Giving rescue cat to a 21 yrs old? Advise on finding my rescues a forever home.

[savethekitty]

I have 4 rescue cats at this moment that I have to find homes for. 

I have had them for several months and have grown attached to all of them, so I think at this point my judgement may be clouded by this and wanted your opinion on a possible adoption. 

One of my favorite love bugs gets a good amount of attention for being a looker, but so far I have had very strange and easy to turn down candidate adopters, until yesterday. 

This guy I had been talking to back and forth, came over yesterday to meet the cat with his girlfriend.

It turns out that the cat immediately liked him and his girlfriend (he has been suspicious of others coming to see him before).

They both gave me an incredibly good vibe and you could see how genuinely in love they were with the cat. The girl friend has 2 cats at home and this one would live with the guy in his recently leased efficiency. They spent around 40 minutes with me and the cat, talking about cat care and whatnot. They said all the right things. 

So in a nutshell, great guy who seems to love animals and gave me a very good impression. 

BUT, he is 21 yrs old and I am afraid he may not be able to provide or care for the cat at such young age, in the same way an older and more stable person would. (this is just my opinion or bias)

He has a job and has his own place, so he seems to be very mature for his age though.

Here in miami, it is common to rent efficiencies, which are basically an extra room and bathroom converted to accommodate a single person or couple. Tiny space, but for him and an indoor cat it is sufficient. He is allowed to have pets and I would be going to check out his place tomorrow and dropping off the cat. This is to make sure he is on the up and up. So if I see something odd, I'd bring the cat back with me, but if not he would stay. 

Do you think I should be concerned or just let this play out and let the cat go with a 21 yrs old? I have mixed feelings, but want to give this cat the best possible shot at a permanent home. 

Insight is appreciated. Thank you. 

 

[margd]

I would not hold his age against him.   He sounds like he will be great with the kitty.  You can always have him sign a paper saying that he agrees to give the cat back to you if difficulties arise. 

 

[Willowy]

Yeah, I'd grill him on whether he has plans for if/when he moves, what if he and his girlfriend get married/move in together, make sure he actually has plans and isn't just doing it on a whim. And make him sign a contract agreeing to contact you if he ever can't keep the cat. But as long as he seems to have a good head on his shoulders I wouldn't let his age scare you.

 

[savethekitty]

Thank you for your replies.

Regarding a contract. I have heard about contracts for adoptions, but in reality I don't see a way for me to enforce anything on such contract since I will probably never know if he has breached it (meaning he is in difficulties, etc).

It sounds like the contract is symbolic more than anything?

Please let me know if you know of any case in which someone enforced such contracts and how they kept tabs on the pet once it was adopted. 

As for asking his plans. I did. The thing is that here in Miami it is very difficult to find a place to rent and when you do, they usually don't accept pets or the deposit is cost prohibiting. At that point people go on Craigslist to give up their pets. Every time I go on CL and search for cats to see what is up for adoption, I see an ad of someone giving away FREE their cat because the new place won't accept pets. So, at 21 it will be more difficult to have the money to have options when he has to move to a new place and the current girl friend may or may not last very long, so really I am just giving him the cat and hoping for the best based on good impressions, but on paper so to speak, I am a bit worried. 

 

[Shane Kent]

When I got Zoe from the Humane Society they grilled me a little bit. They were most interested in my ability to afford vet bills. Stressing how a vet bill can crush a person financially if they live paycheck to paycheck.

They pointed out more than once that I should not feel embarrassed if my finances get screwed and I can no longer care for the cat. They said several times if something happens to bring them back the cat. I think the Humane Society knows they can't police all the animals they let go so they just stress to people to do the right thing if it doesn't work out. They make you sign forms but as I said it isn't like they could monitor all the animals.

From what you have written it sounds like the guy is mature and has morals. I think you should tell him you admire him for taking the cat and you will admire him even more if he does right by the cat which includes bringing it back to you. Stress to him he should not feel embarrassed if he ever has to bring the cat back.

 

[shadowsrescue]

Are the kitties spayed/neutered and up to date on all shots?  Did you ask him about having a vet and having the finances to care for a cat?  Also are you certain the kitty will be an inside only kitty.  What about a microchip?  I would never allow kitties to be adopted out if they were not spayed/neutered as you cannot count on others to do this.  

I think he sounds very responsible.  I would just be sure he has a vet already picked out.

 

[molly92]

I would be very hesitant to adopt a cat out to say, a house of college students in temporary living situations, but this sounds like a good match! I adopted my cat at 22 and she is definitely a priority! Stressing that contacting you should be his first move if the stability of his life changes is a very good idea, but that is good to do with any adoption. People of any age can have unexpected life changes.

 

[margd]

 
Thank you for your replies.

Regarding a contract. I have heard about contracts for adoptions, but in reality I don't see a way for me to enforce anything on such contract since I will probably never know if he has breached it (meaning he is in difficulties, etc).

It sounds like the contract is symbolic more than anything?

Please let me know if you know of any case in which someone enforced such contracts and how they kept tabs on the pet once it was adopted. 

As for asking his plans. I did. The thing is that here in Miami it is very difficult to find a place to rent and when you do, they usually don't accept pets or the deposit is cost prohibiting. At that point people go on Craigslist to give up their pets. Every time I go on CL and search for cats to see what is up for adoption, I see an ad of someone giving away FREE their cat because the new place won't accept pets. So, at 21 it will be more difficult to have the money to have options when he has to move to a new place and the current girl friend may or may not last very long, so really I am just giving him the cat and hoping for the best based on good impressions, but on paper so to speak, I am a bit worried. 

It's true that you can't enforce the contract but why would he advertise the cat on CL or take it to the shelter when he has the option to bring the cat to you, where he knows it will have a good home?   He sounds like the kind of person who will genuinely love the cat and so, would want to do the best for it if his circumstances changed.  

When I was 20, my best friend who was 22 had two cats.  Over the years, she moved around the country for educational and career reasons.  Her kitties accompanied her each time.  One lived to be 21 and the other to be 19.  Devotion to one's kitty can exist in someone regardless of their age.  Your potential adopter sounds like he would treasure your cat.