Pets in long-term rescue?

[fiwen30]

I’ve been half-looking for a lady friend for my rabbit (don’t tell partner) on some of our local, and not so local, pet rescue sites - a mixture of charities, and private rescues. One thing I keep coming across (because you obviously go to look at rabbits, but end up looking at everything) is the amount of very long-term residents in some places.

Perhaps this is just a quirk of the rescues hereabouts, but it’s incredibly upsetting to read an advert for a 10 year old cat, who has been in rescue for 8 years. This particular mog‘s advert says she sometimes opts out of using her litter tray, and perhaps she’d prefer a safe outdoor space in her new home??

I suppose I’m wondering whether it would actually be fair to uproot a 10 year old cat from the environment she’s known for 8 years. I’m also desperately sad for her, because a rescue centre can be great, but it’s still not the same as a home environment. I’m also pretty angry(?) that she’s managed to be stuck there for so long. Perhaps there are extenuating circumstances, and I am only speculating, but surely it should be the prime job of Someone to actively promote longer residents, so that they don’t end up stuck in rescue for years? It just feels like this little cat has been failed miserably.

In comparison, other local rescues do huge pushes on social media for pets who have been in residence for more than a month, or who have specific behavioural or housing requirements. It’s in no-one’s best interest to house animals in rescue for years on end, especially if they seem perfectly able to be rehomed. There are other adverts of cats who are 2/3/4 years old, who have been born in rescue. If you can’t get them rehomed when they’re adorable 10 week old kittens, it sure feels like you’re doing your job wrong.

Maybe I’m missing something? Also, please talk me out of going and getting a 10 year old tortoiseshell who has dirty protests. We already have one of those at home!

 

[Gloi]

If the cats have been there for that long and they are fit to be rehomed imho it isn't a rescue it is a Horder.

 

[fiwen30]

If the cats have been there for that long and they are fit to be rehomed imho it isn't a rescue it is a Horder.

This was actually at one of the proper charities! The private rescues I follow tend to be very good at streamlining the rehoming process, I guess it means they can help more pets in need, since they have finite space/resources.

This same charity is also very strict about some cats being only pets/not going to a home with a dog/ no children, which probably doesn’t help matters…

 

[honetpot]

I rehomed a cat to live outdoors from a large animal charity. She was rehomed to a family who didn't leave her alone, and she became frightened, so they sent her back. She was in the cattery for months and was frightened in there. So she was rehomed to me to live outside in the outbuildings, caged for three weeks and then released, she was absolutely petrified of people. Once released she spent a couple of weeks around the sheds, she was taking the food, and then she was gone. Nine months later I got a call from the vets, she had been killed on the road about five miles away. I have another one called Ghost, you never see her, just her fur and she is taking food, from the CPL, a feral caught and again traumatised by human handling. Not every cat needs or wants to live with humans. My semi-feral eats what he catches, including a partridge last week, bed indoors is nice but not something I think he needs, he is out all night by choice, sleeping in the cattle shed.

 

[smolmaus]

The place I volunteer is terrible for not rehoming and keeping as permanent residents, I had to have a think if we had anyone on our rehoming list who had been there 8 years tbh. But they're at least not kept in a cattery forever, they do have a home.

Its hard enough to find homes for a young cute kitten who can't reliably use the litter box. An older cat not used to a home environment hasn't much of chance. Hopefully she is just on the rehoming list in case the absolutely perfect home comes along. I agree it wouldn't be fair to uproot her for anything less.

Rehoming cats is also just hard, before the last 2 years you could get a cute kitten for £25 on gumtree or locally without filling in any forms or having someone (me) come nosing round your house asking questions.

 

[fiwen30]

The place I volunteer is terrible for not rehoming and keeping as permanent residents, I had to have a think if we had anyone on our rehoming list who had been there 8 years tbh. But they're at least not kept in a cattery forever, they do have a home.

Its hard enough to find homes for a young cute kitten who can't reliably use the litter box. An older cat not used to a home environment hasn't much of chance. Hopefully she is just on the rehoming list in case the absolutely perfect home comes along. I agree it wouldn't be fair to uproot her for anything less.

Rehoming cats is also just hard, before the last 2 years you could get a cute kitten for £25 on gumtree or locally without filling in any forms or having someone (me) come nosing round your house asking questions.

Yes, I think I’m familiar with your sanctuary (it’s def not the one mentioned in my OP!). I understand that rescues are often run in a skeleton staff, but it just seems like a pretty large failing not to have at least 1 person in place who is fully focused on driving rehoming, especially of more difficult or complex cases. Surely rehoming is just as important as keeping cages clean, and residents exercised?

Especially with so many rescues changing their walk-in policies to appointment-only these last couple of years - the only way anyone knows about these long-stay residents is if they’re consistently advertised, talked about, and shared online, so that people can hear about them, and pass them on. It just seems like this rescue is falling down massively in that area.

 

[smolmaus]

Yes, I think I’m familiar with your sanctuary (it’s def not the one mentioned in my OP!). I understand that rescues are often run in a skeleton staff, but it just seems like a pretty large failing not to have at least 1 person in place who is fully focused on driving rehoming, especially of more difficult or complex cases. Surely rehoming is just as important as keeping cages clean, and residents exercised?

Especially with so many rescues changing their walk-in policies to appointment-only these last couple of years - the only way anyone knows about these long-stay residents is if they’re consistently advertised, talked about, and shared online, so that people can hear about them, and pass them on. It just seems like this rescue is falling down massively in that area.

I only have experience with "my" place but we have one person doing rehoming emails, fundraising, social media, vet appointments, volunteer organising, everything. Paying one person just to focus on rehoming (when most of that is done through social media) isn't going to be feasible for a lot of smaller charities. You can't leave it to a volunteer either.

The right people for complex cases tend to find you anyway, from what I've seen. They've done the research, have the experience, know what they want and what they can cope with and they know where to look, often they will be people who have established relationships with rescues already. Advertising on FB or website or whatever is for people who have only kinda thought about adopting until they see a cute face they like and take the plunge.

 

[Ratface]

Fortunately, my friend J thought that I'd be a good home for an adult ("inconvenient" to current owners) cat.
It had been three months since the unexpected death of my previous cat, MK. If the local RSPCA had told me the truth about MK's age, (late teens, not half that when I had spent hours/days with her, gaining a minimal amount of trust) I wouldn't have been so distraught two years later when she died in my arms from kidney failure.
RSPCA had placed her as a very young cat and took her back after fourteen years when one of the adopters' children allegedly developed asthma.
J had decided that by now, I would be miserable without a cat. She was right.
I had looked on various Cats For Sale internet sites and met - or not - some cats/people who were not as described.
J alerted all her horse/pony contacts.
This resulted in a text from J that a suitable cat would be arriving the following day. He did.
The rest is history.
Kevin The Tyrant Kat Rules!

 

[AmyMay]

If the cats have been there for that long and they are fit to be rehomed imho it isn't a rescue it is a Horder.

I had a cat from the CPL that had been there for two years. Quite simply nobody wanted her.

 

[Mynstrel]

Not sure if it's the same with cats/small animals, but with dogs a lot of rescues want the perfect home instead of a good one. I don't think that helps anybody.

 

[Birker2020]

I was watching a programme today where they rescued 21 cats from a hoarders house, and all but two were pts.

The main issue with the cats was illness through unsanitary conditions. But the charity also said that the issue with cats rescued from hoarders is that they don't know how to use litter trays and therefore are a total nightmare to rehome.

Hoarders think they are taking in cats as a favour and helping them but they quickly breed and before you know it you have loads that run amock

 

[moosea]

I think that IMHO lots of rescues put unrealistic rules on potential adopters.

They would rather have a dog in a kennel 23.5 hours a day rather than sleeping on a sofa for 8 hours a day while their owners are at work.

I bent the truth when I adopted my last one from a well known charity. The dog, who had some pretty good aggresion problems, had a lovely 6 years with me ... sleeping on the sofa all day while I was at work. Yet if I had told them my plan with this adult dog he would have stayed in kennels.

 

[Birker2020]

Not sure if it's the same with cats/small animals, but with dogs a lot of rescues want the perfect home instead of a good one. I don't think that helps anybody.

Its unrealistic.

When partner had to into hospital with sepsis i had to take our dog into work. Otherwise she'd have been in the house for 9 hours a day on her own. And i worried that was far too long. Boss was given an ultimatum, basically me and dog or i wasn't coming in.

Rescue said unsupervised for 4hrs a day was their limit at the time she was adopted some 6 yrs prior.

We never leave her more than this, but know she could go twice as long as she is often happy to go for 14hr stretches at a time under the duvet on the days partner doesn't work without asking to go out.