Historical September 1993 article. Dates, prices, services and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
The tragic fire at Kennelwood Village in August resulted in the loss of 51 cats and 6 dogs. Luckily, the largest portion of the dogs escaped without major injury.
The stress and strain on owners and pets involved in the situation was significant. Fortunately this was a isolated event, however, it raises the question of how does a pet owner arrange for care when they are away from home and the pets are left behind.
The age, size, health, and tempera-ment of the pet must be considered when arranging for care. Also, the length of time the owner will be away.
The type of facility, location. fees, and other services offered may influence the choice for pet care. Hiring a housesitter/petsitter is my prefer-ence for most pet care needs; offering the protection of having someone in the home, plus allowing the pet to stay in familiar surroundings. Geriatric animals, in parti-cular, benefit by staying in familiar surroundings. Often not seeing or hearing well, old pets become confused in new situations, sometimes not eating for long periods. Confined to small spaces that restrict movement, arthritic pets become stiff and sore. Ideally, it is best not to leave a puppy for extended periods when it is less than six months old.
The young months are significant developmentally, and extended periods away from the owner may disrupt important behavioral and obedience training.
However, if necessary, a live-in pet sitter is the best choice. Cats can be left alone with adequate food and water for a weekend. Longer periods of time require someone to “look in” on cats daily, or again a petsitter/housesitter. Geriatric cats can become quite confused and anxious in unfamiliar surroundings and kittens need lots of human contact.
A second alternative, the professional “pet-sitter” business. provides homes where a pet is kept while the owners are away.
During the stay, a pet is often treated as “one of the family” and gets to know the host family after a short time. Geriatric pets sometimes adapt to staying in this situation. Often, a “pet-sitter” will have their own pets or be caring for two or three pets at a time, therefore, pets with aggressive natures may not be acceptable in this situation.
The third alternative for pet care is to leave your pet in a professional kennel. Good care can be found in a variety of settings ranging from the smaller family run situation to a rural no-frills facility to the larger corporate type suburban operation.
All kennels generally provide bathing and grooming services, and for additional fees, some offer extra exercise time out of the individual pens used to house the pets. Many kennels also offer specialized care for geriatric animals or those that require medications.
If your pet should fall ill while in their care, the kennel will usually contact your personal veterinarian to care for your pet.
The choices for providing pet care are varied and no one situation meets every pet’s, or owner’s, needs.
I recommend visiting any facility and requesting a tour before leaving a pet for care, or carefully obtaining references of anyone left responsible for a pet. Questions about a pet’s health or temperament that would affect care choices should be discussed with your veterinarian.
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, September 1993.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1993_09.pdf, printed page(s) 5; PDF page(s) 5.
