Most boarding stays are uneventful, but contact instructions matter when something unexpected happens. If your cat becomes unwell, injured or unable to eat, the team needs to know who can make decisions and how quickly they can be reached.
This is especially important if you will be overseas, away from reception, in surgery, on a flight or otherwise difficult to contact.
An emergency contact should be more than a name. They should be someone who can answer the phone, understand your preferences and authorise practical veterinary care if you cannot be reached.
Tell that person they have been nominated. A contact who is surprised by the call may not feel comfortable making decisions when time matters.
One missed call should not stop care from moving forward. Provide a primary number, a backup number and the name of the person who can authorise care if you cannot respond.
If email, text or an international number is more reliable than a standard call, tell us. The best contact method is the one that will actually work while you are away.
If you are travelling internationally or will be hard to reach, tell us the best method of contact and the time zone. If messages may be delayed, a local decision-maker is often helpful.
If your plans change during the stay, update us. A phone number that worked at drop-off may not be useful if you later change location or lose access to it.
If you are away and unreachable, someone needs authority to approve care that cannot wait. That may include examination, pain relief, blood testing, imaging, hospital care or urgent transfer.
Choose someone who understands your wishes and can answer quickly. A backup contact is helpful when travel, time zones or work commitments make communication unreliable.
Before boarding, think about what you would want if your cat needed examination, blood testing, imaging, medication, hospital care or referral. You do not need to predict every situation, but broad preferences help.
If there are financial limits, referral limits, age-related concerns or conditions you would want handled in a particular way, tell us before the stay.
It can feel uncomfortable to talk about money before anything has happened, but financial boundaries affect emergency care. If there is a spending limit or a need to call before certain steps, tell us.
Clear boundaries do not reduce care; they reduce confusion. They help us communicate realistically if your cat becomes unwell while you are away.
For older cats or cats with serious illness, it can help to write down broad preferences before travel. This may include whether you would consider hospital care, referral or intensive treatment if your cat became very unwell.
These conversations are not pleasant, but they protect your cat from delayed decisions and protect your family from having to make rushed choices with limited information.
Cats with diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease, thyroid disease, seizures or complex medication routines need clearer emergency instructions than a young healthy cat.
For these cats, a delay in decision-making can affect comfort and safety. Make sure contact details, current medicines and recent health information are all up to date.
Tell us about previous urinary blockages, diabetes, seizures, heart disease, kidney disease, breathing problems, serious allergies or any condition that could affect urgent decisions.
Even if the condition is currently stable, knowing the history helps us respond faster if signs appear during boarding.
We may need to contact you about appetite loss, vomiting, diarrhoea, urinary signs, breathing changes, injuries, medication problems, marked distress or anything else that suggests your cat needs veterinary attention.
Because the cattery operates within the clinic, veterinary support can be close by, but decisions still need owner or authorised contact input when care goes beyond ordinary boarding.
If you can be contacted, keep your phone available during travel days and check messages. Many issues are easier to sort when the owner can answer quickly.
If you cannot be reachable, make the backup arrangements explicit. The less guesswork involved, the smoother emergency decision-making becomes.
Clear written instructions are easier to follow than rushed verbal comments at the counter. Include your preferred contact, backup contact, travel limitations and any important treatment boundaries.
Good preparation reduces uncertainty for everyone and helps your cat receive timely care if something unexpected happens while you are away.
Early preparation for diabetic cats and cats with more complex treatment routines.
When a health check before boarding is sensible.
How longer stays are organised so food, medication, comfort and monitoring stay consistent.
Return to the main cattery page for bookings, vaccination requirements and how the cattery works.
If your cat has medication, anxiety, dietary needs, senior health changes or a first boarding stay coming up, talk to us early so the arrangements are practical.
If something changes before boarding, contact us before drop-off so we can decide whether the stay can go ahead as arranged or whether your cat needs extra support first.
Cat-specific advice for appetite, toileting, stress, senior comfort and clinic visits.
Carrier, litter and environment support for cats at home.
Carrier and travel planning can make boarding drop-off easier too.
Watch our cattery preparation video.
