Cat Man Do Pet Sitting

I use Greg (from Cat Man Do) on a regular basis and have every confidence that my cats will always be both well looked after, loved and played with whilst I am on holiday.He gives me regular text updates on their 'antics' whilst I am away and they are perfectly contented upon my return.My cats have got rather stressed when they've previously gone to a cattery, so I find Greg's service just ideal for my cat sitting needs.

I wasn't going to write a review as it makes me feel guilty as my story could've been a one off, but if so he must've really hated me and had something against me, but being a complete stranger I cant see why!Before I went away I had brought a pet cam for the purpose of my holiday and as I was due to be going back to work after a few months off. The camera lets you watch whats happening live, and also sends you notifications of any movement so that you can watch what has previously happened when you connect to wifi.My kitten was 9 months old and I had never left her for more than 12 hours so wanted to be able to see her while away. I told him when he came round to meet her before I went away, about the camera and told him it only films the area where she sleeps and plays, and it wasn't to check on him. He said it was absolutely no problem as he would only do what he always does anyway and he's so laid back he would forget it was there!It seems he did, I left at 4am to get to the airport, cat man was supposed to go round between 9-11am each morning and 7-9pm in evening. It was 2.30pm when I managed to get internet connection and check that she was ok. I didn't have a notification of any movement other than her wandering around on her own. I contacted him and he told me 'I've been doing the other side of town today as I have so much on. My wife was helping. I'll find out'. I arranged for my nan to go round straight away instead as he had said that once he gets home he'll ask his wife if she had come round and if not, he'll then come round himself. He did go round that evening but the only notification I got was of him chatting on the phone the whole time.Next morning I didn't get a notification of any movement again, called him and he snapped at me saying he was round there now and he doesn't think this is working anymore, he has now realised he doesn't like the camera being there, nor does his wife and he feels like I am checking up on him all the time.... obviously this panicked me as being a 4.5 hour flight away and finding out your cat sitter is hanging in the towel because he's decided he isn't happy with the camera he was fine with as he would only be doing what he always does sent my anxiety levels sky high which was a great start to my holiday. All I could think about was her.Idare say if I hadn't been the first to have a pet cam while he was looking after my pet, I wouldn't be the first writing this review. It is actually recommended to have one when you go away so you can ask someone to go round if your pet is in distress for any reason.Anyway, to stop me from panicking I held back and made sure I was polite and had to reassure him I trusted him in order to get him to stay and carry on looking after her! I saw the next 24 hours run smoothly so told him I would turn off notifications and allow him to get on with his job. I did so and only looked at the live cam when I went to bed for a few minutes and in the morning just because I missed her. I hoped he would have made sure to do a good job now he knows he was unlikely to get away with not doing so.So 48 hours into my holiday my anxiety levels returned to normal and I was able to enjoy my holiday.I like to think she was looked after, after the confrontation. But another thing I'm hesitant to say but think I should for the purpose of anybody else looking to hire him, is when I got home her pate type of cat food (by Nature's Menu) had just been thrown into her bowl without mashing down, so it was just a hard slab put into a bowl. Obviously she hadn't eaten it as she would've had to learn how to use a knife and fork.Nice guy, on the outside. Will do the job, but only if he really has to. Makes me feel so sad for my cat whenever I think about it.

After two truly horrific experiences with a cattery and a different pet sitting service, I contacted Cat Man Do - mainly because I can't never go away and I figured a guy looking after cats for a living must really love his job and do it well. I was NOT disappointed - Greg is utterly fab. Not only did he make me feel totally at ease with regards the fact that I was utterly neurotic about my cats and how they were looked after (the horrific cattery experience resulted in a £9k vets bill), but he was more than happy to text me to let me know that they were ok and even put my dustbin out for me!He may not go in at rigid or set times but he went in twice a day as requested, my cats were fed, watered, looked after and happy (I think Greg got more stressed than they did) and I can't ask for more than that. I would have absolutely no hesitation in using Greg again (he is already booked for my next holiday) or recommending him to anyone I know - which given my previous experiences is a glowing endorsement indeed.

We have used Greg on two occasions now and have been extremely pleased with way that he goes about his work.

A very helpful & reliable chap