Some people are surprised to hear that Brooklyn Bark DOG WALKERS also cat sit.
Let's get this straight, we love all critters.
We care for cats, rabbits, pet rats, iguanas..... you get the picture.
A cat sit for a healthy (non-medicated) cat is a joy and we have a protocol to follow. We follow the same protocol for those birds, rabbits and hamsters.
So, what is the back story? What goes on and how does it all work?
First you book the dates you want us to care for your kitty. You can do this immediately when you receive the email that your account is set up. The email includes your loggin and password.
When your request is assigned you will receive an automatic email confirming which Care Associate will be caring for kitty. Of course, you can always check your account if you think you missed that email.
For healthy cats we do either morning or afternoon visits at the owner's preference. Some owners want both and that is fine. Book your preference and we will show up within a 4-hour window of your booking. This is for healthy cats. Cats on medication get within two-hour timing.
For most cat owners, the instructions they give us on their intake forms cover just about everything. Some like to also print them out and leave them for the care giver as well, never a bad idea.
So, what happens on a cat care visit?
When our Care Associate arrives he immediately scans in and you receive an email announcing care has begun.
The first task is to get a visual on your cat(s). For some felines this is quite easy. They greet you at the door with meows and trumpet flurishes. For others, a search posse is required. If you want to check out some places we have found hiding cats, visit our Herding Pussycats Award "exposé". Note, we consider the sight of a twitching tail sticking out from under the sofa an indication that kitty is alive and well.
Next our Care Associate scrubs out the food and the water bowls and refills them. This is usually accompanied by feline stories of long starvation. So, while kitty is doing her "Sarah Berhnhardt" our Associate either scoops or changes the litter as appropriate. Some light housekeeping around the box is generally in order, too.
Our visits are scheduled for 30 minutes. In most cases this feeding and cleaning runs 5-10 minutes. The remainder of the time is spent keeping kitty social. We play with her as you indicate whether it's a feather on a string, a tin foil ball or taking a book out to read so she can sit on it.
At the end of the visit our Associate will often snap a picture or two and always write a short note about the visit. When he scans out at visit's end you receive an email that the visit is complete. That email will contain both notes and pictures.
These notes and pictures will go into your account file. You can access them any time in the future. It's always fun to review the photos. But this becomes important if your Care Associate notices an issue. You can track when it began and how it got better or not.
We know that Brooklynites like to travel. We know that cats don't. Our goal is to make you both happy.