Why we use a Homesitter to Look After our Cats

Your cat is your pride and joy, your feline best friend who you would do anything for.  But what happens when you want to take a holiday? Most cats dislike being moved from their home environment, so taking them to a friend’s house or a cattery can feel like you are letting them down.

Getting a friend or neighbour to pop in is an option if you are only going away for a short time, but anything longer than a weekend isn’t ideal at all. Cats are social creatures so they don’t want to spend two weeks on their own with just ten minutes a day with a neighbour sitting with them.

Luckily there is a solution and that’s employing a homesitter. This is someone who comes to live in your home when you go away, ensuring the house is safe and secure. Plus they will look after your pets, sticking to their usual routine and giving your cat plenty of human companionship while you are away.

One couple that have been using homesitters to look after their cats are Vivien and Tony Dance, from the west coast of Scotland.

Originally, the couple had two cats – Bonnie and Clyde, and when they went on holiday their neighbours used to feed the cats, which were happy to be left. A few years ago they sadly lost Clyde.

When Vivien and Tony went away over New Year they made the usual arrangement with the neighbours to come in and feed Bonnie, but when they returned Bonnie was extremely distressed.

Vivien said, “It took some time to restore the balance after our trip. It didn’t seem to matter that food had been put down twice a day while we were away, Bonnie obviously missed human companionship. I think she was worried she’d been left permanently.”

“We couldn’t go away and leave Bonnie alone again and didn’t want to put her in a cattery; she is a rescue cat and it would have been distressing for her.”

The couple decided to contact Homesitters Ltd, one of the UK’s leading home and pet sitting companies.  Vivien said, “The couple who came to stay were wonderful and Bonnie was happy so we booked them again for a summer holiday. It gave us such peace of mind to know Bonnie was happy.”

Homesitters prides itself on the excellent service it provides. This includes taking a full brief from a client and matching them with a suitable home and pet sitter, organising a pre-assignment meeting so client and homesitter can get together to discuss the house and the cats’ routine prior to the start of the assignment and giving 24/7 support to all their homesitters on assignment.

The company has full insurance, plus many insurers endorse the service as they understand that having someone staying in a home is much better than leaving it empty for a few weeks. Some insurers even offer reduced premiums to people that use homesitting services.

One of the great things for clients and their cats is that many homesitters end up with regular clients. This means they get to know your cat and your cat gets to know them which makes the whole experience of you going away far less traumatic for both you and your cat.

Another couple, who have been using Homesitters for over 15 years, are Susan and Surojit Ghosh from London. Although they live in London, the Ghosh’s live next to a school and in the school holidays the area can be quiet so they like the security of having someone to stay in their home and look after their cat at the same time.

When they started using Homesitters they had one cat, Pepsi who has since sadly died, and they now have two part Bengal cats, called Sprite and Scamp.

Susan said, “We wouldn’t go away now and leave our home empty, we always use homesitters, even for long weekends away. It’s not just a professional service, the homesitters are interesting people and you feel like they will really look after your home. Also, the company follows up after every home sit to check we were happy with everything.

“In the whole time we’ve been using Homesitters we’ve had the same two contacts at the company which makes it a really personal service, we feel we know them really well, and they know us really well too.”

If you want that extra peace of mind that your cat and home is being looked after by a caring professional then get in touch with Homesitters to find out more.