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Animal Advocates - question for you
Hi ladies,
I am not a pet person/animal rights person by any means, but I know that many of you are, so I was hoping you could help settle a family dispute for me.
My grandma is in her late 80's and lives in her home alone. She has a cat that she ADORES - seriously loves the thing.
My uncle got a frantic call from my grandma on Sunday morning that she hadn't seen the cat since dinner the night before, and that she was up every 2 hours all night looking for him.
Livie and I (and a couple other family members) headed over Sunday to help look for the cat. Turns out he had gotten stuck in a closet, and must have been sleeping in the back or something when my grandma checked in there for him.
Several family members are now saying that my grandma obviously isn't capable of caring for her cat anymore and that we should take him out of her house. Grandma scoops his litter daily (someone comes by weekly to change out the litter for her since it is too heavy), feeds him and schedules his vet appointments just fine.
My line of thinking is that yes, the cat got stuck in a closet and she didn't realize it/find him, BUT she did know he was missing and took appropriate steps to find him (calling for help).
I don't understand her attraction to the cat, but I do know that she would be devastated if he was taken away, so I really do not want that to happen.
Is it really that big of a deal that the cat got stuck in a closet? It happens to other people - right? (I hope?) Please tell me that my family members are crazy for wanting to take the cat away...
Re: Animal Advocates - question for you
No, it's not that big of a deal. The agents that I work with would probably laugh and say good job for asking for help.
Now, if it starts to happen more than twice a week, then I'd be a little more concerned - call more often to ask about the cat, etc... But nope, cats are their own weird creatures and they like random spots in houses just as much as the next one.
When I first opened your post I was getting ready to look up the MN statutes and have all my work stuff in front of me, ready to get some arguments going, but nope, I just laughed and thought it happens to the best of us!
I have a 40 something co-worker and he and his partner accidently lock their cat in the bathroom storage closet about once a week. Cats are sneaky and slip in to a place without you noticing.
I hope you can convince your family members to allow her to keep the cat. It would be heartbreaking for her to have to get rid of it!
Oh my goodness that is not a good reason to rip a beloved pet away from its owner! Your G'ma would be devasted and so would the cat.
My cats have managed to lock themselves (together) TWICE in our office. Luckily that's where I keep a litter box. Once I think wind blew the door shut (and for whatever reason they were in there at that moment together), and once I even had something in front of the door and they must have been playing to rough and managed to hit the door shut. Cats are goofy.
That is silly. I would say at least one of our cats gets locked in a closed room at least once a week, and we have a small house. They are fine and most times, don't even notice that they weren't able to get out.
I think it would be worse to take the cat away from her (for both the cat and her).
*M&M* Super Pitbulls
I will definitely go to bat for my grandma on this one. The people that want the cat out are the same ones who want grandma in a nursing home. Grrrrr. She is just fine at home (with us checking on her of course)
I just wanted to make sure my thinking wasn't off base here. I mean, its not like she forgot to feed him for a week. Thanks again!
(also, I think I finallly figured out how to space paragraphs when posting from my phone - woo hoo!)
A Little Bird and a Monkey Butt
I don't have cats, but I've heard of plenty of friends/family that have done similar things. If it becomes regular or if she starts forgetting to feed them, etc (something more serious) then you could discuss it, but not over this one time thing.
This advice is coming from someone who is beyond attached to my dogs and would be DEVASTATED if they were taken away. They got me through some rough times and I have a feeling that your grandma's cat means just as much to her as my dogs do to me.
- Martin Luther King Jr.
I think it would be terribly cruel to both Grandma and the cat to take the cat away from her. Cats have excellent sneaky hiding skills, and really, this could happen to anyone. As long as grandma is capable of properly feeding the cat, etc., she's not a threat to the cat. She's providing the kitty a good home, and the kitty undoubtedly provides her with emotional/health benefits as well.
And if people are really worried about something like this happening again, she can just get in the habit of leaving the closet doors cracked, so the cat can easily get out
There are a variety of less-drastic solutions than taking her cat away.
umm, i once locked our cat in the upstairs walk in closet for a day and a half.....(we went out of town).
Leave the cat with grandma, it happens to all of us!