How Many Home Visits Should I Book Per Day?

We get asked fairly frequently, about how many home visits we'd recommend owners book each day. There are many different things to take into consideration, and we always provide a minimum of 2 cat or small pet visits each day (morning and late afternoon/early evening), and we can even offer thrice daily visits, and an overnight house sitting service, with the aim of maintaining each cat's routine as closely to normal as possible.

Here are just a few reasons why, to help you to make a slightly more informed decision:
  • Under The Five Freedoms, all animals must have:
  1. Freedom from hunger and thirst, by being provides with adequate fresh water, and the appropriate type and amount food.
  2. Freedom of discomfort, by ensuring they have an appropriate environment, suitable shelter, and places to rest, etc.
  3. Freedom from pain, injury, and disease, by preventing them from becoming injured or unwell, and rapidly seeking diagnosis and treatment should the above happen.
  4. Freedom to express normal behaviour, by ensuring they have enough space, proper facilities to be suitable exercised and enriched, as well as companionship where appropriate.
  5. Freedom from fear and distress, by ensuring that their conditions and treatment avoid mental suffering.

    In order to meet these needs, Amity Pet Care will ensure that cats and small pets are visited and monitored a minimum of twice each day, but also offer the option of thrice daily visits, or overnight house sitting, to suit the needs and routine of each individual cat.
  • The majority of RTA's (road traffic accidents) occur at night time, so if you have a cat flap, or allow your cat to have access to outside, you should consider locking the flap, and keeping them safely inside with a litter tray from the evening, and reopen the flap from the morning.
  • Cats will avoid using a soiled litter tray, which can lead to health, behavioural, and hygiene problems if they're either having to 'hold on', or are looking for alternative places to go to the toilet-this is why we always scoop out the litter trays both in the morning, and in the evening, and recommend clumping litters, as we're able to scoop them far more efficiently.
  • Cats would naturally eat up to 10 small meals per day, so if they're only receiving one large meal each day, they may eat it all in one go, which can lead to vomiting, and other issues. Providing dry food in food balls, as well as other cat activity toys, are a great way to offer enrichment, and spread out mealtimes.
  • Animals are very good at disguising when they're in any sort of pain or discomfort, often until it's unbearable-it's a natural survival strategy. It's best that animals are health checked at least twice each day, to allow for any subtle changes in behaviour to be detected and monitored. If we do ever have any concerns, we're able to promptly contact your Vet, and seek their advice.
  • All cats must receive enough mental, social, and physical interaction and stimulation, to satisfy their individual behavioural needs, as well as plenty of opportunities and facilities to stay fit, active, and content. The more frequently animals are visited, the more companionship and enrichment can be provided. If animals don't receive enough attention, they can become bored and lonely. Naturally, cats would spend time outside hunting, climbing, exploring, but as domestic cats are provided with adequate food, it's important to provide the opportunity to still display these natural behaviours through stimulating play, etc.
  • There is of course the added bonus of additional home security by being provided with 2 or more daily visits, as we can open and close curtains, pick up post, leave a light on at night, etc, making your home looked 'lived in'.

For further information, please visit www.AmityPetCare.co.uk/cat-sitting

Please refer to The Animal Welfare Act 2006, for further information.