Better to leave my cat alone for a week, or take him to a friend's house?

A week is a long time to be on his own. Can you get a petsitter?

Ah, sorry, just reread and saw the note about friends coming by. Personally, I would be a bit nervous about putting him into an entirely new environment with entirely new people. I always worry about a pet slipping out of an open door and being lost. But I’m kinda paranoid about things like that.

Milo here: Speaking as the king to the prince consort: Leave him home and have visitors drop by at a minimum of every other day. And I would also make sure your friends are willing to clean out the litter box. A week is a long time to not flush the toilet.

@syz I can arrange for someone to be there each day. My neighbors have fallen in love with him.

@syz My thought as well was that an entirely new surrounding would probably be more stressful than the boredom and loneliness.

My experience has been that they are more comfortable in familiar surroundings, as long as there is someone providing care.

Milo here: I like that best. I can’t even go to the vet’s without getting carsick.

Have your buddies bring their mice to your apartment while you are gone. It will keep Basil busy when he gets bored with reading, TV, or shredding your keyboard.

I agree with @Milo. Basil will be able to form new booby traps and maybe get a new security system.

When I had a cat and had to be gone for an extended period of time, I paid my neighbor’s daughter to feed her and clean the litter box.

Cats are predators and unlike dogs, very self sufficient. Make sure he is not locked in the house and he will do just fine.

Make sure the neighbors (or your friends) have your contact information, the phone number for your vet, and a signed consent form giving them the right to make medical decisions on your behalf (if you will be unavailable by phone).

Have people stop by! Cats do fine by themselfs, they don’t need like 100% attention.

@all: It’s really about which is less traumatic: new environment with more attention, or familiar environment with less frequent loving.

My cats barely notice when I’m gone. Ingrates.

I am the regional cat-sitter because my friends like to travel and I don’t. It’s fun; a little visit, a little view of how other cats compare to you-know-who and the knowledge that I can redeem the favor.

I think we all agree that the old environment with a smidge less loving is best; leave your classical radio on low if you feel too guilty.

(Or just leave Basil with Ben and Occ, who will teach him how to light the menorah.)

I used to leave the TV on and have food/water/litter replaced daily. Random always seemed fine when I got back.

R.I.P

cats can’t light the menorah. they can’t pronounce the “ch” sounds in the Hebrew prayers.

My only problem with having people in is the chance of the cat escaping out the door and strangers not being able to catch him. If he has that tendency then I recommend a cattery or kennel. Much less danger of escape.

If he is a laid back lazy cat and doesn’t seem to want to sneak out the door for an adventure in the wild, then I would let him at home.

Home with visitors. Make sure it’s someone you know will look out for Basil. You need someone who will watch out for open doors and other things that might hurt him, to make sure he is eating and eliminating, and that he is healthy.

Some cats are good with change. I can take my baby boy anywhere and he will make himself at home. But unless Basil is that type of cat, being in his own surroundings will definitely be the least stressful option.

MIlo here; Basil is a high-strung, prima donna who cannot even drive his own motorcycle.

If you have Trustworthy friends that can check on him REGULARLY and will spend a little time with him , give him fresh food ‘n water , change his litter box etc…. THAT would be the best route to go…

That would allow him to remain in HIS home – teritory where he is comfortable and safe…

I’d suggest that you leave a TV or radio on for him to give him the constant Human Companionship feelings when no one else is there with him…

@tinyfaery That’s where I’m a little conflicted—Basil does really well in new situations (except in the car to the vet), but really wants attention.

Perhaps I’ll take him over for a test run sometime this week and see how he does for a couple of hours.

@andrew If it goes well, maybe Basil can have his own little vacation.

If he’s a social cat, I say take him to your friends. I would think the mousing would be very exciting for him!

We usually have a friend come by and care for our cats when we’re away.

Warning though: My cousin assumed we had left the tv on for the cats (I’m sorry, but leaving a tv on 24/7 for a cat just seems ridiculous to me) apparently I had forgotten to turn it off, but he left it on for almost 5 days. Let them know to turn appliances off if needed.

My one cat does very poorly out of his own environment. He can’t even go into the car for a short trip to the vet without crapping himself. literally So, it has always worked best for us.

@casheroo lololol…errr..lol4rl

I would just leave him at home and have people drop by daily or every other day. My cats stay at home when I go out of town, and someone come by to check on them, they do well.

Cats often weird out in a new environment, so it is better just to have someone drop by, as @casheroo has said. Your cat might get around to marking his new territory if he goes to your friend’s house, which is not fun for anyone.

Has your cat ever seen a mouse? I always thought cats naturally took to chasing a mouse. Once we had a mouse under the stove, and while the cats were curious, once the mouse got out in the open, they looked at it with the ‘what the hell?” look. There was no chasing happening in that kitchen. We had to resort to a mouse trap.

It is stressful for a cat to be moved from its usual environment. The fact that you are not there is more added stress. I would opt to leave Basil at home in a familiar surrounding as long as you are going to have friends drop in a couple of times to visit, change the litter, water and make sure he is eating and has food. Leave a t.v. or radio or both on for him so it isn’t silent. Don’t be surprised if Basil isn’t happy to see you when you return. My cat used to give me the cold shoulder for 3 days after I returned from a vacation. She wanted to make sure I knew she didn’t miss me :) Good luck.

I’d leave it home. And be prepared for weirdness. When I left for a weekend my cat used to drag my stuff (socks if he could find them) into his litterbox.