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Advice needed on nother-in-law and cats
My mother-in-law lives in a big farm house in the country and takes in strays which seem to find her. At present she has about 13 cats which she had all spayed / nuetered and feeds them good and they all all indoor cats. Thing is that like the animal hoarders on Animal Cops she thinks she is doing great by them and she does love them and feed them. I do not know if I would call her a hoarder though. She took in 3 or 4 cats that all were pregnant and that is basicaly where she got all her cats. She did find homes for 4 in the beginning before becoming attached plus I took a couple in from her. All the cats seems to have ears problems and some of them have other health problems which she trys to care for but the problems go from one to another. Now she even keeps a couple locked in a 4 by 6 bathroom because they are afraid of a black lab she took in. Biggest problem is most of the cats are around 5 / 6 years old and she is in her late seventies and in ill health and lives on a fixed income (pension) and she will not hear of rehomeing them and gets all bent out of shape when anyone mentions it!! She has kids of which none are cat people other then my ex and me and we have already taken in 6 strays among us and can not have or afford more. One said they would shoot them on her death, one would just turn them all outdoors and one would take to the shelter (Pound). It come down to she will not let any of them go. I would call shelter but we have a hume society which is nothing like on TV. They will only take in cats in good health and that they can easily place which I understand. The other shelter is what used to be called a county dog pound now called a shelter which basicaly is in business to kill unwanted pets. Any suggestions?? Remember they are her cats and we can not make her let them go and I can not take any more in by law and landlord. I have talked to her till blue in the face and am about to the point of just calling pound and letting them take care of it even though most of them would be put down which is what they will end up anyways when she is gone. |
#2
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Advice needed on nother-in-law and cats
On Feb 19, 8:41 am, kraut
wrote: My mother-in-law lives in a big farm house in the country and takes in strays which seem to find her. At present she has about 13 cats which she had all spayed / nuetered and feeds them good and they all all indoor cats. Thing is that like the animal hoarders on Animal Cops she thinks she is doing great by them and she does love them and feed them. I do not know if I would call her a hoarder though. She took in 3 or 4 cats that all were pregnant and that is basicaly where she got all her cats. She did find homes for 4 in the beginning before becoming attached plus I took a couple in from her. All the cats seems to have ears problems and some of them have other health problems which she trys to care for but the problems go from one to another. Now she even keeps a couple locked in a 4 by 6 bathroom because they are afraid of a black lab she took in. Biggest problem is most of the cats are around 5 / 6 years old and she is in her late seventies and in ill health and lives on a fixed income (pension) and she will not hear of rehomeing them and gets all bent out of shape when anyone mentions it!! She has kids of which none are cat people other then my ex and me and we have already taken in 6 strays among us and can not have or afford more. One said they would shoot them on her death, one would just turn them all outdoors and one would take to the shelter (Pound). It come down to she will not let any of them go. I would call shelter but we have a hume society which is nothing like on TV. They will only take in cats in good health and that they can easily place which I understand. The other shelter is what used to be called a county dog pound now called a shelter which basicaly is in business to kill unwanted pets. Any suggestions?? Remember they are her cats and we can not make her let them go and I can not take any more in by law and landlord. I have talked to her till blue in the face and am about to the point of just calling pound and letting them take care of it even though most of them would be put down which is what they will end up anyways when she is gone. Get in touch with Alley Cat Allies and see if they can assist her with health care for her charges. Sounds like there could be fleas and ear mites causing part of the cat's health issues and they could probably stand to be de-wormed, although that usually isn't a factor in older cats, more in kittens and young cats. Has she added any new cats in the last several months? Anyway she could house the dog outside or re-home it? Is there a barn or similar out building that could be used to house most of the cats? This way she can keep a few indoors as companions and cut down on the in house issues that arise when keeping that many inside. Is anyone helping her with feeding and cleaning up after the cats? Do contact ACA and see if they can help find someone in her area that can assist her with the care of these animals and possibly help find homes for the younger cats. Hemma |
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Advice needed on nother-in-law and cats
Is she keeping the house clean with no odor or is there a urine smell coming
form the house? Is the house livable or is it covered in feces ect. These are all things you have to consider when calling ACS. If you can't take in any more from her try to find good homes in the area that can take one or two and will let your mother in law visit once or twice to see that they are doing well. Build her an outdoor inclosure for the cats if possible. This way she can let them out without worrying that they can get lost and make sure they have shelter so they can stay outside if necessary. If the dog is causing problems he is a black lab and can very well be housed outdoors. If they are all spayed\neutered did she pay for this herself? or did they come to her like this? What is wrong with the cats besided the ears? Ears are quite easy to fix if it's ear mites. If she is on a pension you should help her with the costs of feeding them all. it is a very large expense. If her kids treat her like that it's no wonder she has cats as companions. Also if she is older like you have said it wouldn't be a great idea to force her to get rid of all her cats at once it can cause problems to her health. What is wrong with her keeping them is they are all healthy? Help her get them healthy and help her with the costs of the cats if your so worried about her. Ptherwise I see more problems arrising ffrom you calling ACS and having them remove the cats...........but then if she is a true hoarder she'll just gather more cats anyways. When was the last time she added a cat to her cattery? ~Laura |
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Advice needed on nother-in-law and cats
kraut wrote:
My mother-in-law lives in a big farm house in the country and takes in strays which seem to find her. At present she has about 13 cats which she had all spayed / nuetered and feeds them good and they all all indoor cats. Thing is that like the animal hoarders on Animal Cops she thinks she is doing great by them and she does love them and feed them. I do not know if I would call her a hoarder though. She took in 3 or 4 cats that all were pregnant and that is basicaly where she got all her cats. She did find homes for 4 in the beginning before becoming attached plus I took a couple in from her. All the cats seems to have ears problems and some of them have other health problems which she trys to care for but the problems go from one to another. Now she even keeps a couple locked in a 4 by 6 bathroom because they are afraid of a black lab she took in. Biggest problem is most of the cats are around 5 / 6 years old and she is in her late seventies and in ill health and lives on a fixed income (pension) and she will not hear of rehomeing them and gets all bent out of shape when anyone mentions it!! She has kids of which none are cat people other then my ex and me and we have already taken in 6 strays among us and can not have or afford more. One said they would shoot them on her death, one would just turn them all outdoors and one would take to the shelter (Pound). It come down to she will not let any of them go. I would call shelter but we have a hume society which is nothing like on TV. They will only take in cats in good health and that they can easily place which I understand. The other shelter is what used to be called a county dog pound now called a shelter which basicaly is in business to kill unwanted pets. Any suggestions?? Remember they are her cats and we can not make her let them go and I can not take any more in by law and landlord. I have talked to her till blue in the face and am about to the point of just calling pound and letting them take care of it even though most of them would be put down which is what they will end up anyways when she is gone. This happens so often to well meaning people. Recently near me the authorities heard of a woman who took in dogs and cats and had 60 or 70.... same situation, fixed income, did her best but wasn't enough. The animals living spaces got to be awful because she couldn't afford to do what was needed for so many. She was arrested for cruelty to animals, fined and all the animals were taken from her, sent to the humane society, and were adopted out. Hopefully you can reason with her before the authorities in your area get wind of it and come after her. -- Message posted via http://www.catkb.com |
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