Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I agree...some organizations get a bit zealous. I can understand them wanting to protect those that are to be adopted...but I think they need to go on a one on one basis, rather than make rules across the board that are to fit everyone.
If she is a lone caretaker of these animals, then she has every right to enforce the rules she sets. (I'm not saying she is right...just that she has the right).
You must understand all the wackos out there who feel certain things are "okay"...when we, the animal lovers of the world, just cringe at. (See my post about Repo, a 6 week old puppy that was left out in the elements on his own, no food, no shelter, no water, for over 10 hrs. and the person thought this was absolutely acceptable!) And they couldn't understand why we took him away from them!
I fully understand your vent...hopefully, another furkid will be in the future for you!
No need to lie, but no need to offer extra information they aren't asking for either. Yes, or no answers will suffice-unless they ask for more. Do you know a vet? Yup. Do you currently have a cat in your home? Nope-they don't need to know that Hammy is currently curled up nice and comfy in your yard under his favorite shrub. I think they go a little overboard too at times.
Way overboard. I rescue feral cats which end up on my doorstep and I pay out of my own pocket to have them spayed and neutered and take excellent care of them. Four are "inside/outside" cats who always come in for the night but are in and out during the day at whim. Three outside cats stay out but sometimes sneak in for an hour or so but could never be strictly confined and then there are a couple of ferals who never come inside and don't want to. Of course there is more of an attrition rate generally with cats who are outside - but even a few lovely years are, in my opinion, preferable to early euthanasia.
As has been said, if this woman is a one-person operation then there's really nothing you can do but if she's part of a larger organisation I would certainly approach her superiors and ask why you were so adamantly and rudely rejected. Our local humane society does require that all animals be spayed and neutered before adoption and dog owners are asked to provide a fenced-in yard.
I'm sorry this woman gave you such a hard time and I hope it all works out for the best and that even if you aren't able to adopt the cat you really want that you find a needy furry (or one will find you!) who'll appreciate you. Cheers!
normie - Thank you very much for wanting to adopt an adult cat!!!
I've found the local animal rescue groups in New England to be too difficult to adopt a dog from, especially the purebred rescues. And I often wonder if those purebred rescue foster homes just like to collect these dogs as they are free to them plus the vet care is taken care of by the rescue. Some of these animals seem to be on Petfinder for months when they seem very adoptable to me. Their application process is long and very invasive of my privacy. I don't want complete strangers coming to my house to inspect it and my lifestyle. So now, any time I want to adopt a pet, I seek one from out of state and from the south. I know that I am a great pet owner, and I don't need any strangers to scrutinize my life and validate me.
I currently have two cats, one is 13 and the other 14 years of age. One was a stray cat I found in Atlanta, GA behind my hotel. The other from a former coworker that got her as a kitten for her daughter, but didn't realize that having a cat would bother her asthma so much.
I remember my roommate tried to adopt from several rescues from the Boston area, and eventually got so frustrated, he went to his home state, used his old address there, and adopted a dog there. yeah, there was a little bit of lying going on there, but he ended up w/ an awesome Boston Terrier mix, so everyone wins (well, except for the pups in MA who aren't getting adopted due to crazy rules)
I was in the process of adopting a cat around September and checked out some shelters. one shelter I checked out had I cat I liked and I asked a volunteer about the adoption policy. she said that cats had to be adopted in pairs. I've never heard of such a rule regarding cat adoptions before ever. I'm NOT talking about kittens that should have a companion to play w/, or cats that came in w/ a friend that the rescue would like to adopt together, I'm talking about single cats that came in solo, but the shelter deemed "social" so had to be either adopted w/ another cat or go to a home w/ a cat present. I was always under the impression that, while cats do like company, they don't need it and can dine as a solo cat.
anyways, between that and the volunteer's rather rude attitude (I asked about how to be a foster home since I had never personally owned a cat though I've lived a several over the years, and the response I got was "fostering isn't for people looking to "try out" cats, its for people who actually care for them!" well, excuse me!), I've just been turned off from that shelter, and from shelters/rescues in general (the city shelter had some friendly volunteers though, so I may adopt from there). I won't be getting a cat for a while longer, but I may just check out Craigslist since I've seen several being posted there for adoption (sometimes even for free, or at least much cheaper than the fees some shelters are charging). there's a very bad feral cat problem in my area and a lot of home based rescues are picking up these cats to vet and adopt them out and I may just foster for them instead
we're in the process of looking for a new BFF too, and have run into some ....challenges.... too. One lady, who knows we got my daughters BFF from a different pet rescue, cant get over the fact that we got him from someone OTHER than her, and is bound and determined to make mean comments everytime she sees us and is going to make things VERY difficult if we find one from "her" organization. She is just terrible, she has even told my little girl 'You know, if you had gotten your kitty from me, youd still HAVE a kitty, he wouldnt be DEAD somewhere" yeah, that was a great thing to tell a heartbroken 6yr old. (we werent even looking to take one home then, we were just looking...)
another place we went to, i asked about the adoption process, and while i was overwhelmed with the whole deal as it was, the deal breaker for me was when she told me that I had to sign a paper that let them do "unannounced in home inspections" for the next FIVE years!!!!! as many times as they want! I was told, quite smugly, that if they chose to, they could come every single week, unannounced, into my home, for the next five years!!!!! uhhhhh...no. Especially since she went on to tell me that some of their staff continue to "pop in" on the "new owners" for years and years to come.....
that feels a bit invasive and overboard to me. but, thats just me.
a lot of shelter workers love all animals and don't like cats outside because cats are predatory by nature (especially feral outdoor cats) and will kill other animals if they get a chance. these people are giving their time for free hoping to help animals. of course, so is the good person who comes in to adopt. there are occasionally bad people out there, people who sell these animals to research labs, etc., and some of these shelter workers are too zealous. in our community, an older lady was denied an adoption because she was literally told that she was "too old". i find that ridiculous and insulting, since probably a lot of older people have more patience and more time to spend with the pets. if you want that cat, go back and show that you are not deterred and i bet you will get her. if you feel insulted, you can always go to another shelter but i would not let one person deter me from saving an animal. thank you for your kindness to those animals who have no choices!
I was in Petsmart one day looking at all of the kitties in the cages and a lady was practically in tears, she wanted to adopt a kitty and she told me they told her no because she did not own her own house. I'm not sure how true this way, but I really felt bad.
Thanks for the shoulder to cry on and some good advice. Someone suggested talking to our vet, and that's exactly what I did. Yesterday she called and told us she knew of a great older cat who needed a home. "Barack Obama" came home with us about an hour later, and so far the two cats are getting along very well.
The new kitty seems very happy to stay inside and this morning when Hammy demanded to be let out, new kitty had no interest in following. She'd rather stay in her comfy chair. So it looks like we have an indoor cat and an outdoor cat.
Now all we have to do is come up with a new name. "Barack Obama" is way too long to say and I really can't see myself calling out "Barack Obama, come get your dinner!" Plus, it's a girl cat!!!!
I really like this cat, she'll make a great new member of our family. And best of all, the vet didn't seem at all concerned about our ability to give the cat a good home. I know it's silly, but I was really hurt by that other lady. I agree with the posters who said some of the people at those rescue shelters are well meaning but get carried away.
I beleive the idea is they rather put the animal to sleep instead of taking the risk of placing it into a bad home. Certainly that's a noble idea but not very practical when you're eliminating so many people that might want to adopt an animal.
I wonder if the cats think that's a noble idea?
There's a huge difference between a "bad" home and a home that doesn't live up to someone's very narrow opinion of "perfection." A bad home, IMO, is where an animal would be physically tortured. A house with another cat that happens to be happy living as an outdoor cat is not what I would call a bad home.
If you were a cat and you were given the choice between being killed or living in a house where you're fed and brushed and petted, but there's another cat that goes outdoors... would you prefer to be put to sleep?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
) And they couldn't understand why we took him away from them!
adoptions
