How Many Visits for Cats are Needed

Some people ask us if we do extended cat care visits (over two weeks in duration) and if we would perform such on an every other day basis instead of every day.   Yes, we do offer extended cat care visits, and we do offer every other day visits too provided certain variables are met.

When it comes to wanting every other day visits for kitties in order to save a little money on pet care, we understand that people want to save as much money as possible, which is especially important during these difficult economic times.   We are completely in favor of such–and wholeheartedly understand ourselves just how important it is to get the best service for the best price!  When it comes to the safety and well-being of fur-kids, however, making sure that they are safe and happy is our number one priority.

Luna getting love

Many people tend to be of the same mindset that cats are independent and can take care of themselves; they only need to be checked on “once in a while” or “once-a-week”.  Yes, cats are more independent when compared to dogs but they still have to be regularly fed, still need to be provided fresh water (at least every other day), still require (and want) attention and can get into just as much trouble as any other animal can inside the house or otherwise 😉

Cats who are family companions are not the same as feral cats who are used to fending for themselves.  Companion cats are familiar with their family members, used to a certain amount of attention, as well as, the comings and goings of their family members day-in and day-out.  Some of them are just as used to–and rely on–their routine just as much as we do as humans in our daily lives (speaking for those of us who operate by routines by-choice or maybe not by-choice but out of necessity).

So answering the question as to whether or not we offer every other day visits, the following conditions have to be met:

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• There have to be two or more cats (to keep each other company) that can interact with one another
• All cats must be under the age of 10 years old
• All cats must not be suffering from a known medical condition that requires more attention than a one visit every other day offers

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If all three conditions above are not met, than our policy is to perform no less than one visit on a daily basis.   It’s important to note that this article is centering around long-term cat visits, which we equate to 14+ consecutive days (not visits we perform but days that you are out of town).

Piggy-back rides for Mr. Brown

Cats have a tendency to get lonely (sometimes with another cat to play with, one or both can still get lonely but it isn’t as likely as one-cat-only households) and this can cause them to get stressed out.  A stressed out kitty can become really sick.  And even though we’ve never had a kitty get so stressed out that they have become severely ill, we have had kitties exhibit signs of stress just from sheer loneliness (if you think about it, one visit every other day equates to 30 minutes of care and attention in a 48-hour period).

When all of the above conditions are met, and we agree to perform every other day visits, we still will be closely monitoring how your kitties are fairing.  If, for whatever reason, they start to express signs of loneliness, we will state such to the owners within our visit update that we send typically via email or text at the conclusion of each visit.  It is at this time that we’ll inform the owners that the visit schedule has to be bumped up to at least one visit every day, as opposed to, one visit every other day.  The difference is then billed to the owners and the balance is due and payable shortly after they return home safely.

If you have any questions about this topic or any other, please feel free to email us info@kypsah.com.