Elite Cattery Archway Road, North London

The place looks rundown, I was not allowed to see my cats accommodation. I left my cat for 5 nights, he came home very stressed and what looked like blood on the end of his nose! He slept in my arms for weeks which he never did before ….. my heart was broken as I was reassured he would be well looked after. There was little sign of much care given. He had lost weight. Never again will I use Elite Cattery.

My husband left our 2 cats at Elite Cattery as he needed to travel for work. One of our cats had not eaten his food that morning and my husband asked staff to keep an eye on him and to call him if he was gettng worse.

They did not and the next morning at 9 am, one of the staff who was cleaning the cages finds him in a critical condition. He was lying down and yawling to get someone's attention, his body was extremely cold and he could barely move his head (The person who found him told this to my husband afterwards). And yet they left him there in this state for nearly 4 hours. The manager only called my husband around 11:15 am as he was on his way to the airpport to ask if they could take him to the vet. Even though I had given them clear instructions to take my cats to the vet in case of emergency (this was definitely one) and I had left my Vet's details (the Royal vet College) with them on previous occasions. They ended up taking my cat to their own vet and arrived there at 12. He died at 12:40 because it was already too late (liquid had infiltrated his lungs). I asked the manager why since he was found at 9am he was only taken to the vet at 12. She gave me poor excuses such as getting dressed, getting to Elite Cattery to see my cat for herself etc, she said she called my husband earlier when he only received a call at 11:15 as he was leaving home(I showed his phone log the Licensing department as proof).

I then filed a complaint with Haringey Licensing department. After investigation, they found numerous issues including the size of the cages (way too small), the fact they do not let you see the cages when asked, the lack of records regarding training of staff, poor hygiene conditions, the fact they write instructions with pen and paper on a small sheet of paper or an notebook (instead of using a computer) meaning they don't keep a proper record of your instructions, and a few more issues which Haringey Licensing department did not mention.

Elite Cattery was not penalised for their neglect and lack of professionalism because businesses seem to be more important to Haringey Licensing department then animal welfare and they didn't want to put them out of business. I was told by the investigating officer at Haringey Licensing that they had known about the fact the cages were too small for years but that increasing the size of their cages would put Eliet Cattery out of business.

I am certain my cat could have been saved if he been taken to the vet on time. The vet later told me that his condition which, no vet had managed to detect before this horrible day, was aggravated by stress. I know this now because I asked for an autopsy.

When I called Elite Cattery after my cat's death, they could not tell me whether he had eaten any food during his time in their care (even though he had spent only 24 hours at Elite Cattery before he died)and it was obvious from our conversation that staff did not pay attention to him after he had been put in his cage.

This happened a year and a half ago and I miss my cat to this day and regret the day I ever considered Elite Cattery.

I believe a cattery should be managed by professionals and staff with appropriate training in animal care and welfare. They should be prompt to act in case of emergency and able to let you know straight away if your cat is unwell. They should be able to bring the cat within the hour to an emergency vet especially if the vet is 4.5 miles away.

If you care about your cat, avoid this place at all costs.

My cat has stayed here twice and on both occasion he came home ill. I wont be using them again.

My cat spend a week in Elite Cattery and came back in very poor condition. He's clearly lost weight,sneezing and coughing a lot ,has upset stomach and is depressed.

He looks like he's been is a battle!

Staff never mentioned he wasn't well. I was told off for not giving right instructions (which I did on three different occasions).

Keep your pet away from this place.

I recently put my two cats into Elite Cattery, and I was not happy regarding the way my cats were looked after for the 6 days they were there. We told them that one our cats was very shy and that they should be together as they are sisters and close.

We asked to see the pens before we left and was told we couldn't as you can only view the pens on a Saturday. This should be put right.

When the cats were picked up the woman there said one of our cats was messing herself, and both were not eating when we rang up to check there progress. Then the next day we rang up they said they had been eating but only after they had to cook fresh chicken. One of our cats has lost weight, and. So we are feeding her up.

We had booked them to go into the Cattery in July while we are on holiday, but the woman said she won't take them, but we could book off season.

But we are never booking our cats with you again, you probably had too many cats there by what the relative said when she went to pick them up as she saw the pens with our cats huddled together, and too many cats roming around. We told the woman that we could provide the food for them but she was having none of it, kept going on about what we should be doing Yet our cats eat good quality food for there health.

In my Opinion if you want your animals to have a good comfortable stay at a Cattery please don't let them go to the above Cattery. It's ok if you want them to stay in a Conley, mass of animals.

Wonderful place to put my cats and they came back very happy and satisfied. Quite cheap as well compared to most catteries.

We have used this cattery about three times. Each time we have had to bow and scrape to get the cats in. The opening hours are very short and they are not at all flexible. The system used to book the cats in is a paper one and they cannot even confirm what your booking is when you phone, you are just expected to remember, even when you book months in advance! Could be a good place but this inflexibility makes using them a stressful and untenable experience.

Very good care of my cats and I would recommend it to anyone who needs temporary care for their cat. Don't expect absolute luxury but for a short time it is definitely worth the price.

My cat recently spent a week at Elite. He is not an easy cat to deal with as he is deaf and very strong willed. He came back full of beans and very happy. He has obviously been well looked after and I would recommend the cattery to anyone. I was most impressed and he will be returning. It is great to have this sort of resource so you can go away knowing that your pet is happy.

I put my 5 month old chocolate Burmese kittens in this Cattery and they seemed to enjoy it very much. The staff are very kind and friendly and they obviously care very well for the cats. The accommodation is clean but simple and the cages are fine. They get time to run about and you can keep two kittens in one cage if you want (the cage will be slightly bigger). When we collected our kittens they seemed perfectly happy and not overweight or underweight.There was a slight smell on their fur but that is natural as they are kept in a place with lots of other cats! Overall I think its a simple, caring place and I would recommend it to other people.