I need some advice about what to do with my cat. My fiance and I are going to be temporarily moving in with his family in a few months; h suspects no more than a year, I'm hoping for a little less, but we'll see. I have a ten year old indoor cat that I won't be able to take with us because his mom is highly allergic to cats. He is long hair, I think he's got some maine coon in him. I'm not sure what to do with him. Nobody that I personally know well wants to keep him for that time, and I don't want to put him in a shelter. I don't know whether to ask my facebook friends if anyone would want to take him for a year, or my budding plan...to get an outdoor enclosure and keep him in that. I need insight. I don't want to impose on my fiance's mother and ask if i could just keep him in the bedroom, as I don't know how allergies work tbh, but I think there is a patio or back yard at the house. I'm thinking of getting a large enclosure that has both an indoor part and outdoor part so he can have sun or shade. I just don't know. I wish shaving him would just fix the problem because I'd give that a try.
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Unsure what to do with 10 year old cat???
- Thread starter Rascal10
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I had a similar experience. Sassy, who is also quite fluffy, and was 10-11 at the time, was abandoned to live as an outdoor cat by some people in my old neighborhood a little more than a year ago. At the time, I was still living with my mother, who has asthma and is also very, very allergic to cats. She and I basically both said "well... we can't just leave her out here."
We kept her (Sassy, not my mom) in the house, indoor/outdoor with patio privileges (just like my mom) and ran a couple HEPA air filters/purifiers in the house. Sassy was not allowed into my mom's room or on her bed. Additionally, my mom took prescription allergy medication. She still wasn't 100%, but it was a manageable situation for the year that three three of us were all living under one roof. My mom actually liked having company around the house when she was confined to working from home.
The big allergy issue is going to be the fur and "dander," which is just going to get on everything, but I think indoor/outdoor with a catio and clear boundaries is a good temporary solution. Best of luck to you and your handsome friend!
We kept her (Sassy, not my mom) in the house, indoor/outdoor with patio privileges (just like my mom) and ran a couple HEPA air filters/purifiers in the house. Sassy was not allowed into my mom's room or on her bed. Additionally, my mom took prescription allergy medication. She still wasn't 100%, but it was a manageable situation for the year that three three of us were all living under one roof. My mom actually liked having company around the house when she was confined to working from home.
The big allergy issue is going to be the fur and "dander," which is just going to get on everything, but I think indoor/outdoor with a catio and clear boundaries is a good temporary solution. Best of luck to you and your handsome friend!
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Is your fiance's mom agreeable to working with you on this? That might be the biggest part of getting this resolved. Something like
ObeseChess
is suggesting would be a good solution if the mom is open to it.
ObeseChess
is suggesting would be a good solution if the mom is open to it.- Thread Starter Thread Starter
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Maybe try that Liveclear cat food?
Take the Purina Pro Plan LiveClear Challenge
Take the Purina Pro Plan LiveClear Challenge
1. allergy shots (into the Mom, not the cat)
2. change diet (again, Mom, not the cat: surprisingly, many people experience less allergies when they eat what humans should eat)
3. giving the cat a bath weekly (recommend the shower) - there are shampoos out there that reduce the allergies. Google them.
4. The cat is a member of your family. Not the not-even-mother-in-law. Consider alternatives. I've never met anyone who got along living with their mother in law under one roof for longer.
2. change diet (again, Mom, not the cat: surprisingly, many people experience less allergies when they eat what humans should eat)
3. giving the cat a bath weekly (recommend the shower) - there are shampoos out there that reduce the allergies. Google them.
4. The cat is a member of your family. Not the not-even-mother-in-law. Consider alternatives. I've never met anyone who got along living with their mother in law under one roof for longer.
I do agree with what
roguethecat
is suggesting; however, this might still end up being all on you and your cat. If you can get a decent catio, a safe one as you mentioned, it is one solution. There are a lot of plans online for these and some are remarkable. If that does not work, or if at the last minute that will place the cat in too close proximity to your future MIL, then you might start looking for someone who would keep him for you. This takes a lot of research and investigation but those people are out there. Either way, you have a lot of work ahead of you but it is all doable.
roguethecat
is suggesting; however, this might still end up being all on you and your cat. If you can get a decent catio, a safe one as you mentioned, it is one solution. There are a lot of plans online for these and some are remarkable. If that does not work, or if at the last minute that will place the cat in too close proximity to your future MIL, then you might start looking for someone who would keep him for you. This takes a lot of research and investigation but those people are out there. Either way, you have a lot of work ahead of you but it is all doable.
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Do you live near a university? There might be students who would like to have a cat to take care of and hang out with but who can't commit to owning a cat because they'll eventually be graduating and wanting to move/ travel/etc. No idea how you'd go about finding this, but I am just thinking of some of my cousins who would totally be up for this as a way to enjoy the comforts of a pet without the life-altering commitment.
Personally, I would not expect someone to take medicine or change their diet to accommodate my cat (or me, frankly), if I'm the one moving into their house (unless the move was for their benefit).
Personally, I would not expect someone to take medicine or change their diet to accommodate my cat (or me, frankly), if I'm the one moving into their house (unless the move was for their benefit).
It's pretty apparent your MIL-to-be doesn't want your cat in her house. While you look at outdoor cat enclosures, also please contact some local rescue centers - many of whom work with fosters and may also have contacts with others looking to adopt a cat. Maybe even place an inquiry on your Next Door Neighbor website - people that you could actually meet to see if you 'approve' of them. Any of these options could be handled under the case where they come and meet, interact with, and get to know your cat.
Look at it from the perspective of giving up your cat, not trying to find someone to house him for a possible year - although someone from the above suggestions might be willing to entertain such an arrangement. Even if they do, be prepared to give him up in the end because they can't bear to part with him. You might find someone more willing to adopt him for a pet rather than be a temporary pet sitter. See what you can find.
It might just be better for everyone involved to re-home your cat to someone who can be his new forever parent. This cat would have a better chance at adapting to a new care taker and be able to be inside, than being placed outdoors in an enclosure - something of which he has no familiarity with. What will you do if he can't adapt to that kind of situation?
Look at it from the perspective of giving up your cat, not trying to find someone to house him for a possible year - although someone from the above suggestions might be willing to entertain such an arrangement. Even if they do, be prepared to give him up in the end because they can't bear to part with him. You might find someone more willing to adopt him for a pet rather than be a temporary pet sitter. See what you can find.
It might just be better for everyone involved to re-home your cat to someone who can be his new forever parent. This cat would have a better chance at adapting to a new care taker and be able to be inside, than being placed outdoors in an enclosure - something of which he has no familiarity with. What will you do if he can't adapt to that kind of situation?
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This is true, but it’s a double-edged sword, since if I were moving someone in to my home temporarily, especially if they were family, I would not expect them to give up their cat.
Thorny business indeed.
This is a difficult choice for you. Personally, I would do what is best for my kitties. They are my family. You know your cat best. Diet for him might help. That is exactly what that new food is formulated to do, reduce dander, which is what causes the allergies. All the suggestions given in previous posts are options. One other is that there are hepa filters made for each vent in the house as well as the air handler unit. Combined with air purifiers, that has worked for me when a family member comes and there are 28 rescue cats here! I can imagine how difficult this must be for you. I can tell you that I have put catios here for my kitties so they can be in or out. They have been strictly indoors for quite awhile but they love the catios. They had no problem adjusting. It was a win, win in their minds. I hope you can find an answer that keeps that sweet kitty with you or finds him the home he needs. Beautiful kitty!
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I have a few old coworkers who said they would take him. I think he would like the catio type thing I want to get, he loves going out on the back porch for a little bit when I read outside, but then I'm also worried about the weather in the summer then winter. It's tough for sure. I want whatever is the least amount of stress for him, of course, but where he's old I'm not sure either choice will be less stressful. I'd like him to go to a home where there aren't other animals, so at least he doesn't have to adjust to them too, but so far everyone that's offered to take him also have other cats. My future MIL is super sweet, the whole reason she offered for us to move in is to help us out with our financial situation with our new (human) baby. But she's not gonna go for accommodations for the cat, and I get it. I've never dealt with allergies but combined with asthma, I'm sure I'd rather just want to avoid it altogether too. I think I'm going to try the enclosure first before we move and see how he reacts to it.
I appreciate all of your guys' proposals and thoughts very much! I really needed some outside thoughts to get my brain clear and working lol
I've attached the enclosure I'm considering. I would put a tarp over the top of it to protect the outer part from sun, rain, snow, etc. too.
I appreciate all of your guys' proposals and thoughts very much! I really needed some outside thoughts to get my brain clear and working lol
I've attached the enclosure I'm considering. I would put a tarp over the top of it to protect the outer part from sun, rain, snow, etc. too.
Attachments
Trying the enclosure is a good idea, but be prepared for the fact that it might not be an easy adjustment for him and that you might have to return to the offers you had to rehome him. If it comes to that, you can get help here about his adjustment to a house with other cats and his new owner could join TCS as well if they needed help.
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I'm definitely trying to prepare myself for any outcome.
Is your area one of a very temperate climate? If not, will you be able to offer summer cooling? You could ask at pharmacies and medical centers if they have cooling packs and styrofoam coolers to dispose of, to provide some relief to your cat. With a new baby, you will already be very busy so you will want to consider mental enrichment that doesn't require much from you. Ants and flies will likely be a problem, too, since he won't be able to get away like the ferals do; maybe flea treatment helps - I don't know too much about fleas since they aren't in my area. I do suggest that you use garden shade cloth on the upper walls of the catio because that will allow more freely flowing air.
