Pet Sitting in Pet Sitter's Home?

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

Hello!

I know there have been a lot of pet sitter recs here, but I'm looking for something I haven't seen advertised. Does anybody know of a good cat-sitter who can keep my cat in his/her home for a little over a week? My cat is very needy and people-dependent so I'd like for him to be somewhere that somebody would be around, even if he didn't get constant attention. He gets along with other animals but the only caveat is that he can only eat his special prescription food.

All his healthcare needs are up to date and I'd of course bring said special food, leave vet info, bring him to you/pick him up, all that stuff.

Does anybody have any recommendations or want a sweet kitty and some extra cash?

Comments

[nyusha81.livejournal.com]

does he get along with other cats? How long exactly are you gone for?

[magg1es.livejournal.com]

I could take him for a bit. I'm home a lot. I'm looking to adopt soon, and it would be great to have a kitty around to see how it goes! I grew up around cats (we have 7 nearly all the time), so I definitely know how to care for them!

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

Great. I'm sending you a message now. :)

[justjess.livejournal.com]

I would be able and happy to keep an eye on him depending on when you'd be gone. I have a kitty here--she's 2, very sweet and gentle, gets along with others--and I've had cats my entire life, including raising a litter of kittens last spring/summer. I also have experience with special needs kitties and kitties on specific diets, and I've pet-sat many times in a past. Feel free to send a message if you would like to talk more.

[m00n.livejournal.com]

If you Google "Pet sitter Boston" or "pet sitter cambridge" you get several different companies around here that do in-home pet sitting. I don't have any personal experience with any of them, however.

That said, I'll see your prescription diet fed cat and raise him one entirely raw elk-meat fed cat recovering from IBD. ;-)

[m00n.livejournal.com]

btw,

[sparkgrrl658.livejournal.com]

awesome.

i just had to put my dog on a prescription diet and read the ingredients list as soon as i got home. i'm...not impressed but torn because i want him to feel better :/

[m00n.livejournal.com]

I would do a little Googling if I were you. I do not want to tell you how to feed your pet but what I can say is that there is very little about the "prescription" food that is in any way inherently medicinal, and as far as quality goes it is some of the lowest in the industry. ALL of the vets sell the stuff and as far as I can tell, it is a racket. To top it off, people's track record with treating illness with the Hill's food isn't exactly great either.

[sparkgrrl658.livejournal.com]

have any good references in particular? i don't want to be one of those idiots who just goes by whatever the pet equivalent of webmd is ;p

years ago, my aunt had this dachshund that i loved to death. he was so smart, amazing temperment, and he lived to be about 20 when they finally put him down. and he was on science diet his whole life. so, when i got my first dog, that's what i fed, but then i started getting really serious about the food stuff, and curious as well. i switched to honest kitchen, but for a few reasons i had to take them off that and went back to a more 'regular' but very high quality dry food. when my old dog started losing weight rapidly, i was desperate. i eventually found he would eat the food logs, and i'd mix in some other 'human' stuff as well. but he still wasn't gaining weight. we're talking ribs showing here, so, i'm just wary to try other things, you know?

i've heard people having good luck or no luck with prescription diets, and many will also argue hill's prescription is so much different/better than the science diet, which imho is bs. there are some other marginally better brands that have prescription foods and, actually the one this (new) vet forked over to me isn't even hill's, and is a brand i'd otherwise never touch. i don't think it's a racket across the board (namely because my old vet still recommended i added a special dental food to the other food i was feeding, even though because my roommate worked for him i got it at wholesale minus 10%.) but totally can see that angle also. sucks though, i've really loved my vets for all other aspects, but never found one really willing to discuss the food issues/options outside of cheapo commercial stuff.

(ps apologies for post/thread hijacking, i realize this isn't a pet advice comm!)

[pensivewombat.livejournal.com]

So, allow me to mini-hijack this post as well :) i'll be brief, i swear.

The aforementioned/pictured raw-fed cat is also mine, and a lot of the research that we did that m00n is referring to came from this site (http://www.catnutrition.org). It's a good amount of reading, but the woman who maintains it is not a crackpot and sets up very good medical and nutritional arguments. She also references a number of good books about the subject (like this one (http://www.amazon.com/Whole-Health-Happy-Cats-Naturally/dp/1592532667), and this one (http://books.google.com/books?id=gFs1IBIhtx8C&dq=raising+cats+naturally&printsec=frontcover&source=bn&hl=en&ei=t4xgSvWuOc_ZlAez9cXyCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4). We own both and they've been immeasurably helpful for us, esp. with regard to proper vitamin ratios, natural remedies and the like.). The only bad part about this for you is: there is a wealth of information out there regarding raw-feeding your cats, but there is significantly LESS info about raw-feeding dogs. The author of catnutrition.org links to this site (http://www.blakkatz.com/spellcast/rawdiet.html) for dogs as a good starting point. i don't own a dog, so i can't speak to the benefits / draw backs of raw food for them.

i can totally relate to your dachshund story: i had a beloved cat growing up that pretty much ate Meow Mix and whatever she caught outside, and she lived to be 21. Some animals really can thrive on commercial food. i guess i wouldn't be such a proponent of raw feeding if i hadn't watched my current cat nearly die from IBD on a dry food diet. After the switch to raw, my cat's fur looks amazing, his little belly pooch disappeared and most importantly, he no longer has diarrhea 18+ times a day. Bonus: he LOVES the food! End result: it works wonders for our cat, but your mileage may vary. :)

[sparkgrrl658.livejournal.com]

thank you SO MUCH.

yes, my dog was just diagnosed with IBS(d? etc) and it is killing ME to watch also. i'm so glad your kitty is better, and between this and some googling last night, i know have a jump off point :D

[pensivewombat.livejournal.com]

Your very welcome! :) Especially if your dog has IBD, do research raw / grain free diets - raw food is often prescribed by holistic vets as a treatment for this disease. Another site you can check out for forums on dog health and nutrition is Dogster.com - these are lay people for the most part, but sometimes it can be helpful (i used it to help my mom find food options for her pug). Good luck, and if you have any other questions, totally feel free to send me a message! i hope your dog feels better soon.

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

I did some research on this a while back, convinced that there must be some sort of hippie cat food that would work just the same. But all I know is that when my cat ate other food, his fur fell out. I think his prescription food has proteins that are more easily digestible, and my cat's immune system isn't that great. In a few years when he's recovered more from his street life, I might try slowly introducing something else. Obviously, mileage varies, though, and there aren't always knowledgeable, straightforward vets to provide good advice.

[soft-shoulder.livejournal.com]

That is one handsome feline!

[m00n.livejournal.com]

Yes. He wears a brown, 70s-style tuxedo jacket with elbow pads at all times.

I could do it!

[wheeiminvisible.livejournal.com]

Hi,

I could definitely take your kitty in if you still need someone. I have grown up with cats, and have lived with at least one cat at all times for the last 22 years until my cat passed away from renal failure a couple of months ago. So, I know a good amount about taking care of them and am used to handling some special medical needs. I miss having a cat around and would be happy to help you out if you're still looking for someone!

Re: I could do it!

[mermaidcafe.livejournal.com]

Messaging you now!