A Pets Holiday - At Home

Its that time of year again: the family vacation. But what about the family pet? The options may seem limited to boarding, but a short online search for "pet sitting Melbourne" opens up a range of other options...

This writer has much experience of the challenges of going on vacation when there are furry family members to consider. As the owner of cats (who do not get along), taking them to stay with another family member is out of the question. Regardless of the fact that the felines must be kept separated due to their mutual disdain, cats visiting a new place must be kept inside; cats are creatures of habit, and changes to their environment and routine will result in stress. Not to mention escape attempts.

So for years, we have gone for the boarding option. There are some fabulous cat boarding facilities; do your research though, and visit them to assess before you need to book in. Not all are equal.

We, fortunately, found a facility which ticked all the boxes: extremely clean; run by people who genuinely love cats; close-ish to home; plenty of room; nice view; lots of TLC; vet recommended. Perfect Well, it should be, Until we factor in my cats.

One of my cats is quite happy when she is at the cattery. She settles quickly, is a delight to have in residence, and actually has a much more pleasant demeanour there than she frequently does at home. The only problem is getting her there and back. She hates the car. As soon as she hears us get the carrier cage out of the garage, she is under the bed. Probably tipped off earlier that something is amiss (as soon as she sees suitcases for our packing, to be honest). The car ride there and back when we collect her is enough to stress her into getting the sniffles - every time.

My other cat is another story. The most delightful and loving of felines when at home, he metamorphoses into the devil's spawn as soon as that cage appears. And he does not stop - for days. Our beloved cattery soon learned that he needed to be placed way in the back of the building - his growling, spitting, and general carrying on was off-putting for other clients. How embarrassing. Even a strong vet-advised dose of valium is not enough to take the edge off - it just allows us to put him in his carrier cage before he realises what is going on. I have come to the conclusion that it may be more helpful for ME to take the valium.

So what is the solution? If I lived in Melbourne, it would be easy. There are organisations which arrange pet sitting Melbourne-wide to come to your home, feed, clean up after, groom and spend a little time with your cat. They are affordable and the cats get to stay in their own familiar domain and sleep the time away without stress or angst. And no need for anyone to be prescribed a tranquilliser.