AIBU to ask you not to even think about taking on a pet unless you know what the fuck you are getting into?

[MycatsaPirate]

Sorry, this may be a rant.

A friend of mine runs a wildlife rescue and both of us are active on a pets lost and found group on facebook too. Both of us have taken on cats in the last two months which were either unwanted, neglected or strays.

Mine is staying with us with our other cats. My friend however, runs a rescue and her house is filled with various wild animals that are not conducive to keeping a cat plus she has four dogs. So she found a couple who wanted a house cat.

They picked up the cat at 2pm today and have since rung her to say they don't want to keep her because a) she's growling and swiping at them and b) they can't pick her up and cuddle her. FFS! They've had her a few hours and it can take weeks to settle in a cat.

Luckily a mumsnetter had messaged me a few days ago about this cat and I am hopeful she will be able to offer her a permanent home providing she can give the cat the patience and time it needs to settle in.

But please, whatever animal you think you want, do some research. Ask questions, ask on forums specific to the animal, find out how long it will live, find out how much money it will cost to provide everything that animal needs from food and vets bills to specialist equipment. Most importantly of all, please understand that it's an animal and it's not an 'instant pet'.

Quite happy to answer questions on cats and if anyone can off advice on other animals, please do make yourselves known.

Please don't get a pet and then lose interest in it a few months later :(

YANBU, not even a bi

Bit*

Of course YANBU! I long for the day I can have a dog, but I know that day is still several years away.

Anyone that places an animal should check that the person is prepared. When we got our dog there were questionnaires, home check, lots of follow up, people talking to us at length. We were asked specifically about behaviours that happen when an animal was first places (in the case of our dog things like peeing in the house and nerves).

Sounds like they weren't adequately screened. As well as being unprepared.

Arrrgh i hate hearing things like this. My rescue cat took a good couple of months to settle in as he'd had a traumatic past but I fully knew this and had the patience/understanding to take him on and let him take things a day at a time. Now he runs round like a happy little maniac and loves a cuddle with us. Yanbu, I hope kitty finds a good home

Yanbu. An ex neighbour of ours had about half a dozen dogs over five years, always high energy, tricky dogs like huskies, Staffies, German shepherds and they were always rehomed because the dog was “badly behaved” but actually the owner just couldn’t be arsed to care for the dog properly and hadn’t considered the impact and responsibility of owning the dog in the first place

MrsTerryPratchett My friend did screen, she questioned them at length, the couple said and did all the right things. The cat was loving and affectionate at my friends but having been put in a box and taken to the new house was obviously scared and not loving and affectionate any more and they don't want to have to work at it.

I know a couple of people who have had a long list of pets over the years, never seeming to keep them for any length of time before the novelty wears off or the animal isn't behaving properly or the animal is pissing on the floor (because it's not let out or taken out or it's stressed) and then they get a replacement pet.

Or a rabbit. Not understanding that rabbits are hard work and you need lots of space and lots of time. And just dumping it in a hutch is not 'caring for a rabbit'.

I get so mad. There are so many pets looking for new permanent homes, so many in rescues, so many offered free on gumtree (a personal hate of mine) and I wish I had the money and space to take on more animals than I have.

Yanbu

I saw some puppies on fb today £600 each!

I dread to think what kind of homes they are going to

I had a friend whose poor cat was pregnant with it's second litter before it was 1 and she kept all the kittens.
No idea why she doesn't get her neutered as it's her baby etc.

My personal bugbear is rabbits in general. They shouldn't be pets. They look cute but they are a pain in the arse unless people know what they are doing. Yes SIL I'm looking at you with one lonely, sad, neglected rabbit in a place that snows six months of the year and the kid you got it for only wanted it for a month before you said "yes".

DD mithered me for two years, had to show commitments of various kinds (walking to school, picking up toys, saving up for the animal) before we got a dog for her, that is MY total responsibility if she loses interest.

I'd make sure your friend gives them shit if they were prepped and didn't follow through.

See this all the time on the FB page for my dog breed.
People like the idea of a puppy and then complain when it behaves like a puppy - expecting it to be housetrained after a week, to walk without pulling from day one etc...
A lot of people complaining that puppy nipping is "aggression" or spouting outdated nonsense such as pack theory and dominance.

Drives me up the wall.

Yanbu. Once a cat is settled they can be relatively low maintenance (compared to a dog).

A friend of mine had 11 rabbits at one point, most were collected from people who couldn't look after them properly. I've never had a rabbit but I assumed they were easy to look after as they are such a popular pet for children. I was when she told me how much care they needed.

Agree that rabbits are not easy to care for. DD2 kept on about wanting a rabbit so I booked her into Pets at home for one of those Animal Care sessions focused on rabbits. She was astounded at the level of care they needed and changed her mind sharpish.

We have cats and fish. Ok the pond fish pretty much care for themselves but we still have to maintain the pond and the tank fish have to be monitored. And the cats, while they are all healthy and happy, still need litter trays done daily, food twice a day, plus time spent with them, cuddles, playing, brushing them.

A neighbour of ours has a cat. Then they got two puppies within a year and now the cat is out all the time. The dogs aren't ever walked and just sit and bark in the garden all fucking day. In two years I have seen them walk the dogs about four times. And they aren't trained either so liable to jump up and knock kids over etc. They are talking about getting another ffs.

I really wish I could find a way to educate people on the responsibilities of owning and caring for an animal.

Yanbu.
I’ll be honest we weren’t the most prepared for our first kitty in terms of knowledge, but we were prepared to make sure she was happy and healthy and safe, and had whatever she needed.
Of course I wanted a cat who would cuddle and be all lovey, we adopted her and she is still the most stubborn thing ever but I’d never ever have given her back. It’s such a shame.
She has problems ongoing with eye infections now, and I dread to think what would have happened with her if she’d gone to a home like you describe

I think sadly even education wouldn’t change some people’s views that an animal is just an animal.

Do you know, this has just made me remember that when I got my first rescue cat (had grown up with cats and was very prepared), the rescue didn’t actually ask me much at all. She was a tricky cat as she’d been in rescue for a year and hated other cats with a passion so was incredibly stressed and agitated. She scratched and bit me when I saw her at the rescue. She’d been regimes before to someone who already had a cat and had had to be returned. She needed lots of love and care and space and she turned into the most fantastically loving cat I’ve ever known but all the rescue wanted to know was whether I had any other cats.

All of our pets are other people's cast-offs. I think lots of people want the 'cute' without realising the effort that goes into 'cute'.

SIL has had 7 dogs in 10 years. In that time we've had two dogs; an 18 year old from DH's childhood who we eventually had pts and the current resident who's been here 6 years and still takes management and effort. We also have cats and rabbits; the bunnies are gorgeous and cute, the cats are lovely, but I probably spend 2 hours a day every single day dealing with litter trays, feeding, walking, cleaning out and grooming them all. I do it because I love them but also make the DCs do their share because they need to know that owning pets isn't just the fun stuff.

YANBU at all. Just last night there was a post on our local FB selling page offering two 19wk old kittens because their accommodation wouldn’t change their mind and allow pets, surely you would check that sort of think first.
It makes me so mad, I wish I could take them all but we already have two rescue cats and a feral that we care for (worlds most spoilt feral!!).

Yanbu.

My dsis is the queen of this. It makes me stabby so for the sake of family harmony I don't discuss animals with her.

YADNBU- we don’t have pets precisely because we don’t have the time to care for them properly.

YANBU. How I wish the animal could choose the owner instead of the other way round.

We have 2 budgies so took DD to the garden centre yesterday to get seeds. There were lots of kids oohing and aahing over the cute rabbits. How many of those same kids would be prepared to put in the hours for a pet that doesn't usually like to be touched, doesn't usually like kids, and shouldn't be in a small hutch in a garden where it can't dig or escape foxes etc... it should be the law that sellers have to give a training session on each animal. It would put off a lot of impulse buyers who just like teh fluffeh.

Everyone seems to think rabbits are easy to take care of but almost everyone that asks me if they should get one as a pet I say no, they'll take over your life! People have no idea of the amount of time, heartache and money the little buggers can cause (although I adore mine, obviously!).

I think I'm doing something wrong. I would say my rabbits are very low maintenance. But I do agree, even if you had immediate doubts with an animal, surely you give it a short while to settle/research how to remedy the problem. I'm not sure I could give up on an animal so quickly, even before bonding

Honestly some people are clueless and mustn't take in what is being said to them.
I was doing my CP shift one day and there was a lovely natured cat who had been rehomed returned less than 24 hours later-reason "she wasn't child friendly as she was kneading on their laps with her claws out". FFS.

YANBU

Why are rabbits so difficult? I've never had one

YANBU!!!

A friend of a friend was banging on the other day about not being able to afford to take her dog to the vet. The woman lives a luxury lifestyle, always off on 5-star holidays, getting hair extensions, etc etc.

I had to fucking walk away before I said something I’d regret. My dog is heavily insured and would never ever go without medical treatment, even though I have a fraction of this person’s disposable income. She has the $, she just resents spending it.

Many people are arseholes that don’t deserve pets.

Poor cat .

Cats can need a lot of time. Our boy stayed under the bed for two weeks, only coming out at night for a quick dash to food and litter box. We could only just touch his head for a tiny stroke. He slowly got the confidence to explore the rest of the house but for a long while would dash back to the safety of under the bed when we tried to touch im. It took a good six months for him to settle and for us to see his true sweet personality. It was a huge victory when I managed to pick him up, and that was only to get him in his carrier for a trip to the vet. He's still not a cuddly cat but will very occasionally sit on my lap and loves a head butt in the mornings when he's hungry. We love him so much and he's totally worth those difficult first few weeks.

There's something truly wonderful about gaining trust of an animal. It's sad that some people can't be bothered and want instant gratification of a 'cuddly pet' without putting any effort in.