Pros and Cons of wanting to adopt with this requirements..

[Draco]

OK, so for a long while, I've been feeling the need to adopt another cat.. but I have some requirements that most people won't consider.

I'd like to hear your thoughts before thinking more about adopting #3.

- Oldest cat in the shelter

- Cat that's been there the longest (Depends on why its there)

- Least-likely to be adopted (deformed? missing a body part?)

All should be OK in the behavior department.. some health issues is OK that doesn't require 24/7 care (especially for a senior)- it'd be nice if shelter can help with vet bills. I've always wanted to adopt a deaf cat, but why not a step further?

I've been seeing people adopt young healthy kittens.. but it hurts when the least desired gets left behind.

I am not sure what sort of thoughts I am looking for from you guys.. maybe something I haven't thought of? your experiences in adopting a senior in it's last years/months of life?

 

[jcat]

Do you want to jump on a plane and come to our shelter? We've got a couple of good candidates for you. :lol3:

I'd add cats that need special diets, e.g., due to food allergies, and very shy/traumatized cats that will spend the first few weeks in hiding to your list. A lot of people don't want to bother being careful about certain pet food ingredients. Others want a cat that's going to immediately settle down in their home; they don't have the patience to wait for a cat to come out of its shell, even though the shy ones often turn out to be the most affectionate later.

One consideration as far as deaf cats are concerned is how your neighbors will react, because they can be extremely loud and their cries can be rather eerie. We've got a 15-year-old deaf Angora at the shelter (not available for adoption because he's been returned multiple times), and a lot of people freak out when they hear him. Those of us who are around him all the time have gotten used to it, but it's understandable when neighbors are disturbed.

 

[Willowy]

Cats who have a visible disability that doesn't cause a lot of inconvenience (such as a missing leg or eye) actually get adopted faster.

So, yeah, a shy cat, an allergy cat, a black cat (apparently they don't get adopted as much as other colors), an older cat.

 

[catpack]

For our rescue it seems cats with special dietary needs (particularly those that require canned-only) and kitties with chronic health issues (HCM, IBD, anything requiring yearly or more diagnostic testing) are the hardest to play, along with those that are extremely timid.

As for personal experience...
Our rescue took in a senior lab 2 summers ago. He had multiple health issues...horrible ear infections (deaf as a result), teeth that had been ground down and were nubs, a horrible UTI (he was intact and actually had prostitis which resolved after he was neutered), arthritis, neuropathy in a rear leg and was underweight when we got him.

He stayed at our vet clinic 7 months getting the medical care he needed. When we got to a point that I felt I could manage his day to day care I took him home.

He developed an infection of some sort about 2 weeks after I got him home and I wasn't sure he was going to pull through, but he did. (He had had 2 previous episodes at the vet clinic.)

I had him home with me for about 8 months before we had to make the decision to PTS. His neuropathy and arthritis progressed to the point he couldn't get up on his own and wasn't able to walk without a lot of assistance.

During the time I had him he had chronic ear issues (due to horrible allergies), had 1 seizure of unknown origin and the 1 episode of getting really sick.

I wouldn't hesitate to take another dog like him, though certainly wish we had had longer with him! But, I know his last few months were as good as they could be.

 

[Margret]

You say this would be your third cat? My only concern would be that he or she not have any contagious diseases; you don't want to endanger your other cats.

Add blind to your list.

Margret

 

[LTS3]

Any cat with a medical condition that requires daily medicine or other needs are unlikely to be adopted. Take diabetic cats. They're often in shelters because their owner(s) didn't want to bother with twice daily insulin injections or pills or expensive frequent testing done by the vet (not needed at all, IMO). If managed properly at home (and can be done on a budget), diabetics can live a long happy life. They just need a little extra attention and care

A few extra minutes a day is all that's really needed for most diabetics. Anyone can find extra time in their day to manage a cat with a medical condition.

 
I've been seeing people adopt young healthy kittens.. but it hurts when the least desired gets left behind.

That's always frustrating

Shelter pets who make the local news are often adopted pretty quickly, too. The local shelter here just adopted out a puppy who was given up by a person a mere week after buying the puppy online from a backyard breeder. The puppy arrived sick (after a 20 hour ride in a tiny cage in a truck that wasn't equipped to transport animals) and the person didn't want to pay for the ncessary treatment so gave the puppy up. The puppy made the news and a follow up story said that over 1,000 inquiries were made to the shelter from all over the world. The shelter had strict requirements on the adoption (must come in person to the shelter to speak with a counselor, etc) and eventually adopted the puppy out to a local couple who already had an adult dog of the same breed and other pets. I bet that person just went back out to buy another puppy from another backyard breeder

 

[rubysmama]

When I was looking to get my first cat, I decided that although it would be wonderful to watch a kitten grow, I wanted to adopt a cat that needed a home.  

I would have loved to adopt a senior kitty who had for whatever reason found itself in a shelter, but ultimately decided to look for a young adult (2 to 5 year old) as I didn't want to have to deal with expensive health issues or end of life decisions too soon.  This was going to be my first very own cat, so I wanted to first learn how to be a cat mama before I had to deal with more complicated issues.   Obviously younger cats can still become ill, but the odds are greater that the younger they are when you adopt, the more healthy years they should have.

If you are ready to deal with any medical expenses and the possibility of only having the cat for a few years, or even months, then I think it would be a wonderful thing to adopt a senior or otherwise less adoptable cat.

 

[Draco]

Merry Christmas all!

I've glanced through the thread, I will read more thoroughly after Christmas. I appreciate the inputs and comments!

 

[Kat0121]

Here he is coming out of his tote (a large plastic storage tote on it's side with a big soft blanket inside- his safe place in his safe room) for early morning pets in his safe room before he decided to leave it and join us in the rest of the house

IMG_0261.JPG

• Kat0121
• Aug 2, 2015

here he is after he decided to leave his safe room at the top of the big cat tree in the living room

IMG_0324.JPG

• Kat0121
• Aug 8, 2015

 

[Margret]

Any cat with a medical condition that requires daily medicine or other needs are unlikely to be adopted. Take diabetic cats. They're often in shelters because their owner(s) didn't want to bother with twice daily insulin injections or pills or expensive frequent testing done by the vet (not needed at all, IMO). If managed properly at home (and can be done on a budget), diabetics can live a long happy life. They just need a little extra attention and care A few extra minutes a day is all that's really needed for most diabetics. Anyone can find extra time in their day to manage a cat with a medical condition.



That's always frustrating :frusty: Shelter pets who make the local news are often adopted pretty quickly, too. The local shelter here just adopted out a puppy who was given up by a person a mere week after buying the puppy online from a backyard breeder. The puppy arrived sick (after a 20 hour ride in a tiny cage in a truck that wasn't equipped to transport animals) and the person didn't want to pay for the ncessary treatment so gave the puppy up. The puppy made the news and a follow up story said that over 1,000 inquiries were made to the shelter from all over the world. The shelter had strict requirements on the adoption (must come in person to the shelter to speak with a counselor, etc) and eventually adopted the puppy out to a local couple who already had an adult dog of the same breed and other pets. I bet that person just went back out to buy another puppy from another backyard breeder

I think one of the problems some people have adopting diabetic cats is the need to learn to give them shots. Shots?! With a needle?! Horrors!

I can sympathize, as I'm needle-phobic myself, but it's not really that big a deal. I'm diabetic. It's type 2, so I'm managing with oral meds, but when I was in the hospital I got regular insulin shots (apparently the only way that hospitals know of to deal with diabetes), and they aren't nearly as painful as pricking my finger to test my blood sugar, which I now do regularly several times a day. And even that doesn't hurt all that much. But remember how much trouble some people have with the concept of injecting water under a cat's skin to treat dehydration? This is the same problem, and it exists primarily in the imaginations of humans.

The other thing that always gets a lot of people volunteering to adopt is when the cops rescue an animal from an abusive environment, and it makes the news. Think of the last time you heard about a dogfighting ring being busted up. Then think about the news stories over the next few days about people volunteering to adopt those poor abused dogs. Never mind that the dogs may have been abused so badly that it's no longer possible to socialize them, people will still volunteer. I have to wonder how many of those dogs get returned to the shelter because the adopters bit off more than they could chew.

Margret

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Just an off the wall thought...check this thread.  This kitty is not currently in a shelter, but will be if another arrangement cant be found.  And you'd be helping a member here, as well. 

thecatsite.com/t/311501/can-somebody-help-esther#post_3897795

 

[kittycort]

Fearful cats, cats who don't come up to the front of the cage in a shelter, abused cats and Black cats and larger cats are less likely to be adopted. Cats who are declawed are more likely to go to a shelter so there are many needing homes as well.

We have a rescue in my area that takes in the "most unwanted"....abused, neglected, Iill, elderly, exotic pets (guineaigs, rabbits...) pitbull types due to bad rep, many abused pits who are abused solely based on their rep, overweight cats, diabetic cats, and so on. The rescue is a rare find, but may be a good place to look also if you have one near you. You could even foster an elderly cat through them and they may help with medical costs. A shelter is quite unlikely to help with costs though if you adopt and fosters may get help, but it's to an extent.

It's a wonderful thing to give an animal a home for the rest of its life. Some only have a few weeks to live but have never been loved or die in a depressive and lonely state. It will be very hard though...keep that in mind, because you don't want to begin and then put the poor little thing back in the shelter because it's too costly or hard. That would break it's heart.

I hope you are able to do this. Remember, there are shelters all over the country with cats being killed as we speak. There is no shortage of felines needing a home.