail]

I would never board my cats- I would rather someone stopped in twice a day to see and feed them and let them live in their own home where they are happy while I am away- I can see them on the security cameras and also get notified when pet sitter comes and goes out of the house through security cameras so I know they are actually getting fed.

 

[sam_gordon]

We have left our cats home alone for 1-2 days before. I wouldn't feel comfortable doing more than that. I don't really want people coming into the house, hence boarding.

 

[nw6675]

I would never board my cats- I would rather someone stopped in twice a day to see and feed them and let them live in their own home where they are happy while I am away- I can see them on the security cameras and also get notified when pet sitter comes and goes out of the house through security cameras so I know they are actually getting fed.

The security cams are how we knew the neighbor was not coming daily and was not putting the litter box prizes (lol) where we asked. I spent more vacation time worrying than relaxing and havin fun.

We loved the Rover person because we got videos, pics, texts plus security cam confirmation.

 

[emmybee]

Going away for a few days, and I plan on having my hubby's friend come over. We feed our cats canned food, so we can't just leave a bowl out for them. I also want to give my mom a set of keys so she can come by and say hi to them if she wants.

 

[aprilgail]

The security cams are how we knew the neighbor was not coming daily and was not putting the litter box prizes (lol) where we asked. I spent more vacation time worrying than relaxing and havin fun.

We loved the Rover person because we got videos, pics, texts plus security cam confirmation.

The security cam I put in my moms bedroom is also how I caught an aide being abusive to my mom- so they worked double duty in my house. I would never leave my pet alone for a vacation without being able to at least check the cameras and see that they are ok and being taken care of-and the cameras are in plain sight, not trying to hide or trick anyone- which is why I was a bit surprised to catch my moms aide on there since the camera was right there in plain sight.

 

[nw6675]

Found a new Rover person. Crossing my fingers!!

 

[bennifer]

Our 15 yr old cat needs insulin twice a day now so if we can't bring her with us, we board her at the vet. She's mean and I feel bad that they have to deal with her, but they always tell me she was good. Before the insulin, we left her home with someone checking on her once a day. She hates most "outsiders" so they usually didn't even see her, but they'd check her water/food/litter situation and could tell that she was ok.

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

On my 2016 Switzerland trip I boarded my cat at my vet's office... she hid the ENTIRE 11 days. She never once came out from under the blanket during the daylight hours. I felt TERRIBLE when I got back and found out.

Now, every time she has to get in the carrier (she knows she's going to the vet) she pees. Her carrier anxiety and vet anxiety has been very strong since.

I think that boarding depends on your cat. I have another cat who'd LOVE the attention of being boarded at the vet's office - he'd happily chirp away and tell stories and beg for pets and to be held if he was boarded. But his (litter mate) brother would likely shrivel up and hide.

Really think about your cat's personality...

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Now, every time she has to get in the carrier (she knows she's going to the vet) she pees. Her carrier anxiety and vet anxiety has been very strong since.

My cat got that way, well not peeing but had carrier anxiety.

We got him a bigger carrier (he's a tall long cat and the other carrier too small after he grew) and left it out (our first carrier we made a big mistake in only bringing it out during cases of the vet or weather related) and while it's not a place he goes in much at all he has gone in a few times just on his own



We've had to use it a few times for weather related (tornado) and he still hates the carrier but we're really hoping by leaving it out he doesn't get to the point of only associating the carrier with bad things. Our cat hates being confined he always has. The rare times we've had to put him in his room for us to move freely (like repair people over or moving in/out larger furniture or appliances) he spends a lot of time letting us know how he feels lol. He just doesn't want to be trapped and likes to be roam where he wants to.

Maybe see if another carrier would work for your kitty? One that doesn't have the scents of past trauma for lack of a better word.

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

Oops - I forgot to insert the quote -- now it's too late!

@Mackenzie Click-Mickelson

That's a good idea - maybe buy a new carrier. She's also a long, tall cat -and we have the biggest carrier that they have for cats! She looks a lot like your guy there! I have been thinking about buying an extra carrier (or two). We live in Texas and there's no telling when we'll have to leave because of hurricanes or whatnot. An extra carrier that has no past association with any vet trips might work. And I like the idea of having an extra carrier for my vehicle just in case I come along a stray kitty in need.

 

[dez1978]

We think one of the benefits of cat vs dog ownership is not needing to board. We have always left our kitties home alone. We have auto feeders and leave an extra litter box and several bowls of water in different spots of the house. I guess the longest was a 7-night cruise but we never had any issues although the cats had quite a bit to say when we returned. One always ended up hoarse.

This! When our cats were strictly indoor cats, we'd just set up an extra litter box and make sure the auto feeder and water thing was full. When we moved out to the country to a smaller house, they started running outside and now prefer to be outside and just come in occasionally. Well really only one of the cats we have now was ever inside to begin with. They can't really escape the dog in this house like they used to be able to lol. And being in the country, we've ended up with a couple strays that adopted us. One is still mostly feral. So we have the garage set up for them with a heated cat house in the winter, and in the summer we leave the doors open some and have a fan going. When we are on vacation a neighbor comes by and checks on them every other day just to make sure they still have food and fresh water and cleans the litter box. We have the occasional racoon that stops by and eats all their food overnight.

We did have a diebetic cat who we had to board since he needed insulin. We boarded him at the same place as the dogs and he seemed to enjoy it. If he was the only cat there at the time he got a whole room to himself.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Oops - I forgot to insert the quote -- now it's too late!

@Mackenzie Click-Mickelson

That's a good idea - maybe buy a new carrier. She's also a long, tall cat -and we have the biggest carrier that they have for cats! She looks a lot like your guy there! I have been thinking about buying an extra carrier (or two). We live in Texas and there's no telling when we'll have to leave because of hurricanes or whatnot. An extra carrier that has no past association with any vet trips might work. And I like the idea of having an extra carrier for my vehicle just in case I come along a stray kitty in need.

I spent a long time looking at carriers lol The one we got is still a soft sided one like our old one but has structure with an internal cage that is steel. It's not an inexpensive one in terms of carriers you can get but there were a lot of features I was looking for. I have purposefully stayed away from plastic carriers because I wanted the easy access that soft-sided ones can give so I can reach him and try and comfort him and the one we got has many different ways to get to the cat.

This is the one we got (we got it in blue but you can also buy it in gray for a few dollars less)

https://www.amazon.com/Petseek-Collapsible-Ventilated-Comfortable-Portable/dp/B0875YGRV9/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1YXM4333VRUQR&keywords=cat+carrier+large+cat+petseek&qid=1657204215&sprefix=cat+carrier+large+cat+petseek,aps,60&sr=8-6&th=1

He doesn't weigh anywhere near the weight limit but we got it for the size part so he could comfortably stand up all the way or lay out. It's hard to find large carriers! There are a good amount of photos you can see where people have big cats.

In comparison to our old one the bedding could be thicker although you could supplement with a towel if you didn't feel it was thick enough. We always have a few of his toys in there. I don't think he plays with them necessarily the times he's in there but just to give him the scent of his stuff inside. The other downside is the shoulder strap doesn't have a padding like our old carrier but we use the handle straps more frequently. Anywho just thought to pass on one we found after searching for a long time

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

I spent a long time looking at carriers lol The one we got is still a soft sided one like our old one but has structure with an internal cage that is steel. It's not an inexpensive one in terms of carriers you can get but there were a lot of features I was looking for. I have purposefully stayed away from plastic carriers because I wanted the easy access that soft-sided ones can give so I can reach him and try and comfort him and the one we got has many different ways to get to the cat.

This is the one we got (we got it in blue but you can also buy it in gray for a few dollars less)

https://www.amazon.com/Petseek-Collapsible-Ventilated-Comfortable-Portable/dp/B0875YGRV9/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1YXM4333VRUQR&keywords=cat+carrier+large+cat+petseek&qid=1657204215&sprefix=cat+carrier+large+cat+petseek,aps,60&sr=8-6&th=1

He doesn't weigh anywhere near the weight limit but we got it for the size part so he could comfortably stand up all the way or lay out. It's hard to find large carriers! There are a good amount of photos you can see where people have big cats.

In comparison to our old one the bedding could be thicker although you could supplement with a towel if you didn't feel it was thick enough. We always have a few of his toys in there. I don't think he plays with them necessarily the times he's in there but just to give him the scent of his stuff inside. The other downside is the shoulder strap doesn't have a padding like our old carrier but we use the handle straps more frequently. Anywho just thought to pass on one we found after searching for a long time

Thank you for this. Is this one washable inside somehow? Remember, we pee now in the carrier. And it's not always immediate. Sometimes it's when we get inside the room at the vet's office. (to note - I know that nobody abused her while she was there years ago... she just does not like anyone anymore - but me.)

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Thank you for this. Is this one washable inside somehow? Remember, we pee now in the carrier. And it's not always immediate. Sometimes it's when we get inside the room at the vet's office. (to note - I know that nobody abused her while she was there years ago... she just does not like anyone anymore - but me.)

I haven't done it before but it does say the Sherpa/fleece is washable and just to remove the inner support (there's a zipper) from the pad which is just foam. There appears to be some comments about people washing it. I tend to wash these sort of things either fully by hand like spot cleaning or using a storage tote (like for the Sherpa/fleece part still removing the inner support from the pad) if it would need a deeper clean and dunk it in there with some soap then rinse it out and dry. Most of the reviews and the seller say air dry for the fleece part. If you're worried about the inner foam support getting ruined by pee you could technically leave it out just wouldn't have that slight extra cushion.

Another alternative is if you want to you could just put like one to two towels or so in the bottom the first couple of times as a trial run to see if she does pee. On our old carrier that had the same fleece bedding type set up we did that when we took our cat to the vet after he had passed his bladder stone and then washed the towel when we got home. For this big carrier a towel or two won't hamper the size much at all. The bedding/pee issue is probably going to be a concern on all the carriers that have that so I understand worrying about it. I don't think our old carrier had a zipper to remove the inner insert.