Cattery thoughts

[Sparklingbrook]

Our lovely cat has been to the cattery for a few days this week. She was very pleased to get home and has been very affectionate since. Do you think when we drop cats off at the cattery they wonder whether we are coming back to get them, or do they just adapt to the new situation?

They probably think, "Hmm, this is different, I wonder if this person will give me treats..."

Then when you collect them its, "oh its the one I really like, yippee"

I would like to think my kitties had simple thoughts about treats :)

I've only left them in a cattery once and cried all the way home (feeble!). They gave me awful heart rending looks as I left. Once coped very well, she is placid and laid back. The other was visibly thinner and stressed after a week - he is very sensitive and moody.

The other cats in the cattery looked content though - they were dozing under warm lamps mostly, though some were having a wander around their outside run.

My older cat was pretty happy, she was a tough old girl, and quite happy to have cat-mad cattery owner fawning over her, younger cat hid in her igloo bed & definitely got thinner.

Try to have cat sitters where possible but sometimes no choice.

I would prefer a cat sitter (ever since SIL told me that cats would rather change owner than move house/live anywhere else . But I know she's safe in the cattery, and she likes the people. She always comes back silky soft from all the brushing. I like your thoughts MrsVoltar that's what I like to think-but she does love the cattery lady!

HellonHeels I can't do the dropping off because I cry-I love to do the 'getting back'

Glad I'm not the only soppy one. I had to get my sister to phone the cattery while I was away to make sure they were ok. She is a mad cat woman too so understood my misery :o

Mine goes to the cattery. She is a fighter so has to come indoors at night but will only come in for me. If locked indoors 24/7 even just for 2 days she gets very destructive (smashes her cat flap, gets in cupboards and wrecks furniture). At the cattery she is good as gold and it works out cheaper than vet and repair bills if left at home.

As a vet who worked in quarantine for many years I can honestly tell you that they don't make a differentiation between 6 days and 6 months. The vast majority of cats spend 23 hours a day in the cattery sleeping - so not much different from home.
I only every knew one cat who was on the go the entire 6 months, though he was a very special cat, hand reared by an army unit in Bosnia and then the unit brought him home to reside at Larkhill via quarantine. I think his activity was due to the fact he thought he was human.

I wouldn't like to speculate about what was going on in my cats' minds, but on the two occasions they've stayed in a cattery they sulked inside the entire time and refused to come out and be petted by the very lovely attentive owners. On the second occasion they even staged dirt protests by weeing in their beds. Tinkers. I suspect they missed their freedom more than they missed us, although one was under our feet constantly for the first couple of days after we 'sprung' them.

Lizcat that is very reassuring to hear. I would love to ask my cat so many questions about all sorts of things. This week's question would be 'why do you only eat fish flavoured cat food?!'