Cattery or cat drop in service

[Kitchencomposter]

Going away for a few days in September, wondering whether to use a cattery or someone to pop in each day. Here's some background and my thoughts:

Cat originally belonged to my Dad, who passed away earlier this year. He was adopted from a cattery at about the age of 5, we think. He's now about 10 and we've had him for 8 months and he's settled down beautifully with us. I work from home twice a week, husband works shifts so the cat is not on his own too long during the day. Although he loves to go outside in the nice weather, he generally sleeps most of the day and then goes out for 3-4 hours at night, just enjoying poodling around the back gardens. He comes in, eventually, 99% of the time when I call him. (We don't have a catflap.) He's playful and affectionate in his own way, on his own terms (we think he was hit a lot when he was much younger and it's taken a long time for him to trust people again).

Pros of the home/sitter: it's familiar
Cons: he won't be able to go out and even if someone came in to feed him and let him out, they may not be able to coax him back in again! He's alone for basically the duration of our holiday. They may not see him if he's sleeping upstairs.

Pros of a cattery: it's controlled, people coming and going, he won't be 'alone'
Cons: he also won't be able to go out, unfamiliar smells, people, other cats

I'm leaning towards a cattery simply because he won't then be in a empty house for almost a week with almost no human interaction but.. thoughts???

I've got numbers for 4 catteries to call for prices/availability and then to go and visit.

With my own cats, who passed away many years ago now, my ex and I never went abroad, and when we went away to stay with family for a week every few months, the cats came with us so I never had this dilemma!

Edit: I could use a local cat-sitter (cat in a flat - she's got good reviews) to come in but wonder whether once a day is enough?

Drop in 1000%. I would never use a cattery again and think that it’s awfully cruel to leave your cat in one - such stressful places for them with so many unfamiliar people and smells etc. The one time I did used a (quite pleasant may I add!) cattery my cats were visibly nervous when we came back the following week and skinnier due to starving themselves from the stress.

We have a cat sitter who comes in first thing in the morning & last thing in the evening to feed them, clean litter trays, have a little stroke/play etc. The cats are so much happier + calmer with this arrangement - their life is effectively business as usual since we also have a cat flap to allow them free roaming.

Cat sitter every single time. I put my last cat into a cattery once and she was so distressed. When she came back home she ran to every corner of the house and yelled. Never again.

I have used a cattery for my last cat and he was always absolutely fine. In his later years we had a neighbour come in to feed him instead. That worked fine.
My Current cat is 7 and never been in a cattery. She has someone drop in once a day and has a cat flap. If she isn’t there when the sitter comes the sitter leaves food for her in the kitchen. I think she would be very stressed by a cattery as she’s a neurotic anxious cat. My last cat wasn’t at all. I think it depends very much on the cats personality. I do worry about her though as she’s very scared of fireworks and gets stressed by things like other cats in the garden.

Cat sitter over cattery.

but don't you have anyone that would come & stay? I cat & dog sit for several friends, one advantage of being single & no longer having any children at home.

some of your friends might have young adults happy to do it?

not sure how much live in cat sitters charge, but probably not much more than a cattery?!

Thanks for the responses. We don't have a cat flap and I wouldn't be happy with him coming and going as other cats can come in, and I don't want him to wear a collar to restrict access. Plus, he's an older cat and never used a cat flap before.

I just worry about him being alone for so long. The drop-in sitter would probably never see him - he's been upstairs sleeping for most of the morning/afternoon.

He was adopted from a cats home so perhaps used to that. My only reason for choosing a cattery would be there would be regular activity around him.

I'm am going more towards a sitter though.

Anyone else with any feedback/comments? :-)

I use the app Rover to pay for live-in cat sitters. Yes, it costs me a fortune but I'm normally not paying to travel as its work. My older cat is now pushing 15 and I've had her since I was a student so I'm really going to go the extra mile for her in final years. Have a look and see if its in your budget, some people are less expensive than others. If not, drop ins. Even with confinement, a cat is 100% happier in its own environment. Catteries are very stressful to most cats. My friend's cat got quite ill in one, he had bladder problems. That said, my younger cat would probably be alright, but she's essentially a tiny dog in a cat's body. Not much phases her and she loves humans.

We use a cat sitter. She’s £7 per visit and comes twice a day to feed, clean, play, cuddle. She sends us videos so that we can see she’s actually playing/having fun.

We have an indoor camera where the cat sleeps. We check throughout the day to see how she’s getting on. Her routine always seems the same as when we’re there - sleeping most of the day!

It’s (not going to the cattery) also one less thing to do in the busyness of going on/returning from holiday.

I am now contacting cat sitters with a view to come in twice a day. I'm not 100% happy to leave him in the home by himself but also think a cattery is not the best option. But... we need to go away!

Any thoughts on leaving a radio on the whole time we're away? We have sensor nightlights. Another problem is, he does like to go out at night but when we go away next year for a week on two occasions, he won't be able to go out for those whole weeks.. unfortunately once out it's not easy to call him back in again and if it's dark, impossible to see where he is, so best he stays in.

Thanks folks!

What indoor camera do you have and where have you placed it? Is it a two-way one, can you talk through it?

It’s a Ring indoor camera - so we can watch her live at any point. We haven’t paid for the subscription that ‘saves’ all of the videos, and can’t see that we’d use that feature. We can speak to her through it, but she doesn’t seem to like it.

Glad your going for the cat sitter. Our cat was terrified when we got her from a shelter.
Can I recommend radio3 or classic fm, cats like classical!

Mine don't like the cattery (or, rather, travelling there in the car particularly) but I tried a cat sitter and it was a disaster. One of mine is a proper scaredy cat and when the sitter arrived on the first evening, he took one look, ran back out of the door and didn't come home all week. I was panicking like mad, but the minute I got home and called him, he came running.
However, I have also had one who went on hunger strike at the cattery and refused to eat for the whole week (hence trying the cat sitter).
Unhelpful answer I know, but cattery for mine now so at least I know where they are (and no matter how scared he is, my boy cat will never refuse food).

We used to use a stay over cat sitter from Cat in a Flat. Even if the cat doesn't engage he has the comfort of knowing he's not alone. Elton was ridiculously needy and needed a warm body to cuddle up to at night - and was totally unbothered who it was!

JJ is not a cuddly cat, sleeps on our single bed in the spare room at night on a lovely blanket (my husband won't have him in our room), but does love my warm lap in the colder weather. We think he was hit a lot on his back end by a former owner so takes a while for him to trust people. Only now, 4 years later, can we carefully stroke along his back. He is cuddly in the morning though when he's half awake and has lots of kisses and cuddles on his bed then; loves going out into the garden with me but generally spends most of his time sleeping. I work from home twice a week, the other three days I go to the office so he is alone from 7am until my husband comes home mid afternoon.. he seems non-plussed for the human company, just eager to go out especially if it's nice weather.

The cat sitter will give him as much or as little interaction as he wants . Everyone we've ever used has been really experienced with cats and better at handling Elton than we were!