Hari Raya Aidilfitri is just around the corner and like other festive seasons in our country, it is customary for Malaysians to take the opportunity to return to their hometown to celebrate.
However, for those who have cute and cuddly pets at home, this may prove to be a challenge as going to balik kampung means leaving them without any supervision at home and bringing them along on the road trip is most of the time out of the question.
Well, if you’ve got a pet cat and are going back to your home town this Hari Raya, worry not as we share several tips on leaving your furry friend at home.
Basic Necessity
First and foremost, you need to provide sufficient basic necessities for your cat(s). These include your cat food, clean water and litter box that are sufficient for them.
Food - As a pawrent, you must know the amount of food your furkids eat throughout the day. Let say your cat eat about a bowl of their food per day, and then you multiplied it by the number of days you balik kampung. You'll get the amount of food that should be enough for them when you're not home. It's always good to leave extra food for your cat incase.
Water - Provide clean water for them too. The formula should be the same as for the food. If you extra money, consider to invest in an automatic food and water feeder/ container. These kind of container can be found easily on online platform or even at your local pet store.
Litter box - As for litter box or a designated place for fur furkids to do their "business", you can provide plus one for your number of cats. For example, for one cat, you can provided with two litter boxes. If you have three cats, you can provided four litter boxes. If you have more cats but limited space, just provided them with their current litter boxes with extra litter in their litter boxes.
Cat Litter - Prepare a clean litter for them before you go balik kampung. This way the litter can be fresh and your cat won't do their "business" outside their litter box. You might want to try using Fussie Cat Crystal Litter, for mess free when you get back home or Catwalk Soybean Litter to keep the smell at bay. If you want more superior odor control, you might want to use Fussie Cat Charcoal Litter.
If you still feel worry about leaving your little furballs home alone, you can always opt for boarding service or even cat sitter service . But don't take too much time thinking about it because during this Raya season they tend to full-house in no time and may not taking any last minutes boarders.
Boarding Service - You can look for a cat hotel or a boarding service. Â You can found this service at your local vet, pet store, pet groomer or even designated cat hotel. It's best that you kitty cat(s) are on their latest vaccination, up-to-date flea control and bathed before boarding.
Cat Sitter - The difference between boarding service and a cat sitter are your cat will be more comfy at your own home. Make sure that whoever your cat sitter is, that person is an animal lover. Else you might end up coming home to a very distressed pet.
With so many horror stories of pet mistreatment, bad facilities and etc, do some home work first before you commit to a pet boarding place or pet sitter. Better still, ask around or read reviews because referrals from people who have actually used the service or facilities would be better.
We hope this article helps and that you, your family, and furry pals have the best time during this Raya season! Just remember to keep your pets comfortable and safe during the festivities. Happy Hari Raya Puasa to you and your furry friends!