Rehoming requirements ???

[Jodieluv]

Hi, this is a question for individuals, as well as actual rescue/shelter groups, what are some things you require a person to give, or show you, prior to letting them adopt a cat ( s ) from you ? I have been randomly taking in cats/kittens as I can , and caring for them, and when/if they are ready to be rehomed I start networking through friends, family, social media, etc. Unless I know the person very well , I do not just hand the cat over, at minimum I want person phone number, address, and even references, if I cannot get a legit address where cat is going , it does not go, I realize ppl can still move, or lie, or whatever, but it gives me at least some assurance, to know where cat will be, especially since I live in an area where cats are pretty disposable to a lot of ppl, I still have a couple of orphan kittens I bottle raised, they are ready to go, and I am ridiculously attached due to what they just went through ( I found them about 2 or 3 weeks ago at my jobsite in ice water, we had about a day, and a half of cold rain, and a heavy frost, 2 of the 3 I found were completely unconscious, with bubbles, and foam coming out of mouth, and limp cold bodies )
I revived them, and bottle raised , and they show no sign of physical, or mental damage, but i am very , very worried about who may get them.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi
This might help;
“kittens To Good Homes” – How To Find A Good Forever Home For Your Kittens – TheCatSite Articles

 

[Jcatbird]

Very good question! There are adoption contracts to be found online. Some basics I use is to require the contract be signed, the person must allow home visit before and after, their vet must speak to me about any previous pets and care given, they must allow me to speak with the vet they use to follow up on immunizations, spay neuter or whatever is required, if I am not satisfied the cat must return to me, the cat cannot be rehome for given to any shelter/rescue at a later date without my approval or must be returned to me ( I have them returned to me) , I must receive photos, texts or updates for the first six months as I request, and the cat must be indoor only. I sometimes write in other details. Basically, whatever gives you reassurance can be added. For me it varies a little depending on the situation. I have required a fee that I put with the vet for prepaid vet care. This helps to make sure the person really wants the kitty and it also serves to make sure some vet care happens. We all worry about adopting out but a contract is a big help. If they won’t allow you to speak to a previous/current vet or check in on kitty, for me, that is an instant deal breaker. A home visit is really to check for many things. It includes other pets present. I do not allow kitties to go where pit bulls live. I am not trying to knock the pit bulls but even part pit has left me caring for an injured cat that belonged to a friend. The dog was great with horses and large animals but not cats or chickens. Honestly, I use the contract to weed out a lot of people. Those who are intimidated by being bound by vet check ins by me, are instantly refused. If the person needs anything and has trouble I encourage them to let me know. Sometimes I have had an adopter lose a job and be tight on funds and I have supplied them with food or litter. I always send the kitties with a care package which includes the food the like, a blanket they have been using (it carries the scent of home and helps to calm them, a couple of toys and a package of litter with litter box as well as whatever water and food dish they have been using. All of this helps to transition the kitty. A few times I have provided a carrier but that can get pricey. I insist the person have a cat carrier.
You can adjust all of this to suit your needs. A local rescuer or shelter may be willing to show you their adoption contracts too. I hope this helps. Bravo to you for caring and helping these kitties!?

 

[Jodieluv]

Thank you so much, that gave me some great ideas, especially prepaying a vet for service to be sure cat is taken in, I just rejected a girl yesterday that wanted one of these bottle babies, I had been given a good reference for girl from a mutual friend, and had another to deliver to a family that is wonderful , and took in one of my "rescue" kitten s that my boss had just dumped at work before he moved out of state, but anyhow I asked this girl for her address, and she would not even give me address, wanted to meet in parking lot of business, for her "security" , and even after telling her I would meet somewhere public for her to see me, and kitten, and then we take it to her place , she absolutely would not, after I debated situation with boyfriend, that something was "off" and suspicious about this girls behavior, so long story short , she got no kitten, and I am still looking for homes. I really do not know what is up with ppl, I told her if you go to any rescue you will have to provide all kinds of info, allow home visits, etc. Then I had guy I work with said him, and his wife would take two, but wanted same sex, and I said why are you not going to fix them ? Then he said he lives in town, so does not want a bunch of kittens, and he makes pretty good money, and there are several low cost spay / neuter places around, and I said I would pay for surgeries, and he said well, we want them now while they are really little, it is so frustrating, I do not know if this is a regional thing , or everywhere that there are ppl like this...anyhow rant over, thank you for suggestions, I am going to read over them again.

Very good question! There are adoption contracts to be found online. Some basics I use is to require the contract be signed, the person must allow home visit before and after, their vet must speak to me about any previous pets and care given, they must allow me to speak with the vet they use to follow up on immunizations, spay neuter or whatever is required, if I am not satisfied the cat must return to me, the cat cannot be rehome for given to any shelter/rescue at a later date without my approval or must be returned to me ( I have them returned to me) , I must receive photos, texts or updates for the first six months as I request, and the cat must be indoor only. I sometimes write in other details. Basically, whatever gives you reassurance can be added. For me it varies a little depending on the situation. I have required a fee that I put with the vet for prepaid vet care. This helps to make sure the person really wants the kitty and it also serves to make sure some vet care happens. We all worry about adopting out but a contract is a big help. If they won’t allow you to speak to a previous/current vet or check in on kitty, for me, that is an instant deal breaker. A home visit is really to check for many things. It includes other pets present. I do not allow kitties to go where pit bulls live. I am not trying to knock the pit bulls but even part pit has left me caring for an injured cat that belonged to a friend. The dog was great with horses and large animals but not cats or chickens. Honestly, I use the contract to weed out a lot of people. Those who are intimidated by being bound by vet check ins by me, are instantly refused. If the person needs anything and has trouble I encourage them to let me know. Sometimes I have had an adopter lose a job and be tight on funds and I have supplied them with food or litter. I always send the kitties with a care package which includes the food the like, a blanket they have been using (it carries the scent of home and helps to calm them, a couple of toys and a package of litter with litter box as well as whatever water and food dish they have been using. All of this helps to transition the kitty. A few times I have provided a carrier but that can get pricey. I insist the person have a cat carrier.
You can adjust all of this to suit your needs. A local rescuer or shelter may be willing to show you their adoption contracts too. I hope this helps. Bravo to you for caring and helping these kitties!?

 

[fionasmom]

Thank you for helping these kittens, and other cats in the past. Follow your instincts. When I worked rescue, including dogs, it was usually true that people who seemed suspicious were. End of story. They may not have had terrible intentions toward the animal, although those are out there, but something was just "off."

I always include money somehow, whatever works for you with the individual who wants to adopt. Bunchers will not pay for an animal as it completely cuts into the profit they hope to make from dealing in cats and dogs. You might base your fee on the care you have provided, veterinary and supplies.

 

[Meowmee]

Thank you for saving these babies. If you just took them in two to three weeks ago and you were bottlefeeding them they are not ready to be adopted yet…you should wait until they are 12 weeks old. You’ve gotten good advice on all of the other points for adoption- you can find forms online and you can ask a rescue group for ideas.

Definitely have a contract which is signed which stipulates your requirements. You can have them spayed and neutered before they are adopted. That way you don’t have to worry about people not doing that. There are low-cost spay neuter clinics you could inquire about that and then include the cost in the adoption fee. Kittens usually have a higher adoption fee than adult cats.

 

[therese]

Hi, this is a question for individuals, as well as actual rescue/shelter groups, what are some things you require a person to give, or show you, prior to letting them adopt a cat ( s ) from you ? I have been randomly taking in cats/kittens as I can , and caring for them, and when/if they are ready to be rehomed I start networking through friends, family, social media, etc. Unless I know the person very well , I do not just hand the cat over, at minimum I want person phone number, address, and even references, if I cannot get a legit address where cat is going , it does not go, I realize ppl can still move, or lie, or whatever, but it gives me at least some assurance, to know where cat will be, especially since I live in an area where cats are pretty disposable to a lot of ppl, I still have a couple of orphan kittens I bottle raised, they are ready to go, and I am ridiculously attached due to what they just went through ( I found them about 2 or 3 weeks ago at my jobsite in ice water, we had about a day, and a half of cold rain, and a heavy frost, 2 of the 3 I found were completely unconscious, with bubbles, and foam coming out of mouth, and limp cold bodies )
I revived them, and bottle raised , and they show no sign of physical, or mental damage, but i am very , very worried about who may get them.

I feel that, given how strongly you feel about these particular two kittens, you really want to keep them, and you should. You sound like you are very bonded to them...and I know how that is, given that I had bottle fed a kitten and I was not able to just let him go to another home.

 

[Margot Lane]

This is such a good question…everyone here has given you great advice I think. Just wanted to thank you for being such a caring, thoughtful lifesaver to these kittens.

 

[Antonio65]

I rescue cats and kittens, and when it's possible, I rehome them, provided they have a good character and are friendly. Otherwise, after rescuing them and having them seen and possibly treated/fixed by a vet, I relocate them at the local shelter.
For those I can rehome, the requirements I look for are that the new family won't ever allow them outside (so I automatically rule out all families that live in a house with a yard or garden), that they do not have very young kids, that have some basic knowledge of kittens and cats needs, that can arrange a way to have their cats looked after when they go away for some days.
I ask them to read and sign a contract in which they commit to spay/neuter the cat (if it's still a kitten) by a certain date (proof of the surgery required), and to keep in touch with me for a while with photos and messages. Part of this contract asks them to hand the cat back to me in case on difficulty, or should I recognize a bad management of the kitty.
I had to recover three kittens from two families after a few months because they were unable to give the kittens the proper cares. One other cat was returned to me when they realized they couldn't keep her anymore.

 

[catwheel]

I appreciate some of this advice as well after the total disaster that happened with myself and my relative with a rescue organization..
The rescue was a near perfect way to rehome young cats via the owner but long story short: my relative is a PITA and I’m an emotional wreck who just ruined the best chance my babies have at a good life with good people.
Rescue will no longer deal with us, and I’m on my own.

 

[catwheel]

Very good question! There are adoption contracts to be found online. Some basics I use is to require the contract be signed, the person must allow home visit before and after, their vet must speak to me about any previous pets and care given, they must allow me to speak with the vet they use to follow up on immunizations, spay neuter or whatever is required, if I am not satisfied the cat must return to me, the cat cannot be rehome for given to any shelter/rescue at a later date without my approval or must be returned to me ( I have them returned to me) , I must receive photos, texts or updates for the first six months as I request, and the cat must be indoor only. I sometimes write in other details. Basically, whatever gives you reassurance can be added. For me it varies a little depending on the situation. I have required a fee that I put with the vet for prepaid vet care. This helps to make sure the person really wants the kitty and it also serves to make sure some vet care happens. We all worry about adopting out but a contract is a big help. If they won’t allow you to speak to a previous/current vet or check in on kitty, for me, that is an instant deal breaker. A home visit is really to check for many things. It includes other pets present. I do not allow kitties to go where pit bulls live. I am not trying to knock the pit bulls but even part pit has left me caring for an injured cat that belonged to a friend. The dog was great with horses and large animals but not cats or chickens. Honestly, I use the contract to weed out a lot of people. Those who are intimidated by being bound by vet check ins by me, are instantly refused. If the person needs anything and has trouble I encourage them to let me know. Sometimes I have had an adopter lose a job and be tight on funds and I have supplied them with food or litter. I always send the kitties with a care package which includes the food the like, a blanket they have been using (it carries the scent of home and helps to calm them, a couple of toys and a package of litter with litter box as well as whatever water and food dish they have been using. All of this helps to transition the kitty. A few times I have provided a carrier but that can get pricey. I insist the person have a cat carrier.
You can adjust all of this to suit your needs. A local rescuer or shelter may be willing to show you their adoption contracts too. I hope this helps. Bravo to you for caring and helping these kitties!?

Wow! How do you manage all that!? I thought even gathering all records and necessary info to send to a rescue for assistance was tedious, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to handle rehoming on the level of a rescue on my own.

Are the contracts we can find ourselves and add to, as legally binding and enforceable as the ones certified rescues use?
I am certainty not intimidating enough on my own to deter nefarious folk from adopting my cats.

 

[Jcatbird]

C catwheel There are legally binding contracts online. One thing about humans with less than good intentions is that they hesitate to sign contracts, give information, allow home visits before adopting (always take other people with you when doing a home check) and they often won’t pay a fee. I absolutely insist on checking pet carrier with their current vet. That requires permission to be given and if the won’t, they do not get a cat. I ran ads in a free local paper and that made it pretty quick to eliminate people. I asked why they wanted to adopt and that was sometimes a quick,” no” from me. No cats for just catching rats. No for being a “friend” to their dog, No to “our last cat got run over”. You get the idea. I had one may change his story in one phone conversation and when denied, he told me he would just get some at the flea market. Another person wanted to Declaw! NO! It isn’t really as complicated as it seems, it just takes finding a way to weed out bad ones, no intimidation needed. Most of the time when you talk out the details, bad or less than great ones go away quickly. A fee is standard at all shelters. It covers safety of the kitty as well as any costs you incurred. I usually got all the vet care done first and that makes record keeping easy. The vet can simply give you copies when all is done or forward the files to a shelter. For finding homes you can work through shelters by fostering even as the kitties are in your care. Petfinders is one used by many shelters. If the shelter you were working with bailed out, try another. Be willing to foster as needed and find out up front what the rules are. If you don’t like their rules, try another but be prepared to bend just a little. Check reviews on the shelters, maybe talk to someone who has adopted from there or just visit the shelter yourself. It should be very clean, vet care provided and not overcrowded. Animals should appear in good health. A good shelter may have special needs animals, shy animals but sick ones should be quarantined from others. If you see a sick one, ask questions. Don’t give up. Once you have a routine in place, things go much, much better. If you cannot find a shelter you feel good about, network with other fosters with experience. They are a huge resource! I would have been lost without that in the beginning. Post and start a thread on this site for support. It helped me and I am guessing it will help you too. No declawing, spay and neuter and indoor only is a good start on requirements. You can do this!