Cat care while I'm gone.

[david13]

I just got back from being gone for six days, and my cats were ok to see me, but not much bothered by my absence. It didn't seem.
I think that my neighbor, who took care of them, may have done too good of a job. They didn't miss me at all?
I guess I should be happy with that.
I would like to know what went on while I was gone, as to what was the situation.
dc

[badgerpup]

1. Oh, they missed you...

Just get them to admit it...:eyes:

I knew my guys had missed me when I'd been absent for 4 days (hospital stay)...they'd used the box all the time I was gone, but as soon as I was home both Riktor and Wimsey made SURE I saw them peeing inappropriately.

This was their way of letting me know that they had NOT been thrilled with my absence.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. That's just cats pretending to be all blase and cool.

"Hey, dude, were you gone for awhile? Huh." But they really are happy to see you. Also, they might have some hidden "surprises" for you.

There is a theory that when the human is away a cat will poop in inappropriate places (their human's pillow, the middle of the living room) because they think their human is lost and the poop smell will guide him/her back home.

[spooky3]

7. TVO, I never heard that one! That's good to know.

[Warpy]

3. I had to decamp for six weeks at a crack when my parents were ill

and my next door neighbor would look in on the cats and make sure they had food and water and the odd pet, but her time was constrained.

The cats still gave me the "Who the hell are you?" look when I came home and it took a couple of hours for that switch in their little fur brains to trip so they'd remember me. Then I couldn't sit down without having one of them jump into my lap immediately.

They know who you are. It'll just take them a little time to remember.

[david13]

5. They remember me, it's just they didn't seem upset that I was gone.

The little one was running around like crazy. But she does that all the time. No, they gathered around right away, so they knew me, but just didn't seem much put out that I had been gone.
No squawking like before, and all back to normal within a few minutes.
dc

[spooky3]

8. I had a similar experience - had house/pet sitters while I was gone, but

one of my cats was a "one person cat." When I returned, the house sitters told me they had been afraid to touch him (since he hissed) and so he was covered in fur mats. I picked him up and he alternately hissed and purred! It was the strangest thing and actually a little funny, since he couldn't seem to make up his mind whether he was happy I had returned or p***ed that I had "abandoned" him for so long. But once his little kitty brain processed that life was back to normal, he was fine. And we tacked the mats a few at a time...:-)

[david13]

4. That's an interesting theory. But I wonder. My old cat used to

squawk like crazy when I came home after being gone for a week or so, in years passed. Maybe he's too old now, or maybe he was satisfied with the care, and the neighbor who spent some time over here (an hour or two) before I left, to learn how to do it.
Or maybe he felt ok with the company of the little one, the new kitty.
But he still hisses and growls if she touches him.
dc

[smokey nj]

6. I'm a pet sitter by trade, and it sounds like your neighbor did a fine job.

If the place didn't stink and your furry family was fat and happy, you're in good shape.

[spooky3]

9. They missed you -

but do please be happy with the fact that they weren't more different. You'd stress out terribly when you had to leave them in the future if you had come home and found them very upset, scared, etc. Some kitties (like some humans) are much better at rolling with the punches than others. It is frustrating, though, that you can't reassure them before you leave that it's just temporary, like you can with humans.

[david13]

10. Yes. I didn't painfully miss them, like I have on other occasions,

so it was similar for me too.
They can't tell time, so they never know how long we are gone. They should realize the days, but not other than that.
My neighbor insisted on leaving on KUSC all night. I thought it would just be noise to them. But that may have helped them, maybe for the sound a bit, but also for the thought that I was there or that I would be back soon with that on, as I frequently listen to it.
dc