Grantham pet expert Sara Barnes writes about caring for pets when on holiday

Welcome to 2025 and for most of us we need a holiday after the festive season, writes Sara Barnes, of Who Let Your Dogs Out in Grantham.

Well, it might seem early to be thinking about half term, Easter and Summer holidays, but if you are planning of heading away without your pet it is not too early to be thinking of getting them booked in for their holidays as well.

Whether you have a cat or dog and are looking for kennels, cattery or home boarding for your pet spaces are limited and in Grantham especially there is a real shortage of cattery, kennel and home boarding spaces. All of those providing these services should be licensed by their district council.

For Grantham, that is South Kesteven District Council and they have a list on their website, if you are happy to go a little further afield the Vale of Belvoir is covered by Melton District Council. Newark is covered by Newark & Sherwood District Council and Sleaford is in North Kesteven District Council.

The same shortage applies to house sitters who look after your pets by moving into your home to care for your pets. There are several websites that advertise the services of people that offer this service and a number of local pet care services like walkers also provide it.

If you have a special pet that needs extra care or is not social with other pets your options are further limited so getting in touch with potential carers sooner rather than later is imperative, as at the time of writing this I am not aware of any home boarders in Grantham that take only one household at a time and have no other pet care commitments which might involve needing to be left home alone at some point in the day.

Who ever you are getting to look after your pet during your holiday we would advise you meeting them in advance and having some form of trial to make sure that your pet can settle and is not overly stressed or upset by the situation.

If you have a friendly pet care provider you already use and they can’t fit you in don’t forget to ask them for some suggestions of alternatives they can suggest for your pet.

Happy New Year and wishing you a great 2025 with your pets.