Do I need to fire my cat sitter?
July 26, 2010 9:38 AM Subscribe
Just got back from a 2 week trip. Do I need to fire my cat sitter?
I found my current cat sitter over five years ago. I checked her references diligently before hiring her, and used her many times over a three year period when I was out of town. She was local, a single mom training as a vet tech, and lived very very close to my house. My cat liked her, and he didn't like many people. If I had any negatives it was that she brought him too many toys (she worked at a pet store as well and got a discount and said she just liked to do it) and would try to offer catnip when I told her he wasn't interested in it.
Then that cat left us, and it was a year and a half before we got cat #2. We had trips planned, and I contacted the pet sitter. She came over, got new keys, met the new cat. Trip #1 was fine, but it was very short. Trip #2 was much longer. I contacted her a few times during the trip, and got a photo of the cat sitting in the sink. That worried me a little bit, because he only does that when he's very scared, but she said "oh look how cute he's posing for me" so I didn't think anything was amiss. She also said, every time, that the cat was okay.
We came home last night and found:
1) Lampshade in my bedroom had melted. She left a long note where she said something about it 'crumpling' and that she would replace it, and I honestly just thought the cat had kicked it over until I looked closer at it. She had to have left the light on for a very long period of time and we are very lucky that it didn't catch on fire.
2) In the note, she said the cat kept scratching on the bedroom door. we didn't close the bedroom door, but the wind could have blown it shut (we have a doorstop in place so it doesn't do that, but it could have gotten loose if the wind was bad enough). We allow him in the bedroom and had actually set up the bedroom with strategically placed dirty laundry so he would be comfortable. We've never had a prohibition on anywhere the cat could go.
3) She said that he seemed anxious and wasn't eating well, so she gave him wet food to help coax his appetite. This despite a note from me - twice - stressing that we had just been to the vet and we had decided to not give him wet food any longer because of a weight issue. I also take issue with the alleged amount she claims she gave him. The can isn't there and if she gave him 1/4 a can over 4 days (also curious) there should be food left.
Now, if she had sent a text or called to say "the dude seems anxious" we could have talked about it and I could have discovered the bedroom door issue, which would have probably solved everything. He had nowhere to go and hide. i would be anxious too.
I was just going to write her a note about 1, 2 and 3 and say, the next time you think the cat is anxious, please call me; the next time you think the cat needs wet food, call me, etc. and was going to leave it at that until this morning. I went into the bathroom and was tidying up the scattered rugs that happen when he uses the litter box, and flipped one of the rugs over. I noticed wet spots on the rug. Those generally only happen when one of us gets out of the shower, but we haven't been here, so i smelled the spots. You guessed it, cat pee. That explained the disinfecting wipes that were on the counter with the rest of the cat stuff, and the overwhelming cat box smell that we never have (we use the World's Best Cat Litter and had just scrubbed the box a few days before we left).
Now I am livid. I also worry about what else she didn't tell me.
She had both of our phone numbers and our email addresses. SHe could have called, texted or emailed at any time (we left a note that stressed this). I am upset about the wet food, I am really upset that he was anxious and not eating and not only didn't tell me, told me he was 'doing fine' each time I reached out to her. I would have rather had her go get a Feliway diffuser (I could have called the pet store down the street, charged it to my card, and left it for her, or a million other ways of arranging it) than giving him wet food - which I quite frankly think happened more than just the 4 days she claimed it did, given that he is whining for it incessantly now, and we had already gotten him over that hump the week before we left.
I am overreacting to all of this? Should we not use her again in future, or can we just talk this through? It is very hard to find reliable pet care in our neighborhood & I don't want to board the cat every time i go away, I think it's more traumatic than leaving them at home with adequate care. Additionally, she has a full set of house keys - we did that so if a trip comes up or we're delayed over a long weekend, there is someone who can go look after the cat on an emergency basis. I can come up with a pretense to get them back, or I can change a lock too.
Or you can just tell me I am overreacting.
I don't need a note every day from the cat sitter that the cat is okay, but I feel like she went in the complete other direction here.
I found my current cat sitter over five years ago. I checked her references diligently before hiring her, and used her many times over a three year period when I was out of town. She was local, a single mom training as a vet tech, and lived very very close to my house. My cat liked her, and he didn't like many people. If I had any negatives it was that she brought him too many toys (she worked at a pet store as well and got a discount and said she just liked to do it) and would try to offer catnip when I told her he wasn't interested in it.
Then that cat left us, and it was a year and a half before we got cat #2. We had trips planned, and I contacted the pet sitter. She came over, got new keys, met the new cat. Trip #1 was fine, but it was very short. Trip #2 was much longer. I contacted her a few times during the trip, and got a photo of the cat sitting in the sink. That worried me a little bit, because he only does that when he's very scared, but she said "oh look how cute he's posing for me" so I didn't think anything was amiss. She also said, every time, that the cat was okay.
We came home last night and found:
1) Lampshade in my bedroom had melted. She left a long note where she said something about it 'crumpling' and that she would replace it, and I honestly just thought the cat had kicked it over until I looked closer at it. She had to have left the light on for a very long period of time and we are very lucky that it didn't catch on fire.
2) In the note, she said the cat kept scratching on the bedroom door. we didn't close the bedroom door, but the wind could have blown it shut (we have a doorstop in place so it doesn't do that, but it could have gotten loose if the wind was bad enough). We allow him in the bedroom and had actually set up the bedroom with strategically placed dirty laundry so he would be comfortable. We've never had a prohibition on anywhere the cat could go.
3) She said that he seemed anxious and wasn't eating well, so she gave him wet food to help coax his appetite. This despite a note from me - twice - stressing that we had just been to the vet and we had decided to not give him wet food any longer because of a weight issue. I also take issue with the alleged amount she claims she gave him. The can isn't there and if she gave him 1/4 a can over 4 days (also curious) there should be food left.
Now, if she had sent a text or called to say "the dude seems anxious" we could have talked about it and I could have discovered the bedroom door issue, which would have probably solved everything. He had nowhere to go and hide. i would be anxious too.
I was just going to write her a note about 1, 2 and 3 and say, the next time you think the cat is anxious, please call me; the next time you think the cat needs wet food, call me, etc. and was going to leave it at that until this morning. I went into the bathroom and was tidying up the scattered rugs that happen when he uses the litter box, and flipped one of the rugs over. I noticed wet spots on the rug. Those generally only happen when one of us gets out of the shower, but we haven't been here, so i smelled the spots. You guessed it, cat pee. That explained the disinfecting wipes that were on the counter with the rest of the cat stuff, and the overwhelming cat box smell that we never have (we use the World's Best Cat Litter and had just scrubbed the box a few days before we left).
Now I am livid. I also worry about what else she didn't tell me.
She had both of our phone numbers and our email addresses. SHe could have called, texted or emailed at any time (we left a note that stressed this). I am upset about the wet food, I am really upset that he was anxious and not eating and not only didn't tell me, told me he was 'doing fine' each time I reached out to her. I would have rather had her go get a Feliway diffuser (I could have called the pet store down the street, charged it to my card, and left it for her, or a million other ways of arranging it) than giving him wet food - which I quite frankly think happened more than just the 4 days she claimed it did, given that he is whining for it incessantly now, and we had already gotten him over that hump the week before we left.
I am overreacting to all of this? Should we not use her again in future, or can we just talk this through? It is very hard to find reliable pet care in our neighborhood & I don't want to board the cat every time i go away, I think it's more traumatic than leaving them at home with adequate care. Additionally, she has a full set of house keys - we did that so if a trip comes up or we're delayed over a long weekend, there is someone who can go look after the cat on an emergency basis. I can come up with a pretense to get them back, or I can change a lock too.
Or you can just tell me I am overreacting.
I don't need a note every day from the cat sitter that the cat is okay, but I feel like she went in the complete other direction here.
I would get a new cat sitter with one caveat -- is this an unusually high-maintenance cat, is the sitter staying in your home, are you demanding adherence to an impossibly high standard? I ask because our cat sitter basically brings in our mail, puts out the cat food and water, and makes sure both cats still exist. (He is 8. His mom makes sure he locks the door.) I can't imagine how or why he'd be messing with the litterboxes or turning on and off lights. (We the arrangements of lights, doors, and curtains how we intend to leave it and tell him not to mess with it.) We don't usually go away long enough to need litterbox changing (we have four boxes for two cats), but we trust our 8-year-old help to do that, too.
If she is living in with the cat, that's a much harder person to replace -- although I still would find someone new. If she's not living in, and you're not requesting incredibly complex sets of instructions, definitely DTMFA and find someone new.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 9:46 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
If she is living in with the cat, that's a much harder person to replace -- although I still would find someone new. If she's not living in, and you're not requesting incredibly complex sets of instructions, definitely DTMFA and find someone new.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 9:46 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
We SET the arrangements, that is.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 9:47 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 9:47 AM on July 26, 2010
Did she actually live at your house, or just visit for short periods of time? I am a lifetime cat owner, and even with my own cats it's hard to tell what's going on with their behavior. She doesn't know this cat well and may have not noticed anything was amiss.
My petsitter turns lights on and off strategically so it will look as if we're home. I've never had (or heard of) a lamp with a shade that will melt if it's kept on too long, so I really think she's off the hook there. And if your bedroom door blew shut before the first visit, how was she to know you didn't shut it before you left? The rug - well, mine pee on our bath mat sometimes, and I don't always notice right away. I can see how that would be easy to miss.
The only thing that really gives me pause here is the wet cat food, if you specifically told her not to give him any. I would speak to her about that and ask that she call you if she has concerns about your kitty's health before changing his diet.
So basically, yes, I do think you're overreacting a bit here.
posted by something something at 9:48 AM on July 26, 2010 [14 favorites]
My petsitter turns lights on and off strategically so it will look as if we're home. I've never had (or heard of) a lamp with a shade that will melt if it's kept on too long, so I really think she's off the hook there. And if your bedroom door blew shut before the first visit, how was she to know you didn't shut it before you left? The rug - well, mine pee on our bath mat sometimes, and I don't always notice right away. I can see how that would be easy to miss.
The only thing that really gives me pause here is the wet cat food, if you specifically told her not to give him any. I would speak to her about that and ask that she call you if she has concerns about your kitty's health before changing his diet.
So basically, yes, I do think you're overreacting a bit here.
posted by something something at 9:48 AM on July 26, 2010 [14 favorites]
I do think you might be jumping into the deep end before it's necessary. Try talking to her about your concerns, but wait a day or two so you can calm down and realize that nobody died here. The melted lampshade was the result of some accident, and accidents do happen. If the shade melted merely because the light was left on too long, then you've installed the wrong size bulb in the lamp and it's your fault, not hers. Otherwise, you would have preferred certain choices. She made other choices. In at least one case she made a choice that was against your expressed preference, but she seems to have had some reason for doing so.
Talk to her, but wait until you've calmed down.
posted by jon1270 at 9:48 AM on July 26, 2010
Talk to her, but wait until you've calmed down.
posted by jon1270 at 9:48 AM on July 26, 2010
Best answer: I pet-sit and accidents like the lamp can happen (I melted part of the plastic edge of a turtle aquarium lid with a turtle heat lamp) but I understand your concerns about fires, rug damage and cat stress. As a cat owner myself I've just not called back any sitter who left me with a bad feeling... Once i came home a day early and found the litter box had not been scooped the entire time I was gone. Look elsewhere for a new sitter.
posted by ShadePlant at 9:52 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by ShadePlant at 9:52 AM on July 26, 2010
She had to have left the light on for a very long period of time and we are very lucky that it didn't catch on fire.
This has nothing to do with the cat but a lamp should be able to stay on indefinitely without melting the shade. Something is seriously wrong if the lamp melted the shade: too high wattage bulb, poor design (a lot of halogen lamps are unsafe), improper installation (for something like a recessed lamp), a fault, or something else. Please discontinue use until you find out what's wrong. The lamp is a fire hazard.
posted by 6550 at 9:53 AM on July 26, 2010 [9 favorites]
This has nothing to do with the cat but a lamp should be able to stay on indefinitely without melting the shade. Something is seriously wrong if the lamp melted the shade: too high wattage bulb, poor design (a lot of halogen lamps are unsafe), improper installation (for something like a recessed lamp), a fault, or something else. Please discontinue use until you find out what's wrong. The lamp is a fire hazard.
posted by 6550 at 9:53 AM on July 26, 2010 [9 favorites]
Best answer: Yeah, I'd find a new sitter. She had plenty of opportunity to let you know the cat was anxious, and instead chose to tell you he was fine, while managing his anxiety in ways that went specifically against what you had specified for his diet and such. Changing diet is a big deal for some cats, not something that a non-owner should elect to do on her own. If it was just the cat food, I'd say talk with her and sort things out. But all the other small issues build up to show a bigger problem with her care, whether it's thinking she knows better than you about what the cat needs, or not really caring about any of it. Find a new sitter.
posted by dorey_oh at 9:54 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by dorey_oh at 9:54 AM on July 26, 2010
I don't know whether any of this is egregious or not. It doesn't seem egregious to me (we just got home from vacation and our three cats seem fine), but maybe it is to you. Which is kind of the point. If you feel you no longer trust this cat sitter and it's worth the effort to find another, what do you lose by not using her in the future?
posted by crush-onastick at 9:55 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by crush-onastick at 9:55 AM on July 26, 2010
You don't need to "fire" her; just don't hire her again. I can't imagine how you'd ever really relax on a trip after this, wondering what she's doing.
posted by hermitosis at 10:01 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by hermitosis at 10:01 AM on July 26, 2010
I think you (and I mean you, not the cat) need an extraordinarily attentive cat sitter. I've done some light cat sitting (for friends and neighbors) and generally it's expected that I will make sure the animal is fed, litter changed, and is generally alive. I might even hang out and play with the cat if he seems lonely. I wouldn't contact the owner on vacation about non-major problems. Things like sitting on the sink or clawing a door don't even register as problems, they're just normal weird cat behavior. I'd like to nth the idea that you have a problem with your lamp and should discontinue using it.
I think that next time you go away it might be best to board your cat somewhere, because it seems like you just generally don't like someone being in your house when you're not there.
posted by fermezporte at 10:04 AM on July 26, 2010 [10 favorites]
I think that next time you go away it might be best to board your cat somewhere, because it seems like you just generally don't like someone being in your house when you're not there.
posted by fermezporte at 10:04 AM on July 26, 2010 [10 favorites]
Response by poster: The sitter wasn't living with the cat. She was hired to visit him once a day.
We were gone for two weeks, someone had to clean the cat box out, and one of the things I pay a cat sitter to do is scoop solids out of the litter box and replenish litter if necessary. Even when I had friends looking in on my cats, I still hired the sitter to do the cat box duties. You can't leave a litter box unattended for two weeks. I am kind of shocked that people think that 'messing around with cat boxes' is an unreasonable duty for a CAT SITTER, but okay.
Nothing personal, but I'm not hiring an 8 year old child to look after my animals. This is a woman who funds her education with this job and markets herself as a professional who has special skills in caring for animals. I think I can have different expectations than you do.
The bulb in the lamp is the correct wattage, it was the first thing we verified. The SO thinks that the cat could have knocked it over, but even then, it shouldn't have been on. We have timers for strategic lamps when away and the sitter knows this, we don't ask her to turn lights on and off, but I will tell you that previous excellent cat sitters I have used DID also offer that service (along with picking up our mail, which we also didn't ask her to do).
We didn't ask her to turn lights off and on, we just asked her to take care of the cat. She admitted in the note she left that she had turned that light on, but that when she turned it off, she 'noticed' that it was 'crinkled'. I don't think that's what happened.
I realize accidents happen but just come clean and tell me what actually happened and I won't care much. I already told her that it wasn't an expensive lamp and she didn't need to replace it.
She cared for cats in this same apartment for three years and the door was never closed and we had a discussion the first time that I didn't limit the areas the cat could enter except the hall closet, which I keep closed. So that is how I would have expected her to know or at least think "hmmm, the bedroom door is closed, that's weird". But if she had called to say "the cat is acting out" I would have said "is he hiding in the closet" and she would have said "the bedroom door is closed" and, well, voila.
There's a difference between "expressed preference" and "the vet said it would be better if we changed his diet and we're not giving him wet food any more". It's funny, because I told Mr. M. that we should put the food cans away and we just ran out of time so they got put on top of the fridge. I was afraid she was going to do it. (He views it as the cat successfully guilting the sitter into giving him wet food.)
posted by micawber at 10:06 AM on July 26, 2010
We were gone for two weeks, someone had to clean the cat box out, and one of the things I pay a cat sitter to do is scoop solids out of the litter box and replenish litter if necessary. Even when I had friends looking in on my cats, I still hired the sitter to do the cat box duties. You can't leave a litter box unattended for two weeks. I am kind of shocked that people think that 'messing around with cat boxes' is an unreasonable duty for a CAT SITTER, but okay.
Nothing personal, but I'm not hiring an 8 year old child to look after my animals. This is a woman who funds her education with this job and markets herself as a professional who has special skills in caring for animals. I think I can have different expectations than you do.
The bulb in the lamp is the correct wattage, it was the first thing we verified. The SO thinks that the cat could have knocked it over, but even then, it shouldn't have been on. We have timers for strategic lamps when away and the sitter knows this, we don't ask her to turn lights on and off, but I will tell you that previous excellent cat sitters I have used DID also offer that service (along with picking up our mail, which we also didn't ask her to do).
We didn't ask her to turn lights off and on, we just asked her to take care of the cat. She admitted in the note she left that she had turned that light on, but that when she turned it off, she 'noticed' that it was 'crinkled'. I don't think that's what happened.
I realize accidents happen but just come clean and tell me what actually happened and I won't care much. I already told her that it wasn't an expensive lamp and she didn't need to replace it.
She cared for cats in this same apartment for three years and the door was never closed and we had a discussion the first time that I didn't limit the areas the cat could enter except the hall closet, which I keep closed. So that is how I would have expected her to know or at least think "hmmm, the bedroom door is closed, that's weird". But if she had called to say "the cat is acting out" I would have said "is he hiding in the closet" and she would have said "the bedroom door is closed" and, well, voila.
There's a difference between "expressed preference" and "the vet said it would be better if we changed his diet and we're not giving him wet food any more". It's funny, because I told Mr. M. that we should put the food cans away and we just ran out of time so they got put on top of the fridge. I was afraid she was going to do it. (He views it as the cat successfully guilting the sitter into giving him wet food.)
posted by micawber at 10:06 AM on July 26, 2010
I cannot think of one reason to hire this person again. You will have a miserable time when not home worrying about the cat and this person. Why would you hire someone who cannot follow simple instructions?
posted by JohnnyGunn at 10:14 AM on July 26, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by JohnnyGunn at 10:14 AM on July 26, 2010 [2 favorites]
Of course your sitter should clean the cat box, but you haven't established that she didn't. You've established that the cat peed outside the litterbox, which could have other causes - a health issue, or the stress that the sitter was concerned about. Also, the sitter fed the cat wet food because she was concerned that the cat wasn't eating. How is that not a decent reason to put the weight loss program on hold?
The bedroom door being closed -- you're upset that she didn't remember a conversation from 3 years ago?
Obviously she could've discussed some of these issues with you over the phone, but she might've been trying to avoid bothering you. Innocent explanations seem quite plausible here, but you seem to be reaching for worst-case scenarios despite your long and generally positive relationship with this woman. I mean, you're worrying about changing the locks if you stop using her -- where is that coming from?
If you're done, then be done. You don't need to justify anything. But this still sounds salvageable to me.
posted by jon1270 at 10:20 AM on July 26, 2010 [23 favorites]
The bedroom door being closed -- you're upset that she didn't remember a conversation from 3 years ago?
Obviously she could've discussed some of these issues with you over the phone, but she might've been trying to avoid bothering you. Innocent explanations seem quite plausible here, but you seem to be reaching for worst-case scenarios despite your long and generally positive relationship with this woman. I mean, you're worrying about changing the locks if you stop using her -- where is that coming from?
If you're done, then be done. You don't need to justify anything. But this still sounds salvageable to me.
posted by jon1270 at 10:20 AM on July 26, 2010 [23 favorites]
You will never be comfortable with her again, so do not use her again.
That said, I would let her know why you will not be using her again, if only as a professional favor. Helping her understand why her customers are defecting might be a little bit of goodwill in exchange for her 5 years of service.
posted by thejoshu at 10:22 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
That said, I would let her know why you will not be using her again, if only as a professional favor. Helping her understand why her customers are defecting might be a little bit of goodwill in exchange for her 5 years of service.
posted by thejoshu at 10:22 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
Hiring any service, the pros should outweigh the cons. It doesn't sound like this woman is a friend, so you're simply not hiring her again next time you need cat-sitting services. I think the worst thing you're doing right now is driving yourself a little crazy worrying over whether to do it or not.
posted by xingcat at 10:25 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by xingcat at 10:25 AM on July 26, 2010
Do you think she just wasn't scooping the litter and that's why your cat used the rugs instead? Whenever my cats stop using the litterbox it's because they have urinary infections and associate the pain with the box. Just a thought, though the non-scooping is more likely.
I wouldn't use her again simply because she probably didn't scoop the box. I hate, hate, hate urine accidents and the best way to combat them is to keep the litterbox immaculately clean. So, yeah. I wouldn't hire her again. I'd ask for the keys back and find someone else for the next trip.
posted by cooker girl at 10:27 AM on July 26, 2010
I wouldn't use her again simply because she probably didn't scoop the box. I hate, hate, hate urine accidents and the best way to combat them is to keep the litterbox immaculately clean. So, yeah. I wouldn't hire her again. I'd ask for the keys back and find someone else for the next trip.
posted by cooker girl at 10:27 AM on July 26, 2010
While I do think you're overreacting, it's completely within reason to hire another cat sitter next time you go away. Or board the cat. Or have a trusted friend do it in exchange for dinner. You don't need to formally fire her.
I will say though that the lamp think sounds like an innocent accident. She probably turned it on when it was dark and forgot to turn it off. Why was she in your bedroom? Maybe the cat was scared and hiding, and she was looking for him.
posted by AlisonM at 10:27 AM on July 26, 2010
I will say though that the lamp think sounds like an innocent accident. She probably turned it on when it was dark and forgot to turn it off. Why was she in your bedroom? Maybe the cat was scared and hiding, and she was looking for him.
posted by AlisonM at 10:27 AM on July 26, 2010
I wouldn't blame her for the cat peeing on the rug. Cats get anxious, but they also get vindictive. Growing up we had a cat that would do all sorts of nasty things if we were away for a day or two. Peeing on the bathroom rug could have just been the cat saying, "This is what I'm going to do if you leave me. Happy?"
The lamp thing is just bizarre. No lampshade should melt no matter how long the lamp is left on. You're better without that thing in your house.
The rest of the stuff you point out is a little worrisome, though. I've cat sat, and if the cat was doing anything abnormal I let the owners know.
posted by sbutler at 10:29 AM on July 26, 2010
The lamp thing is just bizarre. No lampshade should melt no matter how long the lamp is left on. You're better without that thing in your house.
The rest of the stuff you point out is a little worrisome, though. I've cat sat, and if the cat was doing anything abnormal I let the owners know.
posted by sbutler at 10:29 AM on July 26, 2010
Best answer: I think the thing with the cat pee was that if the sitter had let the OP know the cat was anxious, the OP would have told the sitter to open the bedroom door to give the cat a chance to feel safe and relieve her anxiety. The pee on the rug was more evidence of the cat's unnecessary distress.
posted by amethysts at 10:32 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by amethysts at 10:32 AM on July 26, 2010
It sounds to me like the problem is with the cat, not the sitter. That's not a criticism of the cat, really. But mine pees all over the place every time we go away, regardless of who is watching him and how often his litterbox is cleaned. He's also extremely skittish when being watched, even though he's a sociable kitty generally.
As for the food issue, I understand finding that annoying, but it sounds to me like she did the right thing. If your cat wasn't eating for days, he could have been at a risk for hepatic lipidosis (also, wet food is healthier for cats generally than dry food, particularly male cats, and better for weight control, but I guess that's neither here nor there). I'd always prefer my cat to be eating on a regular basis than not eating and have a serious health problem down the line.
That worried me a little bit, because he only does that when he's very scared, but she said "oh look how cute he's posing for me" so I didn't think anything was amiss.
Seriously, she isn't the cat's normal owner and has no way to know whether this is normal behavior or not. This was your opportunity to ask if anything was up.
I think you should find a new cat sitter because it sounds like you're going to have anxiety the next time you go away. But you might anticipate some of these problems in the future, and make arrangements for peeing/eating issues in advance.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 11:04 AM on July 26, 2010 [3 favorites]
As for the food issue, I understand finding that annoying, but it sounds to me like she did the right thing. If your cat wasn't eating for days, he could have been at a risk for hepatic lipidosis (also, wet food is healthier for cats generally than dry food, particularly male cats, and better for weight control, but I guess that's neither here nor there). I'd always prefer my cat to be eating on a regular basis than not eating and have a serious health problem down the line.
That worried me a little bit, because he only does that when he's very scared, but she said "oh look how cute he's posing for me" so I didn't think anything was amiss.
Seriously, she isn't the cat's normal owner and has no way to know whether this is normal behavior or not. This was your opportunity to ask if anything was up.
I think you should find a new cat sitter because it sounds like you're going to have anxiety the next time you go away. But you might anticipate some of these problems in the future, and make arrangements for peeing/eating issues in advance.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 11:04 AM on July 26, 2010 [3 favorites]
She cared for cats in this same apartment for three years and the door was never closed and we had a discussion the first time that I didn't limit the areas the cat could enter except the hall closet, which I keep closed.
You're overreacting that this person didn't remember something you told her THREE years ago??? And even if she DID remember consider this; while you let your FIRST cat into your bedroom, maybe when she came by and found the door closed she assumed that you didn't want THIS cat into the bedroom.
The lamp needs to be replaced. That's just bizarre. The cat food I will give you. She shouldn't have given wet if you asked her not to.
The bathmat has happened to us. It can be easily missed. Cats like to punish their humans for things - like going on two-week vacations.
I think you should hire a new catsitter, but i also think that if you take such a hard-nosed approach you may very well never find a sitter that you're comfortable with.
Maybe you should board the cat.
posted by Windigo at 11:12 AM on July 26, 2010 [2 favorites]
You're overreacting that this person didn't remember something you told her THREE years ago??? And even if she DID remember consider this; while you let your FIRST cat into your bedroom, maybe when she came by and found the door closed she assumed that you didn't want THIS cat into the bedroom.
The lamp needs to be replaced. That's just bizarre. The cat food I will give you. She shouldn't have given wet if you asked her not to.
The bathmat has happened to us. It can be easily missed. Cats like to punish their humans for things - like going on two-week vacations.
I think you should hire a new catsitter, but i also think that if you take such a hard-nosed approach you may very well never find a sitter that you're comfortable with.
Maybe you should board the cat.
posted by Windigo at 11:12 AM on July 26, 2010 [2 favorites]
1) Lampshades shouldn't melt. Not her fault. You're lucky it didn't melt further on a vacation or something and burn your house down.
2) Bedroom door was closed? I didn't see where you stated it should be left open. Small potatoes. Easily fixed.
3) "The can isn't there and if she gave him 1/4 a can over 4 days there should be food left." Ummmmmmm.... check your math.
And cats pee in weird places when they are stressed out (for instance, when their beloved owner disappears for two weeks). Mine used to drag his crappy ass all over the carpet when I didn't show up for more than 2 days. Count yourself lucky.
You are over-reacting, no maybe about it. However, as others have said, there's no reason you need to hire someone you aren't happy with. Good luck.
posted by Aquaman at 11:19 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
2) Bedroom door was closed? I didn't see where you stated it should be left open. Small potatoes. Easily fixed.
3) "The can isn't there and if she gave him 1/4 a can over 4 days there should be food left." Ummmmmmm.... check your math.
And cats pee in weird places when they are stressed out (for instance, when their beloved owner disappears for two weeks). Mine used to drag his crappy ass all over the carpet when I didn't show up for more than 2 days. Count yourself lucky.
You are over-reacting, no maybe about it. However, as others have said, there's no reason you need to hire someone you aren't happy with. Good luck.
posted by Aquaman at 11:19 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
I think you're overreacting. But, as others have said, it's your cat, and if you don't feel like hiring her again in the future, don't hire her. It's really that simple.
posted by patheral at 11:19 AM on July 26, 2010
posted by patheral at 11:19 AM on July 26, 2010
"You can't leave a litter box unattended for two weeks. I am kind of shocked that people think that 'messing around with cat boxes' is an unreasonable duty for a CAT SITTER, but okay."
What I actually said was that we're not gone long enough for the litter to need changing; I would be upset if I came home and found the litter area in chaos, such as pee on the rugs, because my sitter doesn't "mess around" with that part of the house. And when he does do the litter, he cleans up neatly and handles messes and spills.
"Nothing personal, but I'm not hiring an 8 year old child to look after my animals. This is a woman who funds her education with this job and markets herself as a professional who has special skills in caring for animals. I think I can have different expectations than you do."
You certainly can. However, I'll point out that this 8-year-old carefully follows my instructions and borrows his mom's phone to text me if he's worried the cats are anxious, upset, or behaving oddly or if he isn't sure what to do. That puts my 8-year-old sitter one up on your sitter this time, special skills notwithstanding. That alone would suggest to me that it's time for a new sitter, if an 8-year-old can be trusted to do what your professional cannot.
(And I reiterate that his mom supervises him. But he's very diligent and responsible and my cats think he walks on water.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 11:22 AM on July 26, 2010 [5 favorites]
What I actually said was that we're not gone long enough for the litter to need changing; I would be upset if I came home and found the litter area in chaos, such as pee on the rugs, because my sitter doesn't "mess around" with that part of the house. And when he does do the litter, he cleans up neatly and handles messes and spills.
"Nothing personal, but I'm not hiring an 8 year old child to look after my animals. This is a woman who funds her education with this job and markets herself as a professional who has special skills in caring for animals. I think I can have different expectations than you do."
You certainly can. However, I'll point out that this 8-year-old carefully follows my instructions and borrows his mom's phone to text me if he's worried the cats are anxious, upset, or behaving oddly or if he isn't sure what to do. That puts my 8-year-old sitter one up on your sitter this time, special skills notwithstanding. That alone would suggest to me that it's time for a new sitter, if an 8-year-old can be trusted to do what your professional cannot.
(And I reiterate that his mom supervises him. But he's very diligent and responsible and my cats think he walks on water.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 11:22 AM on July 26, 2010 [5 favorites]
Best answer: I have the *worst* difficulty with petsitters failing to contact me about abnormalities in pet behavior. Despite "please call me about ANYTHING" written multiple times on the feeding schedules etc, I get home to discover weird things have happened and they "didn't want to bother" me during my "vacation." Petsitters who have failed to inform me of things they should range from trusted family to friends to professional petsitters recommended by the vet.
Good luck finding one who will, in fact, contact you on these things. I keep trying and I keep stressing that I want to hear about ANYthing remotely unusual, and they just won't tell me. I find out when I get home..."Oh, she wouldn't eat for the first two and a half days, but we didn't want to make you stressed" [they told me everything was fine, and I could have told them what to do to get her to eat]. "Oh, I didn't understand about the buckets, but I just went ahead and did what I could" [and got it wrong, and left a horse without water for hours]. I'm about ready to refuse to go out of town again for the rest of my life.
I suppose my point is that even if she should have informed you about the anxious behavior--and I certainly would have wanted her to, and would have included written instructions requesting to be informed of any unusual behavior--you may not be able to find someone ELSE who will contact you when the pet seems stressed, either.
posted by galadriel at 11:27 AM on July 26, 2010
Good luck finding one who will, in fact, contact you on these things. I keep trying and I keep stressing that I want to hear about ANYthing remotely unusual, and they just won't tell me. I find out when I get home..."Oh, she wouldn't eat for the first two and a half days, but we didn't want to make you stressed" [they told me everything was fine, and I could have told them what to do to get her to eat]. "Oh, I didn't understand about the buckets, but I just went ahead and did what I could" [and got it wrong, and left a horse without water for hours]. I'm about ready to refuse to go out of town again for the rest of my life.
I suppose my point is that even if she should have informed you about the anxious behavior--and I certainly would have wanted her to, and would have included written instructions requesting to be informed of any unusual behavior--you may not be able to find someone ELSE who will contact you when the pet seems stressed, either.
posted by galadriel at 11:27 AM on July 26, 2010
I agree that you are overracting and probably will defend yourself/your cat to the end.
It seems like you have already made up your mind - so there you go.
posted by KogeLiz at 11:29 AM on July 26, 2010 [5 favorites]
It seems like you have already made up your mind - so there you go.
posted by KogeLiz at 11:29 AM on July 26, 2010 [5 favorites]
You need to be comfortable with the cat sitter. It sounds like this one wasn't entirely honest and/or up front with you and you're never going to get over that. I can understand this. Ask for the keys back. Talk to her if you want, but I would probably just let it go because I personally wouldn't want her to get defensive and have it turn into a really awkward situation.
Anyone that's a professional cat sitter should have seen the cues in the cat's behavior. They should also have noticed the cat urine on the rug. I have cat sat in the past and have had a few different sitters for my cat. Part of the job is to tour the premises, checking for "accidents," be it vomit, urine or feces. And those are signs that the cat is experiencing some kind of mental or physical discomfort.
Bottom line- she should have talked to you. She disregarded your instructions about the wet cat food which either indicates she just didn't care or wasn't listening. The whole situation makes me think that she's probably somewhat spacey and tried to cover things up when she realized that she didn't handle it as well as she should have.
And as an aside, the lamp thing is really strange. If the bedroom door was shut, why was the bedroom lamp on? It sounds to me like she messed up your lamp somehow...whether that was her fault or not, I couldn't say. It probably smelled funky in there so she closed the door and that's why your cat couldn't get in. I have had lampshades melt before, but usually in the case of some weird tampering with it. Once the cat did knock it over, the bulb made contact with the shade and I came home to find the whole works smoking and melting on the floor. Another time was when something was placed on top of the lampshade, blocking the heat from escaping.
I wonder if the funky melted lampshade smell may have contributed to your cat's anxiety.
posted by bristolcat at 11:47 AM on July 26, 2010
Anyone that's a professional cat sitter should have seen the cues in the cat's behavior. They should also have noticed the cat urine on the rug. I have cat sat in the past and have had a few different sitters for my cat. Part of the job is to tour the premises, checking for "accidents," be it vomit, urine or feces. And those are signs that the cat is experiencing some kind of mental or physical discomfort.
Bottom line- she should have talked to you. She disregarded your instructions about the wet cat food which either indicates she just didn't care or wasn't listening. The whole situation makes me think that she's probably somewhat spacey and tried to cover things up when she realized that she didn't handle it as well as she should have.
And as an aside, the lamp thing is really strange. If the bedroom door was shut, why was the bedroom lamp on? It sounds to me like she messed up your lamp somehow...whether that was her fault or not, I couldn't say. It probably smelled funky in there so she closed the door and that's why your cat couldn't get in. I have had lampshades melt before, but usually in the case of some weird tampering with it. Once the cat did knock it over, the bulb made contact with the shade and I came home to find the whole works smoking and melting on the floor. Another time was when something was placed on top of the lampshade, blocking the heat from escaping.
I wonder if the funky melted lampshade smell may have contributed to your cat's anxiety.
posted by bristolcat at 11:47 AM on July 26, 2010
she gave him wet food to help coax his appetite. This despite a note from me - twice - stressing that we had decided to not give him wet food any longer...
I wouldn't even consider using this person again.
posted by coolguymichael at 11:47 AM on July 26, 2010
I wouldn't even consider using this person again.
posted by coolguymichael at 11:47 AM on July 26, 2010
Best answer: Cat-sitter here with 20 years of experience. I follow orders, and very long, complicated written notes. Nothing more, nothing less. Give this cat the round pill, give the other one the square pill. Put your foot between the two cat dishes while they're eating, so they won't eat each other's food. Please keep the shirt that smells like me at the foot of the bed. Etc.
If they're stressed, I don't do anything that' s not written in the instructions because hey, I can't help it that the owner went away, and the cat will get over it soon enough. I report unusual behaviors, if they ask me to, like the time when after 10 years of not doing so, they suddenly started pooping outside the box.
I make it clear that I won't do anything that is outside their long list of instructions. I'm not the biggest cat person; I don't look at a cat and try to figure out how they're feeling or be empathetic, or spend hours at a time playing with them of my own volition. (No, I don't ignore them either.) But, I will follow specific instructions.
It sounds like this person, as a vet tech, has her own ideas of how to take care of a cat, which means not following your instructions, which is not good for you. Find someone who won't overthink your cat, and who can follow instructions. Good luck.
posted by Melismata at 11:55 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
If they're stressed, I don't do anything that' s not written in the instructions because hey, I can't help it that the owner went away, and the cat will get over it soon enough. I report unusual behaviors, if they ask me to, like the time when after 10 years of not doing so, they suddenly started pooping outside the box.
I make it clear that I won't do anything that is outside their long list of instructions. I'm not the biggest cat person; I don't look at a cat and try to figure out how they're feeling or be empathetic, or spend hours at a time playing with them of my own volition. (No, I don't ignore them either.) But, I will follow specific instructions.
It sounds like this person, as a vet tech, has her own ideas of how to take care of a cat, which means not following your instructions, which is not good for you. Find someone who won't overthink your cat, and who can follow instructions. Good luck.
posted by Melismata at 11:55 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: To close this out: I had emailed her last night with a version of the above, stressing that I know that she cared about the cat and had his best interests at heart.
Her response was very similar to ones noted - she thought she could handle it, she didn't want to 'bother' me on vacation with something she could handle, she should have called, she would call again.
Given the existing relationship I would probably try her again for a short trip and see how it goes, before trying to find a new cat sitter. There aren't a lot of good ones out there.
posted by micawber at 12:02 PM on July 26, 2010
Her response was very similar to ones noted - she thought she could handle it, she didn't want to 'bother' me on vacation with something she could handle, she should have called, she would call again.
Given the existing relationship I would probably try her again for a short trip and see how it goes, before trying to find a new cat sitter. There aren't a lot of good ones out there.
posted by micawber at 12:02 PM on July 26, 2010
I dunno. It all seems a bit strange to me. When I go away, I give a neigbour a key and ask her nicely to feed the cat once a day at her convenience. I leave the food and her bowls on the table. That's it. I have used a number of different neighbours and a professional cat sitter (once) and been happy with all of them. The pro cat sitter wrote a nice kitty diary; the neigbours only cost me a bottle of wine. The cat was cool with all of them.
posted by rhymer at 12:16 PM on July 26, 2010
posted by rhymer at 12:16 PM on July 26, 2010
Get a new cat sitter if you need one, and yes she should have contacted you before changing his food, but understand that animals who are stressed will act strangely.
I just watched my neighbor's dog for a week while they were gone on vacation. She is a very anxious dog with a lot of separation anxiety because she was found abandoned. I stayed with her 4-6 hours every morning and 2-3 every evening. Most of the evening hours were spent outside, and still I came in twice to find she had pooped in the house. She also somehow figured out how to open the bedroom doors, because I shut them tight and I would come in to open doors in the morning. Only 2 times during that entire week did she eat more than a few bites of her food. So yes, a stressed animal is going to act weird.
posted by IndigoRain at 1:00 PM on July 26, 2010
I just watched my neighbor's dog for a week while they were gone on vacation. She is a very anxious dog with a lot of separation anxiety because she was found abandoned. I stayed with her 4-6 hours every morning and 2-3 every evening. Most of the evening hours were spent outside, and still I came in twice to find she had pooped in the house. She also somehow figured out how to open the bedroom doors, because I shut them tight and I would come in to open doors in the morning. Only 2 times during that entire week did she eat more than a few bites of her food. So yes, a stressed animal is going to act weird.
posted by IndigoRain at 1:00 PM on July 26, 2010
I have house/cat sat for multiple friends/acquaintances over the years, and I have to say that your post made me feel pretty defensive. Let me attempt to address your points from another point of view:
1. The lampshade:
Like others said, she probably put the light on because she wasn't comfortable leaving the house dark when you weren't home. Heck, she probably did it for the cat, if he seemed nervous. It's not unreasonable for her to have done that. It's the fault of the lampshade, not the sitter.
2) In the note, she said the cat kept scratching on the bedroom door. we didn't close the bedroom door, but the wind could have blown it shut (we have a doorstop in place so it doesn't do that, but it could have gotten loose if the wind was bad enough).
So why don't you think this is the reason? Why is this a problem?
3) She said that he seemed anxious and wasn't eating well, so she gave him wet food to help coax his appetite. This despite a note from me - twice - stressing that we had just been to the vet and we had decided to not give him wet food any longer because of a weight issue. I also take issue with the alleged amount she claims she gave him. The can isn't there and if she gave him 1/4 a can over 4 days (also curious) there should be food left.
I can see why you didn't like this, but if it were my call, and the cat hadn't eaten for several days, I might try the same thing. Did you have the wet cat food at the house? If she found a can in the pantry, and used only a 1/4 can over 4 days (and why would she lie about this?) Then that's just a spoonful a day. I can't believe you actually looked for the can! Isn't it reasonable that she would have thrown out any unused cat food so it wouldn't be stinky/gross when you got home?
Now, if she had sent a text or called to say "the dude seems anxious" we could have talked about it and I could have discovered the bedroom door issue, which would have probably solved everything. He had nowhere to go and hide. i would be anxious too.
And finally, the wet spots on the rug. Your cat was stressed. You left, and a strange person came once a day to touch his litterbox. She has no control over this, and it's not so uncommon a thing anyway. Also, if it was still wet, it may have happened when you came home....some pets hate change, even the change of you coming home.
So let me say that, yes, you are over-reacting. In fact, it's really pretty insulting to someone who cared enough to send you pictures of your cat while your away. She told you all sorts of things that obviously pissed you off, so why would she hide anything else? Your cat was fed, monitored, and is safe. His mental health is not your pet sitters concern, and very likely not within her power to change. You can try to get a house-sitter if you're that concerned about the day to day workings of your cat's head, but really, any stranger in the house is going to cause even more stress (and given your anxiety with only a daily visitor, I can only imagine how you would react to someone in your home.)
So, let me re-list your concerns: the bedroom light was left on, the bedroom door blew closed, your cat ate some wet food and he missed the litter box. He sounds like a cat, and your house sounds like a house. None of these things are out of the ordinary, and I really can't see why you'd think she'd call you for any of them.
I think the question should be not whether you use this pet-sitter in the future, but how did you get so lucky to have one that would actually want to come back after being the target of so much suspicion? Maybe you should just board the cat next time and save everyone the stress.
posted by The Light Fantastic at 1:08 PM on July 26, 2010 [10 favorites]
1. The lampshade:
Like others said, she probably put the light on because she wasn't comfortable leaving the house dark when you weren't home. Heck, she probably did it for the cat, if he seemed nervous. It's not unreasonable for her to have done that. It's the fault of the lampshade, not the sitter.
2) In the note, she said the cat kept scratching on the bedroom door. we didn't close the bedroom door, but the wind could have blown it shut (we have a doorstop in place so it doesn't do that, but it could have gotten loose if the wind was bad enough).
So why don't you think this is the reason? Why is this a problem?
3) She said that he seemed anxious and wasn't eating well, so she gave him wet food to help coax his appetite. This despite a note from me - twice - stressing that we had just been to the vet and we had decided to not give him wet food any longer because of a weight issue. I also take issue with the alleged amount she claims she gave him. The can isn't there and if she gave him 1/4 a can over 4 days (also curious) there should be food left.
I can see why you didn't like this, but if it were my call, and the cat hadn't eaten for several days, I might try the same thing. Did you have the wet cat food at the house? If she found a can in the pantry, and used only a 1/4 can over 4 days (and why would she lie about this?) Then that's just a spoonful a day. I can't believe you actually looked for the can! Isn't it reasonable that she would have thrown out any unused cat food so it wouldn't be stinky/gross when you got home?
Now, if she had sent a text or called to say "the dude seems anxious" we could have talked about it and I could have discovered the bedroom door issue, which would have probably solved everything. He had nowhere to go and hide. i would be anxious too.
And finally, the wet spots on the rug. Your cat was stressed. You left, and a strange person came once a day to touch his litterbox. She has no control over this, and it's not so uncommon a thing anyway. Also, if it was still wet, it may have happened when you came home....some pets hate change, even the change of you coming home.
So let me say that, yes, you are over-reacting. In fact, it's really pretty insulting to someone who cared enough to send you pictures of your cat while your away. She told you all sorts of things that obviously pissed you off, so why would she hide anything else? Your cat was fed, monitored, and is safe. His mental health is not your pet sitters concern, and very likely not within her power to change. You can try to get a house-sitter if you're that concerned about the day to day workings of your cat's head, but really, any stranger in the house is going to cause even more stress (and given your anxiety with only a daily visitor, I can only imagine how you would react to someone in your home.)
So, let me re-list your concerns: the bedroom light was left on, the bedroom door blew closed, your cat ate some wet food and he missed the litter box. He sounds like a cat, and your house sounds like a house. None of these things are out of the ordinary, and I really can't see why you'd think she'd call you for any of them.
I think the question should be not whether you use this pet-sitter in the future, but how did you get so lucky to have one that would actually want to come back after being the target of so much suspicion? Maybe you should just board the cat next time and save everyone the stress.
posted by The Light Fantastic at 1:08 PM on July 26, 2010 [10 favorites]
Really? You would try giving food you'd been told not to give before even *contacting* the owner and asking for further instructions? And meanwhile assuring the owner that everything was fine?
WHY?
Maybe you *should* be feeling defensive.
Because it's not a kid with a peanut allergy. If the owner had told me that they were trying to wean the cat off of wet food, and I knew it wasn't a danger to its health, AND they had the food at their house, I might give it a try. I said I could see why the owner wouldn't like it, it's a judgement call, but it certainly doesn't merit a call to the owner on their vacation. Really, it doesn't. The pet sitter told them what she did, she obviously didn't think it was a big deal either. I'm going to bow out now, because this handwringing is bordering on the ludicrous. Thank you to everyone who has reminded me why I never decided to do this for a living!
posted by The Light Fantastic at 1:57 PM on July 26, 2010 [2 favorites]
WHY?
Maybe you *should* be feeling defensive.
Because it's not a kid with a peanut allergy. If the owner had told me that they were trying to wean the cat off of wet food, and I knew it wasn't a danger to its health, AND they had the food at their house, I might give it a try. I said I could see why the owner wouldn't like it, it's a judgement call, but it certainly doesn't merit a call to the owner on their vacation. Really, it doesn't. The pet sitter told them what she did, she obviously didn't think it was a big deal either. I'm going to bow out now, because this handwringing is bordering on the ludicrous. Thank you to everyone who has reminded me why I never decided to do this for a living!
posted by The Light Fantastic at 1:57 PM on July 26, 2010 [2 favorites]
There's a difference between "expressed preference" and "the vet said it would be better if we changed his diet and we're not giving him wet food any more".
This. There's a BIG difference here. If there is a specific reason YOUR vet has advised against the wet food, then she should have respected that. Leaving everything else aside, the fact is, she overrode your stated directions AND appears to have lied about them, too (given that the amount she claims to have fed him doesn't match up with what's left) doesn't speak too well for her professionalism.
I'd find another sitter, as difficult as it might be.
posted by bitter-girl.com at 2:45 PM on July 26, 2010
This. There's a BIG difference here. If there is a specific reason YOUR vet has advised against the wet food, then she should have respected that. Leaving everything else aside, the fact is, she overrode your stated directions AND appears to have lied about them, too (given that the amount she claims to have fed him doesn't match up with what's left) doesn't speak too well for her professionalism.
I'd find another sitter, as difficult as it might be.
posted by bitter-girl.com at 2:45 PM on July 26, 2010
Is there a reason you didn't call to check in on the sitter? My s/o calls/texts every day even when she's away for just two days.
You're blaming someone for the cumulative 'best decisions' - and your question does have you come off a bit 'stressed'.
Next time you travel, why not use two sitters alternating days?
posted by filmgeek at 3:27 PM on July 26, 2010
You're blaming someone for the cumulative 'best decisions' - and your question does have you come off a bit 'stressed'.
Next time you travel, why not use two sitters alternating days?
posted by filmgeek at 3:27 PM on July 26, 2010
Nthing the disregard of feeding instructions as a huge red flag.
posted by jgirl at 3:43 PM on July 26, 2010
posted by jgirl at 3:43 PM on July 26, 2010
I don't think you are overreacting AT ALL. I wouldn't hire this person again.
You don't say where you are. If you are in Denver, I have the best catsitter and would be happy to give you her contact information.
She actually does leave me little notes every day. She comes over, hangs out with the cats and writes a note about what is going on that day. She spends about half an hour per day with the cats so they don't feel lonely. She gets mail, waters plants, varies the lights (overheads only so as to not cause a fire) and of course, maintains the litter box.
You should expect nothing less from a professional.
posted by Sheppagus at 1:11 PM on July 27, 2010
You don't say where you are. If you are in Denver, I have the best catsitter and would be happy to give you her contact information.
She actually does leave me little notes every day. She comes over, hangs out with the cats and writes a note about what is going on that day. She spends about half an hour per day with the cats so they don't feel lonely. She gets mail, waters plants, varies the lights (overheads only so as to not cause a fire) and of course, maintains the litter box.
You should expect nothing less from a professional.
posted by Sheppagus at 1:11 PM on July 27, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by amethysts at 9:45 AM on July 26, 2010 [1 favorite]