Conference misery::feline_v1

    I checked ELF and Arnie's location code is TWO, Tewksbury, Ma. 
    So he probably lives somewhere around there.
    
    Donna

    	I live in Shirley near Fort Devens and I work in Tewksbury.

    
        If I can't find a sitter do you think that the three cats would
    be all right if I left them a weeks supply of food and water outside?
    A neighbor could add fresh water each day and it will be much milder
    weather in April. There is a wood pile under a shed that the cats
    could go to be protected if it rains. They are all good mousers
    and sorry to say they get to young nesting blue jays so I know they
    will not starve.

    There are cat sitting services posted in Note 400 but I
    don't think you would consider the fees to be "nominal".
    Personally I don't think it's such a great idea to leave
    them outside for a week, but it's up to you.
    
    Donna

    Ive heard great reviews about boarding at the Sterling Shelter in
    Sterling Ma.
    
    elaine

    My husband and I will be putting our condo on the market.  Our problem
    is that we'd like to find someone to take care of our kitten while
    we are doing this so when people come over our kittie won't be in
    the way and hinder peoples judgement of the place.  Don't mean
    to sound mean or anything.  It's just that some people may be allergic
    to cats or have a great disliking of them and it may sway there
    opinion.  My mother already has a cat.  Her cat absolutely hates
    other cats (along with strange people).  So my mother couldn't take
    him.  I really don't know of anyone else.  We'd really like to get
    out of this cheap.  (Of course I'll supply food and litter.)
    
    We live in Marlboro.  I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have
    on what I could do.  
    
    I hate sending him a way for a little while.  He's still a baby to me.
    I really don't know what else to do.
    
    Kathy

    Actually, when I sold my condo last spring I found it *helped* to
    have my 4 little darlings around as it made it obvious to prospecitve
    buyers that the condo allowed pets (a lot of them don't).
    
    Deb

    That get your cat out of the house to sell it is your real estate
    agent lieing.  They just want to aviod the responsibility of dealing
    with the liability if your pet bites a prospective buyer.  Don't
    believe it, I bought my house when there was a dog there.  The dog
    actually made the place feel like home.
    

    You both have a point.  What about litter box odor though?  I usually
    don't smell anything unless he does a real stinker.  Though, I'm
    afraid new people coming in might notice a smell that I've gotten
    use to (I may not notice the smell but they might.)  I'd keep the box
    clean, of course, but it would be difficult to empty the litter
    every night to be sure it isn't giving off an odor.
    
    What did you do?
    
    Kathy 

    You might try some of that new "Litter Fresh" that's on the market
    to freshen up the box instead of changing it every night.  Isn't
    it amazing how what goes in smelling not to bad comes out like
    something used for chemical warfare???  Sometimes I think my guys
    are rotten to the core inside!  I've also put those solid air
    fresheners right beside the box and they seem to help as well. 
    Besides, if any of us take your kitten, you might not get him back!!
    
    Mary

    RE: .9
    
    Well, as it turns out Gus and Pip are fanatical about their box;
    even when there was just two of them, if it wasn't *changed* twice
    a week they made a point of going on the floor, so they got me trained
    every early. On top of that, they always seemed to "hold it" until
    I was home and then made a point of immediatly bringing me over to
    the box to scoop it out. As I said, they trained me well.
    
    Also, to quite honest, since I started feeding them dry C/D the
    odor is much milder. As for litter, I had always used Star Market
    brand with about a box of baking soda mixed in (use a full box and
    it will neutralize the odor completely). Lately, I've been
    using Kleen Kitty Plus and sometimes Fresh Step. Another thing that
    I did was to scrub the box and area around it using one of those
    lemon scented dishsoaps.
    
    Deb
    
    P.S. Actually the biggest problem with haveing the cats there was
    that Argus, being the charmer that he is, would attract the potential
    buyer's attention and they wouldn't notice the condo. Of course
    it couldn't have hurst too much since the place sold in less than
    a week.

    About a month ago, I noticed these little "bars" that you hang onto
    the litter box to help combat odors. I bought one for each box.
    They work real well. They were about $2.00 each and I found them
    at the Lexington Street Star Market in Waltham, but I've also seen
    them at Stop and Shop.
    
    Deb

    I'm currently in the process of starting my own cat sitting business
    (on the side) and have a question for those of you who use cat sitting
    services, or have your own.
    
    What insurance company will cover you? I've heard alot people who
    have started have a terrible time getting insurance to cover you,
    due to the nature of the business (not responsible if cat scratches
    neighbor, if cat is outdoors and gets hurt or killed, etc.). Getting
    bonded is not a problem, but the insurance seems to be. Since I
    live in Maryland, I was not sure of how the insurance companies
    vary from state to state.
    
    If you do have insurance, who covers you and what does it cover,
    and most of all, how much does it cost?
    
    Any and ALL help would be WONDERFULLY appreciated!
    
    Thanks!
    
    Cheryl