Cat Sitter vs Cattery: What The Research Actually Says About Cat Stress
Cat Sitter vs Cattery: What The Research Actually Says About Cat Stress
Many cat owners have stood in a cattery car park, carrier in hand, listening to a yowl they only ever hear in the car, wondering if there's a better way. There is, and there's research behind it.
If you're searching for a cat sitter rather than a cattery, or you're just trying to work out what's genuinely best for your cat while you're away, this is the actual science, not just our opinion.
The Cat Stress Score: How Researchers Actually Measure It
Researchers Kessler and Turner developed something called the Cat Stress Score back in the late 1990s, a 1 to 7 scale running from "fully relaxed, belly out, purring" all the way up to "terrorised, complete shutdown or frantic behaviour." It's still used today to track how cats cope.
Using that scale, they followed cats through a two-week cattery stay. Here's what happened.
How Cats Actually Cope With Cattery Boarding
Stress drops fastest in the first few days. That's the good news. But most cats never quite return to the baseline you'd see in a settled cat who's been in one place a while.
About two-thirds of cats adapt reasonably well over two weeks
The remaining third find it genuinely hard
Around 4% stay severely stressed for the whole stay, with no sign of settling, whatever the cattery does right
And it's not about the type of pen. The research found housing style (single cat, paired, or grouped) made no measurable difference to stress levels. Neither did age. This isn't really a "find a better cattery" problem. It's a "some cats find any unfamiliar environment hard" problem.
Why Cattery Stress Is a Health Issue, Not Just a Welfare One
This isn't only about a cat being unhappy for a few days. Stress has physical consequences.
In shelter-style environments, the proportion of cats actively shedding feline herpesvirus jumped from 4% at entry to 52% after a week, stress suppressing the immune system enough to let a dormant virus flare up. And a cat that goes off its food for more than 24 to 48 hours is at real risk of hepatic lipidosis, a fast-moving and potentially fatal liver condition.
So when a cat comes home from a stay away looking hollowed out, or won't touch their food for a day or two afterwards, that's not drama. It's a documented physical response.
The Owner's Scent Doesn't Work The Way You've Been Told
Here's one that goes against years of well-meaning advice. A study looked at whether a cat calms down around something that smells of their owner, like a worn jumper or blanket, when the owner isn't there.
It doesn't, not really. Cats calmed down when their owner was physically present in the room. When the owner left and only the scented item remained, the calming effect disappeared. It was never really about the smell. It was about the person.
Which Cats Struggle Most With Boarding
The research points to a few groups who tend to find catteries hardest:
First-time boarders with no previous experience of it
Senior cats
Cats from multi-cat households suddenly on their own
Any cat with a history of anxiety, food refusal under stress, or a health condition needing a familiar routine
Why In-Home Cat Sitting Works With This, Not Against It
None of this means catteries are bad, or that everyone using one is getting it wrong. Good ones, with space, hiding spots, and staff who understand cat behaviour, help a lot of cats through it just fine.
But the research is honest about a meaningful minority of cats who don't do well away from home, no matter how good the facility is, because the thing stressing them isn't the cage or the food or even the noise. It's being somewhere that isn't theirs.
A cat that's territorial, that's never met another cat, that goes off its food the moment its world changes, doesn't need a nicer pen. It needs to stay in the home it already knows, with someone popping in to feed it, play with it, and let it carry on being exactly as smug and unbothered as it was before you left.
That's the whole idea behind in-home cat sitting. Not us being precious about cats. Just what the research says actually works for the cats who find change hardest.
Find a Specialist Cat Sitter Near You
My Three Cats is a specialist in-home cat-sitting service, not a general pet sitter and not a cattery. At the time of writing, we look after cats in Warrington, Bury, Blackpool, Preston & South Ribble, Sidcup & Orpington, and South Wigan, with an experienced sitter visiting your cat's own home rather than taking them anywhere new.
If you're in one of those areas and want to know more, get in touch and we'll tell you how it works.
Thinking About Running Your Own Cat-Sitting Business?
We're also looking for more cat lovers to bring My Three Cats to their own town. If you've read this far, you probably already understand exactly why cats deserve better than a cage in an unfamiliar building, and that instinct is most of what it takes. No cat-sitting business experience needed, just a genuine love of cats and a lotof drive. Get in touch to find out if your area's available.
