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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think having 30 cats is a bit too many??

128 replies

SarahH12 · 27/01/2019 10:55

Friend of ours is a foster Mum to cats. Speaking to her last night she said she has 30 cats at the minute Shock

Whilst I think it's great she looks after cats (I couldn't do it, I'd get too attached!!) I'm not sure 30 is in the best interests of the cats? I suppose what's worse - not taking them in or then having 20-30 cats in your quite small house?

OP posts:
CallMeVito · 27/01/2019 13:20

Depends on the set-up. 30 cats in a studio flat in central London is animal abuse.
30 cats in the right property in the country is a different issue.

If you go to a cat rescue centre, some have a lot more than 30 cats, and some "communal backyard" or something.

A friend of mine had more than a dozen at one point, they were happily living their life in the countryside and only coming for food and shelter, some super cuddly, some more independent, but their property was huge. They also had a couple of dogs.

HollaHolla · 27/01/2019 13:22

I don’t think you really need to ask that question.

Jaxhog · 27/01/2019 13:24

Of course it's too many. I doubt a reputable cat rescue would allow someone to do that unless they're in properly configured cages and only there for a very short time. Even our cattery doesn't have that many! There are so many risks e.g. cat flu, fleas, other common cat maladies, fighting and mental health (cats like company - but only on their own terms). Not to mention pregnancy.

You should report her to the RSPCA if you're concerned. They take overcrowding very seriously.

abbsisspartacus · 27/01/2019 13:25

I doubt the rspca would be interested in a cat foster carer

Excited101 · 27/01/2019 13:30

People have no idea just how bad the situation is with too many cats and dogs. The RSPCA won’t do anything, she may well be fostering for them. If they’re with a charity they’ll be all neutered and vaccinated etc but where else are the cats meant to go? This is what happens when people breed and shop for cats/dogs instead of rescue- for whatever reason, this is the result. Cats being kept in less than ideal conditions is unfortunately really normal.

CallMeVito · 27/01/2019 13:32

This is what happens when people breed and shop for cats/dogs instead of rescue

I love animals and have 2 dogs, and I would never get a rescue dog whilst I have young kids. Once they are grown up we would consider rescue again, but it's too much risk otherwise. I wouldn't dump my animals because I am bored of them though...

Original poster
SarahH12 · 27/01/2019 16:02

So you don't foster cats, but you can tell that someone else is doing it wrong?

I didn't say she was doing it wrong. It was a genuine question as to what's better - I don't know which is why I asked.

hope they keep the queens and toms seperate or she will have a lot more than 30 to cope with

They're all together but I'm assuming they've been neutered. They're all neutered before being adopted so I assume they check them when they come in.

Currently none are kittens or from the same litter.

I suppose the other question is what's better, fostering 30+ cats and having them all in your 2 bed house or having them stuck in those tiny cages at CPL Sad

OP posts:
PlainSpeakingStraightTalking · 27/01/2019 16:05

A legit fostering programme with 30 unrelated cats in a 2 bed house ?
Im finding that tremendously difficult to believe.

Original poster
SarahH12 · 27/01/2019 16:07

are they all wormed and vaccinated?

All wormed but they don't vaccinate.

Don't keep them separate - last time I went around hers, her own cats were milling around same as the fosters.

Some of the fosters are in for a week or so, others in for much longer.

Yes her house does smell, it hits you like a tonne of bricks when she opens her front door.

OP posts:
ScreamingValenta · 27/01/2019 16:08

her own cats were milling around same as the fosters.

Does she have them checked for FIV before letting them mix?

RedPandaFluff · 27/01/2019 16:09

@boringlyboring 😆

Original poster
SarahH12 · 27/01/2019 16:09

she may well be fostering for them. If they’re with a charity they’ll be all neutered and vaccinated etc but where else are the cats meant to go?

I agree re where else are they meant to go? I'm failing to see a better alternative until people start being more responsible. But no they're not all vaccinated.

A legit fostering programme with 30 unrelated cats in a 2 bed house ?

That's the thing, I don't know if it is a legit fostering programme. They have a Facebook page but no website or anything. Some of the cats are hers, but the vast majority at the minute are fosters.

OP posts:
Original poster
SarahH12 · 27/01/2019 16:10

Does she have them checked for FIV before letting them mix?

@ScreamingValenta I honestly don't know on that one

OP posts:
Amallamard · 27/01/2019 16:29

PlainSpeakingStraightTalking Sarah Ellis was misquoted by the press and has/had a multi-cat household herself. Her point was that in urban areas where there are many households owning cats in a small physical area, cats can encounter conflict with one another as they navigate the outside environment. That is because cats from different households are less likely to view each other as part of the same social group and therefore would naturally avoid one another. However, in high-density areas that are very built up, it is very difficult for cats to avoid each other leading to problems such as catfights.

Badcat666 what makes you think that someone who has dedicated herself to studying cats and finding ways to improve their welfare does not "live and breathe cats?" How rude to be so dismissive of someone who clearly is an expert without even taking the time to see what they really have to say.

30 cats in one house does seem a bit mental but I'd assume that it is better than the alternative for now and it is presumably a temporary situation.

isseywithcats · 27/01/2019 16:35

im surprised that a rescue lets her foster that many cats in a two bedroom house the one i foster for allows fosterers to have either one mom and kittens, one litter of kittens or one feral kitten at a time , adult cats on their own go on the waiting list to go to the main centre i have four cats of my own and mom cats get territorial over their babies so i tend to fosater single feral kittens for taming and friendlying they either dont have a center or many fosterers and are desperate or are the sort of rescue that wont say no to a cat in need even though this may not be the best for the cat, a friend of mine is like this she is a small independent rescue, and at times she has up to 20 cats but some are outside in pens and the rest she has a dedicated cat room with indoor pens and space for free rangers, and her house is spotless, and she has a commercial skip that she pays for for the litter

Beerflavourednipples · 27/01/2019 16:36

30 cats? Urgh that sounds like my worst nightmare on so many levels! Grim.

thecatneuterer · 27/01/2019 17:01

Does she have them checked for FIV before letting them mix? Neutered FIV positive and negative cats can live together without the virus being transmitted to the negative ones. There have been many studies done on it. It's really only unneutered cats that pose a risk.

Original poster
SarahH12 · 27/01/2019 17:13

I can only assume that as they are a small self funded place that they have different rules to the main places like CPL and RSPCA

OP posts:
Sparklingbrook · 27/01/2019 17:28

SarahH12 this person is your friend. You could ask her a lot of these questions.

Murinae · 27/01/2019 17:34

Our last cats came for a flat like this. Two bed flat and 6 small dogs and about 30 cats some nursing mothers and kittens some just wandering round. There are two retired ladies near us who work together trapping, fostering and neutering cats. It did smell a bit as you walked in but she keeps everything really clean and the cats are well looked after. Hope I have this much energy when I’m her age!

Murinae · 27/01/2019 17:35

The mothers and kittens were in cages

Unbias123 · 27/01/2019 17:36

You seriously need to ask? Hilarious utterly hilarious

ILoveDolly · 27/01/2019 17:49

I have three cats living at my house. I can't imagine how anyone manages to cope properly with thirty, if they are all loose and milling about. All the foster carers I have seen did put the foster cats in caged areas. The last place I visited had 6 in the house and a different group of 4 in a caged area separately. That seemed doable. Maybe your friend would value a little help, if you are worried?

ScreamingValenta · 27/01/2019 17:59

thecatneuterer Why is it that rescues won't home an FIV cat with another cat, if it's safe (unless the other cat also has FIV)? I've been looking for a rescue cat for the past few weeks and have seen this many times in cat descriptions (I have another cat )

Violetroselily · 27/01/2019 18:13

The limit does not exist