For a sitter staying in your home, leave out everything they need in obvious places: your cat's usual food, litter, cleaning supplies, and any medications, clearly labelled — plus written notes on the home itself, from tricky doors and alarm codes to which rooms stay closed. Think like a hotel host who also owns a cat: the sitter should never have to hunt, guess, or text you about basics.
Food, litter, and supplies — staged, not stored
Do not just tell the sitter supplies are "in the cupboard." Set them out. Put the food where feeding happens, with the measuring scoop in the bag or tin. Stage spare litter beside the box, with bags and the scoop, and leave cleaning supplies — spray, paper towels, wipes, a small rubbish bag — where accidents are most likely.
Medications deserve special care: leave them in a clearly labelled spot with the schedule written out, and enough supply for the whole stay plus a spare day. If a dose involves a trick — crushed in a specific treat, given before food — write the trick down.
Stock a little extra of everything. Running out of litter on day five of your holiday helps nobody, and sitters should never have to guess which substitute brand your cat will tolerate.
The house notes every sitter needs
Your home has a manual only you know. Write down:
- Alarm codes, Wi-Fi password, and how the heating or air conditioning works
- Doors or windows that stick, slam, or do not latch properly — an escape risk with a cat in the house
- Which rooms stay closed, and where your cat is and is not allowed
- Fuse box and water shut-off locations, just in case
- Bin collection day and where post should be stacked
Also show your sitter, in person before you leave, where the cat carrier lives. If your cat needs an emergency vet trip at midnight, nobody should be searching the loft for it. A quick walkthrough together — carrier, supplies, litter, medication spot — takes ten minutes and prevents most problems.
Comfort for the human, too
A stay-in sitter cares better when they are comfortable. Leave clean towels and bedding, space in the fridge, and a note about anything quirky — the shower that runs cold first, the neighbour who feeds the foxes. Mention your cat's night-time habits honestly, so the sitter is not surprised by a 4 a.m. yowl outside the bedroom door.
Keeping updates in one thread
Once you are away, communication is the final thing to set up well. Scattered texts across three apps get lost, and your sitter's updates about this cat get mixed with everything else in your life.
KinsLe Messenger solves that neatly: it is the per-pet communications hub, so updates, photos, and questions about your cat all stay in one clear thread tied to her, rather than buried in a general inbox. Your sitter can report a finished meal or a funny moment, you can answer from the beach, and the whole stay reads as one tidy conversation when you get home. Once you leave, route every update through the KinsLe Messenger thread on KinsLe, where the sitter's meal reports, litter notes, and photos stay tied to your cat alone rather than scattering across your phone.