Meet our amazing team

At Catseye Cattery our team of 5 work very hard along side Helen and Michael. The cattery is always staffed throughout the day.

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Harriet Milbourne

I have always loved cats and there have been cats in my household since I was born. I have three fluffy felines of my own; Bella, who is the oldest, and Hamish and Ivy who are brother and sister. I love them all dearly!

I first started working at Catseye in 2014, I absolutely love working here. It is one of the most fun (and fluffiest) jobs! Looking after so many different kinds of cats with all their various personalities and quirks is brilliant. I look forward to spending time with them everyday!

Harriet Milbourne

I have always loved cats and there have been cats in my household since I was born. I currently have three fluffy felines of my own; Bella, who is the oldest, and Hamish and Ivy who are brother and sister and the babies of the family. I love them all dearly!

I first started working at Catseye in 2014 and I absolutely love working here. It is one of the most fun (and fluffiest) jobs! Looking after so many different kinds of cats with all their various personalities and quirks is brilliant. I look forward to spending time with them everyday!

Dean Fraser (Team Leader)

I have always had a passion with animals in general and their welfare, but since a child cats have always come on top of the animals list. I have my own cat called Square whom I rescued from Cyprus back in 2014.

I started working at Catseye in 2016 and been loving it ever since, I have during my time came across a few ex Lothian Cat Rescue residents. I love getting to know every cats’ unique personalities, their likes and dislikes and of course making their stay as enjoyable and peaceful as possible.

Jennifer Houston

I’ve been mad about animals all my life, however I am especially passionate about cats. For the past 18 months I have been working with pets in their homes and I started working at Catseye in January. I love being with and getting to know the cats whilst they are with us.

I have a Diploma in Feline Psychology and Behaviour and this gives me membership to the International Alliance of Holistic Therapists and the International Association of Neuro Linguistic Programming and Coaching.

Jennifer Houston

I’ve been mad about animals all my life, however I am especially passionate about cats. For the past 18 months I have been working with pets in their homes and I started working at Catseye Cattery in January 2018. I love being with and getting to know the cats whilst they are with us on their holidays.

Antonija Anic-Antic

My professional experience is in arts and theatre, but my heart belongs to cats! The first cat I ever met saved my life. Her name was Miska, and she jumped, from the outside, on the window in my room, screaming and waking up the whole family, because the house was on fire. She was on time, and we were all saved, including the house.

I have lived with 22 cats in my home, every single one of them was a family member, and now there are only two of them left – Mouse (17 years old) and Obi (19 years old). Feel free to call me a crazy cat lady, it’s the best compliment I have ever heard, and I have heard it a lot! To put it simply, cats are my people!

Now, working in Catseye Cattery, I have a chance to care for a lot of cats again, and all is well!

Michelle Dugan

I have always had a love for animals and a soft spot for cats in particular. Growing up we always had cats in our home, I currently have two furry indoor trouble makers in Rhudi and Sully who are spoilt rotten and who live a life of lazy luxury!

Working in an environment where I am lucky enough to meet so many lovely cats with such different characters is a privilege and I always look forward to going to work and making their stay as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. Not many people can say they get so much enjoyment out of their job!

Michelle Dugan

Happy cats, happy owners

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Thank you so much to all the team for looking after Einey and Fry so well. Such a great place and our ladies are always so well looked after. Each time they come home happy, relaxed and fluffy from all the grooming!

Eilidh Crawford

Maisie is over 18 years old and had never been in a cattery before so we weren't sure how she would settle. It wasn't a problem and she was snug and well looked after by Michael and Helen. Michael also gave her her twice daily meds. She obviously enjoyed her little treats too and was snuggled up in her bed when we went to pick her up and didn't want to move! Maisie will return!

Eileen Miller

Michael, Dean and the team went the extra mile to look after our big baby Whiskers whilst we were away visiting family. Very accomodating, amazing communication and clearly care a lot for the cats. Whiskers is happy to be home but I know he still enjoyed his stay! Thank you and see you again soon.

Lee Sparkes

About us FAQs

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Who are Helen and Michael Dickson?

Helen and Michael are cat-mad people who took their passion for cats and made a business out of it!

Michael and Helen Dickson currently have five cats of their own and have always enjoyed being a ‘multi-cat household’.

Michael has a background in retail with over 20 years of running a successful, customer focused business.

Helen is a highly qualified and experienced registered general nurse.

Both Helen and Michael have a lot of experience in caring for their own cats with a range of medical conditions and Helen’s nursing background adds to the understanding of medical care.

How many staff work at Catseye Cattery?

There are currently 5 part-time staff helping Michael & Helen.

Are the team working there qualified to look after cats?

Yes! We only pick the best!! Our team have loads of cat experience either working in rescue centres or had their own pet service businesses. Some have qualifications in feline psychology, behaviour and wellbeing. Some are currently students working towards animal care qualifications.

Are the staff there all day?

Yes! Our team are around all day for at least 10 hours and at weekends. Helen and Michael live onsite too, so there is always someone here and the property is never left unattended.

What happens when the cattery owner’s go on holiday?

We “semi-close” in November for our main annual holiday. However, our team are still here working and looking after all the cats. A member of the team lives “in-house” when Helen and Michael are away.

What does a normal working day at Cateye Cattery look like?

The day starts at around 7am sharp. Michael checks all of the cats and removes the dirty feeding bowls from the night before and takes them to the dishwasher. The Team arrive at 8am and we all start to clean the rooms, empty litter trays and feed all of the cats. This can take us up to 11am when we stop for coffee!

The rest of the day is made-up of checking cats in and out, cleaning rooms for the next day, answering the telephone and replying to emails. After lunch, the cats are checked again and litters cleaned out. Bedding washed and dried.

The evening round starts at 4pm when we check all the cats again and give them their evening meal!

Checking is done again at 8pm and at 10pm when it’s night night – tuck-in cats to bed and lights out!

Why did you choose to start Catseye Cattery and what made you decide to look after cats?!

Michael and Helen Dickson started Catseye Cattery simply because they couldn’t find suitable accommodation for our own cats at that time. They had used catteries before but often found them to be smelly, dirty, older facilities and bad customer service. They thought “ we can do better than this” – so they did!! Setting up the cattery has been THE most difficult thing that they will ever do – starting any business from scratch is tough – but when you consider that you are asking people whom have never met you before to look after their loved-ones, it’s a big trust thing.

The business is now in its 9th year and it’s all going so very well – thanks to our lovely customers and amazing team!