Terms of service

bbcat Inc. Boarding Terms of Service
Home-based, cage-free, cats-only boarding

Effective Date: September 11, 2026

Please read carefully. By checking the relevant field at checkout, completing the intake form and submitting your booking request, you agree to these Terms for each booking you make on or after the Effective Date. For existing bookings, the version accepted at the time of booking applies unless we both agree otherwise in writing. These Terms include a mandatory inter-cat contact policy, an assumption of risk, a limitation of our liability, and your indemnity of bbcat. If you do not agree, do not book.

1. Parties and Scope

  • Provider: bbcat Inc. (bbcat, we, us, our), together with its directors, officers, shareholders, employees, agents and contractors (the bbcat Parties).
  • Owner: The person submitting the booking (Owner, you). If you book on behalf of another person, you confirm you have their authority and you remain personally bound by these Terms.
  • Services: Home-based, cage-free cat boarding and related care; optional Cat Chauffeur transport; optional add-ons.
  • Our home is a private residence, not a veterinary clinic or a commercial kennel. We provide attentive care in a home environment, and these Terms allocate the risks of that environment.

2. Compliance and Capacity

  • We operate with the intent to comply with Ontario's Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, 2019 (PAWS Act) standards of care, the Animal Health Act, applicable Criminal Code provisions, and public-health directives.
  • We may limit capacity and may decline, suspend or terminate any booking at our discretion to comply with the law, our capacity, or the safety and welfare of any cat or person.

3. Eligibility and Owner Representations

You represent and warrant that each of the following is true at drop-off and will remain true for the entire stay. Each representation is a condition of admission, and we rely on it.

  • Vaccinations: Your cat is current on rabies and FVRCP vaccinations, and you have provided a valid certificate from a licensed veterinarian before admission. Rabies vaccination is a legal requirement in Ontario and is never waived.
  • Health and Parasites: Your cat is in good health, shows no signs of contagious illness, and is free of fleas, ticks, ear mites, ringworm, worms and other internal or external parasites. You have disclosed any parasite diagnosis or treatment in the 60 days before drop-off.
  • Strictly Indoor: Your cat lives entirely indoors. For the purpose of these Terms, a cat is not indoor if it has any outdoor access at all, including supervised time outside, leash or harness walks, a catio, a balcony, a patio, a porch, a garage, a yard or a barn. A cat that is only outdoors inside a closed carrier is indoor. Outdoor-access cats are not eligible for boarding.
  • Spayed or Neutered: Cats seven months or older are spayed or neutered unless medically exempt with a written note from a veterinarian.
  • Declawed Cats: We do not support declawing. We accept a declawed cat only when it was adopted into your household already declawed, and only when you disclose this at booking. An undisclosed declawed cat is a misrepresentation under Section 4.
  • Behaviour and Medical Disclosure: You have fully and truthfully disclosed all known behaviour (including any history of aggression toward cats or people, biting, scratching, spraying, anxiety, escape attempts or door-darting), medical conditions, allergies, medications and dietary requirements, together with your primary veterinarian and at least one emergency contact.
  • Identification: Each cat is identifiable by a registered microchip with current contact details, or by a breakaway collar showing your name and phone number. You have provided a recent photo and the microchip number where one exists.
  • Accuracy: All information in your booking, intake form and Boarding Care Plan is complete and accurate, and you will tell us promptly if anything changes before or during the stay.

4. Misrepresentation and Non-Disclosure

  • If any representation in Section 3 is false, incomplete or misleading, whether deliberately or not, we may refuse admission, isolate your cat, end the stay early and require immediate pick-up, without refund for unused days.
  • You are responsible for all costs and losses that result from the misrepresentation or non-disclosure, including: veterinary and parasite treatment for your cat; veterinary, testing and parasite treatment for every other cat in our care that was exposed; pest control, deep cleaning and replacement of bedding, litter equipment or soft furnishings; refunds or credits we issue to other owners because of the incident; and an administration fee equal to 15% of the total expenses incurred. Costs are billed to the card on file or by invoice and are payable within 7 days.
  • Where the misrepresentation concerns indoor status, vaccination, parasites or contagious illness, the limitation of liability in Section 12 does not protect you, and your indemnity in Section 13 applies in full.
  • Undisclosed parasites are treated as non-disclosure under this Section whether or not you knew about them. Because you are the only person in a position to check your cat before drop-off, you accept that risk.

5. Care Standards

  • We provide shelter, temperature control, enrichment, litter, fresh water and supervision consistent with PAWS standards, in a family home.
  • Food and Supplies: You supply enough of your cat's usual food for the whole stay with feeding instructions, unless you purchase the Meal Package. If we must supply food or other items, charges apply at posted rates.
  • Shared feeding areas: Cats in a shared home may eat from another cat's bowl or graze on another cat's food despite supervised, separated feeding. You accept that your cat may eat food other than its own, and that other cats may eat your cat's food. If your cat has a strict prescription diet or a food allergy that makes any cross-feeding dangerous, you must tell us before booking and we may require a Private Room.
  • Medication: We administer oral, liquid and topical medication according to your written instructions. Injections, fluids or other specialised care may be declined or may carry additional fees, and must be agreed before booking.
  • Updates: We aim to send daily photo or video updates. Updates are a courtesy, not a contractual obligation, and a missed update is not a breach of these Terms.

6. No-Visitor Policy and Property Access

  • For safety, privacy and insurance reasons, visitors are not permitted inside our home at any time. Drop-off and pick-up take place outside, at our doorstep or driveway, by appointment only. Do not enter interior or non-public areas. We may refuse service or end a booking for a breach of this Section.

7. Inter-Cat Contact Policy

This Section applies to every booking, including Private Room stays.

  • Shared home: In a Standard Stay your cat shares common areas with other guest cats. Contact between cats is part of the service you are booking, not an incident. Private Room cats stay in a dedicated space but remain in a home where other cats live and have lived, and may use rooms, litter boxes, furniture and equipment that other cats have used. Private Room reduces contact; it does not eliminate exposure.
  • Settling period: Every new arrival starts in its own room for a settling period of at least 24 hours. Introductions to shared space are gradual and supervised.
  • Our discretion: We decide, at our sole discretion, when and whether a cat joins shared space, and we may separate any cat at any time for compatibility, stress, illness, spraying or safety. Separation is not a change to your booking and does not entitle you to a refund.
  • Same household: Cats from the same household are kept together by default unless we judge separation to be safer.
  • Normal cat behaviour: Play, chasing, hissing, swatting, wrestling and minor scratches are normal inter-cat behaviour and an accepted risk of boarding. We report any bite or wound that breaks the skin to you the same day.
  • Zero contact: If you require that your cat never shares space with another cat, you must book a Private Room. Booking a Standard Stay is your consent to shared space.
  • Disclosure of aggression: You must disclose any known history of aggression toward other cats or people. If your cat injures another cat or a person and that history was not disclosed, the costs are yours under Sections 4 and 13.
  • Mid-stay changes: If we judge it necessary for safety, we may move a cat from a Standard Stay to a Private Room, or end the stay and require pick-up within 24 hours. Where the move is caused by that cat's undisclosed behaviour, you are billed the Private Room rate difference for the remaining nights.

8. Health, Illness, Parasites and Infection Control

  • Intake screening: We may refuse intake, isolate, require treatment or require immediate pick-up if a cat shows signs of illness, parasites or severe stress at drop-off or at any point during the stay.
  • Parasite treatment authorization: If we find evidence of fleas, ticks, mites, worms or ringworm on your cat, you authorize us to arrange immediate veterinary-approved treatment without further consent. Treatment cost, plus the costs in Section 4 where the parasites were present at drop-off, are billed to you.
  • Illness during the stay: Communicable illness (for example upper respiratory infection, conjunctivitis, gastrointestinal upset, ringworm) can spread in any setting where cats share a home, despite reasonable hygiene, and can be carried by cats that show no symptoms. We maintain home-appropriate cleaning, disinfection and incident logs. If your cat becomes ill we will contact you and, where needed, act under Section 10.
  • Illness after return: Symptoms may first appear after pick-up because incubation periods for common feline illnesses range from a few days to several weeks. Illness or parasites diagnosed after the stay are not evidence that they were acquired at bbcat. To the maximum extent permitted by law, the bbcat Parties are not liable for illness, parasites or related veterinary costs that appear after pick-up, except where caused by our gross negligence or wilful misconduct. You agree to tell us within 48 hours of any post-stay diagnosis of a contagious illness or parasite so that we can protect other cats in our care.
  • Stress-related illness: Boarding is a change of environment. Reduced appetite, hiding, over-grooming, litter avoidance, diarrhoea or vomiting can occur from stress alone and are an accepted risk of boarding.

9. Booking, Fees, Payment and Refunds

  • Fees: You agree to pay the quoted fees, applicable taxes, and any additional charges authorized under these Terms (including veterinary costs, parasite treatment, admin fees, transport fees and supplied items).
  • Payment timing: We do not take a deposit. Once we approve your booking we send a card invoice through Shopify. Nothing is charged until you pay it. Payment must be received by your drop-off day. We may release a spot that remains unpaid on drop-off day.
  • Hours: Drop-off and pick-up are by appointment between 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., seven days a week, at the times confirmed in your calendar invite. If you will be late for a confirmed drop-off or pick-up, tell us as early as you can so we can adjust.
  • Extensions: If you extend a stay, additional nights are invoiced separately and are payable before or on the new pick-up day.
  • Refund Policy (controls over any contrary policy):
    • If you cancel before your stay begins: You can cancel any time before drop-off. If you have not paid yet, you owe nothing. If you have already paid, we refund 100%. We ask for at least 72 hours' notice so we can offer the spot to another family.
    • Late cancellations and no-shows: If you cancel within 72 hours of drop-off, or do not arrive without telling us, let us know as soon as you can. We may ask for a deposit on, or decline, future bookings if this happens repeatedly.
    • If you pick up early: Your drop-off day always counts as day 1, no matter the time. If you have paid in full and pick up early, we refund unused days: 50% for unused days within the first 5 days of the booking; 100% for unused days beyond day 5. Days your cat was with us are not refunded.
    • If we have to cancel or end the stay: If we cannot take or keep your cat for safety, illness, capacity or fit reasons, you do not pay for days we did not provide and any amount already paid for those days is refunded in full. This does not apply where the stay ends because of your misrepresentation or breach under Section 4 or Section 7, in which case unused days are not refunded.
    • Emergencies and extenuating circumstances: For documented emergencies (serious illness or death of your cat, you, or an immediate family member; a natural disaster; a government travel or health order issued after you booked) we waive applicable charges and refund what you have paid, or help you reschedule.
    • Add-ons: The Spa Experience, Cat Chauffeur Service and Meal Package become non-refundable once the service has started or you are within 72 hours of drop-off. If you cancel earlier and have already paid, they are refunded with the rest of your booking.
    • Force majeure: For events beyond our reasonable control (public-health orders, severe weather, utility outages), we reschedule your booking or refund what you paid for any days we could not provide.
    • Refund processing: Refunds go back to the original payment card through Shopify within 6 business days of confirming the cancellation and, where applicable, picking your cat up.

10. Emergency Veterinary Care Authorization

  • Contact first: If veterinary care is needed, we will promptly attempt to contact you and then your emergency contact.
  • Authorization: You authorize us to transport your cat and obtain veterinary care reasonably necessary to stabilize it or relieve suffering, including diagnostics, pain control, fluids and treatment as advised by a licensed veterinarian.
  • Spending cap: You select a spending cap in your Boarding Care Plan. We may exceed the cap if, in a veterinarian's judgment, immediate care is necessary to prevent severe suffering or death and you and your emergency contact remain unreachable despite reasonable efforts.
  • Euthanasia: We will not authorize euthanasia without your consent unless a licensed veterinarian advises it is the only humane option and neither you nor your emergency contact can be reached despite diligent efforts.
  • Provider: We may use your listed veterinarian if feasible during business hours; otherwise a nearby clinic or a 24-hour emergency hospital.
  • Costs: You are responsible for all veterinary costs and a bbcat admin and transport fee of CAD 50 per visit. Our decision to seek care, or the outcome of that care, does not make us liable for the underlying condition.

11. Escape and Lost Cat Protocol

  • Our home is set up to keep cats inside, but cats are fast, small and determined, and escape can occur through a briefly opened door, a damaged screen or a carrier failure despite reasonable precautions. You accept escape as an inherent risk of any boarding.
  • If a cat goes missing we will: immediately search the premises and surroundings; notify you, the Oakville and Milton Humane Society and the microchip registry where applicable; post local alerts; and continue reasonable search efforts for at least 48 hours. We are not responsible for the cost of any search you or third parties choose to conduct.
  • You confirm that microchip registration details are current. A cat whose microchip or collar is missing or out of date is harder to recover, and you accept that consequence.
  • Our liability for escape or loss is governed by Section 12.

12. Assumption of Risk and Limitation of Liability

Assumption of risk. You understand that a home-based, cage-free, multi-cat setting carries inherent risks that no amount of care removes. You accept these risks, including:

  • injury from play, conflict or contact with other cats, including scratches, bites and stress;
  • injury from the ordinary features of a home: furniture, stairs, cat trees, window screens, cords, plants, doors, appliances, small objects, and anything a cat may climb, chew, swallow or fall from;
  • communicable illness, parasites and ringworm, whether contracted from another cat, from shared litter boxes or surfaces, or from a carrier that shows no symptoms, including illness that appears only after pick-up;
  • stress-related illness, appetite loss, weight change and behaviour change during or after boarding;
  • gastrointestinal upset or allergic reaction from diet change, from eating another cat's food, or from refusal to eat;
  • escape or loss despite reasonable precautions;
  • injury, illness or death from a pre-existing condition, whether or not diagnosed before the stay;
  • risks of transport in the Cat Chauffeur Service, including motion sickness, stress and road incidents.

Limitation of liability. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

  • the bbcat Parties are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, punitive, aggravated or consequential damages, or for emotional distress, loss of companionship, loss of enjoyment, travel disruption or lost income, however caused and on any theory of liability, including negligence;
  • the bbcat Parties are not liable for injury, illness, parasites, escape, loss or death of your cat arising from the risks assumed above, or from any cause other than our gross negligence or wilful misconduct;
  • the total aggregate liability of the bbcat Parties for all claims arising out of or relating to a booking is limited to the lesser of (i) the fees you paid for that booking or (ii) CAD 1,000. This limit applies whether the claim is in contract, tort (including negligence), statute or otherwise, and even if a remedy fails its essential purpose;
  • we are not insurers of animals. We recommend that you maintain pet insurance, and you agree to claim under any pet insurance you hold before making a claim against us;
  • nothing in these Terms excludes or limits any right you have under the Consumer Protection Act, 2002 (Ontario) or other law that cannot be excluded or limited by agreement. Where the law does not permit a limitation in a specific case, our liability is limited to the smallest amount the law permits.

13. Indemnity

  • You will defend, indemnify and hold harmless the bbcat Parties from all claims, demands, losses, damages, veterinary costs, cleaning and pest-control costs, refunds paid to other owners, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from: (a) any breach of these Terms; (b) any misrepresentation or non-disclosure under Sections 3 and 4, including as to indoor status, vaccination, parasites, illness, declawing or behaviour; (c) injury, illness, damage or loss caused by your cat to any person, other cat or property; or (d) your use of the Cat Chauffeur Service, except in each case to the extent caused by the gross negligence or wilful misconduct of the bbcat Parties.
  • We may control the defence of any claim you must indemnify, and you will cooperate. You will not settle any such claim without our written consent.

14. Drop-off, Pick-up and Transport

  • Carriers: Every cat must arrive and leave in a secure, clean, appropriately sized, ventilated carrier. We may refuse a hand-off without a carrier.
  • Handover: Responsibility for your cat passes to us when we take physical custody of the carrier at our door or at your door (Chauffeur), and passes back to you when we return the carrier to you or to the adult you have named for pick-up.
  • Cat Chauffeur (if selected): Cats travel in secure carriers in an insured, roadworthy vehicle. We exercise reasonable care. Transport liability is limited under Section 12. Zone rates and per-leg charges are as posted at booking.

15. Privacy and Optional Marketing Consent

  • We collect and use personal and veterinary information to deliver services, keep cats safe, comply with law and manage accounts, as described in our Privacy Policy.
  • Media: We may photograph or film cats for care records and for your daily updates. Marketing use is optional and requires your consent in the booking form. Consent can be withdrawn at any time by emailing support@bbcat.ca. We never disclose your personal information or precise location.

16. Abandonment and Animal Lien

  • If you fail to collect your cat on the scheduled date and fail to pay amounts due, and we cannot reach you or your emergency contact after at least three documented attempts over five days, you are in default and the cat may be deemed abandoned.
  • After a final written notice (email or text) giving at least 48 hours to cure, we may transfer the cat to the Oakville and Milton Humane Society or a recognized rescue, in accordance with law. You remain responsible for all accrued fees and costs, including rehoming costs. We reserve any lien rights available at law for unpaid boarding fees.

17. Amendments, Notices and Force Majeure

  • Amendments: We may update these Terms for future bookings by posting the updated Terms with a new Effective Date. Updated Terms apply only to bookings made after that date unless you agree otherwise.
  • Notices: We send notices to the email and phone number you provide. Keep them current.
  • Force majeure: We are not liable for delay or failure caused by events beyond our reasonable control (public-health orders, severe weather, utility or internet failure, illness in our household). We will offer rescheduling or refunds consistent with Section 9.

18. Disputes, Governing Law and Miscellaneous

  • Talk to us first: Before starting any claim, you agree to email support@bbcat.ca describing the concern and to allow us 30 days to attempt a good-faith resolution.
  • Governing law and venue: These Terms are governed by the laws of Ontario and the federal laws of Canada applicable in Ontario. The courts of Ontario have exclusive jurisdiction, subject to any non-excludable right you have to bring a claim elsewhere.
  • Severability: If any provision is unenforceable it is modified to the minimum extent needed and the rest remains in force.
  • No waiver: A failure to enforce is not a waiver.
  • Survival: Sections 4, 7, 8, 12, 13, 16 and 18 survive the end of the stay.
  • Entire agreement: These Terms, your booking confirmation, your Boarding Care Plan, our Refund Policy and our Privacy Policy form the entire agreement for that booking.
  • Contact: support@bbcat.ca, +1 437-344-0329.