The process of rehoming a pet is very difficult. Plus, you don’t always know exactly where to start. Even though you may have made up your mind about rehoming a cat, sometimes it can be avoided. It is important to try all possible solutions before carrying out this drastic decision.
Reasons for rehoming a cat
When you are thinking of rehoming your cat, it means that you are having serious problems with your pet. However, you owe it your pet to explore all other possibilities first until rehoming is your only solution. For example, if it is a behavioural issue like inappropriate elimination, scratching of furniture’s, or aggressive behaviour, you need to consider a health problem. There are other reasons that actually force you to rehome your cat like:
- Cat allergies in your family.
- You are emigrating abroad.
- No pets allowed in your new home.
- Pregnancy (many times having a cat around poses a high risk of getting sick)
- Young children in the family that don’t get along with your cat.
Cat rescue centres are the best choice
When the decision is made to rehome a cat, you need to make sure that his/her future home will welcome him with open arms. It is important to select a home that will have your cat’s best intentions at heart. Therefore, if you want your cat to end up in another loving home, there are a number of things to consider. At the end of the day, you know your cat better than anyone. Hence, when rehoming a cat, it is vital to think about what would be the best environment for him/her.
For this, you have to take into account many factors like personality and health. The best (and highly unlikely) option is to rehome your cat through a cat rescue since its staff is very knowledgeable about this process and cats overall. Unfortunately, shelters tend to be full of unwanted cats. Then, it is up to you to do it.
Tips to properly rehome a cat
When you have to rehome your cat by yourself, there is a number of things to do:
- Make sure that your cat is neutered, flea and worm treated and up to date with vaccines.
- Pick good spots to advertise like vet clinics, local pet shops and community groups.
- Use a really good photo of your cat for the advert that actually describes him/her.
- Request an adoption fee because this helps to encourage serious adopters.
- Once you have some potential adopters, you have to interview them very carefully. You need to make a home visit to inspect their houses.
- Try to offer a trial period of a week or two to see if your cat gets along in his/her new house.
Rehoming a cat is never easy. But sometimes it is necessary. Take all of this into account and try to make this process as easy as possible for your pet.
