We all know that it's hard to leave our pets behind when we take a vacation.  So what are some of the things you do to ensure their comfort and happiness while you are gone?  Do you leave them with family and friends? Or in a kennel?  What tips would you share with someone who is leaving their pet for the first time? 

We used to have the worst time leaving our babies when we went on vacation.  We have so many so it's not reasonable to kennel all of them.  We used to take the dogs to my mother in law's house and my dad would come in and feed the cats.  Everyone was an absolute mess and so confused when we got home it was really upsetting.

Starting last year we had a girl that I work with who has experience house stitting come to the house and stay with the girls.  It was the absolute perfect situation.  She has the same work hours as I do, keeps them on the same schedule, they get to stay in their house, it's wonderful.  We pay her well but it's definately worth the price. 

We just have one furbaby, Mittens.  I don't want to sound like we negect him, but being a cat, he pretty much stays at home by himself.  We never leave him for more then 6 nights.  We tell him before we leave how many darks we will be gone and leave him 4 big dog dishes of food.  Before we moved into the house, we use to let the water drip(we weren't paying a water bill, since it was included in the rent), now we take out a 4 large bowls and fill them with water for him.  When we got home after being gone for six darks, he still had a lot of food and water left.  I swear if we were home, it would be gone.

We also leave a light on for him and a talk radio station turned on so he won't feel alone.  When we get home, he usually stays close to me for the first day, then he's his normal self.  I usually book the after we get home off to be with him so he feels comfortable again.

I've also gotten a friend of mine to come for a while when we go away. She still lives at home so sometimes it's nice for her to get away for a bit. It worked well for her in Feb when we had all that snow. She slept over here for 2 nights since I live right around the corner from the hospital. She got to go to work with no trouble and my babies got company for 2 nights. I always tell her now about when we're going away.