need some advice about possibly rehoming cats :(

[lace&pearls]

Hi everyone, now I hope I don't get people judging me or going into rage because of me posting about this, because I am genuinely torn as I write this...

I have 2 cats, 2 years old I have had them since they were 8 weeks old. They are absolutely lovely cats, very loving and playful. BUT I am seriously considering rehoming them though as have been having some quite stressful problems with them recently..

1) They keep bringing me 'presents' now dead mice or even birds aren't pleasant but I can deal with it.. but it's worse than this, they're often still alive. And it's not every now and again, it's literally nearly every day, sometimes more than once a day, (3 birds in one day!), I think possibly because where I live is quite rural... Mice, birds, my cat actually brought in a bat (that's right BAT!) the other day (luckily it was in no state to fly, I don't know what I;d have done otherwise) we found what we think was a baby rat (dead, thank God) and I just can't handle it anymore, it's becoming too much. I've had to stop feeding my baby half way through and put her down crying to catch a bird or a mouse (which isn't easy as you can imagine!) I must admit, it sounds almost comical, but at the time I'm sometimes in tears trying to get a severely injured animal out of the house with a baby screaming and 2 cats trying to stop me. I have a cat flap, I've tried keeping them in over night (it's usually about dawn that they bring things in) and they go a bit nuts, they smashed a vase when I did that! and kept tapping at my bedroom door all night. So I'd have to keep them in the kitchen/hallway/bathroom, which is a bit mean, as it's not very comfy for them. I've tried keeping them out (just letting them in the hallway from catflap) which I could do, but I worry about them being out all night.

2. FLEAS... now I really am at the end of my tether on this one. I have tried 4 treatments on them, I've shampooed the carpet twice, used spray all over the house, I've even taken them to the vets and got the really strong stuff and yet I have found 2 fleas since then! wtf! I can't do this anymore, I don't want my little baby around fleas, birds, mice, rats etc. it's horrible. Also from a practical point of view this is costing a fortune! (and I'm really not made of money!)

Now I say that but the thought of rehoming them is a little bit heartbreaking if I'm honest. I could not leave them at a rescue centre but I could consider the idea of keeping them until a rescue centre finds them an ideal home. (I say this but I think I will probably be really upset about it) .. but I have to say I think it could possibly be for the best I sometimes think they would maybe be happier with a family who could dedicate more of their time and really spoil them. They were very spoilt before I had dd but I just don't have the time now and I feel bad for that. I really don't want to be in this position but at the same time I don't know if I can see another way.

I would really appreciate some advice whether it be about helping the problems or rehoming, especially if anyone else has had to do this before. Like I say I hope I don't get abuse for this because I am a bit of a crazy cat lady at heart, I've grown up with cats and never had this problem before, it's taken some time for me to honestly say this out loud let alone post it on the net x

 

[Breezy]

I really have no advice but I just wanted to say I am in the same boat. I have 2 cats and DH just got orders to a different base. We will be living on base and will only be allowed two animals. We have 2 dogs as well so we will have to rehome my cats. I am very excited about moving as we will be 4 hours from our family compared to 25 hours now. My excitement is over shadowed by my devestation of having to part with mu ciddly kitties though.

I already put an ad on craigslist but have gotten no interest as of yet I dont want to take them to the himane society where they will live in cages so I hope someone will take them.

 

[Ozzieshunni]

Is there a Cat Protection League in your area? There are many non-profits that will take cats and rehome them without putting them down

 

[nugget80]

my cats used to bring in live presents all the time. mainly evening time. i even took a baby bird to vets after i had it 2 days cos was too young to fly! came home from work once or twice to birds flying round the house...! not got any advice re presents as if you live in rural place it Will happen. i live in town and still got plenty! Will say when they got older it stopped... as for fleas we use frontline on dog and its great! look on amazon as its lots cheaper... if you really do need to home them perhaps ask to put notices in local petshop/vet for new home.

 

[mummyruston]

My two cats are 12yrs old and still bring in presents!

We've also had live birds flying around messing evrywhebere - bird crap all over the place isn't hygienic at all and I was 8m pregnant at the time!

We've had loads of dead stuff which is ok-ish but live mice running round the house is a nightmare!

Like you I love my cats but u have tO start thinking about baby and Hygeine etc.

If you could get them rehomed maybe by a fried or family member that'd be ok? Think I'd cope with that....as mine are 12 that won't happen....

 

[babydevil1989]

thats what cats do - bring you presents.

they do stop as they get older, maybe keep them in in the evenings?

as for fleas - frontline stopped working so we had to go to the vets to gets advocate amazing worked straight away x

edit - if you have tried keeping them in - how about keeping them outside so they cant get back in? x

 

[lace&pearls]

thats what cats do - bring you presents.

they do stop as they get older, maybe keep them in in the evenings?

as for fleas - frontline stopped working so we had to go to the vets to gets advocate amazing worked straight away x

edit - if you have tried keeping them in - how about keeping them outside so they cant get back in? x

yeah we used frontline, which didn't work, took them to the vets for stronger stuff which I thought had worked but have since found 2 fleas (even though we shampooed the carpets, washed all the bedding etc)

I would keep them out if I had to but it's a bit risky as they're not the toughest of cats in terms of standing their ground on their territory, they've had to run in through the cat flap being chased by other cats before (even had other cats try and follow them in! lol) so think it could be a bit mean.

What do you do when cats bring you in presents? do you have a system for getting rid of them quickly? x

 

[babydevil1989]

thats what cats do - bring you presents.

they do stop as they get older, maybe keep them in in the evenings?

as for fleas - frontline stopped working so we had to go to the vets to gets advocate amazing worked straight away x

edit - if you have tried keeping them in - how about keeping them outside so they cant get back in? x

yeah we used frontline, which didn't work, took them to the vets for stronger stuff which I thought had worked but have since found 2 fleas (even though we shampooed the carpets, washed all the bedding etc)

I would keep them out if I had to but it's a bit risky as they're not the toughest of cats in terms of standing their ground on their territory, they've had to run in through the cat flap being chased by other cats before (even had other cats try and follow them in! lol) so think it could be a bit mean.

What do you do when cats bring you in presents? do you have a system for getting rid of them quickly? x

yeah shout for OH lol! no not really we dont have a cat flap so the reduces the 'gifts' we get but in the evening we have the kitchen window open and shes shut in there - she hardly does it anymore shes nearly 3 now.

did you find any flea eggs or flea dirt - those two fleas could have just jumped on them if they had been outside. x

 

[WelshOneEmma]

We have 3 cats and a dog, so have to keep on top of the fleas! We do the house each month (and the animals) and alternate each month in the house between diatomaceous (sp?) earth (completely safe and natural) and then something like indorex. We use stronghold on the animals.

This is also the time of year fleas are out - you could bring them in on you from the garden.

As for presents, unfortunately its what cats do. My eldest (13) has stopped, but then my cats don't go out that much now and do not stay out at night. If anything, the dog is the worst for catching mice and bringing them in. Personally doesn't bother me, just pick them up and put them back out. I knew that would happen when taking on cats.

Our youngest cat is very nervous and for the last year and a half pees on things randomly. Working with her to find the issue.

You sound like you have made the decision to rehome and looking for reassurances from people???

 

[lace&pearls]

My two cats are 12yrs old and still bring in presents!

We've also had live birds flying around messing evrywhebere - bird crap all over the place isn't hygienic at all and I was 8m pregnant at the time!

We've had loads of dead stuff which is ok-ish but live mice running round the house is a nightmare!

Like you I love my cats but u have tO start thinking about baby and Hygeine etc.

If you could get them rehomed maybe by a fried or family member that'd be ok? Think I'd cope with that....as mine are 12 that won't happen....

ah I know exactly what you mean! came down in the morning to find a bird hanging off the curtain! exactly- if it's dead it's gross but not that much of a problem, but trying to catch a very speedy mouse or deal with a bird flapping around and a baby is very difficult. I'm also worried about when she starts crawling etc, what if she finds something before I do or something :S The other day we found a pair of birds legs... I have searched high and low and cannot find the rest of it!!!!! :S last night I found half a mouse in the kitchen... :-/ (again, I'm hoping the cat has eaten the other half cause I certainly can't find it! there's not anywhere it could be hidden in the kitchen either really) x

 

[Ceejay123]

I have a cat, she's amazing. I was worried about her bringing back fleas, as she never seemed to recover from them! In the end I had to get her prescription treatment, and treat the houe when my LO was born early... It is workable if they are great cats sweetie. The present issue.. Im sorry i've no advice! x

 

[GoldenGSD]

I personally would stop using the cat flap. My 12 year old cat still catches critters but as I have to open the door to let her in I just check she has nothing in her mouth!

Mine stays indoors overnight but if yours are not happy with that idea then maybe you could shut them out but give them some sort of outdoor shelter? You can buy cat houses or even put a cat flap in a shed?

I expect as they get older they may be more content to stay in overnight.

As for the fleas, have you talked to your vet? I used to use frontline but it was a waste of money. The vet recommened Advocate and I haven't seen a flea since.

 

[wilbz]

you can get a spray for the house, we do ours as a prevention every year and it seems to work if you get it from the vets its abou£20 tin but I found it online at about £10+ postage, one tin does a whole house.

It's called R.I.P fleas and it's made by Genitrix and comes in a big purple and silver can, it kills dust mihts as well.

We also found frontline didnt work once but we had bought it from the pet shop and apparently the over the counter stuff isnt as strong as the vets

cant help with the presents, my mums cat always brings more in after he has had a brush, as sort of a thankyou

 

[RLM]

Hi,

Has this been resolved? Just a quick note to say we had the same problem regarding fleas, and we eventually managed to get the vet to prescribe 'Stronghold' for fleas & worms. It worked! We can even use it once every two months, with no signs of the fleas now (touch wood) - frontline was rubbish. Indorex worked for our carpets, but you have to make sure that everything is well ventilated for a while. Skoosh also worked too, but don't think that is as powerful.

Our cat has brought a live mouse in, I have shut the spare room door to keep it in there till my hubby comes home

Does anyone have any thoughts about naughty cats who bring in regular pets, and the possible effects on babies? I have a 5 month old and I am worried about mice being brought in by the cats (as it seems to be a regular thing now )!!

 

[lace&pearls]

hiya, well this had kind of been resolved in a different way, I've actually moved house since and no longer have a cat flap which has helped a lot with the 'present' problem (although they did manage to bring a bird in when I left the garden door open!)

I'm not sure about the effects of bringing mice in with a baby, but it always worried me, but it's so hard to stop them isn't it? do you have a cat flap?

We seem to have solved the flea problem *touch wood* I think they kept catching them off the neighbour's cat (whom they were friends with! lol!) but the neighbours moved and the problem seemed to resolve itself lol. I think we used strong hold in the end too which was much better.

I am happily keeping them now though, much happier than I was, without the fleas and mice problems they are lovely cats and I would have hated to rehome them.

 

[RLM]

We have a cat flap.

We had a recent incident where one of the cats managed to get a large mouse into LO's buggy - luckily I spotted it running along the handle bar before LO went in.....

 

[BethK]

We put a catflap in our utility room door. They are now shut in the utility at night or when we're out so as to contain their presents.

We get about 3 presents a day. The utility isn't comfy but it has their food, water and warm beds. At the end of the day they're cats and will sleep pretty much anywhere. When we're in and they're allowed in the main house then they curl up on the bed.

We just make sure we clear up the dead stuff, and clean the floors.

Fleas are a pain though, I just bought some carpet spray.

 

[Quackquack99]

Fleas are such hardwork! We had them for about 3 months and nothing worked. Luckily with the colder weather they have died.
I remember when we lived at my mil, my mil cat used to bring in moles, mice, pigeons and frogs! We lived on a mainroad full of house but now nearly a year later she doesn't bring any back,well I don't think she does.