What was your reason for rehoming your pet?

I'm just curious. For those of you who have given up one of your pets to a new home, what was your reason for rehoming?

I've been debating for a while about rehoming one of my cats, but I feel like our(mine and my husband's) reasons aren't good enough. I fear what kind of home she could be going to.

I've rehomed horses but never cats. The horses were rehomed generally due to the expense of boarding them.

I'm assuming that there is some sort of issue going on...maybe members here at TCS can help you work through that.

I am now in the process of looking for a new home for  my Valentina.  I've had her since she was 8 wks, in2009.  She is a super, super sweet girl with no behavioral issues.  The perfect pet.  Quiet and unobtrusive.

My reason is that she doesn't seem very happy with all the competition.  Mostly the competitiion for affection.  Things never get really nasty, very little hissing or growling, much less fighting.  I am waiting for the purfect match.  Any thing less wont do.

I have too many pets.  Feeding them properly is costly.  She deserves a quieter home with lots more purrsonal attention. 

Your reason is fairly similar to mine, cccdlx.

I've never rehomed a cat or a dog. The only animals I have ever rehomed were chickens, rabbits, a goat, birds, gerbils and rats. Most of those decisions were made for me by my parents back then.

It's really, really hard to do.  When the vet bills start rolling in regularly, it makes you think of downsizing, but how do you give away one of your children.  I love them so much, and want what is best for them.  That is kind of what my latest thread was about.

When I had to move,  I managed to find good homes for three of my babies.  Another wasn't so fortunate.  He was seriously neglected.  A friend of mine knew the person that took him and told me what was going on.  She managed to find someone to go get Jasper.  The rescuer fell in love and took him home with him.   I get good reports now.

Time, patience, and prayer.  I put fliers up at a small pet shop and the vets offices.  Word of mouth.   

Awaiting Abyss said:

I've been debating for a while about rehoming one of my cats, but I feel like our(mine and my husband's) reasons aren't good enough. I fear what kind of home she could be going to.

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I think if you have put in time to think about it, as you did, no reason is wrong. Sometimes we have to rehome our beloveds. 

Feeding cost has never been issue as I use coupons/shop sales only.  If anyone needs help I maybe able to find sales in your area if you let me know what you feed. If you follow who has coupons out and find many to stockpile till sale rolls around it really comes out cheap.

I rehomed 2 cats to my aunt and unlce after they had to euthanize 2 cats in few weeks.  I have many cats and knew they would get anything they ever wanted and then some so it was upsetting for me but to know the owners they are and how they live I knew they would be happy.  They are thrilled as the pair gets along well(brother/sister) and are a few years old so plenty of energy but not bouncing off walls and cuddle bugs.

I see many ads online for rehoming for the reason of not being able to spend enought time, allergies(I have many cats and asthma, bright no but totally doable) and baby on the way.  If you share more there may be advice offered to make it work out better

Only once, when I was too ill to care for my pet properly. She went to a family member who loved her very much. This particular pet was sweet but high string, and needed and deserved a stable home. I cried for months but deep inside knew it was for the best-- and it was.

From the other side of the coin here. 

We took in a good friends cat several years ago.  He was in a relationship that was affecting his ability to care for the cat; his fiance made it clear the cat didn't fit in with the rest of the family (kids from both of them, and a dog).  So, poor Casper got relegated to being left alone 5 days a week in the house my friend was trying to sell, while he lived in another state with his partner during weekdays.  He'd come back on weekends and had neighbors checking in on him, but after some months realized this wasn't a good situation for the cat.

He knew we were potentially looking to adopt one and asked if we were interested.  He assured us, that Casper was an excellent cat and he wouldn't even consider it if he had any types of problems; he didn't want to pass those off on anyone else.  However, this dragged on for nearly 6 months as he tried his best to figure out a way to keep him; I mean this was a cat he had since it was a kitten and he was now nearly 10 years old by this point.

In the end, he finally realized the best thing for Casper was to be in a home where there were people to care for him daily.  And, he knew he could trust us completely.  I think by the time we adopted him, he was so lonely and starved for attention, that he acclimated to our house nearly instantly.  

The end result was this:  We got an awesome cat but...he lost his buddy and, in the end never married the woman who made it necessary to rehome him.  I know for sure that he regretted the decisions and even intimated to us in the beginning that he would take him back (or wanted to is more like it), but we were not having any of it.  To us, he was now part of our family and had bonded with both myself and my partner, especially my BF (I assume because he was used to being around a guy more than a girl).  We've had him about 3 years now and to this day, my friend really doesn't even bring up Casper's name or make comments when we post photos of him.  I think it's too painful for him to deal with the fact that he gave him up for such a lousy reason.

My point is, I do know there are circumstances when it becomes necessary; as EB24 said above, nothing is absolute.  But, the best thing you can do is think it over very carefully, and make sure you have tried everything in your power to make it work at home first, before giving up.  Because once rehomed, most likely if you have regrets you are not going to be able to get the cat back.  

Best of luck in your decision.  I don't envy your position, but do understand.

sivyaleah said:

We took in a good friends cat several years ago.  He was in a relationship that was affecting his ability to care for the cat; his fiance made it clear the cat didn't fit in with the rest of the family (kids from both of them, and a dog).  So, poor Casper got relegated to being left alone 5 days a week in the house my friend was trying to sell, while he lived in another state with his partner during weekdays.  He'd come back on weekends and had neighbors checking in on him, but after some months realized this wasn't a good situation for the cat.

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Nothing much to add to the original thread, but for me, my potential partner has to be accepting of my Jed. No ifs or buts about that.

I've only ever rehomed a love-bird I had for about 5 years.

There were several reasons, but the main reason is I got Monet. He would NOT stop jumping on the cage to get to the bird. I felt terrible for putting the bird in the bathroom when I am not at home and at night. I couldn't take her out when Monet was around, felt terrible about not giving her the attention she deserved. I had no place to hang the cage or secure it from Monet. A friend of mine agreed to take her in and I know he went into a very good home.

I miss her. Then, I remember the mess she made, the feathers and bird seed everywhere.. and the constant chirping. lol.

I had to rehome one of my dogs earlier this year. She was a 2 year old lab/shepherd and very hyper. She was jumping all over our daughter, who was born over 10 weeks premature. The baby needed a lot of attention and we were gone for appointments a lot after spending 2 months vising her in the hospital before she came home. The dog was really unhappy and we felt really bad so we found her a better home. She went to a home with a couple that had a few children (but the youngest was around 8 I think). They live on a farm and have a lot of room for her to run around and play. It was a very hard thing to do, but unfortunately had to be done. I miss her a lot and wish we hadn't had to rehome her.

my reasoning's on rehoming pets

1 dog named bagel neighbor complaining that the dog kept barking there more to it then that <the neighbor is a certein word im not typing on here that starts with an a and ends in e

2 the 6 cats in march they wasnt getting along 1 of them was depresed and we was having money issues and one family member health was getting bad

3 from oct 29th to dec 5 2013 rehomed 7cats because of over my brothers allergys got worse and my moms health was still going down the stress of having all the cats was getting to every one expeculy her

4 my new reason to rehome the 11 i need to know my mom just had heart surgery are place needs to get cleanded and my free time is now going to the hospital and back my mom is still there in the hospital any way my free time is gone now no time to gibe them love as much i did and my mom is the glue to are familys money if something happens we cant feed the cats anymore so its best to rehome them

Just be super careful who you re-home to. I've found out later I made a big mistake for some of my 'dumped' cats that were left on my doorstep and it causes a lot of heartache. They weren't abused, but let go to another and I lost track of them. But I've also found homes for many that found loving permanent homes with people that adored them, so you never know. Just screen them by asking questions if they are able to care for a pet and if they are allowed to have a pet where they live. Good luck and thank you for caring so much.

Mewlittle said:

 
my reasoning's on rehoming pets

4 my new reason to rehome the 11 i need to know my mom just had heart surgery are place needs to get cleanded and my free time is now going to the hospital and back my mom is still there in the hospital any way my free time is gone now no time to gibe them love as much i did and my mom is the glue to are familys money if something happens we cant feed the cats anymore so its best to rehome them

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Yes it does sound like given your current situation it is best to start looking for new forever families for them. In most situations, having that many cats in one home is too many, and it's not healthy for them or for the humans they co-habitiate with. The key though is to then not add any more, and to ensure that the ones remaining are all spayed and neutered as to avoid an unintended litter that starts the whole process up again.

Best of luck finding good homes for each, and   vibes for your Mom's health.  

EB24 said:

 
Yes it does sound like given your current situation it is best to start looking for new forever families for them. In most situations, having that many cats in one home is too many, and it's not healthy for them or for the humans they co-habitiate with. The key though is to then not add any more, and to ensure that the ones remaining are all spayed and neutered as to avoid an unintended litter that starts the whole process up again.

Best of luck finding good homes for each, and 

 vibes for your Mom's health.  

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will i found a home for 1 of the 11 and the 2 we keeping is already fixed

My place is more like a mini-rescue operation, so it's a little different. But I have re-homed two cats. One ended up in a dream home How I wish there were more of them! The other, not so much. She stayed in her new home for 5 weeks, then they didn't want her any more so I got her back. Poor little confused girl! That was over 5 years ago and she's perfectly happy here with us. Now, on the very rare occasion that someone inquires about getting a cat, I refer them to the county animal control facility and tell them to go quickly and save a life.