Homechecks and related issues

[Dawn (DiddyDawn)]

I would agree with everything TS has said and personally I always follow gut instinct, if you get the slightest doubt, don't rehome.  A homecheck is a must to verify where they will be going and to get a general idea of the family taking them on and with my ferals I tend to try and get indoor homes with the view to them venturing outside once they settled down properly.  Always go for homes away from main roads and preferably in a rural place.  The problem with the ferals, when they are rehomed, they tend to revert back to being wild for a short time or start showing signs of nervousness again until they build the bond up again with another person.  I find it harder finding the perfect home for these than the normal moggies as they tend to be nervous around children etc until they get used to them.  I wouldn't recommend young children not because I would worry they would attack, but with them being nervous they tend to do better in quiet households initially until they get used to everything.  The other thing you've got to watch, sometimes, no matter how long you keep them in, when you let them out, it's not always definite that will come back inside again.  This is always a worry so you have to be prepared for this and make sure the new owners are as well.  It's a good idea to have a back up plan as to where they would sleep, would they be safe etc etc and whether the owner would continue feeding them even though they don't want to be indoors.  Some settle down, some don't!!  You've got my number if you want a chat when it's time to rehome.  Have you got any piccies of the gorgeous babes   

[Team Svartalfheims]

A few other things I ask:

Is the house/flat owned or rented, if rented are they allowed pets and I would also ask for landlords name, address and phone number to check that they were allowed pets.

How long will the cat be left alone for each day?

Does anyone in the house have allergies to pets, asthma etc?

If they were placed in a position where they couldn't keep the cat what would they do?

Have they ever had to give up an animal previously, if yes why?

If they haven't got any pets at the moment ask about their previous pets, you can judge a lot by how people speak about their pets.

What do they expect from a cat?

How do they plan to train/discipline the cat?

If they currently have pets would they be happy for you to contact their vet for a reference? If they say no alarm bells should ring!

[Hippykitty]

In the new year I'll be starting a campaign to rehome my ex ferals. I've been searching the net for info about homechecks, questions to ask potential owners etc ...... basically how to suss that someone is NOT a good cat slave (wouldn't take to vet when needed, or feed enough, or could mistreat deliberately).

I did come across this:

http://www.theanimalspirit.com/homecheck.html

and would be interested in what others thought.  :xmas: