Central Alberta Cattery - Feline Vacation Resort

14/07/2025

Hi cat friends,

Sorry for the short notice.

I’m going to give you the short version within this first paragraph, as I know people hate reading long blocks of text these days. This is the final month for the Cattery. There may be small blocks of days available in the next two weeks but I need things to be all settled by next month (though there will be one or two cats sticking around into early August). So moving forward, I will be turning away any August bookings, and all boarding bookings moving forward. I’m sorry, but there’s just no way to continue. Fortunately, MeowCheck will continue be there for you if you need it.

Now the extended version of this, for those who’ll keep reading. There’s still some good news in there, don’t worry.

The Cattery opened on July 24, 2016. Little did I know I’d encounter multiple situations that would hinder the growth of this business. Whether it was the “promise” of the oilfield returning to the glory days (false), or Covid, which set back the plans by 1.5 years (the goal of moving to an acreage), or the unexpected death of my mother (silent partner of the Cattery) in 2021, and now this absolute mess of “where does one SAFELY go on vacation on this planet right now? Where is it safe and affordable?!” I have talked to another cats-only boarding place and they’ve been feeling it too, due to travel advisories and so on. So it’s not just me. Well-established kennels with an advertising budget certainly have fared better than I ever could, but that’s nothing to talk about at this point. Fact is, I wouldn’t have seen this much of a drop in bookings under normal circumstances, but here we are. By now, August should have been almost booked solid, but it is so far from it this time around.

MeowCheck is going to keep going, as it has been doing some of the heavy lifting this month. It was clearly a popular decision when I downsized in 2022, because a number of my former boarding clients are now MeowCheck clients. And while everyone reading this probably has one or more cats, you have friends who go away who do not have cats. This is your chance to tell them that MeowCheck will officially be added as a feature of a new business I will be formally bringing to life right away. I won’t mention the name yet (worry not, I will use my social media footprint to introduce it!), but hopefully it becomes a name you mention to your vacation or out of town worker friends without cats. It will be a formal home watch service. I already have a couple of non-feline clients who use MeowCheck as a home watch service, so this is a no-brainer. I already have three years of experience doing it.

My decision was not an easy one, but the rug has been pulled out from under me too many times for me to rationalize trying to keep things going the way they are now. I kinda like the idea of keeping a roof over my head. Times change, and I have to change with them. I live alone in a 1,200sq.ft. home and this isn’t a dual income household. Had it been so, there’d be no issues. But this is my life - I have to steer the ship into calmer waters. Depending on circumstances after this summer, I may be able to still board one cat family at a time (maybe two, if the place I downsize to has the space).

I know there have been a couple posts over the past year or so where I have dropped a couple of these potential “this is the end” bombs, stating that I may not be able to keep the Cattery going. But this one is the real deal, as I know for certain now, with no investors (man, I tried… no one was interested) and no other vines to swing to, I need to fight for my future.

So please keep MeowCheck in mind for your feline care AND home watch needs, and if you have any questions or concerns about in-home care, you know how to get ahold of me!

Thank you Red Deer and central Alberta, it’s been a journey. There’s a new path to be traveled, and I hope to make the best of it. And I hope to keep hearing from many of you!

Rob

18/06/2025

No clever advertising, no catchy wordplay. Just a video of Dewie doing Dewie stuff. He's been a Cattery regular (and more recently, mostly MeowCheck!) since probably 2018. Still going strong!

This room is available later this month, due to a last minute cancelation.

04/06/2025

Hi cat friends,

I've been slacking with the social media stuff.

Bookings are way down from previous years. As I work to secure something part time to help keep me going, I'm still going to be your unofficial travel agent for Canadian destination ideas.

I've mentioned Liard Hot Springs before, which is family friendly but a heck of a drive. Let's talk about a trip that isn't too far out of the way.

I'm talking about Ainsworth Hot Springs. I have been there, twice. So I know what I'm getting you into here!

Ainsworth Hot Springs is about an 8.5 hour drive from Red Deer to the Kootenays region of BC. In fact it's nestled right along Kootenay Lake.

I'll give you a short story about my second visit, because it's kinda amusing. Right out of high school, a friend of mine and I hopped in my car and headed to the Okanagan, followed by Lake Louise. On our way back I said, "Hey... let's do a one night stay in Ainsworth." So we did. We camped in the same campground that I remember going to with my parents, as a kid. It was kind of surreal returning there as a late-teen, untethered from family. The first thing I did when I got through the change rooms and into the resort pool area was head directly to the hot springs hot pool. It's not like some hot pools. A horseshoe-shaped cave has been carved out where the spring water comes in, so you can actually walk waist-deep through a lit up cave. For those who want to relax but take it a bit more easy, there's a main pool with the same water, but it's cooled down and you can stretch out a bit. But the pool we wanted to jump into was the absurdly cold pool that was right beside the hot springs pool. I believe we saw a floating thermometer in there (but maybe it was just a sign beside the pool), which read +4C. This water was coming straight off the mountain and into this small "hot tub" sized pool. We eased our way in, and the way two stupid teenagers would do, decided to one-up each other by seeing who would tap out first. I think there comes a point where your body just kind of goes numb. An Aussie walked past us, observing what we were doing, stopped, and said, "You guys are nuts." And walked away.

There are a few great things to do here. You have the hot springs, but there's also camping, lake activities, and the Cody Caves (link in the comments section). So you really can make a weekend out of this trip.

Now get out there and explore this country!

Pools May 15, 2024 Hot springs pools Hotel: Open 5 days a week Wednesday – Sunday Hotel guests have access to the pools from 8 am – 930pm and until 10am on day of check out check hotel availability Pools: Open to the public, first come first served Wednesday – Sunday | 10 am – 7:30 pm (last ...

26/05/2025

Just found out that outgoing e-mail hasn't worked for about a week now. So that's fun...

Just in case anyone's been waiting for replies, yeah, they're sitting quietly in the drafts folder.

🙄

24/04/2025

Hi cat friends,

As your unofficial tourism guide (remember, I am not a travel agent), I think we should think about the parts of Canada we often forget about. I'm guilty of this one!

I'll keep this short and let the attached link do the talking.

Quebec City. One of the oldest cities in Canada, and certainly one with historical significance. Everyone that I know who has been there had great things to say about it.

You don't need a passport to fly within Canada! Just government issued photo ID, or two pieces of government non-photo ID. And that's only if you're flying. You can travel by car/motorbike, bus, rail, boat (in a few cases).

Don't let the chaos of 2025 ruin your getaway plans! And remember to factor in who will be caring for your cats!

Tips, suggestions and the best kept secrets ... Explore the best site to inspire yourself or to plan a trip to Québec City, Canada.

03/04/2025

Hi Cat friends,

Unofficial Canadian travel advisor here. Have you heard of Manitoba? I know I have.

Riding Mountain National Park is not a place I've ever actually heard of, but after visiting their website, I had to share this.

If you're the woodsy type and like getting away from it all, it probably doesn't get much better than this! They list this destination as anywhere from a day-visit, to a week or more, opening things up to whatever you're up for in terms of exploration!

Explore this website and tell me what you think. I would love to visit this place.

This Riding Mountain National Park of Canada page provides links to natural wonders and cultural treasures, visitor information, campground reservations, and related locations and links.

31/03/2025

Alright, let's do a business pivot. Sort of...

I have spent years trying to find a local travel agent that would network with the Cattery, seeing as we share a client base. But I have consistently failed to get through to any of them (there may be one from last month, but I'm still waiting on their response).

So I guess I'm a travel agent now. Sort of. No, not a certified travel agent, and you can't book through me. But there's nothing stopping me from posting destinations that my clients might find interesting!

Now, I can't speak of Caribbean resorts, or Mexico, or Europe, but I've traveled much of Canada. Given the massive disruption in travel due to geopolitical earthquakes around the world right now, allow me to be your Canadian Destination Guy. Sort of.

First off, a hot spring I haven't been to (yet) but would love to visit soon.

Want to go on a road trip that'll create memories lasting a lifetime? May I present to you, the little talked about but absolutely beautiful, Liard Hot Springs.

Relaxation seeps into your body as you ease into the second largest hot spring in Canada. Liard River Hot Springs provides relief to Alaskan bound travellers...

17/03/2025

What's your cats favourite cat toy?

05/03/2025

Hi Cat friends,

Well, I guess we need to brace for what I will only describe as March 2020 style concerns regarding travel and our pocketbooks.

I just read earlier today that the Velvet Olive (downtown Red Deer) will be a thing of the past as summer rolls around, and that had me thinking about my own situation.

This month is, quite frankly, a disaster for boarding bookings. I don't know why so many people have moved on from the Cattery (the website is still up and active, as is social media). I can't blame anyone of course, because what do I know? Maybe people would rather stuff their cats into confined spaces with limited roaming time, as opposed to having an entire room to themselves? I know I've had a few tours in the past year where the person said they'd book, and then they didn't. Not sure who they went with, but... ok. People need to ask more questions.

Of those who booked with the Cattery and MeowCheck, I haven't seen anyone cancel their trips - yet. But hopefully for those of you who still want to travel, you're making the best choices and can still use the Cattery. For those who want to spend less on travel but still get away, I recommend finding a travel agent who really knows the best places in Canada! I happen to know a couple of them. I know if I could pick up and go, I'd want to explore Liard Hot Springs. It's on my bucket list.

I know that last year around this time I "threatened" to close the Cattery, but not long after that, things picked up. I'm not as optimistic about this year, with so much uncertainty (I'm so tired of rich people playing these games) surrounding us. This isn't a political post though, so let's not get into it. I'm not in the mood for hearing half-truths based on hearsay. Podcasters generally don't know anything - they just like to hear their own voices. There's your full truth.

Anyway, please keep telling your cat friends about the Cattery. If it goes away, it will not return. It's been almost 9 years, and with what I'm calling the third significant setback (pending - we'll see how the next few months go), I'm not sure I can reach that finish line without you.

(stock photo of cat in the mountains by Shutterstock - so that there's no copyright hassle)

17/02/2025

Happy Family Day!

Speaking of family, I feel like Ari is the elder statesman of the Cattery. Remember this image (first one)? Well, he's been a regular since October of 2016. He's slowed down a bit since then, but he has also mellowed out!

Wherever you decide to go on holidays, The Cattery is still here to keep your furry family felines safe!

13/02/2025

Hi Cat friends,

I recently noticed in the local news that a certain business had sold a bunch of gift cards/certificates, and then shut down. There's a lot more to the story than those words, but we're not here to discuss this in detail, ok?

But it was then that I realized the optics of my recent post about offering gift certificates.

This was a total coincidence, so don't feel that I was trying to capitalize on that news story, or that my post had anything to do with it.

Having said that, I will not be participating in what some other local businesses have been offering, that being "honouring their gift cards" at my business. I respect the trend, but I'm not even in the same industry as theirs. However, sorry to those who lost money in that mess!

04/02/2025

I was recently contacted about gift certificates..

Yes, the Cattery does have them! And since downsizing, with MeowCheck being a newer offering, this applies to MeowCheck as well.

Get yours today!

(edited on Feb 13, 2025) For the record, this has nothing at all to do with recent local events regarding gift cards - this was simply me doing social media posts in an attempt to keep people aware that this business exists.