A few years ago, I adopted my friend’s cat. This friend and his wife had just had a baby, and that baby had quickly become allergic to the cat, among many other things. The couple couldn’t find a willing home among other friends, so I decided to give in and adopt him.
Rupert and I have had a good three years together, but within one month I will be moving into a new apartment whose managers do not “allow” pets. Thus, it is time for me to find Rupert a new home. I am considering listing him on PetFinder, a kind of dating service that places “people seeking animals” with “animals seeking people,” if I cannot find a friend to take him in.
If I can’t find a friend or co-worker, I am thinking about asking for some sort of fee, just to ensure I can find an owner who is serious about taking care of an 8-year-old domestic short-hair.
If I do take this path, the fee would be donated to a local adoption agency.
Here’s a recent picture of Rupert, in lolcat style.
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8:33 am (reply)
Wow, this sucks. I’d take him if the wife wasn’t all ready to kill the one we have now.
9:04 am (reply)
Haha, oh man I love the lolcat images. I have another site bookmarked somewhere that has close to 1,000 of those pictures as well. Good entertainment… or maybe I’m just easily amused :D
11:42 am (reply)
I’d definitely charge a fee to make sure he doesn’t fall into people who aren’t motivated to take good care of a cat. Also, see if you can find a local free rabies clinic and make sure he’s had his vaccination—that’s important to people, and you don’t usually have to live in the township to get the free shot. Also, since a month really isn’t much time, especially to find a home for an older boy like him, if he ends up in the adoption circuit, they’ll then be able to bring him to local PetSmart adoption days.
I’d list on PetFinder now, then you might have some luck contacting local rescue groups, but they will make you do legwork. I helped a tenant get rid of 4 cats this past winter, but spent many hours hawking cats at the Delran Petsmart in exchange for the cage space, and I had to foster them till homes were found.
2:31 pm (reply)
The donated fee is a nice idea. You won’t get stuck with someone who is going to neglect your cat or put it in a small apartment 35 other cats. Donating the money to the local adoption agency makes it even better. Good luck!
7:47 pm (reply)
Make sure to let the people know that they can always bring the cat back to you if they don’t want it anymore. You can hide it from your new, mean, awful landlord if necessary until you find a new home. Are you sure you can’t find a place that will allow cats?
10:39 am (reply)
Posting about your cat? Isn’t that the universal sign that your blog has jumped the shark?
I’m kidding, keep up the good work, Flexo.
11:36 am (reply)
Posting about your cat? Isn’t that the universal sign that your blog has jumped the shark?
Not when your cat’s your CFO. He’s now forced to interview a hamster and an iguana for that role since they’re acceptable under his new lease agreement.
6:32 pm (reply)
Isn’t it hypocritical to ask for a “fee” to ensure that your cat ends up with a good owner? A good owner doesn’t dispose of his animal simply because he doesn’t want to put in the effort to find an apartment that would accept a cat.
Prior to buying my own house, I lived quite nicely in rental apartments in NJ for years with 2 cats, so I know one can find a place with a little work.
Be honest with yourself. You find the cat to be inconvenient at this point in your life, so you are selling him. (It is a sale, regardless of whether you donate the proceeds to donate to a shelter or to buy beer.)
Don’t cloak yourself in righteousness.