To think they should refund

[Tinkerbelle97]

I messaged a local rescue page about a cat I was interested in. They told me she was 3 years old and was a surrender. They said I can reserve her for £30 and do a meet and greet. They’ve said that this is because they have people arranging to meet cats and then not go ahead. Met her at the weekend and it went well and I was all set to adopt her and pick her up at the weekend. I went out and bought all the things needed for her. Now they’ve just messaged and said they have requested vet records for and she’s in fact 8 years old. I’ll probably be flamed for this but I now don’t want to go ahead as I am looking for a younger cat personally due to our home life which can be sometimes busy and I have a 5 year old DD. I asked if my reserve fee can be returned and now they’re ignoring me I think. Should they refund me?

Take the cat. I have 2 x 8 year old cats and a younger 2 year old. The older two are calmer, no longer hunt. Love sleeping with the kids…they sleep a lot and all night, they are easy. The younger one 🙄 wants to play all the time, the hunting prey is still strong (that alone would sell it for me) he plays in the night is disruptive…The 8 year old will be a delight… if you liked her, get her.

I’m fluent in sarcasm. Can’t see any there. Now if it hadn’t been the same poster that originally said they were told 0-3 and got a 12 month and 18 month d it absolutely would have been sarcasm. But it wasn’t. It was the original person that put that. Seems their math ain’t mathing….

@2025willbemytime as you’ve got so many people replying and questioning this I thought I’d tag you - how exactly is 12 months very different to 0-3 years?

0-3 years is the same as saying 0-36 months. You got 2 cats ay the middle of that range essentially.

I'm a cynical fucker but it's off the scale nutter nonsense to think the shelter are pulling some sort of cat aging scam here. It's just a mistake and there isn't that much difference between a 3 year old cat and an 8 year old.

Op is within her rights to say no to the cat but personally I would just write the £30 off as a donation to the shelter in that case.

It’s a charity, probably ran by volunteers. I would personally let them keep the £30 as it will go towards looking after the cats and if you definitely don’t want the 8 year old one, they should give you first refusal on ones you like within the age range you want.

but don’t write off slightly older cats. 8 isn’t old for a well cared for cat. Both of mine lived long lives, recently passing away at 17 and 20 years old and were fun and playful right into their senior years. They brought us so much joy from the day we adopted them. Older cats have a lot of love to give.

Our cat is five. I wouldn't trust him not to lie about his age, to be honest. He'd tailor that particular untruth for different audiences too, I'm sure. Like most cats, he is very beguiling.

There's every chance this cat is neither of the ages estimated and they're just trying it on.
Winsomely, for immediate reward.

This is much more plausible than the charity trying to palm off 8yr old cats as 3yr olds as part of some sort of elaborate scam for £30 a time!

I really hope the poor cat finds some willing and suitable humans to pander to their every need (and worship them) soon.

If the £30 is really that much of an issue, pet ownership is probably not an affordable move even in the short term.

Have you thought about goldfish?

I'm a huge cat person, had multiple cats for the last 39 years.

The difference between a 3 year old cat and an 8 year old cat is less than the differences between individaul cats, so OP, I agree with those who are saying that if you got on with the cat, then she is a better bet than a hypothetical 3 year old cat.

Also, why on earth would a rescue try to con someone into taking an 8 year old cat? An 8 year old cat is not 'old' to anyone other than some cat food manufacturers!

it's sometimes very hard to accurately age a cat. however i honestly do not think it's makes a difference with cats. they are so different to dogs and lead their own lives. I unfortunately just lost one of mine before Xmas and she was 17 😢 my other lad was 7 when we adopted him and he now 13 and still fit and healthy he also little fecker. 😆 loves the bed stretches out on it. gives evil eyes to the dogs and knows when we cooking chicken no matter where in the house he is. he will come running and stalk you till its cooked and gets some. he pure white and fairly big. he is know as the white panther in the neighbour hood and they love him as not a mouse or rat to be seen. he also comes walking with us when we walk our dogs. I say the charity is run solely on volunteers so probably have so much to do missed it. if you really want to be pedantic. then complain. but if you can offer the cat a loving home then do and enjoy what possible could be another at least 10 years of it on your life
h

i adopted a cat who was allegedly 6 months old. within 24 hours she was very ill, took her to the vets and she was a malnourished small 3-5 year old with a large tumour in her abdomen and was terminally ill with only a short time left to live. allegedly checked by their vets only the week before.... luckily due to the rescue being so disorganised i hadn't paid the fee yet as they didn't send me bank details and i arranged to return her to them to be PTS by their vet. i still ended up with my vet fees to pay and not a single apology.

No one was 12.

They didn’t know. They’re aren’t experts

Exactly 🤣🤣

Sometimes the personal circumstances can make all the difference with age. When we lost our cat at 7 years old and were looking to rehome another , we wanted a younger cat in an attempt save some heartache again for us and the children. Age can also affect insurance costs.

These details are normally kept by shelters to ensure the cats are going to suitable families and homes. They’ve got it a little wrong here, and I think the best scenario would be for them to keep the deposit until another suitable cat is available.

No,, she clarified in the next post 12 months.

Math not your strongest point? 😂

If you’ve met the cat, liked its personality I would get the 8 year old cat.
We have had cats over the years, and as family I would say that slightly older cats are less trouble and more affectionate (obviously depends also on personality). I have 3 boys and they all loved our last cat, their favourite stage was probably when she was 10 and had become a proper snuggle buddy, seeking them out for cuddles etc
We’ve had cats live until 21 so 8 is probably more middle aged than elderly.
However if you really don’t want an older cat I would ask the rescue to keep hold of the reserve and let me know when a younger cat comes in.

like someone else said I’d be concerned this is a scam and you won’t get your deposit back.
It’s up to you and you are entitled to ask for a refund but I’m not sure I would. 8 is still young for a cat. Unless you would prefer your kids were older when the cat passes, in which case that’s fair enough.

Only here for the thread within a thread.

Yes, you're being unreasonable.

You liked the cat and it's temperament etc.

It's a rescue, not made to order.

I only rescue dogs over 6 years old as I like them better as they've grown out of the teenage phase. Don't turn away a cat you like just because it's 8. It could have 12 years left!!!

They normally estimate based on teeth but it’s not an exact science.

It’s your choice whether you want an 8yo cat or not but a cat’s temperament at 3yo is not going to be really different to 8yo. If you met the cat and liked it there’s no reason it wouldn’t be suitable based on age.

It’s understandable you might want a younger cat to have more time with the cat over its lifetime but an 8yo cat isn’t elderly.

Her reasons are neither here nor there. People can make their own minds up about what they want and why - it's not for others to judge. The OP wanted a 3 year old cat, and that is not what's on offer.

What o to 3 years is 0 to 36 months they were 12 and 18 months...smack in the middle

They should refund, or let you see the next suitable cat without charge.

However, I’d definitely still go for the 8yo, there’s really not much difference in temperament and tolerance of noise and bustle between 3 and 8. My first cats lived to be 17 and 20, so plenty of time to enjoy her.

As its a rescue I think they will have used some/all of the reservation fee to pay for the cost of the vet check up. Mind you, the cost of keeping the cats will be huge so the money could have been spent on this already. I don't think 8 is particularly old for a cat, they are more chilled out in general in my opinion and can live to be 18...whos to say a younger cat might live longer? I agree with another poster, if your adamant you want a younger cat, ask for the fee to be waived for a viewing of a younger cat see what they come back with. I don't know how it works when it's a non profit organisation.

Absolutely, refund you and ban you from adopting through them in the future.