We've always had two cats and our favorite thing is to find a responsible neighborhood kid and have him or her (usually her) check the cats once a day and feed them. The last place we lived in upstate NY was perfect for this -- there was a family across the street with four daughters. The oldest started pet sitting for us when we were on vacation and, over time, the job passed to her younger sisters. All were extremely excited to get the responsibility of caring for the cats and earning a couple dollars a day. (The parents were thrilled, too!) Unfortunately, we moved away just at the point when the youngest daughter was to become the pet sitter, and her dad said she was really disappointed that she wouldn't be our pet sitter.

Where we live now, a woman across the street is a professional pet sitter and she checks in on our kitties every other day when we're out. She's extremely reliable but it's just not the same as giving a young kid a taste of grownup responsibility.

--Bob