Jobs with Cats

The majority of jobs with cats typically involve caring for cats in a boarding environment; ie, private cattery boarding or animal charity/shelter cattery. This hands-on work caring for cats may involve tough physical outdoor work cleaning, feeding and looking after cats in a cattery. Jobs in catteries include; cattery management, cattery assistants, boarding cattery ownership and animal charity management. There are other careers with cats such as cat grooming and cat behaviour work.

For most jobs working with cats, it is important to have relevant training that will stand out on your CV and assist you in gaining an interview and hopefully a job working with cats.

A typical day working in a cattery looking after boarding or rescue cats involves hard work and much of it may be outdoors. Following high standards of cleaning and hygiene is essential in order to prevent the spread of diseases and infections such as cat flu. Many staff working in animal charity catteries spend a lot of time working with cats suffering from stress (most cats find cattery life stressful) and staff provide environmental enrichment and TLC to improve life for the cats living in confinement. If rescue cats are relaxed and able to exhibit normal behaviours, they are less likely to become ill and have a greater chance of finding new homes as potential owners will be able to see and stroke them (as opposed to a stressed cat hiding in the cat cabin and likely to scratch or bite).

So, the role of someone working with cats is diverse and rewarding and involves a lot of hands on contact with many different cats.

Due to the crisis of too many animals and not enough homes, animal charities are inundated with unwanted animals and many of these are cats and kittens. Cats are given up for a variety or reasons including; owners not being able to cope, allergies, moving abroad, cats having behavioural problems, not being able to afford, owners moving to unsuitable accommodation, etc.

When cats aren’t neutered and have kittens, this often in turn leads to even more pressure on animal charities if owners aren’t able to find homes for the unwanted litters.

This animal welfare crisis which means that most animal charities are always full to capacity with unwanted animals. As there are now so many animal charities, with many animals (and cats), needing care, the animal charity and welfare sector is one of the biggest employers and hires many people to provide care for the cats in their care.