Assemble the History as One Pack, Not Scattered Paper
A new carer cannot absorb a history that lives in a drawer, a phone photo album and your memory. Gather it into one pack in a fixed order: who this cat is — clear photos, markings, microchip number and your contact details; who her vet is, with the practice number and your emergency backup contact; her health summary, copying any ongoing conditions, allergies and vet instructions in the practice's own wording rather than your paraphrase; and her vaccination record copies.
Follow health with daily life: what she eats, how much, at what times, and where her food is stored; her litter arrangements and cleaning rhythm; her routine from morning to bedtime; and the small print that prevents most carer problems — doors that must stay shut, plants or rooms that are off limits, and the neighbour's dog she watches for at the fence.
Include the Behaviour History Honestly
New carers are failed by edited histories. Write down what she is actually like: the handling she enjoys and the stroking that makes her tail flick, the noises or visitors that send her under the bed, how long she usually hides when someone new arrives, and the games, treats or quiet routines that bring her back out. Note past incidents plainly — a swat when a previous sitter grabbed at her, a bolt attempt at the front door — because a warned carer handles those moments calmly instead of learning the hard way.
Hiding places belong in this section with locations, not hints: under the spare bed, on top of the wardrobe, behind the boiler cupboard door if she slips in. A carer who knows where to check can confirm she is home and safe without dragging her out, which is exactly the distinction a nervous cat needs.
Walk It Through in the Home, With the Cat
Documents transfer facts; a walkthrough transfers judgement. Go room by room with the carer before their first solo day: show the feeding station, demonstrate the litter routine, point out the hiding spots, the shut doors, the escape-risk window. Let them feed a meal and offer a treat while you watch, so your cat logs the new person as a source of good things and you see how the carer moves around her — unhurried and sideways-on, or looming in a way you can gently correct on the spot.
Agree communication as part of the handover: how often you want updates, whether photos are expected daily, and which changes — a missed meal, loose stool, unusual hiding — should trigger a message that day rather than waiting for the weekly summary.
Keep the Pack Alive After Handover Day
A history pack decays. After each vet visit, add the summary and remove superseded instruction pages so the carer never finds two versions of the feeding plan. When routines change — a new food, a moved litter tray, a newly favourite sleeping spot — update the pack that week and tell the carer what changed, rather than letting them discover it.
If the carer notices something you never wrote down, ask them to add it. The person who watches your cat hunt a particular moth at the same window every evening has history too, and the pack is better for holding it.
Make Access Temporary and Clear
Give the carer access for the period they are helping, in a form they can open on their phone at the feeding station rather than a printout left at home. When their role ends, close that access and offer the pack afresh if they return, so nobody is working from an old copy months later.
Handing the whole pack over through a KinsLe Care Pass means the carer opens one temporary, complete view of your cat's routine and history while you are away — nothing hunted through messages, nothing missing.