(Untitled)

[jennifwr]

 I went to inquire about a cat at the humane society today, a 7 year old cat named Oreo that I thought would be a good companion to Ghidrah. Not only was the whole process an insane and humiliating farce, the woman implied i was lying about my age, income, education level and living situation. She told me that it was "my word against hers" and that

Comments

[jennifwr]

Though I appreciate a solid screening process, I think sometimes SPCAs loose sight of what their goal should be and they actually impede their would-be adopters who are perfectly fine home with a umber of questions that they deem to be more important regarding the ins and outs of caring for pets in general. What makes me nervous about this process and the one your sister went through is that there are lots of easier ways to get a dog or a cat... ways that prop up terrible situations for animals, like pet stores, puppy mills and kitten breeding, and actively discourage people from rescuing animals.

I mean, if I found a cat on the street, and brought it into my house, there is no screening process. I have that cat now. If the humane society finds a cat on the street, they have that cat. So I go in and say "I'll pay the $100 to adopt the cat, and I'll fill out your forms, and do your interview and answer all the questions that you have, and they say to me "you are not good enough to adopt the cats we have here, in cages, that we are basically mandated to find homes for." And they make this decision based on personal factors and the whims and biases that anyone they have on staff can fall under the influence of. Yes, I am short and slight, but that does not make me lying about my age. Yes, I am pretty "straightforward" when I answer questions... but this does not make me a sneak.

We watched a rich looking mother and her daughter (who was tasked to "pick out the cutest one") go home with a cat, likely because she was employed full time, and appeared more wealthy and put together than my punk-ass in a hoodie, with a septum ring and a winter hat... but I would be 10 times more weary of purchasing a cat to be the plaything of children (since I have ended up with two cats in my life when the kids got bored, or the cat started peeing in their rooms) than I would an adult woman who works from home and wants an older companion cat with a bad eye, to keep her other older lonely cat company.

I don't think I'll try again. I don't know that I have it in me to face the lot of them again. She said I could adopt that day if I brought my Dad in with me, to co-sign, and to prove that I was employed... and if I take my cat Ghidrah to the vet and get proof that he has been vaccinated... but it feels like I'm saying "you were right to be suspicious of me" if I roll-over and accept her behaviour, and work around it. I'll look at the other cat rescue agencies, see if I can find one there.