Cat kennel??

Hey everyone...
In September I'm going on a almost 2 week vacation with most of my family and I was debating about whether or not I should leave my cat, Ramses, home alone to be cared for by a cousin who would come every day or so to visit/feed/change litter or should I check him into a cat kennel so he gets the attention he gets with me?? A lot of ppl I talk to, say that he will be fine alone and its crazy to spend money on a kennel. They also say that its just a *cat* and there's no point...But i feel that if I left him alone, he would become too lonely. I've left him alone for weekends at a time and he's been fine(enough food and water of course). But I've always noticed that he is lonely when I get back cause he cuddles more than usual..He's a very friendly cat who likes to be with people(actually just me) and I would hate him to be stuck in a lonely house for such a long time. I know my cousin would make sure his litter is clean and he has food/water, but I doubt she would just chill with him giving him the attention he wants...What should i do??

-Nicole

He would be much more comfortable staying at home in familiar surroundings where there are no new smells, sounds, people, etc. Cats are very stressed out by change and boarding a cat should be a last resort option. The best thing for your cat would be to have your friend come over and feed it and change the litter every day. You can leave a lot of toys around the house for your cat to find and play with. It will be just fine for 2 weeks. It's not about the $ at all, it's that it would be so much more stressful to be in a kennel/boarding facility than to be able to stay home.

Of course he will be happy to see you when you return There are a lot of toys that are great for self-entertainment. The Turbo Chaser comes to mind but I know I've seen several at the pet store. You could hide mice and catnip all over for it. Maybe your friend can play with it for 5-10 minutes every day with Da Bird?

If you're willing to spend money on boarding, have you considered a professional pet sitter? A good professional will do whatever you wish--including play time with the cat. Sometimes a friend or relative who is doing you a favor will only provide minimal care--especially if you know people who say, "It's only a cat." It's not "only"--it's a member of your family! I am as concerned with the care of my cat as I would be with the care of my child!

I've used sitters for 18 years, but I will admit that during that time I've had a couple of "lemons"--e.g., although I would stress the importance of scooping the litter box daily, if I came home unexpectedly early (as sometimes happened when I was on business trips), I would find a filthy litter box.

So if you decide to go with a professional sitter, but sure to get references (that's not uncommon because I've frequently had my good sitters use me as a reference for them) to insure that you're getting a good person.

Be sure to leave written instructions and contact information--a good sitter will ask you to do so, so that's something else to look for.