[quote BrunoJenkins]@fairylightsandwaxmelts You put a lot of faith in your cat sitter, a person who presumably has no relevant qualifications and doesn't know the baseline behaviours of your cats. If they got sick while you were away would you blame yourself, the sitter or just chalk it up to bad luck? I'd certainly do the latter because I just wouldn't expect the sitter to notice subtle behaviour changes and make medical interventions, regardless of how often they're there. They're there to change litter and give them a cuddle, they're not a vet. [/quote]
I do put quite a bit of faith in mine - I chose to look for a catsitter with experience, not a neighbours teenager, for this reason.
One of my cats has twice daily medication so I need someone catsavvy anyway. My old sitter was a qualified veterinary nurse - sadly she moved, but my current sitter has looked after ours over the last 3-4 years & is very diligent.
I don't expect a full medical examination (obviously!) but a sitter should be able to recognise a significant medical need which may indicate a serious issue such as a blocked bladder (continuously trying to urinate with producing any urine, licking lots, vocalising when trying to toilet), saddle thrombus (extreme pain, dragging hindlegs), serious eye injuries (inability to open an eye, lots of discharge etc).
Will they pick up everything I would? Probably not, but if they see my cats for 30 mins twice a day they are more likely to notice a more subtle issue than a quick refill of feeders every other day, so I'm happy to pay extra and have these checks.
Ultimately its each to their own but there are great catsitters out there and it's not unusual to have twice daily visits.