Cat-sitter lied to cat owner about missing cat but didn't have to

NEWS AND COMMENT: Meagan Herrick, of Idaho, who goes by @meaganherrick on Tiktok decided to go on a holiday with her family and had a cat-sitter to look after their cat, Figgy, at home, while they were away. Unbeknownst to her, Figgy had jumped into their camper before they set off on their journey and when they arrived at the destination, there she/he was (we don't know the gender). Note: cats love to nose around and the activity surrounding the camper would have encouraged Figgy to jump and an investigate.

In the meantime, Herrick had not heard from her cat-sitter. No doubt she had asked the person to keep her in the loop and to update her on how Figgy was getting along. As she had not heard from the cat-sitter she sent a text message. But it was a trick text message asking how her kitty was getting along as you can see from the screenshot from the text communication.

Surprisingly, her cat sitter replied: "Great! just checking on her, she's so sweet."

Herrick and cat sitter text communication. Screenshot.

In response, Herrick replied with a photo of Figgy curled up in their camper. No doubt this caused acute embarrassment with the cat sitter. I think, on reflection, that Herrick's text was a little cruel. In theory she did not have to lie because Figgy was not lost although she didn't know it. If the cat sitter was totally confident in her work, she could have askes Herrick if Figgy was with her. Moral: a cat sitter should check that the cat is in her sight when the owners leave! :) 

People are commenting on the story as they would. I've got to be sympathetic to the cat sitter. He or she probably thought that Figgy had disappeared while they were in charge of looking after her (I've decided that she is female).

And because they thought she had disappeared they tried to cover their tracks while they were looking for her. No doubt they were in a bit of a panic and hoped that Figgy would turn up before the Herrick family returned. I can totally understand this and therefore the lie is not as bad as it first looks.

@meaganherrick

Was she honest? ##catsoftiktok ##camping ##viral ##fy##foryou

♬ ahAAAAA HAHAAAA - ryn, the mean lesbian wifeguy

Note: This is a video from another website. Sometimes they are deleted at source which stops them working on this site. If that has happened, I apologise but I have no control over it.

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It should be said, as a postscript, that leaving your cat with a cat sitter while you go on holiday is potentially a dangerous thing to do. You are leaving a member of your family sometimes with a stranger who might have been recommended to you. But you don't fully know how good or bad they are at ensuring that your cat stays inside the home.

And because a stranger is in the home with your cat, your cat might be anxious. He or she is confronted with an unknown threat within their territory and this may force them to escape and not return. That's why you will see cat sitters losing their cats and it'll be a tragedy for the owners.

I suppose the moral of the story is to make sure that the person who carries out the cat-sitting duties is well-known to your cat and you (as being utterly reliable and sensible). This would seem to be absolutely essential. I would recommend never doing anything else. And if the person doesn't know your cat, they should get to know them before they do cat-sitting duties for you.

There are professional cat-sitters but once again they will be strangers initially, on the first sitting. No doubt they introduce themselves well before they begin cat sitting and being experienced, they probably know how to ensure that the cat in their charge does not disappear.

You can ruin a good holiday if your cat disappears while you are away. A final point: Figgy seems to have enjoyed his impromptu holiday so there won't be the need for a cat sitter the next time.