Advice for a friend on hooman baby and furkid?

[Celia & Marco]

Hello ladies and gents!

I received the email below from a friend of mine, can you please read over and see if you can offer any advice? I am going to see if I can get more information on the kitty.

Hey Celia,

I've noticed you're very networked when it comes to cats, so I thought I'd share with you my dilemma and see if you can offer any advice!

I've got a 3 (almost 4) year old cat that is generally good, but has a horrible habit of eating/chewing all plastic. I cannot leave out ziploc baggies, grocery bags, pretty ribbon on gifts, etc. He chews them and then throws up.

He doesn't care for Caleb, but tolerates him to a degree. Caleb has had a few minor bites (never broken skin).

I say all of this, because Jonathan and I have realized as our family is growing, it's becoming impossible to always keep plastic out of his reach and I can't keep cleaning throw up all the time. We've had several times that Caleb nearly got into messes that I didn't find fast enough.

I'm heartbroken to think of giving him away, but it will be too much with two small children to keep up with Tiger as well. I refuse to take him anywhere he could be put to sleep or abandon him. Do you know of anyone willing to take in a cat like this (preferably without kids)?

I'd love any help you can give me. I just don't know what my next step should be!

- Melissa

Oh, and I should mention he has asthma. He was recently diagnosed. He's been fine without medication, but it's very likely in another year or so he'll need treatment.

 

[SherylandClouseau]

Really trying to bite my tongue here so that I don't sound as harsh and angry as posts like this one make me..... But in the first place, keeping plastic out of reach is ALSO CRITICAL to the safety of the HUMAN child, so seriously how hard can that be?????? Human babies can & do choke/suffocate on pieces of plastic or bags left lying around. So that reason for getting rid of the cat is pure BS. They should be JUST as vigilant, if not more so, since they have a young child in the house!!!!

The second issue of cat versus child interactions can also be easily dealt with by controlling the child's access to the cat (and vice versa). No pet should ever be left alone with any young child, period. Easily dealt with by either confining the cat out of the child's bedroom and play areas and by supervising child/pet when they are in communal areas.

Now to the untreated asthma- as the mombean to a severely asthmatic GA, I know darn well that cat most likely does need medicated to prevent further damage/possible crisis down the road- to say/do otherwise is just absurd.

That being said, I am also pretty darn sure this friend has already made up their mind to dump the poor cat, no matter what the logic/facts say- so I will add my fervent prayer that he finds a good home with people who honor their commitments and that these people never own another pet as long as they live...

 

[maryjoandsmokie]

Could someone adopt the human child?

 

[Donna & Buddha]

Babies and pets can be challenging. But if she really loves and wants to keep her cat, she should be able to do both. Yes, it's a bit of work. Babies take an enormous amount of energy and toddlers do too. But after a couple of years she'll have two kids, and life will be easier.

Remind her that she loves her kitty and that kitties that go to shelters get killed. There are alternatives to plastic grocery bags -- reusable cloth bags, she can use washable containers instead of disposable ziplocs, and remove ribbons from packages. Yes ribbons might look pretty, but babies don't care about that.

My cats always tried to avoid little hoomans. A squirt of water whenever the cat approaches the baby might reinforce the message to keep its distance.

If she has a toddler and is pregnant, she's probably exhausted. Give her encouragement. I remember times when I've been discouraged and overwhelmed. Friendly words go a long way.