Cat Boarding in Klang Valley and Selangor

At some point most of us cat lovers will need to go on a holiday where kitty can't come with us.

Options for kitty when you're away on holiday
So who takes care of kitty if family and friends can't be convinced to babysit?

1. Leave kitty to fend herself - I've seen this happen often, and I think it's heartless. I would never do this to my babies.
   
2. Leave kitty plenty of food and water - OK but perhaps only for a few days
3. Leave kitty plenty of food and water in an automatic dispenser - Better option than number 2, especially if kitty can't control food intake. But only good for 3-4 days. If it's longer than that, somebody needs to come in once in a while to take care of the poo stench if kitty's an indoor cat. And to check for food and water supplies.
   
4. Leave kitty at the pet shop - I've seen this at many pet shops. The kitties look like they've been drugged to sleep.
5. Leave kitty at the vet's - Hmm... better than number 4. But it would be like leaving your baby in hospital while you're on holiday. Imagine kitty being surrounded by other sick cats!
6. Cat boarding aka cat hotel aka cattery (not the breeding centre type) - Now we're talking! A holiday home :)

Cat Hotels

Scallywags Malaysia
3, Jalan SS1/1B, Kampung Tunku, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
I think this is the best cat hotel in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. It's got a really homey feel to it. The cattery is in the lush green garden of the owner's bungalow house. So rest assured that there's always someone to keep an eye on the cats in case of emergencies!

They've got rooms for 2 cats, 1 cat, and even 1 "kampung house" fit for 5 cats! The garden facing room for 2 cats is especially nice because it has multiple floors and nooks and crannies for cats to explore or hide. Each room has a chair, rug, sisal scratch post, a few toys, and even a little fan! The owner, Liz, has a certificate from the Feline Advisory Bureau, a UK organisation which sets benchmarks for feline wellbeing, including hygiene standards at catteries.

This place gets booked up very quickly during festive events (Raya, Christmas, Chinese New Year), so make sure to book ahead.

The downside? Well, the only thing is that the cats get fed dry food only (IAMS, Royal Canin, Orijen...). So no raw meat or canned food during the holidays for kitty...


Pet Epicure
16, Jalan Bandar 2, Taman Melawati, Selangor
This is a pet shop / pet boarding / pet rescue centre. So it definitely DOES NOT fall under my general rule to not leave kitty at a pet shop during my holidays. The owner, Alicia Horsley Ling, is really passionate about animal welfare that some of the rescued cats are actually boarding at the shop. But please, please, don't throw away your cats here just because Alicia has a soft spot!

What I like about the place is that they feed a raw meat diet for their boarders.

And apparently, the cattery is built to FAB standards - complete with sneeze barriers to prevent transfer of disease.

The downside? Well, it could do with a more homey feel to it. The rooms literally look like see-through fridges with a wire mesh ceiling for ventilation. Although there are shelves for kitty to climb, carpet post to scratch, toys to play with, little chair to sit on, and even fan and AIRCON, there just aren't any hidey holes for kitty to get some privacy! And if I'm not mistaken, someone needs to man the place 24x7 if it's truly built by FAB standards.

Verdict? Definitely consider if Scallywags is fully booked.

De'Ritz Hotel @ Pet Safari
Level 2, Ikano Power Centre, Jalan PJU 7-2, Mutiara Damansara, Selangor
If Pet Epicure's cat rooms look like fridges, the ones here look like mini-fridges! Much less homey, no privacy, and not good for the claustrophobic kitty. But at least kitty won't be surrounded by wailing sick cats like at the vets (I hope).

Shoebox vs Ikea Cat Bed

Cat beds don't need to be expensive. You can make one for free out of an old shoebox!

My chubby baby Oatey seems to prefer it over the RM300 Ikea cat bed made of rattan that we bought for him ;-)

Ikea lint roller vs 3M lint roller compared

Ikea Lint Roller
Pros

+ Cheap RM4.90 for 1 lint roll and plastic roller, RM9.90 for 4 lint roll refills (without plastic roller)
+ Waxed paper sheets are recyclable (I think)

Cons
- Lint roll sheets are thin waxed paper, so when if you don't peel off current sheet carefully, you may end up peeling the current sheet and the next 3 layers!


3M Lint Roller
Pros
+ Thick plastic sheets, so you're less likely to accidentally peel off several sheets at once

Cons
- Expensive. Approx RM20 for 1 lint roll
- Sheets are not recyclable


Conclusion
I prefer the Ikea lint roller over 3M because it's much cheaper (RM2.50 per Ikea lint roll vs RM20 per 3M lint roll). In the past, I have favoured 3M because it seemed to pick up more fur off cloths than Ikea's lint roller. But having just finished using an Ikea lint roll, and switched back to 3M, I found that I get through just as many lint roll sheets for both brands. So I've decided to save money, and learn how to carefully peel off used lint sheets ;-)

Anicare Veterinary Clinic Wangsa Maju

Last Saturday, I decided to take the guard's cat to Anicare for a checkup and vaccine in preparation to get her spayed.

I turned up around 11:30am and was surprised to see so many people waiting! I must've been 5th or 6th in the queue while I waited for an hour. I had no idea how busy Anicare gets during the weekends - Right Angle Animal Clinic only seems half as busy during weekends. But then again, perhaps it's because Anicare is run by only 1 vet, Dr Chris, assisted by 2 aunties - 1 to help with cleaning and holding the pet, the other to serve at reception. Anicare is usually very quiet when I come on weekdays.

Despite being busy, Dr Chris was very attentive with the guard's cat. She double-checked sample crusts from the cat's ears for mites before declaring the cat's ears mite-free. And she was careful to space out a general physical examination with the more stressful temperature check (thermometer in the cat's butt) and vaccine, so as not to stress the cat out. She even praised little Comot for being so patient with her.

All in all, I'd recommend Dr Chris if you're a pet owner living around Wangsa Maju area. However, Dr Chris doesn't really handle spaying / neutering for the moment as she would need to arrange for her vet friend at another animal clinic to come over to assist her. So for now, she would normally recommend going directly to her friend's clinic (run by husband and wife) if you're in a hurry.

Dr Christina Blossom Welch
(Don't know how she got this name but she looks Chindian and speaks Cantonese. She graduated from UPM)
Anicare Veterinary Clinic
90, Jalan 1/2F, Pusat Bandar Wangsa Maju,
Section 5, Wangsa Maju, 53300 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel/Fax 03-41433273
Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri: 10am - 1pm, 3pm-5pm
Sat: 10am - 3pm
Sun: Closed

UPM Serdang animal clinic is GOOD but it's satellite clinic in PJ is BAD

I haven't found any vets in KL / Klang Valley who practise homeopathy on animals, like the famous Dr Pitcairn. But I have found some friendly vets who charge reasonable prices for treatment.

I have taken cats to Right Angle (Petaling Jaya), Anicare (Wangsa Maju), UPM animal clinic (Serdang), and UPM's satellite clinic (Petaling Jaya). Of these clinics, I would NOT recommend taking your pets to UPM's satellite clinic because the vet is not friendly, and seemed to favour euthanasia over treatment.

About two years ago, I brought the guard's cat, who was suffering from skin parasite, to the UPM satellite clinic. The vet wouldn't touch the cat, and even recommended euthanasia. I guess he's not a cat person.

But when I took the guard's cat to UPM's main animal clinic in Serdang, the vet over there complimented on how "handsome" the cat was, took skin samples, and prescribed medication!

What a difference. Here's UPM's animal clinic website for more info on address and operating hours.

Right Angle Animal Clinic

I haven't found any vets in KL / Klang Valley who practise homeopathy on animals, like the famous Dr Pitcairn. But I have found some friendly vets who charge reasonable prices for treatment. One of them is Right Angle Animal Clinic in PJ.

Right Angle Animal Clinic
7-1, Ground Floor, The Right Angle, Jalan 14/22m Seksen 14, 46100 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Tel: 03-79601822
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri (9am-7:30pm), Sat (9am-5pm), Sun (9am-1pm)
Vets: Dr Siti and Dr Thong, both UPM graduates

This clinic looks more like a pet supplies shop than a clinic but rest assured your pets are in good hands. Both vets are animal lovers and have their own pets at home and at the clinic. When I last met them, Dr Thong has about 17 cats, and Dr Siti (despite being asthmatic) has 7 cats - and that doesn't include the cats that stay at their clinic, like Whitey. Both vets treat cats and dogs.

I especially enjoy taking my cats to see Dr Siti because she makes me feel welcomed. She's chatty and takes her time to explain about the treatments for Oatey and Friesia, asks me about my cat care routine, and talks about her own cats. (Dr Thong is nice too, but she tends to be more quiet and serious).

One time, Oatey pooed in the crate on the way to the clinic. Dr Siti let me wash Oatey with soap. She didn't charge for it even though the clinic's assistant Ann helped with washing the crate.

Overall, I think Dr Siti gives balanced advice, and doesn't make my cats take more treatment than necessary. When Friesia fell off the balcony, she administered some anti-shock injections and gave some anti-bleeding tablets, and asked me to keep an eye on any blood Friesia's bowel movements, and breathing patterns. She even took time explain her major concern - to look out for signs of diaphragmatic hernia where the stomach is pushed upwards closer to the lungs making it difficult for an animal to breathe. And even explained that although the operation success rate is high (90%) during operation, she has known a few cats to die soon after that. On the flipside, she has also known a cat who lived for 15 years despite diaphragmatic hernia, and she reckons it's because owner kept the cat inside the house and carefully monitored the cat's the diet.

I certainly feel that' s better advice than what my colleague got when she took in an injured stray puppy from the car park. The vet diagnosed the puppy with diaphragmatic hernia, proceeded with operation, and charged a whopping RM5,000 for the operation! I have never seen the puppy but I couldn't help wondering whether the puppy would have survived just fine with just some TLC.

In case you're wondering, Friesia seems to have recovered from the trauma, and is back to her normal self but wiser, as she rarely climbs up onto the balcony banister.

Cats and toiletries don't mix

March has been a busy month with family, so I haven't been posting as much as I should have. Thanks Shu for reminding me to keep writing :) I'll try to post at least once a week.

Last weekend, my parents came to stay with me overnight because they wanted to visit my sick grandmother who's living with one of my aunts nearby.

As usual, I put Oatey and Friesia into the master bathroom, along with their litter tray, scratch post, rug, water, and toys. Later on Sunday afternoon after my parents had left, I noticed Friesia had a bald patch of sore skin near her thigh. Both of my favourite vet clinics, Right Angle (Petaling Jaya), and Anicare (Wangsa Maju) had closed by the time I realised, so I decided to take Friesia the following day to Anicare because it was nearer to home.

Could it be mange or some skin parasite? Or did Oatey bite off Friesia's fur? Dr Christina examined Friesia, and concluded that it was probably chemical burn. And that was when I remembered that I did not remove my toiletries, cleaning bottles, and even the toilet brush out of the bathroom when I put Oatey and Friesia in! How silly of me.

Dr Christina prescribed the standard treatment - antibiotics and some medicated cream for Friesia. I haven't found any vets in KL who homeopathy like Dr Pitcairn.