When to stop??

[Stephan]

We are 24 years down the line having cats,all have a place in my heart,every loss hurt me so much.

When Cleo goes do I want any more ? Not that she has any intentention of going yet but she ain`t a kitten.

Tomorrow-is another day-the pain never goes but the heart has room for a rescue??

[Leesy]

I think once you have loved a cat and recieved a cats love in return you could never have a life without one, even though with each sad loss it breaks your heart.
Without a cat in my life my heart would feel so empty so I will always have one :D .

[angieh]

I agree Leesy. I loved my old Merlin and was devastated when he went, but those three weeks without a cat in the house were uncomfortable, not just for me, but OH and MIL found it so too. We are so very very lucky to have a lovely cat like Kizzy as our feline company.

If you are a cat person, as you are Steph, I think a home would not be a home without one. I wish you and Cleo many more happy years together however.

[Elaine]

Personally, I feel that the years of love, fun and cuddles far outweigh the heartache. It's always very painful to lose an animal but I could never imagine life with out animals in it.

[farthing]

Personally, I feel that the years of love, fun and cuddles far outweigh the heartache. It's always very painful to lose an animal but I could never imagine life with out animals in it.

I agree, my only concern is when I reach an age when I can't look after them, what do I do with the last ones in my care- still working on a solution for that one.

[Elaine]

I agree, my only concern is when I reach an age when I can't look after them, what do I do with the last ones in my care- still working on a solution for that one.


I'll have them;)
Seriously though, I know what you mean. I have thought about what will happen when i am old and have animals too. Sorry I have no answers either....

[calismum]

I agree - if you are an animal lover then the heartache comes as part of the package.

I don't think I could be without a cat, to me they are an essential part of a home.

[dandysmom]

Everyone has already said it, Steph. A catless home isn't a home to me; the heartache of loss will always be there, but there is enough love to give to another one who needs you and will fill that cat sized hole in the heart.

[smokytopaz]

Um I don't quite know how to say this but you can take an insurance policy out to cover your cats (dogs etc) rehoming should you pop your cork before they do. I know the RSPCA do one......... no affiliation but may settle your mind.

[dandysmom]

I have a provision in my will for my cat{s) when I go ........

[moonstone]

I said "no more cats" when i had to have my soulmate Harry (always known as chunks) PTS due to renal failure.
Then i found out that a cruel neighbour had let her cat have another litter of kittens...she showed them to me and they were in such bad shape i took them on the spot.
I was actually quite annoyed with myself for "giving in" as i had planned some holidays etc.which with a cat to care for would not be possible but 9 months later i am so glad that i have my little girls..in particular the little disabled girl who would certainly have died if left were she was.
So give yourself some time after your little one passes on then start looking at rescues for another "friend"

[Elaine]

I said "no more cats" when i had to have my soulmate Harry (always known as chunks) PTS due to renal failure.
Then i found out that a cruel neighbour had let her cat have another litter of kittens...she showed them to me and they were in such bad shape i took them on the spot.
I was actually quite annoyed with myself for "giving in" as i had planned some holidays etc.which with a cat to care for would not be possible but 9 months later i am so glad that i have my little girls..in particular the little disabled girl who would certainly have died if left were she was.
So give yourself some time after your little one passes on then start looking at rescues for another "friend"

So sorry to hear that Chunks passed away xxx

[moonstone]

smokeytopaz...if you look closely at the RSPCA advert they only say they will "try" to find a home for your pet should you pop your clogs..I have been told that they often PTS as they do not bother to try to find homes.... they just want the donations.
Personally i would not give them a penny after what happened to a friend of mine (long story)

[Elaine]

smokeytopaz...if you look closely at the RSPCA advert they only say they will "try" to find a home for your pet should you pop your clogs..I have been told that they often PTS as they do not bother to try to find homes.... they just want the donations.
Personally i would not give them a penny after what happened to a friend of mine (long story)

Have to agree with you that I wouldnt trust them with my door mat, never mind what i consider to be my flesh and blood.

[moonstone]

Thanks for thinking of my Chunks..he was the most wonderful pussy..he had 6 toes on all his feet and was known as the "witches" cat..he was black and HUGE..I had his brother too! Archie was even bigger and was often mistaken for a black panther when he was prowling round the garden..my vet was amazed when he saw Archie as he was the biggest cat he had ever seen..he was quite upset that i had had him neutered as he reckoned that he would have made a good stud cat ( i am against breeding BTW)
He too succomed to renal failure a year before my Chunks.
I was so upset that i felt i could not cope with having to go through mourning another puss but now have 3 more.

[moonstone]

Agree with you there Elaine..I hate RSPCA they are useless..I reported the neighbours who had my kitties..they had four un-neutered cats (2 males 2 females)they were starved,filthy and crawling with fleas yet the inspector found nothing wrong.

[Elaine]

I've had similar experiences with the SSPCA too.

I'd love to see pics of Archie and Chunks(if it's not too painful), the kittens too please.

[smokytopaz]

OMG - if not the RSPCA then where do you suggest, I am not planning to kick this mortal coil yet but having had one heart attack I am only too aware of our mortality. I reasoned with myself (and of course agreed with myself) that I could have cats again if I made long term plans for their future. So now what?

[angieh]

I have a provision in my will for my cat{s) when I go ........

Can I be nosey and ask what/how? OH and I tried to put something in our Will when we had it redone and the solicitor said it wouldn't work. Perhaps we need to research it better before trying again.

(and especially after what's been said above about RSPCA - although I appreciate US animal welfare may be different.)

[dandysmom]

Can I be nosey and ask what/how? OH and I tried to put something in our Will when we had it redone and the solicitor said it wouldn't work. Perhaps we need to research it better before trying again.

(and especially after what's been said above about RSPCA - although I appreciate US animal welfare may be different.)

My close friend Carolyn is my executor and I completely trust her to follow my request to see that the cat{s} will be taken care of. I have no idea if that is a legally binding request, although the attorney didn't say anything to indicate that it wasn't.

[angieh]

It's nice you have a good and trustworthy friend as your executor Eileen. Perhaps that's the way for us to go - the solicitor is currently our executor - like you, I have no siblings and OH is not keen to get his brother involved.

[dandysmom]

It is a problem when there's no family; fortunately I know Carolyn would do it even if it weren't in the Will.

[calismum]

A friend and I have in our wills that any animals we own at the time of our death becomes their property. We have also left each other a sum of money which is meant to take care of said animals for their life.

Not easy, and I am fortunate to have such a friend. My sister was not interested in doing anything official.

[pcspik]

Agree with you there Elaine..I hate RSPCA they are useless..I reported the neighbours who had my kitties..they had four un-neutered cats (2 males 2 females)they were starved,filthy and crawling with fleas yet the inspector found nothing wrong.

My dad found a 6 week old kitten one year, the RSPCA were useless. Gave vague information and would not consider taking it off their hands as my parents could not keep it. They actually advocated it should be pts. In the end they thankfully took it to the Cats Protection where it got a new home (thankfully it was healthy).

Where I used to live, there was some supposedly "feral" cats living in a garage. (Out of the 6 cats only one was truly feral - the rest were handleable.) The RSPCA came out once but blindly refused to do anything. In the end our shelter of the Cats Protection took them, and they all got found homes (except the feral who got released back once neutered). Also they parked outside a home where there was a ringworm kitty and refused to do anything, even though it was in full sight of anything, even when they (the people who owned the ringworm kitty) got reported.

As for mine, they will got back to the Cats Protection, as there is no way I would let the RSPCA get them (thankfully the nearest RSPCA shelter is 30 miles away).

[pookyandjo]

Like you Eileen we have made provision in our wills.. in fact we re did them a few weeks ago because we have had some changes in the last 8 months (selling some property etc) and becuse we are heading off again OS we want to get some things tidied up..if something happened to David and I Cait would obviously look after whatever cats we had at the time... but she sometimes travels with us so we had to make provisions for that eventuality..we have alloted an amount to be left in trust for our cats and have nominated a dear friend who loves our cats ( she works at the vet where we have been going for years )
As an aside.. after what we went through with Tinky...we have actually left another amount in trust to pay for emergency surgery for peoples cats where they might not be able to afford it... to be distributed according to a schedule that we drew up... i mainly did this because each time one of our cats has got sick we were lucky enough to have the money avaialble to pay for the treatment required... if we didn't they may have had to be PTS... that is a heartbreaking situation for many people whos pets are their family

[dandysmom]

What a lovely and generous thing to do, Jo! You've given me something to think about .. . my Will needs revising......

[farthing]

We have spent lots of time trying to figure out the best way to protect the animals in our care. One thought was to leave the house to the SSPCA, to continue as a santuary and allow the animals already there to live out their lives. However, we don't always agree in the way they do things, and once the place was theirs, there would be nothing stopping then having the animals PTS and selling the place for money. If they had their way Corrie would have already been PTS.
This is one of the reasons we have decided to go for charity status, it may be very unrealistic, but we hope the place becomes a viable organisation and people who love animals as much as us will become involved. Hopefully, then, if something happens to us, the charity will continue to run and save more animals.

[John]

smokytopaz... I see you live in Somerset. Bath Cats and Dogs Home say they will never put a healthy animal down . so I have left something to them plus something for my Millie ..ie if you leave £3,000 to your cat. to be paid at £500 a year it will last 6 years , so it will pay someone to make sure your furry friend is looked after for as long as posable...it has been done through a solicitor. anyway I hope it works as I will not be here. and it is the best I can do..

[dandysmom]

Well done, John!

[random]

I don't even have a will, I really should sort that out, it just makes me sad but I have Dusty and Anakin who would go to Myles and I know my dad would be fine with having them as long as he had Myles, but the rest, Maddy, Star and Kiara's breeders would need to be contacted, if they would take them back is another matter though, Tucker would possibly stay with Anakin at a push as I know my sister would twist my dad's arm for him, but poor Charlie and the other 4 cats are likely to end up in rescue and I can't bear to think of it. I'm not even sure my dad would keep Bear if I wasnt here, i'm not sure he'd manage if I wasn't there to help. :(

And that is why it just makes me sad, if Maddy's breeder never took her back, i'm not sure how she'd cope or if she'd ever find an understanding home. :(

[dandysmom]

Random, none of my business really, but you should think about making a will, especially if you own real property. If you die intestate everything will be settled by law and not necessarily the way you would have wanted...... (sorry if this is a bit personal)