Why do they make it so difficult to adopt a pet from a shelter?

It was pretty easy to get my fat cat. We had to fill out some paperwork, and talk to a shelter employee about our household and whatnot, but if you ask me, it’s only as difficult as it should be. They don’t want pets going to irresponsible or ill equipped homes, and they don’t want the pet to be abused, so they have to screen people at least a bit.

To stop people adopting pets without giving it adequate thought and sufficient planning. Pets are long term responsibilities and many people forget that when they are lost in the thrill of getting that cute cat or dog.

They have a responsibility to ensure we are being sensible and responsible when we adopt an animal.

like everything else, it has been ruined by a few bad people. there are people out there who want animals for inhuman reasons, this is why it is almost impossible to adopt a pit, and why you can’t adopt a black cat in October, etc.

Once you clear the hurdles once, it gets easier. When I got Max (solid black, in October) a few years ago they called me and asked if I would take him because they knew I would give him a good home

They have to make sure the pet will be properly cared for and won’t be sent back after a while. Responsible breeders will do the same checks too.

Just like @downtide said. They want owners that will love and care for the pet and not abuse it or send it back. It’s very good of them to go through so much work to make sure an animal is going to a good home.

I’ve found the opposite, the shelters are easy, it is the private rescues that make you jump through hoops and are militant about indoor only policies for the most part. I have adopted 2 cats from my local shelter in the last 19 months and the adoption protocol was very easy. Fill out the paperwork, disclose the home situation and whether or not the cats will be indoor or outdoor or both. A signature stating that the animals will be returned to the shelter and not re-homed to others in the event they are not working out.

( Within reason, not years down the road. )

I believe in an indoor/outdoor lifestyle and have been “rejected” by several rescues inspite of the fact I can otherwise provide a great home. Have the time and the cash to maintain any pet in high standards, but, allowing the cats out on my secluded 5 acre property was a deal breaker for the rescues. Oh well, their loss ( actually the cats loss ). I agree with screening for good homes but I do not agree with a lot of these groups neurotic and extremist policies.

Some rescues go beyond reasonable responsibility in adopting out their animals and cross the line into extreme neuroticism and fananticism IMO.

Some good friends of mine adopted a dog from the local shelter about a year ago. They had to provide their vet’s name and number, so the shelter could contact the vet and make sure their other pets were up to date with shots, appointments, etc. Every person in the household had to go in to the shelter to be interviewed. It did seem a bit much.

I know if you are a renter, the shelters need to contact your landlord to make sure it’s ok that you get a pet. I could see the logic for that.

I once knew this woman who had a great job (she was actually my boss), beautiful house, single, widowed (or divorced-whatever). She wanted to adopt a kitten from the local no-kill shelter. They told her “Oh no, we don’t give kittens to people who work full time.” She had to lie and say that her next door neighbor, who was a college student, would go to her house every day and “babysit” the kitten so it wouldn’t be alone. Come on, now! They would pass up a great resource because the woman lived alone?

I understand all this is logical, but it does seem a bit excessive, and I can see that it would be easier to buy an animal than to adopt one and go through this process. For me, my cats all were strays and I got them through various means from them being homeless or unwanted.

I agree that they are making it harder and more expensive all the time. They have just come up with a new one where I live – now you have to pay to have your new pet chipped. Then there is the question of licensing your pet and paying for that. Why should a shelter pet have to have all of this stuff? I have one cat from a breeder and one that was born in the next door neighbor’s yard from a ferrel mother. Both are fat, healthy, loved and have a permanent home with me. Neither are licensed. One is chipped – but it was rather unnecessary since they never leave the house.

@jca Yes…the not wanting the pet to be alone is the most recent new “protocol” of a lot of these rescue groups. I can understand dogs to a degree as they are more socially inclined than cats, but cats…cats sleep about 15 hours a day most of the time anyway. I am around for my pets a lot and I am grateful I can be, but really? A cat is purr-fectly capable of spending some hours alone being more solitary and independent animals than dogs.

Having 2 cats solves the problem well even though, of course, they want human interaction too.

Seriously, the bottom line that a lot of people running these rescues are nut cases.

If I were to adopt from an animal shelter, and they contacted my vet, honestly, my cats are not up to date in that they don’t necessarily go to the vet every year on the dot. However, they’re fed, they’re taken care of, they’re happy, and they have each other in a clean house (cleaned by a professional), so I’m not the worst animal owner that there is! However I probably would not qualify for getting a pet from them….....

@jca Me either! I take my cats to the vet only if they’re sick – and cats don’t ever get sick. The last time Onslow was at the vet was to get fixed, 7 years ago. I must be doing something right – my cats live long, healthy, happy lives.

@Skaggfacemutt: Yes, and mine go outside, too! For not more than a few hours at a time, and they always sleep indoors, but still….....

Mine can’t go outside. I live in the city and I don’t want them playing chicken with the traffic. If I lived further out of town, though, I would love to let them go out.

@Skaggfacemutt
@jca

Yep, my cats are vaccinated, especially yearly for rabies which is crucial in my rural, wildlife zone, but, I too am middle of the road. I buy good food for them, and have, over the years spent thousands on my pets, including specialized care when needed, but, I don’t buy into extremist anything. Shit, when I was a kid all cats had to eat was crappy cheap Friskies and there was no leukemia, heartworm, dental care, etc.
We had cats that lived well into their teens with little medical intervention.

If one can afford all the extras, by all means, but as long as the animal is spayed/neutered, has a clean, safe, healthy and loving home, the basic vaccinations, a lot of these extras can be eliminated without guilt.

I don’t do extremist anything.

It was super easy for us to adopt our cats. Filled out some paper work, and that was it really. In and out in less than an hour.

To make sure the animals will be well-cared for. In their haste to do something good, they may create barriers to pet ownership by caring and well-intentioned prospective pet owners. I don’t understand the rule against full time employment myself. First, how can someone without full time employment afford to have a pet? Second, while I understand that some pets, like dogs, require lots of attention, why have the same rule for cats, which are more independent?

Really? You have to be a stay-at-home pet mom? That is just ridiculous! I guess there’s going to be a lot of animals going to the gas chamber, then.

I know…insane it is!
What’s next..adoption cut off by age? I turned 52 this year, for the first time ever in my life I contemplated the fact that my pets now, could, potentially, outlive me. My 2 new cats are almost 3 and 5 years old. I adopted older pets but still. If they live the average lifespan of 14–18 years I will be, minimum of 64–65 when they go.

Lots of people die in their 60’s, so what..should I not provide a home in my middle age because I might die? WTF?
I have really relaxed my idealism in my maturity and my attitude now is even if I give an animal a few years of the good life and for some reason had to rehome it or euthanize it for reasons of uncertainty, well, it has still enjoyed being loved, cage free, not dead, for all those extra months/ years. These rescue groups are trying to play God and control the uncontrollable.
Of course I believe in being reasonably sure that one can provide for a pet in the forseeable “future”, but, get real…things change and there are, quite simply, no guarantees in life.
Anything can happen, and there is no such thing as “forever.”