OK, this is completely different than not loving. These cats are scared or traumatized. They have been hiding under your bed for 3 years? I understand your frustration, OP, but like many others have said, the rescue should have called a long time ago. |
This is crazy. If she's had the cats for 3 years and they're still recoiling at her touch and hiding under the bed, what other person is going to want them? She can't just hand them over to her co-worker. The rescue needs them back. |
OK, I didn't see the post where they mentioned the cats recoiling. However a co-worker or someone that she could find may not mind having a cat that just wants to be left alone. Some people may put up with an unsociable cat rather than see it euthanized. Whatever the OP decides, I hope they do it soon and are not made to feel guilty by others. They tried for over two years, it didn't work out so move on. They haven't abandoned the cats or anything like that. |
Thank you...that is good advice! |
OP here. Right, I want to find a home with older folks perhaps who don't mind aloof cats. |
Oh, FFS. Nobody WANTS cats that hide under the bed all day and act feral. You might as well ask people to adopt a pair of raccoons. You failed to return these cats within a reasonable amount of time, and then you went ahead and brought a dog into the house, which no doubt made everything worse. Don't fob these cats off on some poor old person. Trust me, I know it sucks to have a bad cat--I have an outside the box shitter, but I would never in the world try to rehome him and give this headache to some other person. |
OP, you're nuts. These cats are not aloof. If you present them that way to some "older couple" as you keep saying, that is not fair to them. There's a difference between aloof and traumatized. Cats who stay under the bed and recoil from a person's touch are way more than aloof. |
| If the OP is honest about the cats, it's certainly possible that someone might want to try with them. |
Sure. But her description of them so far- non-loving and aloof is not honest. So why do we think she'd be honest with a co-worker? |
You're a jerk. |
Given how insensitive and self-centered OP is about bringing home another animal and dumping the 2 she already committed to, I sincerely doubt she put the effort into "bonding" with these two cats. I have fostered, adopted, and worked in shelters for years. I've seen the most neurotic and feral animals become loving companions. And just to be clear, what she describes is not being "Feral", it's fear. It's lack of socialization. It's lack of investment by the owner. So, yeah. I fault OP. OP, just dump at the shelter. That's clearly what you want to do anyway. They've become inconvenient to you. And that is the most convenient solution for someone like you. Then you can move on and not think of it again. |
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I also adopted two cats from a rescue group ten years ago. One was found as a stray six-month old in a rural area, and the other....they didn't know.
The "other" cat is an affectionate lap cat who sleeps on my bed. The one that was found in the rural area never became a "people" person and will not sit on my lap, doesn't come into my bedroom at all, hates bing picked up, and hides under the sofa when company comes. But they love each other and have massive "grooming" sessions, playtimes, and nap nestled together. (The shy one does stay in the family room when I am watching TV with the lap cat, so it's not as if he's isolating himself.) I love them both and would never consider giving them away. |
| I definitely understand where OP is coming from, especially after their later updates. There are no-kill shelter cat rescues that can help you. However, I think you should try other avenues first to help your cats. It could be that the semi-feral one has anxiety that can be treated by your vet. Also - this is usually frowned upon for many reasons and I wouldn’t suggest it lightly, but would your cats be happier as indoor/outdoor cats? Some cats just gotta roam a bit. There are a ton of risks to this (fleas/ticks, fights/injuries, illness, getting hit by cars) but sometimes, the semi-feral cats do very well outside in safe areas. I definitely wouldn’t do it if you live on a main road or in an apartment or condo, obviously. But in a neighborhood, they might really like it. |
It takes patience, love and effort to make an animal "come around". Even then, the individual animals will have their own personalities, likes and dislikes. Some love to be cuddled, some don't like being held at all. Some love to play with toys, others could care less about toys. As someone who has spent a little time working with rescue cats and helping them to adapt to a new environment it really makes me sad to hear of a complaint like yours. I think the rescue group was saying that the cats would adapt to their new environment and would stop being so skittish? Even with my experience, I can't look at any given skittish/scared animal and tell you whether it will be a cuddler or not. Best thing to do is adopt a cuddler if that is what you are looking for. It worries me that you are now considering surrendering these kitties in order to adopt a dog. If I was looking at your adoption application I would deny it on the spot. I'm sorry to be harsh and believe me I LOVE to see animals get adopted into good homes, but I don't think you are ready for another animal. Best of luck rehoming your kitties. Maybe I'll be the one working with them. |
| Either drive over to the local shelter and drop them off or Just drive out to the more rural part of the county one night and let them out along the road near a farm. Re homing done. |