How do I make going to a cattery ok for my rescue boy?

[Cheeseandlobster]

We have had our rescue boy for 4 months now and we go on holiday next month. We have found a lovely cattery run by amazing woman in her 90's who lives and breathes cats, but I worry he is going to think we have rejected him.

He is quite confident but follows me round the house so he is attached to me. When we first got him his ears were scabby and itchy but cleared up after a few weeks so we don't know if it was an anxiety thing. Also when we collected him he jumped straight into the cat carrier and again when he had his jabs and was at the vets but we had a nightmare getting him into the carrier at home.

We don't have anyone who could cat sit so him staying at home isn't an option

So aside from telling him what is going to happen and that he is coming home after in the hope he understands , what else can we do to make it better for him? I am going to bring his heated blanket for him and maybe some of his toys and regular treats so he has his home smell and his own things. Hopefully that will help. Is there anything else?

Do you have a local pet pals or similar. I pay someone to come in several times a day if I go away. My rescue cat is 19, I've had her 18 years and I'm sure she is still scared of being left if we take her anywhere.

I advertised on a local Facebook group for a cat sitter, she comes in twice a day if needed, and it’s £10 a visit. Probably more expensive than a cattery, but my two ladies came from a rescue and I’d imagine they’d be distraught going back.

I guess lots of bits from home (maybe the t-shirt you wore on the last day before drop off?) and his normal food bowls etc. If you can, try and get a cat sitter in, cats are so much happier in there own home, and it boosts your own security if someone is going in/out collecting leaflets out the door etc.

Get a house/cat sitter. Honestly so much better for your cat.
There are a couple of websites where you can get free ones - but they have testimonials and you can interview on zoom etc beforehand. Just Google house sitters.

Our neighbour could come in twice a day but I think he would be lonely. He always runs up to us when we come home from work. The cattery owner spends loads of time with the cats and sits in the garden where all the cages are during the day so he will have more interaction with her than with 2 visits a day. I just don't want him to feel rejected

My cats go to a cattery, they love it and are spoiled rotten. I'm away at the minute and there is a cat sitter going in daily but I can't relax!

Our rescue cat sounds similar, she always needs to be around someone and if DH and I are,out, she will gravitate toward ds2, sitting outside his room.

I don’t think she would cope with a cat sitter just visiting twice a day and we would have to look for a Cattery. Thankfully our dses are university age and we will be planning our holidays around their breaks for the next few years. Don’t know what we will do beyond that. My daft plan is to continue to pay ds2 to cat sit even when he leaves home for good🤣

I think you just need to know you are doing right by your Dcat and hope he settles. It’s hard to know what’s best. There are companies that house sit and cat sit as well, did briefly look into that but not needed for us at the moment.

Get a cat sitter if you can. Mine came from a rescue and they were deeply distressed and unhappy there.

A year after getting them I put them in to a cattery for a week when I had to go away - I felt that they would be safer there as we lived near a main road coming into a village. They were really unhappy in the cattery and one lost a kilo in weight as he just stopped eating.

Next time I went away I paid a cat sitter to come round and they were much happier - it was no more expensive than the cattery.

My cats nervous of people outside the family and I would be concerned that a cat sitter would come twice a day and never see her for the whole time. I also think she’d be lonely at night when she’s used to sleeping with DD. I’d be happy for a long weekend but not longer than that.

My cat is a rescue and loves people. She is much happier at home with just 1 visit a day from a cat sitter than going to a cattery. I use cat in a flat. You can ask the cat sitter to stay and play/stroke them.

It's a cat - don't anthropomorphise! Yes your cat will miss you, but it won't feel 'rejected'.
If the cattery is well run and time is spent with the cats he'll be fine.

This entirely. Telling your cat anything is pointless, it’s a cat not a human.

My rescue cat doesn’t thrive in the cattery, came home having lost ¼ of his body weight after three days recently.

Reluctantly I am switching from a cattery to a cat sitter popping in twice a day. I stopped that because he had a spell of getting into scrapes and I though he was ‘safer’ in the cattery, which he is, but not eating/fretting for a fortnight won’t do him any good.

My cat wouldn't cope with a cattery. We leave him at home and my neighbour comes in twice a day and leaves the radio on during the day. Your smell will be all round the house so he'll be ok .

I'd personally never put mine in a cattery. They stay home and my SIL or a pet-sitter comes in twice a day to feed them, sort their litter trays and give the youngest his medicine.

Even when we just had a six month old kitten, we left her home alone while we went away for a week. She was absolutely fine.

My mum used a battery for her much loved elderly cat - 16-18 rescue so do not know for sure. Mums had her 15 years. The cattery is lovely, the cats have like a double storey shed but with wired sides so they can see out (but has curtains for nighttime) Mum takes her cat bed and toys and something mum has recently worn.
The cattery send her videos twice a day so mum knows she's ok - you could ask yours to do this?

My cat would be deeply distressed by going to a cattery
You can get house sitters who stay over night from Cat in a Flat (here you pay, they start at £10 per night) or Trusted Housesitters (Google them). Here housesitters are completely free. We've used them many times. They're checked and have reviews. They've all been absolutely lovely and my cat's bonded with them really quickly.

Lots of food for thought here. I think I would be more happy with a cat sitter twice a day if he wasn't an only cat. It's what we used to do when we had 2 cats

When I did similar with mine I arrived at the cattery with a car load of stuff. Scratching post, bed, toys etc so it all still smelt of home.

The owner was happy to clear out the provided stuff.

I do now use a cat sitter who comes twice a day and stays for half an hour each time.

I think the variety helped mine to understand that wherever they were food would be provided which hadn't been the case in the situation they were rescued from.

In your case with 1 and the first time being left I would go for a cattery. And of course you tell them the will be looked after and you will back even if they don't understand a word!

I put my 20 year old into a cattery once (it was a family emergency) and drove away with my last sight of her being her😭 nose pressed up against the window looking for me looking absolutely desolate. I never left her again.

Our rescue cat prefers going to the cattery rather than having someone come in and feed her at home.

She loves human contact so seems to actually be much more chilled being able to see people around all the time at the cattery. It's a good cattery though with an enclosed garden she can go in for outdoor time and the staff make a fuss of her. Your lady sounds lovely and like she will also make a fuss of your cat.

When we first went away we did have someone coming in to feed her but she must have been lonely and tried moving in with several of the neighbours while we were away. We were only gone 5 days but basically any house with a cat flap was viewed as a potential new home by her especially if she could locate some cat food and a comfy bed inside 🙈.

I'm sure he'll be fine and he will be delighted to see you again when you're home.

Thank you everyone. I will try the cattery and use some of the really helpful suggestions on here to make it easier for him. I will also be telling him that we are coming back on the off chance he does understand 😀