A catty thread

[critterchick]

We have a housesitter come take care of the menagerie - 6 cats, 2 dogs & an aquarium full of fish. It's cheaper than boarding the dogs, we don't have to impose on the neighbors to take care of the cats, and everybody is a lot happier when we get home.

[constantcruiser]

DH & I had been on 24 cruises before we adopted two Russian Blue kitties about a year ago. Since then we've been on one cruise and he missed them so much, he swears he'll never go on another trip without them! EEK -- I love cats, but I LOVE cruising even more. All the time he whined about missing Vodka & Katerina...but they were so pampered by our daughters who took turns coming over every day to play with them, that I don't think they even noticed we'd been gone. What to do???

[Susan-M]

DH & I had been on 24 cruises before we adopted two Russian Blue kitties about a year ago. Since then we've been on one cruise and he missed them so much, he swears he'll never go on another trip without them! EEK -- I love cats, but I LOVE cruising even more. All the time he whined about missing Vodka & Katerina...but they were so pampered by our daughters who took turns coming over every day to play with them, that I don't think they even noticed we'd been gone. What to do???

 

Take them on the QM2 :) http://www.petsonthego.com/transcruischrtr.html

[safein]

We have 2 cats as you can see from my avatar. The little one is Sweetie Pie. The one sitting is Sundance, her son. When he was 5 months old, we brought him to stay with our vet while we were going on our first cruise on the Century. I decided to dye my hair to get rid of the gray. He found his way to my not so empty bottle. My husband tried to clean off his front paws but couldn't quite get all the dye off. So Sundance went to the vet with purple tinted paws! When we came home, we picked him up, minus his 2 pillows on his bottom end! Of course that was planned.

 

We've had 2 friends watch them at home, except they moved a few miles away. Don't think we'd do the vets again thought because of his cost.

 

Anita

[clearlakecruisers]

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

 

 

 

Thought our Sushi, AKA a boy named Su, was the only cat who preferred a glass - and his has to be clear glass. Wow, do they train us well, or what??

[constantcruiser]

Oh, I'm intrigued by the kennel on the QE2. Have any of you ever taken a pet on a cruise?

[suznf]

Two dogs, five cats (one planned, one I was sitting for and the owner never returned to pick it up, two inherited, and one rescued as a wandering baby by DS) and a cockatoo missing some toes with an unfortunate vocabulary.....The friends that gave us the cockatoo and the first of the cats did so w/the agreement they would watch it when we travel. Their kids live w/them so they don't get too much time alone. They "vacation" at our house and let the animals sleep w/them! They also consider the occasion dead offering from the kitties as a gift. :D

 

We arrange for housecleaners, pool and yard care while we are gone, fill the fridge and liquor cabinet and leave them some $$ for emergencies/expenses/fun and the code for pay-per-view. We usually take them out to dinner before and after as well-and bring back something fun for them from our trip.

 

All the critters get nervous when they see the suitcases, and one of the cats also camps out on them. The dogs (1 Briard & 1 Border Collie mix) usually gain weight while we are gone, but are joyous when we return, God bless them. One of the cats gives us the cold shoulder, two could care less that we were gone. The newest kitten was happy to see us...and Garth...a monster I inherited from my parents...he weighs 25 lbs! :eek: ....wants to be fed. Garth (sometimes called Girth) is a crotchety old man who actually calls MAMA....MAMA....HELLO...HELLO until someone feeds him. Seriously. Our friends didn't believe it themselves till they heard him whining for food at 6am!

 

We always miss them when we are gone, but having them with people who love them ...sometimes more than we do (thus the doggy weight gain).....puts our mind at ease.

 

Fun thread!

[wegiekat]

We have three cats, one Maine Coon and two Norwegian Forest Cats. My neighbor, bless his heart still comes over twice a day when we are gone to care for them even though my 1st NFC died while he was watching them three years ago.

 

It was not his fault as we found out the little guy had a heart problem but it still took a good two years to for him to get over it. We are leaving 1st of May for Europe and I know he is dreading it. He won't leave the house until he knows where each cat is. Wait until he finds out that a cruise and Europe are on the plate for 2007.

 

Mindy

[Cruisechik]

My neighbor watches my cats when we travel. The older cat, who is usually very friendly, gets very mad and ignores us when we return. Our younger cat, who normally ignores us, chats up a storm and is excited to see us.

 

Our older cat prefers to drink out of a glass, too!

[sweetcat]

It really does get more difficult with more animals. We have five cats, one of which lives upstairs behind a baby gate to protect him from one of the others. Then we have two ferals that we feed outside each day.

 

So our instructions cover Mouse upstairs, the four downstairs, and the two outside.

 

We have gone as long as 30 days but did have a pet sitter daily. With that many animals, daily cleaning is required. It is a big concern to always have a reliable pet sitter on call. Our neighbor was great but they are moving and there are no other cat lovers we know currrently.

[pooh1bear43113]

(What a great thread! I thought it was just me who worried about the cat while we are away!)

 

Our son lives in town and checks in on the Pooh Bear, a 6 yr. old Himmy a couple of times a day. Strange: when we are here, the Pooh won't give his human "brother" the time of day - but the minute he realizes we are off on a cruise - his human "brother" is his "bestest" friend in the world!

 

Honestly have to thank the precious fur ball for saving us lots of money - because if not for the heartbreak of leaving him - we'd be cruising more than the 2X a year we do. It's just awful to try and pack when he sees the suit cases come out of the closet - it breaks our hearts - at least mine is broken until I get to the airport and the plane takes off....then I realize that my precious fur ball is safe and happy in his own home - with someone he knows coming in daily to care for him.

 

However, son also has a cat (much older than the Pooh) who does not tolerate other cats and we are planning to take son on a cruise for his birthday in December - that means we'll be paying for the services of the local "Cat Nanny" for both cats. But we'd never, ever think about taking either cat out of their home environment - just too hard on them. We've used the Nanny before and been pleased - but it's just much easier on my mind when I know family is taking care of the fur ball.

 

Geez! I swore when I retired and my last Himmy passed away I'd never, ever get another cat - then I'd have the freedom to come and go that comes with being retired. That didn't last long - only 3 months without a cat in the house - and it just didn't feel right. This cat makes our house a home and he's fully aware that our lives revolve around him. How dumb is that!!?? While he can't cruise with us he is okay traveling by car to our little retirement home in TN several times a year.