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Home→Video→Someone checks on cat every two days while owner on holiday for 3 weeks. Good or bad?

Someone checks on cat every two days while owner on holiday for 3 weeks. Good or bad?

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This video sparked a lot of discussion after I posted a comment several months ago in which I stated that the cat’s owner should have done better. This is what I said:

Sorry, but I disagree with what you did, namely, leaving your cat in your home for 3 weeks while you were on holiday and arranging for someone to look in every 2 days. That is not good enough as far as I’m concerned and I feel sorry for your cat.

The owner says this under her video:

My cat’s “welcome home” show after I returned from a 3 weeks holiday. He was not hungry or sick, since I arranged for someone to check in on him every couple of days. I guess he was just happy to see me…

Since the argument in the comments section she has added more details to assuage criticism which I had sparked off.

A lot of people commenting insulted me (typical of YouTube visitors many of whom are frankly ignorant) but some supported me. Here are some examples of the comments:

Jade says: cats are not kids, get a life, animal lover

David says: I totally agree. Some people are under the false impression that cat’s aren’t sociable animals like dogs. Leaving a cat alone for 3 weeks is ridiculous. A visitor every couple of days to feed the cat and check the litter box is just wrong. If your to cheap to pay for full time care, then you shouldn’t have a pet.

Ocelot girl: Dude, I’ve read all of your comments in the conversation you had with AstrialCOW, you’re seriously acting like leaving a healthy cat, (who had food and someone to look after him) alone in a relatively big apartment for 3 weeks is the same as leaving him locked in a kettle for 3 weeks. Honestly, I’m a HUGE animal lover too and I saw absolutely nothing wrong with this.

Garen: That isn’t enough? How is that, can you tell me? Cats are felines. There are maybe dozens of cats around my house and they’re breeding like a prague, no one is feeding or taking care of them, because they can actually live by themselves. A cat doesn’t even need an owner at all, and even if it’s a lame cat overindulged by owners like you they still have in their DNA the instincts needed to survive just fine. Stop treating animals like pussies, and most of all , stop acting like they give a shit about their owners lol. They are just smart enough to know you’re a useful tool. No friendship, cats don’t know such thing.

So what do you think? I’ll tell you what I think. There is a quite a lot of ignorance in the world and lot of it is on YouTube. The attitude of many visitors to YouTube is symptomatic of the ignorance in the world generally. But I am asking too much? I am setting too high a standard?

In relation to cats this shallow attitude and endemic ignorance is revealed in a love of “funny cat videos” and cats fighting and getting hurt with a contemptuous disregard for more serious but more important videos about cats such as those concerned with cat welfare which the majority of visitors conveniently ignore.

I am not saying this person was abusing her cat. I was stating that if you are a cat owner and you live in an apartment and you go away for 3 weeks you need to do better in respect of caretaking for your cat than merely asking a friend to pop in to your apartment to check up on your cat every other day. That does not work for me.

Perhaps this is a question of standards. We each have our own. The standards of many cat owners is too low. There needs to be improvements.

Comments

Someone checks on cat every two days while owner on holiday for 3 weeks. Good or bad? — 32 Comments

  1. ‘I am upset you have lost your handbag. That is such a pain. Shame someone didn’t have the decency to hand it in, or am I being naïve, et. . .’

    Shop at store Saturday afternoon. Come home. Water vegetable garden for half an hour. Sit in garden chair for another half hour, reading newspaper. Go in house. Cook fresh pole-beans for supper. Shred head of garden cabbage for coleslaw.

    An hour later, need to fetch something from handbag.

    Where is handbag?

    Handbag gone. Dramatically gone.

    Search car. Search front garden and driveway. Search sunroom. Kitchen. Living room. Both hallways. Scrooch down to peer under tables and chairs. Search car fourth time. Back car out of garage to inspect floor of garage.

    No handbag.

    Sleepless Sat. and Sun nights. By now, thief has been using up checkbooks at ocean-side casinos.

    Three a.m., and Eggs Benedict eyes glued to ceiling. Thief has dug house-keys out of wallet. How to barricade doors w/o having to pay hundreds of dollars on locksmith? Dare not nod off. Thief can get in.

    Monday morning: Phone store. ‘Did you find a handbag left on counter?’ ‘No. No handbag.’

    Phone vehicle license bureau in neighboring town. Closed on Monday. Open Tuesday.

    Phone insurance company. ‘Could you please reissue a card?’

    Rush down to bank. Withdraw $500.00 to tide over. Handbag-less, stuff gelt into paper bag that reads ‘Fresh from Bakery.’ Nice customer service representative sits for half hour at desk making phone calls and filling out papers for signatures. Checking acct. officially closed. New one opened. New checks will arrive in a week or so.

    She sees crinkled bagel bag, and offers to drive home during her lunch hour and bring back three purses she’s had for years and doesn’t need. Protest kindly offer. She insists.

    Drive over to Police station. Wait for 50 minutes in lobby packed with perps. An officer finally leads way to private room. Rapid -fire questions. Says it’s a felony if checkbooks involved. Jots down notations and fills out a form to be signed in two places.

    Drive to next bank. Close account and open new one. New checks will arrive in a week or ten days.

    Drive up to credit union 20 miles away. Same routine.

    Drive back to town.

    Swing by bank second time as nice woman directed. Thank her for purses.

    Two days ago bought honking tube of lipstick. Gone, along with handbag. Drive to drugstore. Buy second tube.

    Drive to shopping mall and buy handbag and wallet.

    Drive up to next town to have library card canceled and reissued.

    Drive home. Garden need watering. Sun beating down.

    Water everything. Wend way around back to scrutinize grapes.

    Turn corner of house.

    Handbag sitting on sidewalk.

    Screech. Leap. Wave arms. Bound into front yard. Sidney Vicious sprawled under bush. Pick him up & whirl him around in lunatic waltz. Kissy fest. Dash into house and grab a two-ounce can of treat and three cans of F.F. Plop into saucer. Eats everything.

    Jump into car. Drive down to supermarket to buy two ‘artisan’ cakes from supermarket. Frosting rosebuds. Cheesecake marbling. Jelly infusions. Bring one to purse-lady.

    Other to cop. Can they ever forgive? Ask cop not to tell police chief (a waspish specimen). Keep under hat. Otherwise, chief will know complainant has gone around bend.

    Handbag sitting out back for two days? No answer to this. Amnesiac episode.

    They say when you find galoshes in bathtub and wristwatch in freezer, the end is near. A sobering thought, though no Alzheimers in family tree yet.

    p.s. It may not be naïve. Years ago, when shopping late at night, I left my purse in the cart in the lot. I discovered the loss within minutes, made fiendish U-turn back to store, and the manager said someone found and brought it into tbe office, with everything intact, including the cash. Still longer ago, I dropped a checkbook from my backpack into a parking lot. Someone returned it. Sterling rectitude? The officer said today that thieves no longer have much interest in checkbooks. They’re after cash & plastic.
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    AN OPINION:

    ‘So many people believe that cats (particularly ferals) are self-reliant and can survive without human intervention. That is completely false, if they are to stay healthy. They may be keen hunters, but they can’t sustain themselves a very long time depending on their own skills.’

    Unless urbanites are thumbs down on ferals, legislation perhaps could be passed to assist kindhearted people who, entirely on their own, take upon themselves the financial burden of caring for these cats. (Martha Kane is another.) With zero assistance from the city or state government, they shouldn’t have to step into the shoes of callous, irresponsible people any more than they should have to feed and care for negligent parents’ half-starved children roaming the neighborhood, looking for a handout.

    If it could be voted into law, public taxation shouldn’t be that onerous for the cities and townships, and it would partly recompense people who, out-of-pocket, are paying to help these cats with not an ounce of support from anyone, much less recognition for all their generosity.

    Moreover, no city-bred cat can catch everything it needs to survive. It’s never happened, despite people who pride themselves in contradicting this glaring reality – emaciated as their cats are, even during the height of spring and summer.

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  2. I agree this is two long to leave your pet alone, they have routines and are mostly on yours. When your not there they get upset, I feel guilty when my cat is alone when I’m at work and then decide to go out for the evening too. And he sure let’s us know when we get home, cry’s for a long time. I hope this person will not do this again after all our comments , or get someone to come in everyday to play & talk & feed & clean the cat box, they need us for all these things ! Sorry I was so long

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  3. Someone who accepts the responsibility as caretaker to any living entity needs to understand that doing so is life altering. It doesn’t matter if they care for children, an aging demented parent, or pets; it is a caretakers’s duty to have their safety and wellbeing at the forefront all the time.

    But, because a lot of people place different values on living beings, the cat falls short of being valuable. How many people would leave their old, frail parent alone for 3 weeks with only someone checking in every other day? There’s no doubt in my mind that my very smart and active Damon could accidently turn on the stove burners (let us remember that he knows how to change language on my answering machine)or gnaw on an electrical cord.

    Cats require the same vigilence as any other being that is dependent on us.
    So many people believe that cats (particularly ferals) are self-reliant and can survive without human intervention. That is completely false, if they are to stay healthy. They may be keen hunters, but they can’t sustain themselves a very long time depending on their own skills.

    I don’t leave my cats for more than a couple of hours at a time and only when necessary. And, there’s a head count when I return. I check on my ferals a minimum of 4 times a day.
    I took on the responsibilities that I have today, and I owe it to each cat to give them the best of me.

    There are so many pet friendly hotels these days that a caretaker could easily take their cat with them for, maybe, a weekend excursion by car if they wanted. I couldn’t, but only because I wouldn’t be able to afford the train that I would have to rent.

    In any case, my point may be that even some house plants require more than an every other day visit.

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  4. I definitly agree that Cats need to be checked EVERY Day sometimes Twice a day.Personally I hate to be away from the Cats any longer than 3 days. A week is way too long. Thats me personally. I’ll have to go away soon for Some Rescpite Care for myself. As havent had a Proper Hoilday on my Own since 2010. So Im getting Brave to arrange the Apointment soon. So I’ll only go away for a few days. Even though it wont be very far at all. Rob will look after my Darlings. I know many will say but its only a few days. But for me to Leave the House is rather HUge and even away from my darling Jasmine.

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  5. A true lover of all animals would never, ever do such a thing conscientiously. What a mind-racking you must have experienced from ignorant comments. I’m appalled by such ignorance. And now, I must give my cat some extra loving/attention. We have spent some time apart during the past month in our daily routine, sometimes eight hours at a time. And even though he is with my flatmate and his feline buddies, I have felt such tremendous worry from being away several hours a day. <3

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  6. Am sitting here trying to hold on to what shreds remain of my sanity.

    I left my handbag in a local store yesterday afternoon, didn’t discover its absence until several hours later and searched for it for nearly an hour before realizing it was gone, with everything in it: driver’s license, duplicate set of house and car keys, cash & three checkbooks, etc.

    I do not belong to the ‘God will provide’ camp, a worldview that drives home with sledgehammer blows the stark recognition that money is all. Without it, we’re dead in the water. Our rubber raft has sprung a leak as we hurtle down the Rapids of Life. If the cashier didn’t find the bag – if it was stolen – this means several hundred dollars to change the locks, another $100 or so to put a stop on the checks, still more fees to replace the driver’s license, etc. Basket Case City, so will try to bang out this Comment to steady the nerves.

    _________________________________________

    ‘Cats are not kids. Get a life, animal lover.’ ‘Get a life.’ The weariest of weary clichés – one that reveals a shrunken IQ and the tiny vocabulary that goes with it.

    To state it plainly, it’s thick-as-the-hide-of-a-rhino uncaring to leave a cat alone for any length of time. On three occasions in years past, either my parents or I had to leave our dogs and cats at the vets for several days. While they had food, water and a quiet environment, they were extremely deteriorated when we went to retrieve them. Not moderately so. Extremely so. To the point of giving up on life. All had stopped eating. Two were semi-comatose. Companion animals grieve profoundly in the absence of their parent. Weak as they were, they blossomed at the sight of us when we came to take them home. It was as if they’d emerged – Lazarus-like – from the tomb.

    How to explain this when lost or abandoned animals survive in a cage at the pound and at boarding shelters? While I’m not an animal psychologist, I would guess they never experienced much in the way of a fur-child bond with their parents in the first place. As for dogs, many are extroverts: they’re chummy with every & anyone. Barring someone like Kay’s Hill ‘Ollie,’ cats are less frequently so. Unless the parent has friends and family in the house every day, the average cat is reserved and dependent upon his parents(s) for solace and companionship. Take that away, and the animal folds.

    Yes – but their home isn’t a cage! True. But it’s a silent enclosure without the parent, who brings it to life.

    First, I would never feed a dog or cat pellets. A caregiver with multiple cats can hardly be expected to offer them canned and cooked meats. High-grade kibbles is all they can reasonably feed large numbers of ferals or rescues, a diet that can sustain cats and dogs for long periods of time. But it’s inhumane to set out this fare to one or two fur-kids, a kidney-burdening, monotonous, dry and – in the long-term – unhealthful diet as any vet with integrity (Lisa Pierson, for one) is happy to explain.

    Second, as for leaving stale water in the bowl or leaving malodorous litter boxes sitting around – no.

    Third, I’d never board out my fur-child while on vacation. No matter how conscientiously the staff scrubs, vacuums and disinfects, those places have fleas and microbes as surely as vet clinics. I’ve rarely set foot in a clinic without coming home with at least one flea. (If you have a cat, don’t EVER set the carrying case on the floor of the waiting room – not even five seconds. Always wear pants tucked into boots, and hold the cage in your lap.)

    Fourth, if you have a parent-child bond, your animal needs to feel its presence every day. During the 22 years I lived within a five-minute walk of my office, I seldom failed to go home at noon to see my grey-cheeked parrot, nor did I ever participate in a TGIF or any other evening social without going home for an hour to talk to and cuddle him. The saddest time in his life was when I lived in a house 12 miles from my office, and was gone ten hours daily, five days a week. He steadily declined during that interval. It didn’t help that I kept the radio on for him and the furnace going during the chilly months of the year. He grieved in his isolation, plucked himself bald during my absence, and eventually faded away and died from his hours of solitude.

    Since moving here in 2005, my place of employment was within an eight-minute drive of my house, and I always went home at noon to my cats to pet them and give them their luncheon.

    Fifth, can you travel when you have fur-kids? Yes. If it’s a dog. Even my parrot enjoyed an outing now and then, as did one of my cats. Otherwise, no. I would never rely on anyone to care for my kids. Years ago, I stayed with my mother when she was dying in the hospital, and asked a neighbor to look in on my parrot for 24 hours. When I came home the next morning at 11:00, my parrot was sitting in the dark, in a covered cage from the night before. The neighbor liked to ‘sleep in’ late and forgot about the bird.

    To go away from one’s cats for three weeks and have someone drop in every couple of days?

    It takes all kinds.

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    • I liked your comment Sylvie and am pleased you agree with me. I am upset to hear you have lost you handbag. That is such a pain. Shame someone didn’t have the decency to hand it in or am I being naïve suggesting that anyone might hand it in for you to recover.

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  7. I feel guilty when I leave my babies to go shopping.No vacation for me.I would be so worried that I would be sick.They need me and I need them.

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  8. Personally i think its WRONG to leave a pet alone under any circumstance… People fail to see the clear picture. There have been pets murdered by home invasions. People fail to understand that a smoldering fire could occur, much like what happened with me. I sustained heavy smoke and fire damage after an electrical fire broke out in my apartment and ultimately killed my long haired domesticated cat Joey Sept. 2012!!! Animals can get trapped and even killed by the simplest item lying around the house. Wouldn’t that be a nice mental image to see after coming back 2 days later?? Yes, cats can fend pretty much for themselves, but there are circumstances beyond anyone’s imagination that can and does occur.

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    • I have got to say I loved your comment. Very insightful. You’re right. There are many possible problems. I am reluctant to leave my cat for a day even when my reliable and sensible neighbour can keep an eye on him. I have done it once and I kept on thinking of him. Good cat caretaking is full-time really. We don’t go on holiday anymore….. 😉

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      • Michael, it took a lot of trial and error. I was not perfect in the beginning of my being a pet parent. I had lots to learn. My very first cat ever, not long after adopting him, i went for a week to Florida with a friend that had time off from work. I quickly put things together, arranged for someone to stop by each day to feed and water him, and off i went. That was a long week. I felt terrible. Once home, my new(ish) cat was a little skiddish of me at first, but was back to normal within a few hours. Since that day back in 2001, i have never gone on any trip longer than a few hours. I get it now! He was like my child. I couldn’t enjoy myself too much from thinking of him back home. Now i am a full time parent. On duty and on guard at all times. =)

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        • That is exactly how I feel when I am away. There is a strong connection and it does stop us doing certain things. It is a price we pay. Currently Charlie my cat is ill with a nasty infection and I am stressed. It is making me annoyed not with him but with the way my life is unsettled. When you love a cat or cats you are only really relaxed when they are well and content and when you know they are safe.

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          • Michael is Charlie improving at all? I hope so.
            We never leave our cats for more than a few hours, mainly of course for their safety’s sake and their physical and emotional needs, but also there is nothing in the world to beat being at home with the pleasure of their company.

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            • I have to agree with you !! While i am out, there truly is nothing that i am missing out on that i couldn’t be enjoying at home with my fur friend around. There is something to be said about peace of mind, peace with yourself and peace with our fur friends. Have a great day!

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          • I am so sorry to hear about Charlie not feeling well Michael. What type of infection does he have and is he on antibiotics at this time? That stresses me out right there having to force feed a cat pills. I hope he improves quickly. Keep us posted ok?

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            • Thanks Jayme. He is quite ill with viral and bacterial infection. He is on antibiotics (I have a way of getting them down him thank God) and L-lysine which helps diminish the virus but I fear he has some underlying health issue. It can be mightily hard to get a cat fit and well with these nasty infections. At least he is eating pretty well although he has lost weight. He can move better! With 3 legs you can’t carry excess weight. The whole thing scares me though.

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          • Exactly Right Michael. Its hard when our animals are Ill or in Pain it breaks our hearts. I hope Charlie gets well soon. Poor Charlie. 🙁

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  9. You were definitely right Michael, every 2 days is nowhere near enough care, all sorts could have happened in the time the cat was alone. And then when they got back the video they were so proud to put up on Youtube showed that the poor cat was in total darkness, no wonder he was meowing at length, he probably thought he’d been totally abandoned. Totally unacceptable and if not abuse then certainly neglect. It wouldn’t pass muster with our animal welfare act that’s for sure.

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  10. Bad bad bad! Cruel in fact leaving a cat for 3 weeks with only someone checking on him every 2 days, anything could have happened between those visits. Even if the cat was physically well, leaving a litter tray that long is very upsetting to a cat, I wonder how his ‘owner’ would like to use a toilet unflushed for 2 days! The drinking water would be stale, possibly even knocked over, the cat left thirsty. The food would be stale. Mentally a cat could become traumatised with only seeing a person every 2 days. I can’t believe anyone could think it acceptable! What ignorant and stupid remarks from those idiots who think it is.
    A cat should never be left for more than one day, ideally the person feeding and caring for him should visit twice daily.

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    • I feel better having read your comment Ruth. I got such a slamming from some people I felt I needed to see what other true cat lovers but to me it obviously inadequate caretaking. It is about standards and this shows that a lot of people have low standards of cat caretaking.

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  11. I agree with you-every 2 days is NOT enough. I’m a petsitter and when I have a client who does not want an every day check, I do it anyway. Any animal who lives with a human gets used to having someone around every day. I ay not be able to stay for more than an hour or so, but I make sure the pets (whatever the species) have some companionship and interaction. That’s also the reason I take a vacation every 25 years. My pets give me love and understanding (unlike some humans) and I give them and any that I care for the same.

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  12. I just want to say that we are human beings, we must behave like human beings, and I personally hate such kind of attitude towards innocent creatures, who are bound to be under our responsibility and care 🙁

    Whether they are cats or kittens, both need you every day. The difference is, cats need us twice/thrice a day for food while kittens need us with 2/3/4 hours.

    🙁 sorry for that cat

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  13. Personally I think every day would have been better, if the holiday was just for 2 days I think that’s o.k too, but a cat’s toilet can become pretty soiled in 2 days even. 2 cat litter trays and some toys around the place I think would keep the cat happy enough for 2 days, I would not leave mine longer.

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