One of the most important things would be that they have a safe facility, that the cats are secure where they are boarded. Cats can sometimes be little Houdinis. They can open cages or open the areas that they're in. So make sure they're safe and ensure that the facility is clean. Ventilation is a big part, especially if you're talking about litter boxes and cat litter. If you have multiple cats in an area, is it safe? Is it clean, and how are they housed? Are they separated and unable to touch or contact another pet there?

Here at the Animal Hospital of Statesville, our philosophy is to support fear-free and cat-friendly guidelines. So what does that mean? We try to offer the best care and the least amount of fear associated with that. As mentioned in some of our previous videos on kitty comfort kits, we try to ensure a stress-free environment before they arrive or even while boarding.

One of the most important things is to look at recommendations and ratings to make sure they have good reviews, that it's a reputable boarding facility, and that they are safe for your cat.

This is an interesting question about the most important question, and I think we've answered some of those fundamental questions about how the cat is cared for and their policy if they get sick or hurt. Another one we thought of that I would think falls under the classification of things that don't get asked is what happened in a fire situation. Here at the animal hospital, we have a protocol of getting every pet in a carrier because cats aren't used to being on a leash and walked out. So that's the safest way to contain them. Then we have a meeting place where we would try to account for every person and animal. We do have an alarm system and sprinklers as well. So that would notify the fire department ahead of time. We have a system of notifications for doctors and staff members to come up in the middle of the night to take care of everything.

I hope you've done your research ahead of time and maybe even have gone and interviewed and toured that facility beforehand. But at drop-off, when you're interacting with the person that's going to be taking care of and checking in your pet, they should be knowledgeable of any facts ahead of time. You should tell them about any concerns, and they should be concerned and notate that. The facilities should be clean, and you should know what they do in an emergency and if they have a protocol as we do. In an emergency, if your cat were to get sick or have a problem, what are their concerns, or what is their procedure for handling that? What vet do they take them to if they're not at a veterinarian?