Tips for Keeping Single Cat Happy While I'm On Vacation?

[thebobs]

Originally Posted by lottamoxie

Later in Oct I'm going away for 4 days. I will have a cat sitter come in to check food/water/litter. However, the sitter will only be there for a 30 min. visit. My cat is very shy and hides from people she doesn't know, so she will probably run away and hide while any sitter is there.

My cat (1 yr old) is now an only-cat and there are no other pets (dog passed away 2 months ago). I'm worried about her getting lonely while I'm gone. I'm not ready to adopt another pet at this time, so that is not an option.

Any tips for keeping her from getting too lonely?

I was planning on keeping the plasma TV on so she'd have something to watch/listen to.

And for you safety conscious: yes, toilet lids remain closed in my house, cords are out of the way, and there is plenty of food/water/litter available at all times.

Your cat will definitely get lonely. However what you can do to help alleviate it is wear a shirt and then leave it in a common place that your cat hangs out very frequently. Your scent will comfort her.

How close are you and the cat sitter? Perhaps before you go, the sitter could come over and try spend some time with the cat. But if she is very shy as you state, getting used to the sitter will take a long time. So probably not the best route.

Get more of her favorite toys before you go and introduce them to her. Let her play with them.

Get a timer for your lights from a Home Depot or hardware store. Put one in the room where she spends her evenings when you're home. Set it to go on when it starts to get dark outside and turn it off at your normal bedtime.

[lottamoxie]

She has access to my dirty laundry and that has my scent on it (lol).

I already use timers in my house and we have a routine set where I go upstairs when the lights go off.

I'm sure she'll be fine...I just feel 'guilty.'

[chilaili]

I think we all do, no matter how much effort we make on their behalf. Funny thing is, a friend of mine told me once that cats have no sense of time so they don't really notice if you're gone for 1 day or 10. I'm not sure I entirely agree with that. When I was gone for 2 weeks they definitely seemed happier and more excited to see me despite having a sitter come in every day. Of course, that happiness lasted about 30 minutes and then it was back to the usual barely concealed indifference

[lottamoxie]

barely concealed indifference

Well at least yours make some effort at concealment!

Mine actually does follow me around some. She doesn't cuddle with me and doesn't want me holding her and she won't sit on my lap. The most she'll do is lay up against me in the middle of the night if she's cold. And that's only by default now that our golden is gone--she much preferred snuggling up to the golden, despite protestations and occasional grumbling from the dog.

[Mrs. Skeffington]

Originally Posted by lottamoxie

She has access to my dirty laundry and that has my scent on it (lol).

I already use timers in my house and we have a routine set where I go upstairs when the lights go off.

I'm sure she'll be fine...I just feel 'guilty.'

I wrote in another post that I put my unwashed workout sweatshirt in my kitty's bed (which she seldom sleeps in) while my daughter was sitting her, and she curled up in it the whole time. I know your kitty will be fine. Be prepared for a real welcome home when you get back. G. D. Cat clung to me like a tick for a long time.