Page 11 | How much to pay 14yo neighbour to feed cat once a day for a week while we're away?

TropicofCapricorn · 2025-04-26T09:18:30+00:00

Hi, how much do you think is sensible for them? Come in, one sachet, one scoop of biscuits, top up water. Only needs one time a day. £20?

Catherinexoxo · 27/04/2025 19:36

I think £5 a day is fine. I used to do this for free for my neighbour when I was younger and I used to just like playing with the cats.
Also wanted to say please don’t take some of the responses to heart. My cats used to love being in the house and were fed twice a day and were always with us then we moved to a more rural area and hardly see them anymore, they just love the counteyside! they come back in the evening for a bit of fuss and some dinner, have a sleep and then they’re off again. Sometimes I don’t see them for weeks! It’s horrifying I’m constantly stressed they’re hurt, having to post on Facebook and check vets etc. spent a fortune on some tracker collars only for them to end up lost. So once a day is fine for some cats to be fed and some cats just like being outside .

Teddybear23 · 27/04/2025 19:47

That’s not enough food for a cat!! What about letting it in and out and maybe cleaning litter tray? There’s more involved than just throwing a plate on the floor. Poor cat😢

Ddakji · 27/04/2025 19:50

Teddybear23 · 27/04/2025 19:47

That’s not enough food for a cat!! What about letting it in and out and maybe cleaning litter tray? There’s more involved than just throwing a plate on the floor. Poor cat😢

Of course it is. Daily pouch of wet and a large bowl of dried, lots of fresh water, OP doesn’t have a litter tray so nothing to do there, job done.

I feed a friend’s cats when they’re away, this is what I do, and she the same for us. Not unusual to not see the cats at all when I’m round, one of hers is extremely shy. If I see the other we have a good play.

TheMauveBeaker · 27/04/2025 19:53

We used to pay £5 a day before COVID. That covered twice daily feeds, no litter tray and making sure cat was out at night.

Original poster

TropicofCapricorn · 27/04/2025 19:57

Teddybear23 · 27/04/2025 19:47

That’s not enough food for a cat!! What about letting it in and out and maybe cleaning litter tray? There’s more involved than just throwing a plate on the floor. Poor cat😢

Jesus Christ. Can't you read?

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SomewhereInTheMIdlands · 27/04/2025 20:47

Opinions differ due to the person's financial situation. Some people give their 14 year olds £100 a week, some nothing because they have no money. So it depends on your financial situation and your neighbours. If you are both well off then boy won't get out of bed for less than £10 or more a day. If you are both at the lower end of the financial scale then boy will be over the moon for £20 for a week. After all, feeding a 🐈‍⬛ for 10 minutes next door doesn't compare with working in the likes of a junk food eatery for even 1 hour.

Suchasonganddance · 27/04/2025 21:54

So, you are going off on holiday and leaving a living creature that depends on you in the care of a 14 year old? What a hideous tightwad you are.

What is supposed to happen if the poor cat is run over but limps home/has a fight and develops an abscess that requires veterinary treatment or becomes unwell?

Way too much to expect of a 14 year old child no matter how responsible they conveniently appear to be to you.

Shame on you !

NestOfWipers · 27/04/2025 22:00

TropicofCapricorn · 26/04/2025 11:34

His mum will have the keys, he's nipping round once a day for 5 minutes into the front porch. There's another locked door behind it.

He probably won't even see the cat tbh, she's a bit aloof.

I think £20-30 is about right though.

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Why start the thread then did you just want lots of people to tell you you were right?

Ddakji · 27/04/2025 22:34

Suchasonganddance · 27/04/2025 21:54

So, you are going off on holiday and leaving a living creature that depends on you in the care of a 14 year old? What a hideous tightwad you are.

What is supposed to happen if the poor cat is run over but limps home/has a fight and develops an abscess that requires veterinary treatment or becomes unwell?

Way too much to expect of a 14 year old child no matter how responsible they conveniently appear to be to you.

Shame on you !

Don’t be so utterly ludicrous (and maybe RTFT where you’d find out this kid isn’t going to be doing any of it anyway).

Trishyb10 · 27/04/2025 22:41

£30 sounds great ❤️

DiscoBeat · 27/04/2025 22:46

We pay a local teenager £10 a day

jjx111 · 27/04/2025 23:04

Oh dear. Now I feel tight. Had neighbours kid feed our hamster once a day whilst we were on holiday for 2 weeks. I gave him £20 (£10 per week).

TrickyD · 27/04/2025 23:30

We have a professional cat feeder who comes in when DS2 is unavailable.
She charges £6 per visit, we have two visits per day, so £12, She deals with the litter tray and opens and closes sitting room curtains.

Dogsbreath7 · 28/04/2025 07:50

£5/day. But do ask them to spend 10-15 mins giving it a cuddle. And why is it only being fed once a day?

daleylama · 28/04/2025 08:00

TropicofCapricorn · 26/04/2025 17:51

So what? My cat comes and goes as it pleases...

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Why TAF did you even come on here to ask? You're aggressively rude to all disagreeing with your treatment of Cuddles and minimal payment plan. So why ask in the first place?

user1492757084 · 28/04/2025 08:24

Forty would be better.
If the cat also needs walking or plying with, I would pay fifty.

Original poster

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 09:55

user1492757084 · 28/04/2025 08:24

Forty would be better.
If the cat also needs walking or plying with, I would pay fifty.

How would they walk / play with a cat they will literally never see?

OP posts:

Original poster

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 09:59

daleylama · 28/04/2025 08:00

Why TAF did you even come on here to ask? You're aggressively rude to all disagreeing with your treatment of Cuddles and minimal payment plan. So why ask in the first place?

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Because i just wanted to know if £20 was reasonable... and then agreed that £30 would be better after a few people suggested £5 per visit... it really was that simple. Usually my neighbour does it (as we do theirs) - and just thought it might be nice to give the lad the chance very very easily earn a few quid.

Then I got accused of neglecting my cat, starving it, locking it in/out for a week, exploiting children, making a 14 year old responsible for my entire home security, making them do the watering of plants, preventing a child from leaving their home for an entire week, having people suggest I should pay them £140 - it all got a bit silly really.

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Original poster

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 10:05

Dogsbreath7 · 28/04/2025 07:50

£5/day. But do ask them to spend 10-15 mins giving it a cuddle. And why is it only being fed once a day?

because it just does.... it's not like I'm leaving raw meat out for the day. The sachet is given in the morning and the biscuits are filled up... why would I give a sachet at 7am and then make it wait until 7pm for the biscuits, when it can just come and go as it pleases with a full enough bowl of biscuits? the biscuits are never empty by the evening - nor are they when the morning comes round, she's eating the biscuits during the day whenever she likes.

occasionally it might get given 5-6 Dreamie type treats of an evening.... but that;s not often, maybe 3 times a month or so.

OP posts:

Original poster

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 10:07

NestOfWipers · 27/04/2025 22:00

Why start the thread then did you just want lots of people to tell you you were right?

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I was agreeing with the posters...

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Favouritefruits · 28/04/2025 10:08

£35 , £5 per day seems a reasonable amount

Original poster

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 10:15

Suchasonganddance · 27/04/2025 21:54

So, you are going off on holiday and leaving a living creature that depends on you in the care of a 14 year old? What a hideous tightwad you are.

What is supposed to happen if the poor cat is run over but limps home/has a fight and develops an abscess that requires veterinary treatment or becomes unwell?

Way too much to expect of a 14 year old child no matter how responsible they conveniently appear to be to you.

Shame on you !

LOL - you must know some very useless 14 year olds... a 14 year old should be VERY capable of doing this small task and speaking to their parent if they discovered a poorly cat. Besides, why would you expect a 14 year old to take the cat to the vets and make decisions? I would just expect that they tell their parent, who would contact me and I would sort it out with them.

When I was 14 I was doing paper rounds, baby sitting, feeding neighbours animals... if anything went wrong I just speak to mum. My nephew is 13 and walks people's dogs for them, mows the neighbours' lawn for them etc.

OP posts:

Ddakji · 28/04/2025 10:46

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 10:15

LOL - you must know some very useless 14 year olds... a 14 year old should be VERY capable of doing this small task and speaking to their parent if they discovered a poorly cat. Besides, why would you expect a 14 year old to take the cat to the vets and make decisions? I would just expect that they tell their parent, who would contact me and I would sort it out with them.

When I was 14 I was doing paper rounds, baby sitting, feeding neighbours animals... if anything went wrong I just speak to mum. My nephew is 13 and walks people's dogs for them, mows the neighbours' lawn for them etc.

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This thread tells me a lot about why so many young people struggle in the workplace. Simultaneously useless but expecting to be paid a lot.

NestOfWipers · 28/04/2025 10:52

TropicofCapricorn · 28/04/2025 10:07

I was agreeing with the posters...

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No, you weren't maybe one or two agreed with you but the vast majority have said that 20 is tight for a whole week

HowToBuy · 28/04/2025 11:02

I’m actually loling so hard at the absolute batshittery of this thread!!! It’s hilarious, MN is absolutely mental sometimes 🤣

FWIW OP, I think £30 would have been fine, it’s a 5 min job and a 14 yr old is more than capable of completing this task. It’s absolutely not exploitation, works out at about £1 a minute! 😅

And accusing you of neglecting your cat… more loling! You sound like a competent and responsible cat owner… but you know that already.

Enjoy the hols and maybe reconsider giving the young lad the job, I’m sure he’d be more than happy to earn a few quid.