Who are all these people dumping aged cats at shelters?!

[FineAlready]

[QUOTE=Nezzy;8137323]
the only reason i would give up a cat is if it was peeing in the house. will not have that. cat pee smell never comes out. ever. That said, i don’t have a cat b/c of this, and bc hubby is allergic. and i would probably not send cat to a shelter, where there are so many already. would try to rehome cat by myself, first.[/QUOTE]

Most of the time, cats pee outside of the litter box due to a physical problem or an emotional issue that can be addressed. In general, if people have some kind of pre-conceived, “I won’t live with x, y, or z thing in a cat” kind of notion, I don’t think they should get a cat.

In all honesty, my own parents are the kind that would not keep animals that they deemed imperfect. They obtained for me, and then made me give away, several animals when I was a child. This list includes: unneutered male rabbit that was spraying pee on our porch, dog #1 because she pooped in the house ONCE (and was VERY remorseful about it - it was completely our fault too), dog #2 because he had a breed-related skin condition. They also traded one of my horses and donated one to a university that sold him at auction two months later.

When I got my cat Leon as a kitten, he had a terrible infection that turned out to be chronic feline herpes virus. My mom suggested that I return him to the shelter. Thankfully, by this time I was an adult and did what I wanted to do and kept him.

I basically WILL NOT part with my animals. My horse is a very difficult sort, and people always suggest that I should “get rid of him.” NO. The answer is simply NO. I can’t and I won’t.

Writing it out like that really makes me realize that my parents are probably part of the reason this is such a sore point for me. I will say that they did keep their/my childhood elderly cat when she was in failing health. They even let her sleep in their bed her last night before they had her euthanized, despite the fact that she had lost bladder control. I do think she changed them a bit…finally. They do not have pets anymore, which is probably for the best.

[Nezzy]

i get what you are saying, but i also do not have a cat, bc i don’t want to risk that it will pee in the house. That smell is not coming out, like I said. Nothing gets it out. Any other animals that have an accident, if the smell comes out, i can deal with it. I think people need to be responsible before getting any pet. but too many people think it’s ok to just get rid of an animal once you get it. that is NOT ok with me. I’m just stating why i think so many cats end up at shelters. no, it’s not the fault of the cat if it gets a urinary problem. but the owner will have to live with the consequences.

[vxf111]

[QUOTE=Nezzy;8137735]
no, it’s not the fault of the cat if it gets a urinary problem. but the owner will have to live with the consequences.[/QUOTE]

Which is a worse “consequence”? Having a stinky piece of furniture that you throw away or dying alone, terrified, and abandoned after weeks in a cage? Cats have to live with the consequences too.

Who do you think wants to adopt your cat that you didn’t treat and allowed to pee in the house that may now do that as a habit? Even if it’s a treatable veterinary issue-- who wants to take your cat and spend their money to treat him? The belief that you can always easily rehome an animal that you neglected/failed to care for properly-- it isn’t always that simple.

If you don’t have the patience to work through veterinary issues that may crop up, don’t get a pet. Because sometimes, like all living things, they have accidents or get sick.

And while I certainly do not relish the smell of cat urine, if we’re talking neutered housecats and you apply enzyme solution quickly-- it’s no worse than dog urine or baby urine or human vomit or a manner of other things. When it’s an unneutered male cat OR it’s left untreated and soaks in-- yes, it can be really pad. An accidental tinkle from a neutered cat that gets Simple Solution soaked into it when it first happens-- not any worse than spilling spaghetti sauce on the rug. The single worst smell I’ve ever had to deal with was when someone let a ham leak juices onto a car seat and it wasn’t discovered for a few days. Talk about a smell that WOULD NOT GO AWAY. Cat urine is nothing compared to that.

[PeanutButterPony]

I’m just glad they aren’t taking them for a drive in the country.

[french_fry]

[QUOTE=Nezzy;8137735]
i get what you are saying, but i also do not have a cat, bc i don’t want to risk that it will pee in the house. That smell is not coming out, like I said. Nothing gets it out. Any other animals that have an accident, if the smell comes out, i can deal with it. I think people need to be responsible before getting any pet. but too many people think it’s ok to just get rid of an animal once you get it. that is NOT ok with me. I’m just stating why i think so many cats end up at shelters. no, it’s not the fault of the cat if it gets a urinary problem. but the owner will have to live with the consequences.[/QUOTE]

Cat pee totally comes out if you catch it before it really sets in. Citation: personal experience, the fact that landlords allow cats at all.

THAT SAID, you recognize cat pee isn’t something you can deal with so you don’t have a cat. This is commendable! It is something all pet owners should consider before they get a pet.

You’re not a bad person for not being able to deal with cat pee. I would consider you a pretty bad person if you knew you couldn’t handle cat pee and you got a cat with the idea that if it ever peed in the house you’d get rid of it.

See also: front claws on cats. If you know you can’t handle scratching don’t get a cat ADKJFKJADKFEAN OMGZ. Declawing is not the answer! /tangent

Caveat: general “you”

[normandy_shores]

Too many people get rid of their animals when they start a family.

Because you know, baaayyyy-bies!

[showmanship]

[QUOTE=french fry;8137823]

See also: front claws on cats. If you know you can’t handle scratching don’t get a cat ADKJFKJADKFEAN OMGZ. Declawing is not the answer! /tangent

Caveat: general “you”[/QUOTE]

They need Kitten Mittons! Hopes there’s at least one person out there to get the IASIP reference

In all seriousness, this is such a true point. And if you keep their claws trimmed well, it’s really not an issue. They just need desensitized to trimming them, just like a dog or a kid for that matter. Unfortunately… it’s just “easier” for some to declaw or get rid of them

ETA : I remember when I was pretty young, we got our cat declawed (and this was back before the laser - how painful!), but at that time we really didn’t know any better. The poor guy ripped his bandages off and bled EVERYWHERE. We put him in the bathroom while we called the vet and it looked like a murder scene. Looking back, we all feel so bad for putting him through that.

[vxf111]

I blame the declawing partially on vets who prod owners to get it done without explaining the actual procedure. And partially on the fact that the average person doesn’t understand the procedure at all. Vets who push it really irk me though. How you could routinely do declawing (without specific veterinary justification)* and feel you’re upholding the hippocratic oath is a mystery I will never understand.

A friend rescued 2 kitties from a ditch. They were covered in ringworm, full of worms, and malnourished. Another friend of mine agreed to take them but wasn’t equipped to deal with their issues. I took them home, kept them for 2 months, nursed them to perfect health, and gave them to my friend. Totally healthy, no-problem cats. Never scratched on furniture either.

When she took them in to be fixed the vet gave her a REALLY hard sell about declawing. Very high end, ritzy vet practice in a well off suburb. The vet said “don’t come crying to me, you’ll be sorry you didn’t.” I made my friend put the vet on the phone with me and she STILL didn’t want to back down. There was NO REASON to declaw these cats and mutilate them that way. NO REASON. It was purely profit motive. My friend did not declaw the kittens and they are healthy, happy, no problem cats today.

*Obviously there are specific circumstances where a veterinary need means declawing is necessary. I’m not talking about those cases. I’m talking about the average joe kitten with nothing wrong and the vet pushes the owner to declaw during the neutering since the cat is under anyway.

[french_fry]

[QUOTE=vxf111;8137883]
*Obviously there are specific circumstances where a veterinary need means declawing is necessary. I’m not talking about those cases. I’m talking about the average joe kitten with nothing wrong and the vet pushes the owner to declaw during the neutering since the cat is under anyway.[/QUOTE]

Is it possible that some vets feel that the cats they declaw will be less likely to be dumped or left at a shelter or put down later in life?

I am as anti-declaw as you can get, but I have to admit that it recently occurred to me that perhaps more cats WOULD find homes (and keep them) if they were declawed in front.

If you could ask a cat, “hey, would you rather have part of your front paws removed and have a cushy life for the next 10+ years or not be partially crippled but languish in a shelter/be put down well before your time?” I would consider it, I guess, but since we can’t I ultimately just can’t get behind declawing.

[vxf111]

[QUOTE=french fry;8137897]
Is it possible that some vets feel that the cats they declaw will be less likely to be dumped or left at a shelter or put down later in life?

I am as anti-declaw as you can get, but I have to admit that it recently occurred to me that perhaps more cats WOULD find homes (and keep them) if they were declawed in front.

If you could ask a cat, “hey, would you rather have part of your front paws removed and have a cushy life for the next 10+ years or not be partially crippled but languish in a shelter/be put down well before your time?” I would consider it, I guess, but since we can’t I ultimately just can’t get behind declawing.[/QUOTE]

I don’t think there’s a shred of evidence to suggest that fewer declawed cats end up in shelters. Quite the opposite. Declawed cats are MORE likely to have litterbox issues/act out due to pain or arthritis and THAT’s what lands cats in shelters many times.

That’s like saying we should debark all dogs to save them from ending up in shelters. Or knock out all their teeth preemptively.

There’s a simple reason why some vets like to declaw and push the procedure. Actually, usually around 400-500 simple reasons.

[Nezzy]

[QUOTE=vxf111;8137785]
Which is a worse “consequence”? Having a stinky piece of furniture that you throw away or dying alone, terrified, and abandoned after weeks in a cage? Cats have to live with the consequences too.

Who do you think wants to adopt your cat that you didn’t treat and allowed to pee in the house that may now do that as a habit? Even if it’s a treatable veterinary issue-- who wants to take your cat and spend their money to treat him? The belief that you can always easily rehome an animal that you neglected/failed to care for properly-- it isn’t always that simple.

If you don’t have the patience to work through veterinary issues that may crop up, don’t get a pet. Because sometimes, like all living things, they have accidents or get sick.

And while I certainly do not relish the smell of cat urine, if we’re talking neutered housecats and you apply enzyme solution quickly-- it’s no worse than dog urine or baby urine or human vomit or a manner of other things. When it’s an unneutered male cat OR it’s left untreated and soaks in-- yes, it can be really pad. An accidental tinkle from a neutered cat that gets Simple Solution soaked into it when it first happens-- not any worse than spilling spaghetti sauce on the rug. The single worst smell I’ve ever had to deal with was when someone let a ham leak juices onto a car seat and it wasn’t discovered for a few days. Talk about a smell that WOULD NOT GO AWAY. Cat urine is nothing compared to that.[/QUOTE]

not speaking of furniture, but of flooring, subflooring and walls. and when we had to rent a small apartment bc we were building a house, the entire place reeked of cat urine. i had 2 full weeks before we moved in and the landlord said i could try whatever i wanted. ( at my own cost). Sorry but there is nothing that is taking that smell out.

[vxf111]

[QUOTE=Nezzy;8137942]
not speaking of furniture, but of flooring, subflooring and walls. and when we had to rent a small apartment bc we were building a house, the entire place reeked of cat urine. i had 2 full weeks before we moved in and the landlord said i could try whatever i wanted. ( at my own cost). Sorry but there is nothing that is taking that smell out.[/QUOTE]

Yes. Old urine that someone let set is one thing. Fresh urine that you treat immediately is another. I also would not move into a place someone trashed (or filled up with any gross smell like cigarette smoke etc.). But that’s a totally different issue than whether cat urine ALWAYS leaves a terrible smell. It doesn’t if you immediately catch it and treat it before it does things like soak into the subflooring. You want to talk smells that never go away? Cigarette smoke or CURRY in walls/floors/carpeting. That makes cat urine smell like perfume!

[FineAlready]

[QUOTE=PeanutButterPony;8137813]
I’m just glad they aren’t taking them for a drive in the country.[/QUOTE]

Well, a lot of the cats at the shelter near me are strays that I’m sure were just dropped off in the country. One of the two I just got was an unneutered male between 1-2 years old. He came into the shelter with terrible ear mites, as well as a bacterial and yeast infection in his ears. The shelter put a lot of money into treating his ears and neutering him. His ears are actually still messed up and we had to treat them with a different drug…which he had an allergic reaction to. His poor little ears!

[FineAlready]

I agree with all of this.

[QUOTE=french fry;8137823]
Cat pee totally comes out if you catch it before it really sets in. Citation: personal experience, the fact that landlords allow cats at all.

THAT SAID, you recognize cat pee isn’t something you can deal with so you don’t have a cat. This is commendable! It is something all pet owners should consider before they get a pet.

You’re not a bad person for not being able to deal with cat pee. I would consider you a pretty bad person if you knew you couldn’t handle cat pee and you got a cat with the idea that if it ever peed in the house you’d get rid of it.

See also: front claws on cats. If you know you can’t handle scratching don’t get a cat ADKJFKJADKFEAN OMGZ. Declawing is not the answer! /tangent

Caveat: general “you”[/QUOTE]

[Jersey_Fresh]

[QUOTE=showmanship;8137865]
They need Kitten Mittons! Hopes there’s at least one person out there to get the IASIP reference

In all seriousness, this is such a true point. And if you keep their claws trimmed well, it’s really not an issue. They just need desensitized to trimming them, just like a dog or a kid for that matter. Unfortunately… it’s just “easier” for some to declaw or get rid of them

ETA : I remember when I was pretty young, we got our cat declawed (and this was back before the laser - how painful!), but at that time we really didn’t know any better. The poor guy ripped his bandages off and bled EVERYWHERE. We put him in the bathroom while we called the vet and it looked like a murder scene. Looking back, we all feel so bad for putting him through that.[/QUOTE]

Ok Im curious. How do you keep a cat from scratching?

With my cat, I trimmed his nails regularly (he had no issue with me trimming them), and he still scratched furniture. I tried spray, scratching pads, tin foil, extra toys, spray bottles of water when i caught him, you name it.

He then shreded my brand new chair in the matter of days. So I had him declawed. I didnt take it lightly, and I felt bad doing it, but at that point I had tried everything I could think of (and everythign people had suggested to me) and he STILL managed to destroy a chair. That was years ago and he has had no issues and is still a super happy kitty I was against dumping him in a shelter, nor did I want to make him an outdoor cat (too dangerous) and he was too young/happy to put down.

However should I ever get another cat, I would love some suggestions for things i didnt try that would stop a cat from destroying furniture without declawing.

[vxf111]

[QUOTE=Jersey Fresh;8138055]
Ok Im curious. How do you keep a cat from scratching?

With my cat, I trimmed his nails regularly (he had no issue with me trimming them), and he still scratched furniture. I tried spray, scratching pads, tin foil, extra toys, spray bottles of water when i caught him, you name it.

He then shreded my brand new chair in the matter of days. So I had him declawed. I didnt take it lightly, and I felt bad doing it, but at that point I had tried everything I could think of (and everythign people had suggested to me) and he STILL managed to destroy a chair. That was years ago and he has had no issues and is still a super happy kitty I was against dumping him in a shelter, nor did I want to make him an outdoor cat (too dangerous) and he was too young/happy to put down.

However should I ever get another cat, I would love some suggestions for things i didnt try that would stop a cat from destroying furniture without declawing.[/QUOTE]

I don’t see Softpaws on your list. Doublestick tape. Those motion activated sensors that emit a noise or a hiss of air. Swapping out an unusually scratch-attractive furniture for something kitty isn’t as into. Sofa covers. Blocking off access to the room with the scratch-attractive furniture. Giving the cat a really cat-attractive thing to scratch and re-directing the behavior. Pheromones. Getting a companion cat. Clicker training.

[french_fry]

[QUOTE=Jersey Fresh;8138055]
Ok Im curious. How do you keep a cat from scratching?

With my cat, I trimmed his nails regularly (he had no issue with me trimming them), and he still scratched furniture. I tried spray, scratching pads, tin foil, extra toys, spray bottles of water when i caught him, you name it.

He then shreded my brand new chair in the matter of days. So I had him declawed. I didnt take it lightly, and I felt bad doing it, but at that point I had tried everything I could think of (and everythign people had suggested to me) and he STILL managed to destroy a chair. That was years ago and he has had no issues and is still a super happy kitty I was against dumping him in a shelter, nor did I want to make him an outdoor cat (too dangerous) and he was too young/happy to put down.

However should I ever get another cat, I would love some suggestions for things i didnt try that would stop a cat from destroying furniture without declawing.[/QUOTE]

I’m really not trying to be a jerk, but barring all the other solutions vxf suggested not working, I’d rather replace the chair with something cheap from Ikea that I can easily replace or re-cover rather than chopping the ends of my cat’s toes off. I would hope that most cat owners would.

I would recommend you not get another cat since this seems to be a dealbreaker for you.

[Gloria]

I myself think that declaw is at least partially to blame for cats dumped at shelters. These poor things get mutilated and can no longer walk in litter. What do they do? Pee outside of the litter boxes, often in sofa since it is the softest spot. It’s like some humans who have been amputated. Even after the wound heals, the pain persists.

We squirt our cat with water whenever she scratched the furniture. That efficiently stopped her. Also, you need scratching posts prominently placed next to your favorite furniture.

I’m so grateful that our vet gave me a mean, dirty look when I asked her about declawing (that was before I knew what a brutal barbaric procedure it was).

[Jersey_Fresh]

[QUOTE=vxf111;8138094]
I don’t see Softpaws on your list. Doublestick tape. Those motion activated sensors that emit a noise or a hiss of air. Swapping out an unusually scratch-attractive furniture for something kitty isn’t as into. Sofa covers. Blocking off access to the room with the scratch-attractive furniture. Giving the cat a really cat-attractive thing to scratch and re-directing the behavior. Pheromones. Getting a companion cat. Clicker training.[/QUOTE]

You are right, I didnt try softpaws or the motion sensors. I did try the tape (lots of it), covering the furniture (he just got under it or pulled it off) and giving him plenty of scratching things (pads, boards, hangy things filled them with catnip etc) the other things werent really an option (it was multiple pieces-old and new, the way the room is designed you couldnt block it off, and clicker training wasnt an option bc he would do it when i wasnt there).

[vxf111]

Cats are very very very slow to train. Very very very slow. Did I mention slow? But they can be trained. Same as dogs. And like dogs, yes, sometimes you will have to leave them alone during the day. You handle it the same as dogs. You can crate or keep a cat in the bathroom while you’re gone if you’re trying to reinforce the behavior of leaving a couch alone. It takes a LONG TIME as compared to dogs but cats CAN be trained. Positive reinforcement seems to sink in slower, but it usually will eventually.