Cat Boarding and Day-Care

The anti-rabies vaccination (yearly mandatory in Hungary) is absolutely required, and the combined vaccination is highly recommended – this is the pre-requisite for boarding your cat. We also recommend the administration of the intranasal “vaccine” or drops against kennel cough (please read separate F.A.Q article about kennel cough below).

The cat should have all the puppy protection vaccinations provided. Regarding timing, this might vary slightly from vet to vet, but most typically this means two combined and one anti-rabies treatment, usually until the age of 4 months (at the latest). As soon as the protection is effective and the cat can become part of a community based on the vet’s opinion, we are more than happy to welcome him/her.

The cat boarding and day-care facilities operated by our company all use the same client documents. These consist of: Order Form, Cat Form and Client Consent Form. We register all data of the owner and all details of the service on the Order Form. The cat's general data, health-related data, background information, behaviour-related information and service goals are registered in the Cat Form. In the Client Consent Form the client consents to our General Terms and Conditions and acknowledges the service provided and the details contained in the document.

Yes, we offer transportation services nationwide, be it in connection with a service of ours (cat boarding, cat day-care), or as an independent service. The cost of transport to and from our cat boarding and cat day-care facilities is HUF 5500 up until 10 kms, with a fee of HUF 200 / km thereafter.

Although the facilities are one and the same, the main difference between the two concepts is time: while cat boarding means at least one guest night spent at the facility, cat day-care, as the name suggests, means a day-time program only. While cat boarding periods can last starting from one night all the way to multiple months, a day-care unit is typically one day, usually on a regular basis, which can be used on all days of the week, for months or even years.

Due to the difference described in the previous points, cat boarding services are mostly required when our clients move from one place to another, have a longer period of work to do, have to travel or spend time abroad due to work or family matters, or even because of a long-term missions outside the country – and with no one near who could do the supervision of the pet. Well, these are mostly the situations when we become a family instead of the family. Day-care is most often needed when the owner is not at home during the day with the pet – this is the most obvious and common reason. However, more and more people turn to us because day-care has a really positive effect on cats. They come for play, for entertainment, for finding new friends, to socialize (especially important for young cats), to exercise, to be exhausted after a day of rich programmes – in one word: to feel good during the day.

The most important thing is to treat and deal with the cats based on their breed, age and temperament – based on these, there are substantial differences regarding the daily routine and programme, and then there are the seasonal differences, too…

The day always starts with extensive play and game outside or inside; this is the time when the colleagues clean up small “accidents” that happen during the night and the guests can enjoy the fresh morning air. From spring until autumn, our garden is basically interconnected with our in-house areas free of any barriers (Szentendre and Buda). After the morning rituals, such as morning snacks, breakfast, some special treatments comes a short rest, then the second round of game and exercise – and yet another (and continuous) round of cleaning. After that comes some afternoon snack, sometimes dinner, a little rest, then the evening exercise and game session. The scope of activities and tasks that our colleagues assume during these times is extraordinary multifaceted and challenging – with substantial emphasis on hygiene and play with the cats. In addition to that comes the socialization of new arrivals, their introduction into the group, the continuous supervision as well as other, administrative tasks.

Our cat boarding and cat day-care facilities can be visited any time during the opening hours. However, we reserve the right to recommend the times for the visits, as there are more and less suitable times for that based on the daily routines and programmes – taking these into account we are happy to welcome visitors with the only note that a cat, who already got used to the facility, the circumstances, our colleagues, might feel stressed to see a family member visiting. This might jolt them out of their environment and the socialization process might start from scratch.

Of course. Our colleagues diligently consult with the clients about temporary or chronic diseases and we register each and every instruction on the client form. Our colleagues can be reached at all times during the stay for enquiries. It is important to highlight here that all our boarding facilities are in contract with a vet clinic who is constantly at our disposal, 24/7, so in case of an emergency we are able to offer professional and emergency aid. We, furthermore, dispose of in-house transportation means for a case of emergency.

Socialization means the co-existence of cats with their peers, a successful integration of a cat into another group of cats – not only in the short, but much more in the long run. Socialization needs to be started at an early age, typically 4-5 months, in order to avoid any problems during the cat's later life when meeting another cat – be it on the street or in the garden, at cat boarding and day-care facilities, basically anywhere. Socialization is an integral part of our service at our cat boarding and cat day-care facilities, as – unless explicitly requested otherwise – the cats get into a community, making a lot of new friends along the way.

The integration is not a uniform process – at times it is very easy, at times extremely hard, though. Both the cat owner’s and our colleagues’ lives are made substantially easier if the cat is well socialized and easy to integrate into a community. In general, the integration process is a carefully monitored and managed process: our colleagues stand next to the cats and carefully watch how he/she reacts to the others and how the others react to him/her. We integrate the cat slowly and gradually into our cat community (if requested), averting any possibly arising, minor signs of aggression. We follow and monitor the process until it becomes evident that the new guests feels safe and sound in the community.

Our cat boarding and day-care facilities offer the full array of the following three brands: Brit Premium (included in our boarding and day-care prices), Acana and Orijen. We offer each and every sub-category in these brands: from junior to senior, from tiny to giant size, from ordinary to hypoallergenic. We mix this dry food, in case of need, with canned food, based on preference. If our guest is not used to these brands, maybe not to dry food at all, we are happy to welcome the habitual food from home – it can be anything, we are happy to store and prepare it for your cat.

The supervision of our guests is done by colleagues with many years of feline experience. They are true cat aficionados, have been cat keepers themselves for years or decades and are real cat enthusiasts. Most of them regularly take part in trainings, cat programs, many of them have volunteered in shelters, have done a lot of cat-related social work, too. They often participate in competitions, organize presentations and seminars as well.

We are extremely proud that our facilities are among the best and most advanced in Hungary. Based on the recommendations – or rather stipulation – of the British PIF, our facilities are dedicated cat boarding and day-care facilities (they are not transformed (or not even transformed, as we have seen) private homes), they dispose of heated and cooled in-door sleeping and playing areas and offer a wide array of activities (outside run with real grass in Szentendre, outside run with artificial grass in Buda, large, 200 sqm playground in Szigetszentmiklós) as well as slides, tunnels, playground games, etc. We have the possibility to separate partially or fully all cats from each other as well.

We have the possibility of keeping cats together, partially together, or totally separated, too – not all guests are socialized to the same degree, and many clients do not wish to have their small breed be together and exposed to the temperament of giant cats anyway. An accident can occur even under the strictest surveillance in the matter of seconds. For this reason we have designed the layout of our facility in a way that cats can be, and are, if needed, separated from each other. This can happen in private suites, in 3-storey cat residences or 2 sqm kennels – however, we prefer them sleeping separated for a good night’s sleep.

Thanks to the different options of our facilities, yes, we are happy to welcome cats who are not socialized or friendly with other cats, as long as they are not aggressive towards humans and our colleagues can deal with them. We play and exercise with them and keep them separated – they also sleep separated from the others.

Cats who are aggressive towards humans, given the methods of handling and boarding, are unfortunately not able to be boarded with us. We are really sorry!

One of the most important and most frequently asked questions. The owners have to acknowledge that cats are feeling creatures and that they always behave differently in a new environment, away from their home. There is nothing the owner or the new place (a boarding facility, for example) can do against it – as is the case with a child who is having his/her first camping trip. You can rest assured, though: everything goes absolutely smoothly most of the times. Seldomly, however, cats might need a few days to ease up, to integrate. And just as some humans in a new group, in a new environment, there will always be guests who are unable to make this step, to ease up, that is – even if the colleagues do everything in their power to help. In these situations they might turn inwards, lose some appetite, lose some weight too, as they might miss the owner and their home. We always do everything we can to make even these guests feel at home away from home, though. Let us assure you, it is totally normal for a difficult case, described above, to take a few days to return to his/her previous energy and mood level after returning home – this is no reason for panic.

One of the most important and most frequently asked questions. In most cases, the body weight does not change during boarding. In certain cases, however, body weight loss can occur, and here we wish to point out that we never, never ever save on cat food (this, per se, is of course a major cost, but by far smaller than other overhead costs of running the business). There can be several reasons for the loss of body weight, the most prominent, probably, is that cats move and play a lot more, thus burn a lot more energy, than at home. The other reason is that they get into a new environment, far away from the owner, this in itself might already be a reason for the lack of appetite (and combining it with the previous reason, well, a weight loss is even more understandable). A latent disease can, however, also occur which was not apparent upon arrival – naturally we inform the owner of these circumstances immediately. Another problem might be the new diet – the owner might think that the food we offer is certainly a delight for the cat, but it might turn out that it isn’t. All in all: despite that fact that we provide even more food than the owner recommends, it is sometimes simply impossible to make the cat eat the usual quantity, in the usual rhythm, let alone to eat more, however hard we try. And we guarantee you – we try really, really hard.

One of the most important and most frequently asked questions. We have to acknowledge that cats are feeling creatures, and just as humans, they do not immediately feel well in a new environment, in a new community. They are sometimes even puzzled why they are left in a new place – have they done something wrong? It might even happen that this state of mind prevails during the entire stay, however, let us point out here that most of the cats fell extremely well and return home as happy as ever – or even happier. If, however, the cat might need some time to ease up after the stay (one case out of a hundred), then please consider this as absolutely normal. Let us also point out that in most cases cats are in a heightened state of mind, are happy as they make a lot of new friends, play a lot, exercise a lot and are not bored for a minute.

One of the most important and most frequently asked questions. In the vast majority of cases (99.9%) we get a healthy cat and we give back a healthy and happy cat after the stay. At this point, however, let us point out a few facts. It might happen that the boarded cat the is not healthy already at the outset, meaning we receive the cat in an unhealthy condition (even, if the owner does not acknowledge or accept this fact) – we can think here of overweight, general depression, introversion, temporary or chronic disease – many of these often in a latent state. Naturally, we immediately inform the owner of a negative change in health, and the owner also empowers us by signing the Client Consent Form to undertake anything and everything necessary for preserving the cat's health and proceed to a veterinary clinic. Most frequently (though, all in all very seldomly) these changes are related to appetite, digestion or mood. We deal with the topics of injuries and kennel cough below. Let us point out that despite the highest efforts of maximum hygiene, a carefully designed and implemented animal welfare program and the most devoted and committed care, diseases can happen.

One of the most important and most frequently asked questions, many times hand in hand with the topic of “Clean cat – Dirty cat”. Simply because: if the cat does not do anything, only eating, drinking and sleeping, not going out, he/she will stay clean – but remain without friends and new experiences. This is a delicate balance, as the colleagues have to take into account the different temperaments, client needs and basically all other requests and parameters to guarantee the best solution. Well, to be honest, we prefer to make it as good for the cat as possible, meaning as much play and exercise as possible for a happy and well-balanced guest. For this reason we try to make them play with each other as much as possible (if requested) and expose them as much as possible to each other. But! Play can go over into a quarrel within the fraction of a second, which might leave a mark on the cat despite the most vigilant surveillance and direct proximity of the colleague. This might be bruises, bites, strains – if it is more serious, then the necessary measures are immediately taken. However, based on our statistics, we have had a visible injury on less than 1 cat out of a 1000. As we stated: we try to create the perfect balance and assess the temperament of the play in advance, but despite every effort, accidents happen. We still say that in the other 999 occasions, the play and game was worth it because it made our guests happy.

It is believed that the owner and the breeder are the two persons the cat never forgets, irrespective of the time that passed since they last saw each other. We kindly ask the owners not to be worried: if the cat is happy to see them, it might be due to the fact that a lot of time has passed – most probably that’s the reason, not because he/she didn’t feel good with us. We could ask the question whether it would be better if the cat wasn’t happy to see the owner? – it would be suspicious, to say the least. 

We’ve heard this question so many times in the past years. Despite the biggest efforts and hygiene, cats cannot stay as clean as they arrived sometimes. A multitude of causes can be mentioned here. Many times it happens that we receive a hygienically neglected cat already – to put it mildly, with tangled, neglected hair, in a disastrous state. But even if we get a totally clean cat, here again arises the question of balance: should we keep the cat inside, locked away, or should we let him/her run and play freely, together with the others, happily. Let us not forget that we have an outdoor run in Szentendre and Buda, and sometimes the weather is not on our side, either. Naturally, according to capacity, we strive to give back every guest in a clean state, even more so when we’re dealing with a more tenacious situation. Please, do not forget, however, that cats always catch more dirt during play, game, fun and exercise from their environment, or from other cats, than in or near their homes, in their usual surroundings.

Despite the multiple years of experience of our colleagues, the tens of thousands of cats in our care over the past years and the hundreds of thousands of guest nights, accidents happen during the service. Those cats who don’t do anything, only eat, drink and sleep, cannot suffer any accidents, of course. But let us consider that cats are feeling, thinking, instinct animals who get into a totally new environment with new cats and new people – because of this, despite the most careful and professional care and precautions, accidents do sometimes happen – but are really, really rare. Where cats move, play, befriend other cats, choose a flock, an accident can happen within a second. If this is just a minor issue, we take care of it in-house, and of course contact the owner immediately. In the case of more serious accidents (which is even more rare), we immediately organize veterinary assistance.

Of course, as with humans – at home, on the street, in any community. Unfortunately our facilities are just as much exposed to germs or pathogens as humans are in any community, or any child in a new environment. The rate of occurrence of these is only marginally linked to hygiene – most of the times these diseases or irregularities happen due to the changed metabolism of the guest (vomiting, diarrhoea), or other pathogens that can be contracted in the air, mostly respiratory, such as kennel cough – the latter is a very important topic, please read the corresponding separate chapter. The biggest problem is that in 99% of the cases the cause is an arriving guest who is carrying a latent disease, meaning it is not visible or detectable upon arrival, it is without any symptoms. We are exactly as much as exposed to these, as any other location or community.

We prescribe the internal and external parasite control for cats in order to avoid them in our facilities, meaning ticks, fleas, or other parasites that our guests might carry with them, thus avoiding their migration into or onto other guests. It is important to note, though, that despite the most diligent control and search, ticks and fleas are not always immediately visible, and most certainly not all of them, as these sturdy animals can circumvent even the most sophisticated protection tools. Trust us: we never accept any cat out of negligence or intentionally with ticks or fleas – but as a matter of fact, it is unavoidable that out of a few thousand cases, one cat has them. As with other, latent diseases producing no symptoms whatsoever, ticks and fleas are just another group of unwelcome guests, arriving with the cats.

Our company welcomes cats on heat with pleasure – based on occupancy and having been informed about this fact in advance by the owner. Every owner knows that cats on heat are the source of a number of problems and difficulties. Those living in a house with garden have to fear "unexpected guests" arriving to their dearest. Owners living in apartments have to constantly monitor hygiene in their homes. Outside, both of them have to face or avoid the demanding moments of meeting with male cat, sometimes with no success. For us, cats on heat do not mean any problem. We keep them separated, in a friendly environment. The owners can always be sure that they get back their cats in their original state, alone. Kindly note that our company charges 50% extra in addition to the regular boarding fees in the case of cats on heat.

Only fully satisfied clients have to pay at our facilities – it is exactly for this reason that we only charge anything after the service is done. Payment is possible in Hungarian forints, in Euros or in US Dollars in our boarding facilities (in case of foreign currency we take into account the medium exchange rate of the day), in cash or with a credit card. In case of ordering transportation service, the boarding or day-care fee is paid to the transporter colleague - which is also possible in cash or by credit card. Kindly indicate in an e-mail (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) if you wish to receive a corporate invoice which we send you in pdf format the same day.