Too old?

I'd be interesting in hearing what you guys think about this. It makes me so mad!

My sister-in-law took a flyer that included a few of our kittens a long with some older cats in various foster homes to work with her last week. One of her co-workers thought it would be nice to adopt an adult cat for her mother, who recently lost her cat of many years. When she called the foster home for more information, she was told her mother, who's 80, was too old and they turned her down. Her mother was just devasted. I'm in the process of trying to find out who did this. I can sort of understand the concern about who would care for the cat if something happened to this lady, but her daughter was willing to do it. It just makes me angry to think that this poor lady who so badly wanted to give a cat a home was treated so rudely. I don't age should be a factor in adoptions provided there's a backup to care for the cat, especially because older people can really benefit from having a pet and offer them so much love and care.

I asked my sister-in-law to get the lady's phone number because I think someone needs to apologize to her. I also hope she's still willing to adopt and, if so, will try to help her anyway I can.

That's terrible!
My dad is 83 and still breeds horses.
I doubt a cat would be very much trouble at all for an average 80 year old.

I'd see about sending them to second chance as well, or another secondary "home run" clinic like that. they have lots of older cats up for adoption.

If I was a cat, I'd love to have a little old lady care for me. I imagine any cat she had would get more love than most people have the time to give. It would be sad if she died while the cat was still in her care (for everyone, not just the cat) but if her daughter is willing to look after it afterwards, I don't see a problem. The cat and woman would both benefit greatly from the companionship(!), even if only for several years.

Wow! I think that was very rude of the person to say that and openly discriminate against her. Like you said, age is a concern, but if there's back-up care in place, then it's not an issue. Especially in these litigious times! Sounds like this lady would be a great cat owner!

For Example. Paws and Prayers in Akron has a 10 y/old cat up for adoption, a tortie named Pepper

http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/OH113.html

Awwww thats terrible Don't they know that animals are not only great company, but can help us live longer

Talk about descrimination

That should not be an issue . True, there should be a "back-up" plan in place as it is most likely that the cat will outlive his new guardian, and I can see having the "secondary" care-giver go along to be sort of a "co-adopter" (which she probably would have anyway) but otherwise ...

That is terrible!, that little old lady would be the perfect friend to a kitty in need of a home. I'm so glad that you are working to do something about this!

the elderly are especially good with older cats.. I can honestly say I'm shocked about that.

Originally Posted by ugaimes

Are they saying she is "too old" because they fear she could keel over any minute? I've got news for them: ANY one of us could keel over at any minute!

Click to expand...

Good point! I wonder what they'd say to that.

I just hate to hear of rescue groups discriminating against people because of age. Here, one of the more active Board members of the SPCA is a fiesty 83 year old who has one cat who she just adopted. He's 12 and needed a good home and hers is one of the best homes I would want to go to if I was a kitty. Animals are wonderful for older ppl and vice versa! Any rescue who does not realize this has horrible ethics in my view!

That is horrible!! My Papa was 85 years old and perfectly capable of caring for his cat!! That is an outright injustice not only to the poor kitty, but also the lady!!
I hope you succeed in getting this woman a feline companion and soon!!

My mother is 91 and caring for my 5 year old UK cat Cinders. Actually she (Cinders) is more attached to my father, also 91, and follows him everywhere, perching on his chair arm while he sits and read the papers and watching him mowing the lawn.

Unfortunately, I'm not surprised, because many shelters here won't adopt out to anybody over 65 or 70, even if the pet is old, too. It's one of my pet gripes, because I saw first-hand how it affected my boss. The only thing people can do is get a co-adopter, or have somebody younger "adopt" the pet and give it to them without informing the shelter.
My mom lives in a Midwestern county that actually encourages senior citizens to adopt pets by giving them "lifetime", transferrable pet licenses. My mom is 73, has been widowed for three years, is in ill health, and lives alone. She'd be lost without her babies (two Labs and a cat) for companionship.

My first foster cat, Festus' mom, was adopted by a 70 y/o woman-she was the lady's first pet! I think it is wrong to refuse to adopt to the elderly. Certainly, it is ok to ask what the plan would be if something happened to the adopter...but to refuse! Just wrong!

My foster agency is targeting people over 60, that they can adopt a cat over 6 y/o at no charge!

My city's Humane Society recently had so many older kitties that they gave them to senior citizens, at no charge, rather than kill them.

Our community has a wonderful volunteer group called Paws. They have several big fundraisers evey year, so they can buy cat & dog food for disabled & elderly people who can't afford it. They also help with transportation to vet appointments and help pay for the vet bill if necessary. They help a lot of people.

I know that if a plan is in place for food, grooming, litter cleaning, vet care & a back up caretaker...the right older person can provide a loving home for a kitty.
Lei

I think in that case, there are so many other kittens and cats out there that need a good home, I would find her a cat from another place. Just because they wont adopt a cat to her, doesnt mean she cant have one! Look around in the papers or other shelters for a kitty! And if an objection comes up, they dont need to know who's really adopting the kitten anyway as long as it's going to a great home!

How sad that this woman could miss out on the joy of sharing life with a pet because of age discrimination! I am glad you are helping sort this out for them!