Adopting a cat can be a wonderful experience for both the adopter and the cat.
But are you really, really, ready to commit to another family member for life?
I came up with 7 Golden Questions you should ask yourself before adopting.
1. WHY do I want to adopt a pet?
Adopting a pet is committing to taking care of a living, breathing "person" with wants, needs and emotions.
Adopting as a gift for your children, because you are bored and single, is not a reason at all. Many people adopted pets during the pandemic as they felt lonely and had all the time in the world. Many of them also abandoned these animals once life resumed back to normal.
Adopt for the right reasons, not to fill a short term void or to keep children entertained.
2. Am I financially prepared?
Having a pet is a really expensive commitment and I cannot begin to tell you how many people abandon or give up their pets when they realize that they can no longer afford basic care such as dental. A full dental in Singapore can set you back up to a whopping $1.5K!
As your pet grows older, they deteroriate and fall ill, just like us humans.
Are you able to commit to the growing medical care, special prescription diets, regular vet visits or operations?
3. Do I have the time for a 15 - 20 year lifetime commitment?
A pet is for life. A pet will see you through your life stages. Giving up your pet when you have human children of your own is not an option. So are you really ready to take on this responsibility? When you move out of your parents home and settle down, are you going to take the pet with you? If you migrate or work overseas, are you going to take the pet with you?
4. Is my whole family on board? A pet is a NEW family member.
If you live with other people, you will have to ensure everyone is on the same page and willing to welcome this new family member into the home. You shouldn't be restricting the animal to just a room because your family is unwilling for it to roam the house. Adopting for young children is never a good idea because you will end up bearing most of the responsibilities once they get bored or get older and choose to hang out with friends instead.
Who is going to be the primary caregiver? Who is going to foot the food and vet bills?
5. Am I willing to make my home a pet friendly space?
Adopting a cat is unlike adopting a dog. You will have to catproof or "catify" your home, as Jackson Galaxy likes to put it.
Your windows, balconies, gates, door will need to be catproofed with some sort of measures (you can refer to this link on various methods of catproofing).
There is no such thing as training a cat NOT to jump, contrary to popular belief by some inexperienced groups of cat owners.
Your cat requires cat posts, boxes, beds, ramps, and so forth, depending on the space you have at home. You cannot expect to have a spotless, fur free home if you have a pet. You will have their belongings, beds and toys lying around somewhere.
6. Am I able and willing to commit to "for better or worst, in sickness and in health"?
As I've mentioned, vet care is very costly. How far will you be willing to go to help your pet? We have paid thousands of dollars for CT scans, operations, and even $2000 per night for a 24 hour Emergency hospital.
You cannot abandon your pet if it's sick, or has an accident. Would you forsake your child if he or she falls sick? No, you would see doctors, and treat with the best available options presented.
7. Who will take care of my pet when I am not around?
Besides the daily maintenance of a pet, vet bills, food, etc, now we have come to another cost of cat boarding or cat sitting. If you do not have a reliable person to look after your pet when you travel, you will need to engage a sitter or put the pet in a boarding facility.
If you pass away, who will take on your pet?
We have had cases wherein pet owners who are elderly, or cat rescuers pass on and none of their family members want the responsibilities of taking on the pet. In fact, they may not even be concerned where the pet goes to, so long it is not their responsibility.
Make sure you have thought this true and make a will or speak to a trusted person on what to do in the event something happens to you.
I'll leave you with this link right here, if you are going to be a first time cat owner!
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