Meet the Wolverhampton cat sitters who care for people's pets while they are on holiday
Cats have always been a huge part of Jon and Vicky Hodges' lives. They love spending time with their own feline friends and for the past 12 years have been working as cat sitters.
Part of the Home Loving Cats franchise, they look after moggies and pedigrees in their own homes while their owners are away.
The couple, who are also volunteer fosterers for Cats Protection, previously worked in retail management.
"We had been doing that for 20 years, the days were getting longer and we were wanting a change.
"We went to The Cat Show in Birmingham and found out about Home Loving Cats.
“We had a chat with the owners and it sounded like something we would enjoy.
"We love cats and we've had them all our lives," explains Vicky.
To start with, they ran their business around their retail jobs but as demand grew Vicky was able to become a cat sitter full-time in 2015 with Jon following in 2018.
"We've got more than 400 cats on the books – but thankfully the owners aren't all away at the same time!," says Jon.
When they aren’t caring for other people’s pets, they are looking after their own four cats – 12-year-old Missy Moo, nine-year-old Amity, six-year-old Nebula and two-year-old Mando – as well as foster cats for Cats Protection.
Their pet sitting service covers Wolverhampton, Cannock, Walsall and the surrounding areas and they visit cats daily to ensure they have everything they need while their owners are away.
They usually carry out their morning visits between 7am and 10am and evening calls between 4pm and 7pm.
"We have to plan a route to avoid the traffic, but we know the back roads now and the roads to avoid," says Jon.
Their usual duties will include feeding the cats, cleaning out litter trays, giving them any medication they require and playing with them.
"We look after the cats as if they were our own," says Vicky, who is also an admissions officer for Wolverhampton Cats Protection.
"A lot of cat sitters will not give medication, but we are happy to do this," adds Jon.
They say that one of the benefits of having cats cared for in their home environment is that it can reduce stress.
"Not all cats are suited to catteries and will get very stressed and stop eating,” says Vicky.
"When cats are kept in their own home, they are staying where they feel comfortable and the owner doesn’t have the stress of taking them to the cattery.”
Nothing is too much trouble for the couple, who say they are also happy to care for other small pets sharing the same house.
"If people have other small animals as well as cats like rabbits, guinea pigs or hamsters, we are happy to look after them too.
"We have even looked after stick insects, terrapins, snakes and snails.
"We don't do dog walking, not because we don't like dogs, but because we don't have the time.
"We have been to some houses where we have looked after the cat and someone else has come in to walk the dog," explains Jon.
They also like to keep owners updated by sending them pictures and videos of their cats while they are away.
"They’re part of the family. If somebody is going on holiday for two weeks, it’s reassuring and nice for them to see their cat is happy at home and they can relax and enjoy their holiday,” says Vicky.
Christmas is one of their busiest times of the year as many people tend to go on holiday or travel to visit family and friends.
"One of the best times to be a cat sitter is at Christmas because people will leave presents for their cats and we get job of opening them and sending the owners photos of the cats with their presents,” says Vicky.
Although being a cat sitter is a seven-day job, the couple says it doesn’t feel like work at all because they are doing something they love.
"We get to see all breeds of cat. Every cat is different.
"We’re still visiting cats that we have visited from the beginning, it’s nice to see them grow,” adds Vicky.
"We love spending time with the cats and getting to know new cats,” adds Jon.
"It’s nice when they start to recognise us and want to play and sit on our lap.
"Some people have said their cats are grumpy when they get back and we’re not coming out to see them anymore.”
For more information, visit www.homelovingcats.com/wolverhampton-cat-sitting/ or email wolverhampton@homelovingcats.com
