Too Many Cats? Knowing When to say When?

If you are talking about horse track, track cats are pretty well fed but it can be a dangerous place with hooves flying around. Some track people even take a cat or two of their own with them to control rodents and these cats ride in the truck just like dogs do, and love their rides. As to resident cats, many people buy cat food in hopes of enticing the cat to take up residence in their shedrows; remember, grain and hay attract mice in hordes. If you do keep her, she will be unflappable and wholy committed to you.

One cat is enough for me, I know it and have known it for years!
Love her so much but but no more.

As long as you have the resources and space to care for 4 cats, bless you for taking them in! I desperately want to adopt a friend for Holland, but I can barely afford one baby right now, let alone two...

If you're giving your cats a better life, you're not doing wrong.

Originally Posted by Ryffian

How do you know when enough is enough?!?

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In my heart it is never enough, but unfortunately, issues such as space, finances and time, limit the number of cats I want to have.

It all depends on space, time, & most of all - finances.

That has a different answer for every situation. A couple years ago we were up to sixteen. With the bottom falling out of the economy the remaining eleven that are unadoptable (oops twelve, I forgot one was returned Wednesday) are straining the budget. The only way I bring one in now is if it has a home waiting already.

It kills me to know that if I don't take one it will most likely die young, but if I brought in another it would reduce the level of care for all to an unacceptable level. I'll still TNR, but after surgery and vaccinations they go back where I found them.

The way I personally see it, if you can provide well for them then go for it. Now I don't only mean financially when I say this (although that IS important.), I mean time, love and attention as well.

I think it also depends on how needy a cat is. Some cats are content to be in the same room with you and not on your lap, for instance. Or don't like to be petted very much but like to be talked too. I have three that are needy nancys. I can't do anymore!

I was thinking about this the other day actually. The fact that they are very needy and I have my hands full. I would take another one if it was needed but only as a foster and I would be looking aggressviely for a new home.

"How many cats" is very individual and is different for everyone.

I agree - it depends upon primarily one's ability to care for them - I think first and foremost is the time and attention that can be devoted to them, though having the finances to care for them must be considered. Emergencies can be expensive, and the more cats there are, the more stress on the clowder there is, and being able to work with all of them and deal with stress-related health issues is critical.

Many people refer to space as an issue. While I agree, we successfully have seven cats living with us (two people) in an RV that is 38 feet long and 8 feet wide. In the wild, cats have a fairly large territory - but that is (primarily) for hunting. They key to our success is having created vertical space and devoting a LOT of time to each of the cats.

The key to harmoniously living in a small space without undue stress on the cats is directing ACTIVITY. The cats need to run, jump and play with toys, or they will take out their boredom on each other.

I only have one currently, but have had 2 at times. I think 4 is okay, as long as you can care for all of them. I think it's fantastic that you are saving so many lives

We have only had as many as three at the time. Two of them, Muffin and Speedboat were special needs cats in that they had histories of urinary issues. They were fed prescription food only which is very expensive. Three is about as many as we could pay the vet bills for. Now Speedboat is gone and we are down to two.

Im at my limit financially and cuz BF says no more. We started out with only one cat ended up with two found the third and all in that span got a dog. Right now we can afford to feed and keep them all safe and healthy but one more would be straining it because it would increase what we spend on food and litter which are the most expensive things we pay for right now. Thankfully the dog is the cheapest pet we have because I can buy one big bag of dog food and it last for 2 mths.

DH says the absolute max we can have is 2. We have 4. I have had up to 5, but it seems that every time I have more than 4, something awful happens to one of them, so I will never again have more than 4 at once.

You know deep down, when enoughs enough as you know what you can afford/and have the room for.. but if i had my own way i'd have a house full of kitty cats

I think 2 is my limit. I have 3 right now. One cat too many. I really love cats , but I feel the level of care goes down when you have too many. I have kids that play with all the animals in our house, but if it wasn't for the constant attention from my sons, I would feel guilty. Right now, I have 3 cats, 2 dogs, 1 bearded dragon, and a fish tank. It dosen't feel like too many animals , but once my sons grow up and this gang passes I'll only have one cat and one dog. It seems like not alot of animal to me, but to my SIL one dog is enough.

I have 5 and I think that's enough, I always manage to raise the funds for the vets if needed (helps with hubby having a good job) and I am a full time housewife so I spend alot of time with them. I don't think I will have anymore as I don't think it would be fair as my kitties are all settled and happy now. I am a sucker for needy cats though and would take them all in if I could, hubby says NO more and I really do not think my kitties would be happy if I took in anymore and the last thing I would want to do is upset them, stuff what the hubby says-cats come first . x

Honestly, I think 4 was our household limit, meaning the most that could really get along. But Annie was a friendly little cat that I found, literally, in the middle of the National Forest. I'm surprised she hadn't been something's light snack already, and she wasn't doing that good when I brought her down the hill. The shelters were overflowing and I didn't know anyone who wanted, needed, or would take in another little furry mouth, no matter how cute. At the time, we were able to manage financially.

Since then, Ophelia has taken to living on top of our headboard (bookcase headboard, so she has plenty of room for food, water, litter, and a few beds; she comes down for Daddy time every day). She hates Annie. My husband lost his job last April, so we're just that no one gets sick right now. He's going to school so the future looks better than ever, but we have to get there first.

We shouldn't have kept Annie as a permanent member of our household, all things considered and hindsight being 20/20. But our hearts overruled our heads, and she's here to stay. I'm glad "your" little girl has a home!

We have four, and that feels like enough: two older cats and two half-grown kittens.

We almost got a third kitten because she had such a great personality, but our vet told us that they see far more behavioral problems in 5-cat households than in smaller ones. To them, that's the tipping point. (Most of their clients live in small apartments, as we do. Ours is 800 square feet.)

They warned us that, even though our four get along well now, things may change in a couple of years, when the kittens become emotionally mature and possibly more territorial. We hope not. And since we have two teenage cats, we may not have the same foursome by then.

I do feel that two cats is not enough for me, so we'll always have three or four. We were glad we didn't take #5 when we had to treat them all for ringworm! It was expensive and a total hassle, since they all had to go to the groomer and then the vet once a week for a couple of months.

All future cats will have insurance, as our kittens do. The cost is worth it to have fewer $$ worries during crises down the road. We want to give our cats happy lives with plenty of love, attention, healthy food, and all the medical care they need. So I think four is our limit, in terms of space, finances, and quality time.