How To Take Care Of Your Pets When You’re Away For Raya Holiday

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Since we’re in the endemic phase now, people are no longer spending their time in their homes, in fact, they’re bound to travel whether it’s for business, family or even friends.

Of course, we enjoyed our pet’s company when we were constantly at home, but what about when we’re travelling? Who’s gonna take care of them?

You can’t have a good time travelling if you’re constantly worried about your pets at home. What if they’re depressed and not eating? What if they got stuck in a basket? What if they found a way out and can’t get back inside? Or worse, what if they miss you? (it’s the other way around usually, some pets [cats usually] don’t even care if their owners are gone)

Here, we gathered a few tips on how to take care of your beloved pets when you’re not home.

Finding a Pet Sitter

A pet sitter is someone you can hire or ask for help to take a look at your pet while you’re on a trip. It could be your neighbour, your friends or anyone you trust. But if you don’t wanna impose on them, you can always find a professionally paid pet sitter.

Professional pet sitters are experienced in handling animals and can offer better quality care for your pets than your inner circle who are not pet owners. A pet sitter could also help with other things too like watering your plants and getting the mail in. You can ask them for updates (pics/videos) of your pets when you’re not there.

But of course, you have to be comfortable with somebody going into your house and having full access to your things.

A few tips to take note of when getting a pet sitter are:

• Tell them about your pet’s favourite hiding spaces (especially true for cats)
• Tell them the places that your pet is not allowed in (basements, attics, workroom, baby room, etc)
• Tell them your pet’s quirky behaviours (if your dogs love to chase vans or birds during a walk, if they get aggressive around strangers or at a certain place, what kind of treats or toys do they like)
• Update your pet sitter on your pet’s medical needs (if they’re on a diet or if they have any medications they need to follow, number or address of your nearby veterinarian)
• Put away any of your belongings your pets might chew, scratch or destroy (pets can get stressed while we’re gone which increases their destructive habits)

If you wanna try and get some professional pet sitters, you can visit PetBacker or Pet Nanny Malaysia‘s website.

Sending Them To Pet Hotels/Boarding

This option has you sending your pet to another place, like a pet hotel or any experienced pet taker’s house. Some pet takers even offer grooming services and pick-up services (if you can’t send off your pets, you can always get a pet taxi).

Some of the pet boardings have cages or little houses for your pets to sleep in and release them out during playtime. Some of them also use the spaces of their own house (if you want your pets to have a large space for them to roam freely, but still be supervised). But for those pets with medical problems or who need special care, do let them know beforehand so they can separate your pet from others and attend to them separately (or you can board them at the veterinarian clinic).

Some tips when boarding your pets are:

• Bring your own pet food (sometimes pets are picky with the food they’re not familiar with)
• Ensure your pets don’t have fleas before sending them in here. It would totally be frustrating to have your flea-free pets bringing back home the fleas they contracted at the pet hotel. (So please don’t send them into a pet hotel if they have fleas, ticks or mites)
• Inform if your pet is sick or needs separate care (give them your pet’s medication or tell them tricks to get your pet calm)
• Ensure your pet is thoroughly vaccinated or free from infectious diseases (so that they won’t infect others at the pet boarding place)
• Give them your pet’s favourite toy or treats

Some suggestions for pet boarding and hotel in the Klang Valley are cocomomo and petmalaysiahotel.

Other Tips

Ensure Your Pet Has A Collar Tag Or Microchip

This is particularly important if your pet goes missing while you’re away (you just gotta be prepared about these things). So update your details on your pet’s collar tags or get them microchipped at your nearby veterinary.

Just a note, these microchips are not GPS trackers. They just increase the chances of your pet being returned to you. The microchip is a small one-grain rice-sized pill that’ll be injected around the shoulder blades of your pets. It works as an ID tag. Anyone who finds your lost pet can take it to the vet or any shelter with a microchip scanner. When they scan, then your ID and details will pop out in the registry. Hence, they can be returned to you safely.

Get A Pet Camera

Of course, this is not strictly necessary but it can help you check on your pets whenever you want and ensure that they’re safe in your house. It’s just a regular CCTV camera that you can buy online. It is a bit costly but it could be useful for you in the long run.

You can aim the camera at their food and water stations or wherever they hang out the most so that you can see them regularly. You can also get those cameras that can rotate so you can find your pets easily in a room.

Get A Vet Check-Up Before Your Trip

You don’t really need to do this but if your pet is bound for a check-up, better do it before your trip so you’re 100% they’re healthy when you’re away.

In this case, make sure your pets are up to date on vaccines as well. You don’t want them to contract infectious diseases while they’re away from your home.

All in all, you may have other people that you love in your life but your pet only has you. So treat them with the utmost care and love, even when you’re away.

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