I am going to NY to look into MA programs in art in May and would eat a pound of garbage to have a place to stay that costs less than the places I've looked at!

If it's not too terribly unnerving to have a stranger stay in your place, my offer is always out there. I have 2 cats.. one who also loves to color my carpets with her vomit whenever I am away so I understand your predicament.

Just had to comment on your adorable felines. We also have 4 furry friends who prevent us from travelling as often as we would like. Unfortunately, I have yet to find an acceptable solution. We always end up relying on the kindness of our animal loving neighbors.

Interesting side note: our four include an orange tabby, a black and white, a grey, and a very dark tabby just like yours. :) Good luck with your search.

Boarding two cats sounds like a plan.

I will ask the Kennel Club( great kennel) in Los Angeles for their suggestions on the best place for cats in New York.

I think having strangers in your home is "iffy" when the four of them don't get along.

Our vet office, The Cat Practice on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, boards cats.

http://www.thecatpractice.com/boarding.html

They don't have their rates listed on the website anymore, but when I looked into it last year I remember it was quite reasonable - a bit more than what I generally have paid catsitters in the past, but not bad at all. The rate was also less if you were boarding two cats who could "room" together.

I really can't say enough about how wonderful the staff is there... we haven't used their boarding service because until recently, our upstairs neighbors were willing and able to check in on our two rather high-maintenance kitties when we were away, but they have since moved and I'm not convinced our new neighbors are up for it. But I would definitely feel comfortable boarding our cats there in the future if we couldn't find a sitter.

I will also mention that I had no luck finding a catsitter to come out to Bushwick when I was looking for someone last Fall, but you may have better luck getting someone to come to your neighborhood.

Good luck!

What vet clinic do you use? I happen to work at Hope Veterinary Clinic in Boerum Hill as a receptionist; if you're interested in a good cat-sitter, there are a few people on staff there (including myself) that would be ecstatic to help you out. Our office manager, for instance, lives in Red Hook... give us a call If not, I hope the kitties do well during your vacation!

if i boarded harriet-the-evil-cat she'd make me pay for it, dearly, for months. really, it wouldn't be pretty.

i think you need someone to come in and cat-sit and stay there, esp. when you have felines who are so persnickety.

this may?? may is SOOOO far away to be getting commitment from people.

Oh, we're not looking to get someone to commit right now-- we're just looking for advice on places or people to look into.

Hi Corie,

Not so experienced with cats, but being Turkish, I'm happy to help on choosing hotels, places to eat/visit etc. Istanbul? Aegean Sea? Ephesus?

Email me offline if you like and I'm more than happy to help. You made a terrific choice, you'll love it! May is just the perfect time to visit.

Asli

We have a friend who lived in our apartment while we were away for three weeks.

The cats loved him so much that they were depressed when we came home and he left.

Let me know if you would like his info.

t

I'd try Woofs n' Whiskers over on Summit (718-237-0298). That's your neck of the woods so you could board or do home visits. I'm over on Henry and when the boy and I took off to Cape Cod last summer, our dog-walker, Ann (from WnW) came over twice a day to feed our cat. It was a great setup and--from what I can remember--not outrageously expensive. And the owner of the place, Danielle, is a total sweetheart.

I cant help on the catsitting due to an ocean in the way, but where abouts in Turkey are you off to?

I spent a bit of time in the SW corner and loved it; Egirdir is nice for a couple of days relaxation, and if you are in the Antalya area i can totally recommend the ruined city of Termessos as its pretty spectacular!

we have a cat sitter that is very good and is relatively inexpensive (compared with boarding that is - think she was around $10/visit). something sam has done in the past and we were planning on doing again in the spring was doing an apartment swap - sign up with a service and can find people in turkey who want to come to nyc and swap apartments with them - when sam did this a few years ago, people were more than happy to watch his cat.

If you go the petsitter route, you might want to check the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters (www.petsitters.org). They have a searchable database (by zip code) of both certified sitters and non-certified sitters. I've had pretty good luck with them, as well as recommendations from vet offices.

Since the trip is so far away, why not start asking friends in other countries (or the other side of this one), if they want a free place to stay in Brooklyn while you're gone. I just did that with a friend from London and it worked out great for both of us. NYC hotels are so insanely expensive, I think most people would jump at the chance.