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Good cat hotels/petsitter?
She gets sick every now and then too and requires medicine.
C… Where can I have my cat stay while I travel abroad? I don't want my cat to stay in a small cage without any space to move around freely.
She gets sick every now and then too and requires medicine.
Can anyone recommend a good cat hotel that is cheap and will take care of her as well? Preferably in Chiba/Tokyo. I don't mind petsitters either, but I have never tried one before.
if your cat needs meds on a schedule, i'd actually go with a hybrid approach. some sitters do overnight stays, not just visits, and that's been the best middle ground for me. your cat stays home, but someone's actually sleeping there, so if she has a bad night you're not waiting until morning for help. i found a woman through the "Chiba Pet Care" line group who does overnights for 7,000 yen a night, she's a former vet tech and she'll even do the litter box twice a day without being asked.
for the meds thing, get a pill gun and practice with her before you leave. most sitters are fine giving meds but they're not used to a cat that fights it. i made a little video of how i do it, just holding her and pilling her, and the sitter said it saved her so much hassle. also, leave a written schedule on the fridge, not just in a message, in case they lose their phone or something.
another thing, if she's prone to getting sick, make sure your vet is okay with the sitter calling them directly. some vets won't talk to anyone but you, and that's a problem if you're in a different timezone. my vet in funabashi gave the sitter a direct line and it made everything way less stressful. just ask before you book anything.
honestly, if she needs meds on a schedule, a sitter beats a hotel every time. your cat stays home, no stress of a new place, and you can meet the sitter before you leave to go over the med routine. i'd skip the cage-y places entirely, even the "spacious" ones still feel like a clinic to a sick cat.
for a sitter, check out the "Tokyo Cat Sitter" group on Facebook, it's a small community of vetted people, mostly expats who've done it for years. i found a woman there who charges 3,500 yen per visit, she came twice a day for my senior cat with kidney issues, gave fluids and everything. she always sent videos of her eating, which was a huge relief.
one thing nobody mentions: ask the sitter for a trial visit while you're still home. have them come over once, give the meds, see how your cat reacts. that way you both know it works before you're on a plane. most sitters are fine with this, and it costs one visit fee, but it's worth it.
For a cat that needs regular medication, a petsitter is usually the safer bet than a hotel. Most cat hotels in Tokyo, even the decent ones, are run by staff who rotate shifts, so getting the meds right at the exact time can be hit or miss. A sitter comes to your place, follows your routine, and your cat stays in familiar territory, which matters a lot if she's prone to stress-related flare-ups.
If you do want a hotel, check out Cat Hotel Popo in Kichijoji. They have proper rooms with shelves and hiding spots, not cages, and they're used to giving oral meds. It's around 3,500 to 5,000 yen a night depending on the room size, which is mid-range for the area. Book early, they fill up fast during holidays.
For a sitter, try the Catmama service. It's run by a retired vet nurse, she's very thorough about medication schedules and will send you photo updates daily. She covers most of Tokyo and parts of Chiba, and charges about 4,000 yen per visit. I've used her twice myself, once for a cat with thyroid pills, and she handled it flawlessly.
One thing to watch with any sitter, ask if they have backup in case they get sick themselves. A one-person operation can fall through, and you're abroad with no easy way to fix it. Most good sitters have a partner or a
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Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.