Do you not have a member of your family or close friend who could stay at
the house while you are away?
I am ok for going away as I have a catflap so it is fine for me to let
someone have the key and just drop in to feed them but I often go stay at my
sister's house while she is away to look after her cat :-)
Jenxxx

I have a pet sitter who comes in twice a day to feed the cats/clean the
litter box/
bring in the mail/turn off some lights/turn on other lights.

I trust her implicitly, she worked for my vet for 10+ years.

Ask your vet for suggestions and references.    The going rate around
here is $15.00
per cat/per visit.

Look at as insurance to make sure your house/your cats are safe.   If
anything goes
wrong, she has my cell phone #.

Without doubt the best option is to have a live-in cat sitter. The
reputable ones, and there are many, would not dream of doing anything to
damage their reputation by stealing or anything, after all it is their
livelihood.

The down side is the cost. A really good sitter could cost you as much
again as your holiday..!

Next to this, a neighbour or relative dropping in once or better still
twice a day to feed them and play with them for an hour or so is ok as a
rule.

Ivor

How about taking them to a boarding facility that specializes in cats? In
the past our cat has stayed at the vets and we've had people come in and
both were really traumatizing for the cat. About 4 years ago I took her to a
cat kennel for the first time and ever since then, when we go away (have
left her there for up to 21 days) we don't worry about in the least.

When I release her from her crate at the kennel, she hops into her "suite"
and when I go to retrieve her, well she howls most of the way home. At first
it bothered me a bit that she seemed to happy to be there and so sad to
leave, but after I thought about it, realized this was a good thing.

Perhaps look into this option. Just a thought.

Judy

If you feed the cat something like rat poison it looks like an accident.