A catty thread

[Sky Sweet]

What do you do with your cat, if you have one, when you cruise? Years ago we put ours in the Vet when we went away and vowed never to do that again because our cat did not like being there. Since then we arrange for a neighbor to come to our house once or twice a day while we are away to feed him, play with him, and change his litter.

[ocngypz]

Meow...........

 

My own Miss Lily prefers to be alone. She doesn't like having anyone come into the house... even my best friend!

 

Timed-feeders... and Tidy Cat Crystals (two litter boxes)... and she is good to go.. er.. stay. without Momma.

 

She has baskets full of toys, but prefers to play with anything which is Momma's..no matter what it is......lipstick.. pens..socks... scarves.. gloves..

she constantly paws her way through my purse and briefcase if I don't remember to put them up.

 

Her favorite game is rug sliding. She runs from the hall into the dining room, jumps on a small prayer rug.. and slides her way into the living room. Then she reverses her ride. Thank goodness nobody lives in the unit below me!

 

I first started her with a weekend away.. then 4 days.. then 7... next will be 9... which will actually be 8 24 hr periods without Momma.

 

Water... oh.. she turns on the kitchen faucet, despite having water bowls in each room.

[Sky Sweet]

One of the advantages of having a cat instead of a dog is that they can stay in the comfort of their home, while you are on a cruise. I love dogs and would like to get one, but we would have less flexibility to travel if I did. On the other hand, a few of my friends have told me that if a dog gets use to a kennel when he/she is still a puppy, they don't mind staying in one, and kennels are much less confining now than they use to be.

[MrLee]

I have 2 cats (one named PITA for good reason!) and my daughter comes by 3 or 4 times a week when we're gone. So far there seems to be no problem but then again, they act so crazy normally I can't tell if we're doing any psychological damage. :D

[trcori]

Good thread; what cat owner can resist cat chat :) ...

 

We adopted Cat #1, a tortie we call Sweetie, from the local shelter in late '02 between our first and second cruises. We boarded her at the animal hospital for cruises #2, 3, 4, and 5. Then before cruise #6 last summer, we adopted a pal for Sweetie, from a different shelter, a Siamese-Tonkinese boy we call Miles. He was very slow to adapt to a new home, and we thought that boarding him in the hospital might set back the process, so we looked around for a pet-sitter. Found a nice local gal who's been in the business in our area for years; she came by daily while we were gone on that trip, and now we're going to book her again for our impending Galaxy Panama Canal cruise. I'm a little nervous because we'll be gone two weeks, lots longer than ever before, but better to have them here than stuck in cages with strange critters making noise all around them! (Plus the pet sitter will feed our other critter, Sneaky the plecostomus, sole survivor of our son's various attempts at aquarium-keeping) -- TR

[tangerinebunny]

Ms Sherry's Pet Spa - much cheaper than the ones on X!

[HawaiiApril]

My daughter comes by twice a day on her way to and from work to look in on my 3 kitties. The older 2 would probably do fine on their own but our little guy is very people dependent. He gets mad at me for leaving and has behavior issues. I don't have a dog for the reasons the OP gave but ended up with a cat with a dog personality! My recent Panama Canal cruise was the longest I have ever been away from them. I would never consider removing them from their home even though there are many "pet spas" that sound so nice. My daughter takes her dogs to one that actually has a pool and they take the dogs on "field" trips!

[jeffs55]

We have 2, One rescued from an animal shelter, one just showed up.

The older is over 18 yrs old and I worried about him on my 2/25 Zenith cruise, but he was fine. My mom comes by once a day and sets the timed feeder.

[evoni]

We have a 2 year old Ragdoll male named Neo and a 8 year old domestic shorthair male named Socrates or Socks for short..:). If we are only gone for 5 to 7 days they get about 4 disposable litter boxes set up for them and plates of food and bowls of water set out. Both are indoor cats. For our Baltic trip this June we will be away for almost 3 weeks so we are hiring a professional insured cat sitter to come in each day to clean the litter boxes, bring in the mail and feed the kitties. A bit pricey but they are worth it!

[Chorts]

My sis-in-law usually house sits for us. She doesn't mind staying here and Lucy loves her. Works well for us.

[morriscats]

My Persian Murphy is very much "my" cat - and he hates when I am not here to share my bed pillow with him. As soon as he sees the suitcases come out he knows something is up. He sleeps on top of them (your not getting out of here with me) and becomes very needy. My son still lives at home so he is here with Murph but he still yells very loudly at night. Both Murph and my son are glad when we finally get home - then he does not let me out of his sight for a week! Murphy thinks he should be allowed to cruise and eat Fancy Feast like the Persian on the TV commercials.

[Loucat]

We have 5 cats (all indoor). We need to have someone stay at our house to cat sit. They eat x2 a day and want to be out around the enclosed pool during the day and then come inside at night. They also need companionship at night or howling breaks out!!

Tough life! I think I will put on a cat suit and lay out by the pool with them.:D

[kannna]

ava & zsa-zsa have granma to comevisit them every day. they hardly notice we're gone.

[Luv4dacruise]

My kitties are happy to be home alone i think. Buffa, Minky and Ganka all keep each other company.......My sister comes over every couple days and just checks on em, gives em fresh water and food. Gonna need alot more food for my May cruise, as Ganka just had Spunky, Spaz, Chunk and Ahhhhrrrgggg a couple weeks ago :eek:........

[carol&jeff]

Our next-door neighbor stops in 2-3 times a day to feed, play with, and scoop the litter box for our three cats. They really like her - this last time they seemed disappointed she wasn't coming over anymore!

[luckylady1]

We have 2 boys. Shiloh a 2 year old Birman and Scooter a 1 1/2 year old Ragdoll. We have a friend come visit them when we are gone. She comes over and spoils them a little more. ( as if that were possible ) Even when we are home she comes over just to visit them. What can I say, they have more personality!:rolleyes:

[Allis154]

I have a friend that house sits for us when we travel. At first, it was just for the six cats. The last two times, it was for five cats and a dog. This time, five cats, a dog and a tank of fish! Works out well for us, and she uses the time like a vacation.

[BrendaJ]

My mom comes and visits Ciara when we are away. The first time she took care of Ciara, she didn't see her the entire week. It turned out that mom was coming to visit during "nap time" which takes place under our bedcovers. Now mom hauls her out and pays attention to her for a while. Ciara follows her around the house a bit, and then climbs back into bed by the time my mom has finished feeding and littering her. She doesn't seem to miss us at all. Her demeanor when we return is "Oh, it's you. Have any treats handy? I could go for some ham."

 

Although I must admit, on our first night home, she spends half the night standing on us and purring into our faces, with the odd yowl thrown in.

 

:D

[CHEZMARYLOU]

We leave plenty of food & water out and my brother stops in every 2-3 days to check on our 2 cats (Rex & Serendipity) fill food & water bowls, & clean litter pans. He also checks on our pond to make sure pumps are running & to feed the fish in summer.

[Podgieree]

Within a year of getting Jamie our first cat, my husband and I had to take a ten day trip to see his family. We asked my cousin to come and stay at our house. About 5 days into his stay he called my mother quite concerned. He had not see the cat since he arrived. My mom then calmly asked him if he noticed if the food was disappearing and he said yes. She then asked if the litter box was being used and again he said yes. She then informed him the the cat was indeed there even if she wasn't making herself known. Upon our arrival home she came out of hiding and yowled at us for a good 10 minutes. She has gotten better when we travel now. She also has 3 other cats and a dog to keep her company. We even have two Katrina dogs. They are kept seperate from our own animals. One may be able to return to New Orleans in the near future as her owner is anxious to have her back as soon as she has housing with fencing. The other dog is being treated for heartworm and then will go up for adoption. He is very sweet and will be a great addition to some family. Keep the great cat stories coming!

[atlas]

An interesting fact about cats, most prefer not to have their whiskers touched. My cat Chip never drinks from her cute little kitty bowl but will drink from the giant dog swill water bowl. As ocngypz noticed, her Miss Lily prefers moving water. A Fresh Flow fountain is perfect for vacationing, the water is filtered, and the bowl is a good size.

 

My cat, parrot, and fish get a house sitter daily, but my two dogs have to go to a kennel.:(

[kannna]

one of ours prefers to drink out of a tall glass. Explain that one : )

[xznwfd]

I have 5 kitties now (plus a stray boy I've been feeding for almost a year). I really like to have someone stay at the house while I'm gone, usually my dear boyfriend Joe. They really miss having someone to sit with them when I'm gone. If Joe and I travel together, I have a neighbor come by twice a day to feed them. She's a great find, as she loves the cats and will sit on the couch and watch TV in the evening with them; so they get some petting time.

 

I check on them via e-mail when gone - they are my kids, and I worry!

 

I'm glad to know other cat owners are as concerned about their babies as I am!

 

Cathy

[chessbriar]

We have a house sitter, no problems there.

[mountainmare]

It's sort of like the Expedia commercial. We have two indoor cats and a feral colony of about 12 that have been spayed, neutered and released. (we live way out in the country).

Every two - three days we have a friend come by and check the food dishes and water supply. The inside guys have three cat boxes so I just deal with the mess when we get home.