This is my geniune opinion about Abivale Group and Cattery.
The manager at Abivale has been complaining to Yelp about this pretending my opinion is not geniune and doesn't count.
So here it is :
We put our lovely cat (3 years old) in the care of Hadden Hill Cattery in Didcot (part of Abivale Group). She staid during the Christmas holiday 2010 (10 days). When we came back from holiday to collect her she had a large tummy (inflated) and I found this unusual. I asked the lady manager at the Cattery what this could be and she replied: 'Oh you know ...as long as she eats she is happy!' I didn't recognise my cat behaviour in this sentence as she is not used to eat a lot anyway, but I didn't pay too much attention. It is only few days after when our cat was ill and not eating at all that I had to take her to the vet (abivale).
It happened that our cat had contracted a fatal disease (FIP) that normally develops in 2 weeks (time of her stay at the cattery, strange no?) Therefore I strongly believe she contracted this at the cattery. Our cat was an indoor cat. Regarding hygien at the cattery, they swap and clean all trays (litter and food/water) which despite being clean could be a source of infection. I must say I also saw an employee smoking a cigarette while at work there and I was not impressed.
To prove this is a genuine case, I got in touch with the local council to see what could be done but they confirmed they only inspect the cattery once a year. They confirmed that my chances of proving this disease was contracted at the cattery were NULL according to them. In fact anyone in the UK can open a Cattery as a small business.
Our cat died few weeks later in horrible pain. We were so sad I had to write this review. Some will say this is unfounded evidence. It is up to you to make up your own mind. My review is not to say that Abivale is a bad cattery. It is just to say what happened to our lovely cat following a 10 day stay there.
As I said Haddon Hill and Abivale are a big cattery (with at least one member of staff smoking cigarettes at work!). My comment is only for you to make up your mind.
I sincerely hope the Abivale manager will understand that comments are a legitimate feeling about situations and can be useful. If she is really sorry for what happened to my adoured pet and to the suffering involved, then she is welcome to contact me to discuss it.
JC read more