Today we’d like to introduce you to Lora Rouse.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started this business because I couldn’t find anybody to care for my cats after I retired and started traveling more with my husband. At that time, I had two cats and one of them started showing signs of what I thought was separation anxiety when I would leave. Her name was Babe and like a lot of people can relate to, I was her person ❤️ Every time I would leave, I would come back to a cat that was somehow sick. She would begin to have diarrhea while I was gone and stop eating and by the time I got back, she had lost weight and was miserable. Babe also had Feline Herpes and that too would be in full bloom when I got back. It was honestly hard for me to enjoy my time away when I left town knowing I was going to come back to a very sick cat. So, I found an awesome veterinarian that worked with me when I would leave town and would prescribe anti-diarrhea medication and an appetite stimulant so I wouldn’t come back to such a pitiful little sad cat. This vet also does acupuncture on animals and come to find out that was the only thing that relieved the Feline Herpes.
Now that you know all about my cat’s health issues, I still had the problem of finding a cat sitter that could give my cat the medication that she needed while I was out of town. I tried the usual route of asking neighbors and family. When I could get my daughter, Jessica, everything was great when I came back because she could give the medication to Babe and Babe loved and trusted her. She would send me pictures and honestly tell me how Babe was doing. But you can only ask so much of your family and Jessica didn’t live next door to me. She would have to drive from where she worked in Durham to my home in Apex and then back to Raleigh to get to her own home, her 5 cats, husband and little girl.
In the meantime, when I was home and not traveling, I was now retired from the Real Estate Industry and I was also an empty nester. I would like to think that I was successful in raising my children to be contributing members of the society and happy being on their own and building their own lives which they both are. That left a lot of time on my hands and I am the sort of person that likes to stay busy. So, I reverted back to my love of animals and cats in particular. I saw a need for people like myself that had cats that liked to travel but struggled to enjoy their time away every time they would leave them. Some people struggle because they love their cats and just hate to be away from them knowing they are sad and bored and missing their people. Some people struggle because they have cats or kittens that thrive on social interaction with people. Other people were more like myself and had a cat that was sick, had separation anxiety or just didn’t like strangers. There are many reasons their chosen people would come home to a sick cat or a cat that was just bored and angry that their people would leave them for so long. This all led me to pet sitting. I began with dogs and cats and named my little business, Lucky Dogs & Cool Cats Pet Sitting. To my surprise it took off like I had never imagined and became much more than just one person could do. I had to really look at my priorities at that point and decide whether I wanted to continue doing what I was doing or quit doing it altogether. The answer to that was a resounding yes, I did want to continue doing what I was doing, but with a few tweaks. I love all animals but cats are my heart and soul so I decided to specialize in cats only and renamed my business to be Cool Cats Professional Cat Sitting, LLC. A lot of people laughed at that name. Mainly because everybody thinks they can be a cat sitter. In their mind all they have to do is, like cats. But that’s not all there is to it. It’s not just playing with cats but that is a big part of what we do. It also means giving them medication successfully, feeding them just the way that their chosen people do it. It means cleaning and tidying up their litter boxes and paying attention to whether the litter box habits look normal or being able to recognize when they are not normal. It means cleaning up those messes that all cats make at one time or another and knowing when all the cat wants is for you to sit down on the couch so they can crawl in your lap and get pets, brushing and that love that they so desperately miss. That decision took me back to why I started this business in the first place. I had to find cat people that wanted to spend their time with cats and not because they just like cats but because they love everything about them.
Since I made that decision, my daughter Jessica, quit her job with Durham Parks and Recreation as the Recreation Coordinator for School Age Care and came to work with me full time. She started as a cat sitter and moved into helping me with hiring and all the administrative tasks that have to be done to run a business. I have a Virtual Assistant named Marleen that helps me with scheduling and 21 cat sitters that are located all around western Wake County. We are gradually moving into Raleigh and parts of Durham that border with Raleigh. We’ve done a little bit in Chapel Hill but at this time we don’t have anybody in that area.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’m not sure that any small business goes without struggles and that would be the same for us. Hiring is the biggest part of what we struggle with. Basically, because everybody thinks they can take care of cats. I mean who can’t show up when they are supposed to, dump some food in a bowl, fill up the water bowl and scoop a litter box? Well, you might be surprised at how many people, although they really like cats, think in the back of their mind, “It’s just a cat, they will be fine until tomorrow to get their food, water and a clean box.” As I have already pointed out, what we do is much more than that.
Additional challenges that we have struggled with is the amount of administrative work that the business has generated. From collecting payments and paying them out to the sitters, to responding to current and new clients and marketing for new clients to continue to keep the sitters that we do have busy and engaged. Many but not all of our sitters are older ladies that have cats of their own and they are retired from successful careers. There is a reason they had successful careers and that is because they are responsible people that take their responsibilities seriously. My other sitters are responsible younger and middle-aged people that do this because they love cats and spending time with them. This is not a hobby for them. It is a second career or income doing something they really love. They are using the knowledge they have about something they are passionate about to bring in much needed income. Being in that situation myself I see the benefits of doing something that you love and bringing in much needed income. That in itself has become a pressure I personally feel to keep providing enough work to all of my sitters no matter what their age or situation.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m not sure how to respond to this question because all I have been talking about is my work and what we specialize in. We are known for being the best cat care specialist in western Wake County. I can’t say all of Wake County but that’s because at this time we don’t service Northern or Eastern Wake County.
What I am most proud of is the administrative team and the sitters that take care of the cats and the clients that we service. They continually make me proud to be associated with them. What sets all of my sitters and administrative team apart is that they all go the extra mile for all of our clients all of the time. They take what they do with Cool Cats seriously. They are professional cat people. They show up when they are supposed to, they earn the trust of their furry clients and the utmost respect of their human clients. If something were to happen that they could not make their visit, they and my administrative team make sure that another sitter is there to fill in for them and give that cat the best care possible.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
The only thing I can say about what I’ve created here with this team of awesome people and sitters is that I’ve only been prouder of one other accomplishment in my life and that is my children and the children they are now bringing into this world ❤️.
As a company we will continue to strive to be the best cat care professionals out there. We will continue to follow our unique Cool Cats Peace of Mind Blueprint, which includes 10 very important points.
1. Professionalism: Our clients know they are trusting their furry and sometimes not so furry loved ones and their homes to a well-established, experienced, qualified, insured, and bonded business. We are members of The National Association of Professional Pet Sitters (NAPPS), The American Society for Preventing Cruelty to Animals, the ASPCA of Wake County, and The International Cat Association (TICA).
2. Reasonable and Competitive Rates: We understand that owning and caring for a pet is a significant investment, so we do our best to make our services affordable and competitive. We offer various services at various prices to accommodate all cat care budgets.
3. Customized Services: We realize that no two homes or pets are exactly alike, so we offer various services to fit your needs. We will tailor your cat care plan to fit your needs. We offer an estimate of all charges before our registration meeting.
4. First Rate Staff: We contract only dedicated cat care professionals. We work with sitters who have practical experience in the cat care field. We also run an extensive screening and interview process on all applicants.
5. Safety: For the safety of the pets in our care, Cool Cats does not use car decals for advertising purposes, which may alert the wrong people to your absence. We do use lockboxes but will remove the lockbox while the client is gone and reinstall it on the last visit depending on the wishes of the client.
6. Experience and Educational Development: Our experience and knowledge allow us to understand your cat’s needs and how to best interact with them. Cool Cats strongly believes in continual education and constant accumulation of knowledge. As such, we are always updating our expertise in caring for pets and cats. Cool Cats requires all our sitters to take a Pet First Aid course upon hiring.
7. Technology and Convenience: To help our business run as smoothly as possible, we take advantage of all that technology offers. We use a high-tech scheduling and database system, so no cat is left behind. This portal also provides convenience for our clients to book cat care, view their service calendar, and pay their bills online through Venmo, Paypal, Credit Card or ACH. Our clients can also keep their files up-to-date electronically, so everything runs smoothly.
8. Unsurpassed Personal Service with Outstanding Communication: We provide our clients with a phenomenal pet and cat care experience. This is done with top-notch pet care and also with spectacular customer service. We understand the value of open communication, so we have office staff available between the hours of 9 am & 5 pm. We also monitor the voicemail and email in the off-hours in the case of an emergency. Additionally, our sitters leave detailed updates, pictures and video at each visit and keep you updated on your loved ones by sending you texts and emails.
9. Follow-Up: To best serve our clients, we must obtain feedback, so we constantly follow up to receive an assessment of your experience with us. We encourage our clients to let us know what they love about the process and what suggestions they may have to make our service better.
10. Genuine Love of Cats: Cool Cats was founded on my passion for cats, which is still the root of our success. All of us at Cool Cats prioritize providing your cats with as much love and attention as you would. We aim to promote your cat’s health and well-being while you can’t be there to do it yourself.
Last but not least, all of our sitters sign the “Cool Cats Professional Code of Ethics” when hired.
Pricing:
- 30 Minute Visit – $28 for 2 up to Cats
- 45 Minute Visit – $40 for up to 6 Cats
- 60 Minute Visit – $50 for up to 10 Cats
- Medication Administration – $5 per visit per cat
- Add-On Services: Please see website
Contact Info:
- Website: https://coolcatscatsitting.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coolcatscatsitting/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coolcatscatsitting
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lora-rouse-cool-cats/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/cool-cats-apex?osq=Cat+Sitter&override_cta=Get+pricing+%26+availability
