It's time to say goodbye, and it breaks my heart

Vacation time has rolled around again and as much as I look forward to going and someone very trusted will stay here with TTP&B, it still crushes me to leave them............

How do you all handle it???

Originally Posted by kittylover4ever

How do you all handle it???

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Easy! I don't go anywhere!

I went away for 5 days in 2003 and missed my kitties terribly! My nephew stayed here to look after them and while I knew they were being taken care of, that didn't ease my mind at all.

We have managed our recent vacations around DH staying with Ben while Jen and I went to Europe or DH and I went on vacation and Jenny could stay home with Ben.

This October and next May, DH, Ben and I will be going to upstate NY for awards for Jenny and her college graduation. I don't know what to do about Butzie. I have a pet sitter for my budgies and I am sure she can take care of Butzie but I still worry. I wish that it was after we come home in October to let you know how it goes.
Come to think of it, the bird sitter is great and I shouldn't be worried about Butzie because she always has the pet's best interest in mind and I trust her.

Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

Easy! I don't go anywhere!

I went away for 5 days in 2003 and missed my kitties terribly! My nephew stayed here to look after them and while I knew they were being taken care of, that didn't ease my mind at all.

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I don't go anywhere either!

I have not had a Vacation in years. I am afraid to leave my Cats alone.

Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

Easy! I don't go anywhere!

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We don't go anywhere either! The extent of our "vacations" are a one-day trip down to Galveston.

Even if I could find someone who I knew & trusted well enough to take care of the babies, I still wouldn't be able to go anywhere for too long, b/c Geronimo & Winchester HAVE to have their FIP treatments - and no one else would be able to administer it to them besides myself..

I wish I could say to you that you won't miss them and worry about them, but I don't think that's gonna happen - even if you do have someone you trust to take care of them. I think it's a Meowmy "qualification" or something..

But I think your furbies will be perfectly fine.

The lady who looked after my cats moved but I have used my neighbors and a family friend in the past. I called them well I restrained myself to call every other day!!
Never any problems but I still worry.

We have some good neighbors and friends that we trust to take care of the pets. Its not healthy to be that attached that you cannot enjoy yourself on vacation.

While you might miss them, you should go and enjoy yourself so you can spoil them when you return. Vacations should be happy, not sad.

We sometime take overnight trips and the cats are fine.
Otherwise, last year we bought a travel trailer and before that it was a cab-over camper. We just take the cats with us. Much nicer with the trailer, a little home away from home. Since Siam passed in May, and we got Thai, we have not been on vacation yet. (had to spend 2 weeks laid up with a badly sprained ankle) Hopefully we'll take off this fall for a bit. Spud is quite the camping kitty, he's just happy to be along. We'll see how Thai takes it, but it shouldn't be a problem.
Hope you have a good time. I know how it is to miss and worry about the kids. I still worry even if we leave them overnight.

I don't leave!

Ask sharky about me flipping out when I took her PJ & Punky. Mom lost one of the dogs, forgot to feed Bea for a day, didn't scoop the LBs......

I just worry the whole time! We have a housesitter we trust, and I can email for updates while we're away, and I know they're fine , because we get back and they're happy, and not at all stressed out.

I hate seeing their little faces when i leave them, but i know they'll be well looked after by my best friend Pam who goes down every day to feed them and scoup their boxes. She also sends me a text every time she's been in to let me know their ok

I love the day when i'm travelling back though because i know they'll be pleased to see me as much as i am them

i know both sides of this as i pet sit for friends of mine. the first time i stayed there (with 9 cats and 7 dogs! ) i remember the huge list my friend left! oh and there were fish tanks indoors and a fish pond outside to look after too!

the funniest thing was the animals reactions though. all the cats were (sadly she is down to 1 now ) home bred persians and persian x's. the boys were all fine straight away but the girls, in particular a beautiful tortie persian x named calico, were very put out. in fact calico did not come in until late at night despite me calling and calling her. she took a good week to suss me out and when she did, boy did i know about it!

she would follow me around and demand attention, scratching the side of the chair if i hadn't noticed her quickly enough!

all the animals accepted me as 'temporary' mum even rod's beloved cocker spaniel petra. she became my shadow while dad was away!

the biggest compliment i got was my friends telling me how they knew the animals were happy with me. they could see how relaxed all the animals were when they returned, in particular the cats lack of reaction to their arrival!

however, i will be going away for the weekend in september with dh and i'm worried! my son is staying home and i know he will be ok but i can't help those little nagging doubts. will he remember to shut the windows in the bathroom? will he make sure the litterbox is cleaned?

this is why i have only been away once in the last 15 years!

We don't leave that often, but when we do I always make sure I have as much "automation" as possible--they have a fountain and a batter operated feeder as backup. I always have at least a couple of lights on timers. My brother comes over to check on them and clean the litterboxes, give them wet food. I know he will take good care of them because he has his own special needs kitty, but still I worry...and they stick to me like glue when I come back

I see I'm not alone........I know we can't not go places because our babies are so important to us. Life is to live, but when you have feline or canine babies, you just think in the back of your mind, "no one can/will care for them like I do" We usually go away once a year and when we get back, they are fine........but I just wish we could pack them up and take them all with us!

I don't go away very often, but I have a reliable neighbor who checks in on him and an automatic feeder and litter box. Zane will just spend most of his time sleeping anyway, be I there or not.

I am trying to go out of town, but Im taking baby steps doing it. I may be going to Chicago in September, if I feel comfortable about it.

But my cats are semi feral/feral and only trust a handful of people, I dont go because I do not and will not put them in situations where they get so stressed that they get sick. The are my sweety baby cats that have tried to eat my travel bug

I'm going to a 4-day convention in September. I had registered and paid for the convention in June, several weeks before I took in Goldy. Now her kittens will be about 3 weeks old when I go away for the 4 days--that's if she ever decides to have them!

I have a good neighbor who will come in to feed and play with all my kitties, and I know they'll be fine. I just hate to miss four days at that stage of the kittens' development.

First, it helps to know someone trust worthy is caring for them.
Second, I learned it really helped when I took Jordan along with me. I still worried about the others, but having him curled up next to me at night helped me sleep.