Rehoming cats with young children?

[thekittensmittens]

you could try a visit to your local rescue perhaps? our Rspca lets you handle the cats to see how you get on etc so im sure if you explained the situation they may have a placid cat that doesnt mind a cuddle.
see if any initial contact has any adverse affect before moving onto further prolonged exposure maybe?.
I think you do need to be totally sure there isnt a cat allergy as it would be heartbreaking from all sides if it reacurred after a new cat had been introduced into the family again.
you could maybe think of spending a weekend in a cat family if at all possible

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

Bloomin silly doctors!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They dont get extra payments for allergy tests of course!

[west0405]

Well the doctors appointment went... same as usual 

General practice these days is to not do allergy tests as they are now "out of fashion"???????

They prefer a suspected allergy exclusion technique... in other words DO NOT GET A CAT and if you do don't come here for sympathy or medication 

Why are some doctors just not sympathetic, or am I being sensitive?! 

Oh well I think I will just purchase an allergy test online then go and visit my Dad and his wife for a few days, they have 2 cats + two neutered adopted strays 

Thanks for listening 

[Angiew]

in rugny your best bet is cats protection - they have a fairly new and very small branch there

[west0405]

Just fingers crossed for the allergy testing now

Lennon has several friends at our local park  Two cats in particular that live in the houses opposite. And they are both very gentle and loving 

Where can I get some information about becoming a fosterer?

[snarf]

in october we re-homed a 6month old kitten to a family with a daughter of about 5. she was lovely with him and my cats, very gentle and on the follow up check my coordinator said sweep barely left her side so adoption is possible. i think old or young cat depends on the child and house as well as the individual cat and i know some of our fosterers have young children.

im guessing that you tried petal cleanse with dylan, smudge & mojo but if you get good results with the skin tests and testing with Angie its probably worth using if you do decide to foster- to stop allergens building up and triggering. a friend of mine used to swell up and come out in hives within about 10mins of being in the same room as lucifer, with petal cleanse he could play with him and stroke him and it was just slightly itchy so quite a substantial difference!

 :hug:hopefully his allergies have improved

[west0405]

 

Yes fostering is something we have talked about before and would maybe consider as an introduction back to cats 

Would definitely pop over for a visit first Angie 

[Angiew]

Even before fostering, come and visit myself or Judith with Children and stay for an hour or so.....

[Guest]

If it gets to the point that your son's allergy does get better, could you not foster for a while, That way you would be taking the cat on a short term and could trial. It would be less of a risk to all involved.

If the fostering went well and you all fell in love with the cat and there were no allergy problems, you could consider adopting!

May somethhing to think of for the future. My sister was very allergic as a kid but as she got older she was amazingly "cured" like she built up a resistence as she got older

[west0405]

Reply x 2 due to laptop restarting for updates just as I was finishing first reply!     

Hello Helen  for your reply.

Yes I completely agree and I would only really start looking if Lennon had got some clear results. When he was initially tested I was told that due to him having a strong family history of quite severe cat allergies that they wouldn't test for that or dog  So the Consultant Dermatologist did blood tests for only the usual eczema culprits like cows milk, house dust mite, eggs, tree pollen etc. He was only referred to the hospital after I lied and said no nursery would take him without clear allergy results,(he doesn't go)  And also a very persuasive Daddy helped!

Over the last year or so his skin and allergies have improved. Only getting bad when he is poorly. He even has foods which contain milk and eggs. And I never made  any effort towards the house dust mite allergy, like teddy's in freezers, hot washing bedding, daily hoovering etc 
Most of his flare ups are controlled by doses of antihistamine, which he used to have to take twice a day.

Obviously this could be as you said only as he is in a pet free environment. Lennon's main concern now is his asthma which in his family is strongly connected to cats, (I know I really picked a great family for baby making hey!)

We have a doctors appointment on Tuesday 22nd March where I will see if I can convince them to do a skin prick test. If not I will be moving GPs completely. Mine just seem to be too busy to care and there are lots more larger family orientated ones locally.

I am preparing myself for the test results that I think will happen and then maybe I will have an answer at least... Just start the countdown till he leaves home 

[Tiggy's Mum]

I don't know about the young kids side of things but just wanted to comment on the allergy side of things. I know how gutted you were to have to rehome your boys and seeing the photos of your poor son's face it was completely understandable that they had to be rehomed 

I hope I'm not talking out of turn but could it be that you are feeling a false sense of security that your son's skin has vastly improved  and therefore he is not so 'allergic' to pets now as has been in a cat free environment for a while now?

My friend was in a similar situation to you, she had to rehome her beloved cat 6 years ago as it was affecting her eczema so badly that her skin was bleeding and she went to bed swathed in bandages to stop the intense itching/scratching. As she had been pet free for so long and her skin had improved she thought that it might be OK rehoming another cat. Sadly within a week her skin started to deteriorate and she had to ask the rescue to take the cat back. She was gutted for the cat that she adopted as she was a 'hard to home' cat so she was thrilled to be able to give her a home in the first place as she really deserved it.

I know how loved your boys were and it must have been devastating to have to rehome them and would hate to see you have to go through the same experience again

[west0405]

Hello everyone.
Just wondering what are peoples views on rehoming cats/kittens with small children. Mine are nearly 3 and 18months.
Obviously there are cats out there needing homes who are definitely not comfortable or suited to living with children. But what about the rest?

What age are most Rescues happy to rehome cats to?

Are older more placid cats better or playful younger cats/kittens?

Of course I have to ensure my little boys allergies are getting more manageable before I start to even consider looking 
(some of you will know about my Smudge,Dylan & Mojo being rehomed due to this   )

I have seen several rescues who have cats that are suitable for children but only aged 12 or over! Thats a long wait! 

Thanks peeps x