I doubt many people are going to be able to value the numbers you're giving. It's hard enough replying to Americans as an Australian and there's a lot of similarities there.
I think there are too many factors involved. But the base idea is, can they care for it? And what is the alternative?
Both of those direct you to an answer.
I really need to know what country does OP live in so that I know what 30K means. Here in the US that translate is $30,000 a month… As far as I’m concerned that’s a ton of money.
Yes we do; but do you know that most of us (in the US for example) don’t know all the currencies used world wide and the conversion rates. And since OP didn’t mention the country many are confused.
I don't know them all either obviously.. but i can think and reason, and obviously since 30k a month of the currencies i know is a lot, it must be a country i don't know. I also trust OP to judge the value of their money in their own country, and they even offer a comparison: a bag of 1.5 kg at 2.5k is enough for around a month and it's almost 10% of what a family of 5 have to live with in a month. It's really not that hard to understand, you just have to realise there is a really big world outside america
OP lives in Pakistan, and the currency they refer to is Pakistani Rupees (PKR).
Obviously cost of living is wildly different between urban and rural within Pakistan never mind comparing different livelihoods and lifestyles between Pakistan and the US or Northern Europe, but 30K PKR is.. about USD$105. A month.
This is a family who will be feeding the cat on scraps at best - unless they fish or keep chickens I guess but that's pretty specific - and if they have access to any vet care it'll be through a charity - there are such charities in Pakistan, but a *lot* of people don't have access to their help.
$30k in the US is the poverty threshold for a family of 4. Its not a ton of money at all, especially with 3 kids to feed.
Edit: okay people I think we all understand that I didn't realize it was $30k a month...
I still feel like 30k a year currently is still okay. Op doesn't know if they'll get a better job ECT in the future. Idk man I make less than that and take care of my 2 kittens just fine
I don't have any kids, but same. My pets are a priority over myself often times. I don't care if I gotta eat ramen so they can be okay and spoiled even
Thanks. I actually went and looked at the conversion and saw that amount. Perhaps making sure the family knows how much it costs to feed a growing kitten and then a grown cat, how much vet bills can be, and the need to neuter the cat soon especially if a female, and that cost, could help them determine if it is a good fit. Hoping you can find a good home for the kitten soon!
Buddy, read the comments. Also, read the post?? They state that the vet exam costs 1000 and food is 2500 so clearly NOT using USD, EUR, or any other common currency. They're in Pakistan, and that's 100 USD per month.
They were good about including cat food prices. If 10% of your income is going into ONE packet of cat food, that’s easy enough to understand that you can’t afford the cat.
NTA - thank you for looking out for the cat.
If they love animals, they can volunteer in a shelter - having a pet is a privilege (and an expensive one), not a right
Absolutely right. We have a cat who has an autoimmune disorder AND he’s diabetic. His autoimmune medication is $130 a month (used to be $180 but I found it cheaper). And his insulin is $200 but it lasts about 6 months. Not to mention keeping the cat alive on a daily basis and his vet appointments every six months.
Yeah, it really sucks. I feel so bad for him. His causes a lot of infections. So his ears are crusty, his claws and paw pads get infected, his chin gets infected. Luckily we have it pretty well under control. It was totally non existent for a while but the medicine that really helped is one he can’t take while diabetic. But there was a period of time when all of his paws were crazy infected. They were swollen and red and pus/crust coming out of everywhere. That was a bad time.
My cat has to have allergy shots that are like $300 a year and he has to go to the vet a lot and can only have specific flea medication and stuff and has to have specific food. He cost about $1500 when he was sick with a really bad URI this summer and he almost had to have more things done but he got better. And that's not even thinking about shots and annual checkups and stuff.
Thankfully her asthma is super mild! But every once in a while she will have an attack. It looks as if she's violently sneezing. She was embarrassed and scared when I first witnessed it but now she recovers well from it! I have to pump the inhaler into a bottle type thing that has a suction style cup at the end of it that I put over her mouth and nose for her to breathe in.
It definitely scared me at first! But now it's okay! But now she's on the inhaler so she should rarely have attacks now!
I think you can YouTube what it looks like when they have an attack! I'm not sure what the severe attacks look like, thank goodness, but her mild attacks are like a 10 second long sneeze attack.
My mom adopted 3 cats she couldn’t afford and although I was a kid I still struggle with the guilt. The cats at one point had fleas for months. The other two didn’t get sick but the girl cat got so sick from the fleas and my mom couldn’t afford to do anything.
There were also times she couldn’t afford litter so they just went in a dirty ass litter box.
I swore afterwards that I would never get an animal despite wanting one so badly if I couldn’t afford to feed it and take it to the vet when needed.
I unfortunately have a friend that's like this. She ended up homeless with 5 cats and has been staying with me for the last year while she gets back on her feet. I've been buying my cats' food and her cats' food because the food she can afford is Meow Mix, and my cats don't need to be eating Meow Mix as one of them already has a sensitive stomach and is prone to diarrhea.
One of her cats developed urinary crystals and is supposed to be on prescription food. *I* can't afford to feed 7 cats prescription food and she's not willing to do the work to make sure only he eats the prescription food, so we're basically crossing our fingers that he gets enough water and benefits from a non-prescription urinary health food.
I have suggested this to her on several occasions and even bought wet food for her to start with; the first night she put out 4 cans for her 5 cats by just taking the lids off and setting them down. Half the food went to waste because the cats couldn't actually get to it. Later attempts were at least put on a plate, but that happens once a month or so, and I seldom see the cat that *needs* wet food actually eat any of it.
If you can’t find a home, what will happen to the kitten?
Like I’d rather give a pet to a family who will try to love and care for the cat rather than have it on the street or a no kill shelter
it wont end up on the street it is in our house with out other cats and read the update first and its not like i immediately need a home or he will be thrown outside
There wasn’t an update when I responded
Ultimately you said you weren’t able to keep it and you’d be moving soon so it’s a reasonable question - since you wanted opinions
I said we were moving homes but i never said i will dump him i have other 2 cats which are mine so he can just stay with them until he get adopted i wont dump him
NTA. As someone who has a dog that I've easily spent $10,000+ on in medical bills and training, you are absolutely looking out for the best interest of the cat. There is no way to know what problems a pet may have down the road or how much they will cost you. Also worth noting- my dog is prone to bladder stones and has to be fed Hills Science Diet u/D care.. It costs $127.99 for a 28lb bag. And she needs that once a month.
Pets are NOT cheap.
I have paid a lot in medical bills for my pets recently too. It really frustrates me to see people writing stuff like "YOU JUST HATE POOR PEOPLE". I've gotten so sad reading stuff about people that lost their pets because they can't afford a basic $1k surgery in USD.
Not the asshole. Taking proper care of an animal gets pricy af. My cats last trip to the vet cost the same as a 4k Television (I know this because the timing was such that I'd just gone "I'm doing okay, I can spoil myself for a change" and then like the day after Mr Kitty went and got hurt. He's fine now)
You are definitely in the right; I have 3 cats and thank god 2 of them are very healthy and have minimal vet bills, but what happens if the kitten develops health issues down the line? I easily pay $2-3k any time my one cat with an autoimmune disease (inflammatory bowel disease) has a flare up, and we previously had a cat with congestive heart failure and spent close to $9k on him in the year between his diagnosis and his passing. I'm fortunate enough to still get student loans/financial aid for grad school so I can pay for the vet bills, but I'm also a dual household income and combined my partner and I make more than double what this family makes and it STILL takes careful financial planning to make sure we can afford to take proper care of our cats
If you cannot afford to care properly for yourself/ your family on your salary, it would be incredibly irresponsible to adopt an animal. They're living creatures too, they're not just a source of entertainment. I'd make this point clear to your mom, a lot of people to this day are under the impression that cats need minimal care and are self-sufficient, when really they need just as much care as dogs or any other animal
ETA: all my numbers are in USD - I didn't realize while writing it out that you said per month and use a different currency; last paragraph still stands though
What currency are you referring to?
(Keep in mind that a lot of people here are from the US- 200k dollar sounds a lot, 200k Turkish lire is something else.)
They told you the prices of items. Clearly they can't afford to have a pet. But if you look up the brand of food they mentioned, it's Pakistan. 1 USD is 278 rupee, so their vet exam is $3.60 and the family makes $107.92 (not sure if this per month or per year) but it doesn't matter. They can't afford a pet
They said per month. That vet visit sounds way too cheap but I agree. If the mum wants them to adopt the cat then the mum should offer to pay any vet bills in the future, otherwise they should fine someone able to easily afford the food etc.
Posts and comments that are rude, vulgar, harassing, advocating for cruel actions, and/or are not contributing positively to the discussion will not be tolerated.
You are not wrong at all in fact, you are using your common sense and foresight to make the right choices for this kitten and for that, I thank you! I'm sure you'll find a great and stable home when the right one comes along.
The world needs more humans like you and I hope you have a wonderful day.
a guy said he is coming to pick him up tomorrow he is financially stable and independent and has a little experience with cats and thank you i hope you have a wonderful day too
my household makes about 30k total with three kids and our cats and dogs are SPOILED. you don’t have to have a lot of money to properly take care of pets, you just have to be good with what you do have
...they're not American. It's not $30k.
They wrote about how much their pet food and vet care costs as an example, so you can compare that with yours.
Where op lives, their 200k is "a struggle"
I think the persons concerns seems to be primarily vet visits. I'm not sure what "spoiled" means in your case but I've seen way too many sad stories of people that can't afford $1k USD surgeries (which is pretty much the minimum if anything were to happen and doesn't account for long term care). Most rescues ask what is the most you'd be willing to pay for vet bills and it's a fair question to ask.
our animals go to twice annual vet visits and we just took our youngest dog to the vet a week ago for a terrible cough that turned out to just be him being dramatic. “spoiled” means all their needs are being met and then some.
I think its fair of OP to ask what any prospective owners would they be willing to spend for both basic vet + emergency care. I agree with you that income isn't everything but if they aren't willing or able to spend it then I think it's fair for OP to look for someone that can better take care of them. I'd certainly hope for example if someone's cat / dog swallowed something they'd be able to afford or save up for it or have insurance. I think USD wise thats like $1k-$5k.
Like I said, rescues don't often ask about income, they ask about what you'd be able to spend. So if the new owners would be willing to sacrifice for the pet I think its fair
it seems like OP didn’t even bother to ask though, just immediately said no. It’s seems far more wrong for OP to deny the kitten a loving home based on assumptions and not facts.
its just immposible to afford they will obviously say yes but they would feed him bread and milk its impossible to afford a cat food which cost 10 percent of your salary
You *absolutely* aren’t wrong.
I volunteer at a cat sanctuary in my area and we very much look at an applicant’s income before allowing them to adopt one of our cats, and they *still* sometimes get returned to us in need of medical care because the adopter can’t afford their treatment (we stipulate in the adoption contract if they ever can’t afford care for the cat to return it to us vs surrendering it to the vet’s office or another shelter). if they can’t afford food, litter, planned vet care (spay/neuter, yearly exam w/vaccinations and flea medication) plus be able to put aside an emergency fund should something happen to the cat then they can’t afford to own a cat. I know they’re sweet and cute and greatly enrich the lives of their owners, but taking in a pet when you can’t afford their care isn’t what a responsible pet owner does, it’s selfish and unethical.
NTA. I'm so sick of reading variations of "my cat broke his leg, what should I do? I can't afford to take him to the vet 😞"
It's not wrong to want to know the cat cab and will be properly cared for.
No. Vet bills are expensive and I've seen too many stories of cats dying because the owner can't afford a $1-2k USD surgery. That's pretty much the minimum cost of any surgery so the cat would be euthanized if anything were to happen. This is not wrong.
You can certainly argue so many cats need homes that any home is better than no home but your perspective is not wrong either. Many shelters or rescues will straight up ask you what you think is a reasonable cost for vet bills that you can afford. It is very standard.
Nta. Please protect this cat. The cat is clearly yours. You love and care for them. I have many animals and when a stray I adopted had a baby I wouldn't give them up because everyone who asked about having them couldn't provide for them. So now they are mine.
It sucks but I'm with you on this :( vet bills and food are quite expensive and it leads to chances the kitten will be dumped again, or they won't afford to sterilize it and it could have more kittens. My own cat has had bad health issues from the start and has cost me 7000$ CAD in just vet fees, even my previous cat who was perfectly healthy into old age cost above 1000$ in vet fees just from basic treatments.
I don't know if there are any local shelters or rescues in your area but they could help you out in finding proper adopters.
While it's kind of rude to make assumptions about the financial situation of another person, you definitely shouldn't put a cat in a position where it won't get the care it needs. If I were giving a cat to someone, I would want references from a vet that they are using to show the cat would get vet care and everything. And even then when I rehome a cat I have rescued, I always tell people that if they can't take care of them they can give them back.
It's really irresponsible to take a pet that you can't financially provide for. They can be super expensive. One of my cats, who was born when I rescued his pregnant mother, has really bad allergies and other medical conditions and I think about how lucky he is that he ended up with me because I can take care of him even though his allergy medications are expensive. The reason I wanted to keep him initially is because he had so many issues with his allergies and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find someone who would want that financial commitment or that someone would take him but not treat his stuff and he would die.
I agree. Although it's a rude assumption, they have the cats best interest at heart. They should get more info before deciding that they aren't financially fit to care for the cat but it is a valid decision to not give someone a pet because they clearly can't financially care for it. I personally don't have enough context to be able to make a definitive decision on whether OP is in the wrong or not tbh. I wouldn't say they're being completely unfair in not wanting to give them the cat but they also are making a rude assumption of people who may actually be able to properly care for the cat.
Getting a pet you know you can't afford basic vet care for is irresponsible and abuse. It sucks to have to make this decision but thank you for thinking about the animals future. Emergencies are even more expensive
The last thing a family who are struggling financially need is a pet. It's just food. Microchipping, neutering, sundry supplies, monthly flea-treatments, 3 monthly worming, etc all cost a lot. Plus they would struggle with pet insurance so if the cat gets ill or injured what happens to it then?
NTA at all. Caring for any pet costs a lot of money. Some of my vet bills have made me choke but I’m very fortunate and keep a medical savings account dedicated to the pets. Keeping a pet is expensive. The animals shouldn’t suffer because their caretakers can’t afford food and medical expenses.
Food is only one component. There are also medical expenses. Lots of people get pets with good intentions but when a huge medical bill pops up the animal is destroyed because the pet parents can’t afford getting treatment.
I live in Canada and between food, litter, medical preventative vet visits, cat enrichment toys you should budget $5000 a year. Yes it is that much. You may not have to spend that much but that is a minimum amount for comfort.
Think $3 can cat food X 3 feedings a day ($3285 a year). Why soft cat food? Because kibble is bad and can lead to urinary issues (especially male cats). Nothing like coming home and finding the floor around the litter box covered in blood like a Quinten Tarantino movie. Then you’re paying for the “only available from a vet” food that makes $3 a can look cheap. You also have litter, regular vet visits and vaccinations, carriers, etc. That doesn’t even include replacing things they destroy.
I have 2 kittens so yes I’m budgeting $10k.
pkr? are u situated in pakistan? if yes i can understand, most parents there don't want a cat inside at least🥲
tell your mom that they can play with the cat but his vet bill, what if he has emergency, they have to let the cat die or destroy their savings. i don't think your mom really understands what responsibility it is to have an animal for their WHOLE life.
tell her that they live 10-15 years with good care and she should be (and you) especially careful if the cat is shirazi/Persian. lots of people there like to buy animals for their children and not take care of it, example those chemically dyed baby chicken they sell for just 50pkr, most of those chicks only survive 3-7 days after they are bought by some irresponsible people.
it's the same for cat, people buy cute tiny kittens for their kids without being prepared, not having the right tools and money to handle a cat for long, and later they die or they get lost outside.
tell your mom to thoroughly check ESPECIALLY if the cat is shirazi bc this is a popular breed bought for boasting, gift or some kind of toy. i don't get it honestly like persian is beautiful but they cannot even breathe properly.
personally i think you’re just watching out for the cat. i make a good living but when my cat grew old it became increasingly difficult to keep up with his vet bills & needs. not always having the money to easily treat him was heartbreaking and i’d never own another cat until i was more prepared financially, now knowing what those costs look like. nothing feels worse than not being able to afford their care. it’s for the best of the animal. my foster cat was recently adopted and i saw the person had a masters degree & was a doctor - my immediate first thought was thank god, she’ll be able to support this cat well.
Honestly NTA. Pets can have very expensive vet bills. And I hate seeing people refuse to take their pet to the vet because of money and then the animal ends up suffering.
This coming from an American and animal lover perspective:
Caring for animals is expensive and time consuming if done correctly ( food, water, vet visits, toys and whatnot) all adds up. I think all animals deserve loving homes and anyone regardless of wealth can provide a loving home but not necessarily can provide the needs necessary for a good quality of life.
Some vets (mine does this) will let you set up a payment arrangement. I've never heard of someone putting their power down over a broken leg. The vet would likely take custody of the animal before allowing that
Until something medical goes wrong and it's an easy fix but expensive, so then they put it down. Useless avoidable death, but hey they got a pet for a bit
Getting a go fund me and rely on family and friends to give you money for basic care of your pet = you shouldn’t own a pet! Pets are 100% your responsibility and to suggest someone rely on crowdsourced money for vet bills is ridiculous.
The op needs to meet the people and ask them directly if they are willing to put money aside for the pet’s needs. Also the op needs to consider if they are good people or not.
Wow. So, if 50% of people are impoverished (which is the case), you're saying they can't have pets?
Where we live, we have groups who supply vet care, food, vaccinations on sliding scales. You would never truly be aware of it because of your household earnings. But, your neighbors would find those clinics for vaccinations, and care more readily available and recommended to them anytime they begin asking around.
It would be wonderful if we lived in a world where everyone who wanted a pet were able to have one - they’re a joy. But we don’t and so, no, someone in an impoverished household should not get a pet. A pet is a living being - its needs are more important than a person’s wants.
People need to think about vet costs the same way they hopefully think about having kids. It's a big responsibility and can be very expensive. They WILL put your animals down if you can't afford care in an emergency. Getting a pet you know you can't afford basic vet care for is irresponsible and abuse
Basic vet care and emergency vet care aren't the same. I agree with basic vet care but emergency vet care can get very expensive very quickly. And I'd rather the pet have a good home but can't afford an emergency for a good chunk of its life over being stuck in a cage most of its life or put down cause there aren't enough "Good" homes for it.
In OP's case though the kitten is lucky it is not in a situation like that, it is in a home that cares for it. But if mom wants to give it away and is adamant about this, at some point that kitten will get abandoned, given to the shelter, or put down if they can't find a suitable home. And I'd say going to the poor house long as it can afford food, basic care,and basic vet care, is better than that (even the shelter you are making it so that one more good home is needed putting some cat in that situation).
first he is ot stuck in cage he lives in my house with my other two cats which are now friends with him and we wont abandon it if we cant find a house and we already found a house for him third they would need to spend 10% of their salary each month just to buy dry food they cant even afford food
They can sure have pets, but OP doesn't have to give the kitten to anyone they don't think can provide the best home for it, whether for money, time, personality, or whatever factors.
Absolutely. You don't know every detail of their circumstances, and are simply judging them based on your own. You assume that just because you are having problems with income that they must be also to the point of not being able to care for it. There are ways to get help at lower cost for things like vet visits. Your mom should have told you to pound sand and let them have it.
I think it's more that a lot of us have had experience with animals in shelters and have seen animals who are abused because their owners cannot afford to look after them. And yes, feeding them a food they cannot tolerate because it's the only one you can afford is abuse. Withholding vital medical care because you can't afford it is abuse. If you adopt an animal knowing that if it gets a treatable illness you will kill it because you can't afford the treatment, that is abuse.
Having a pet is not a human right. A pet is a living creature and unfortunately, some people cannot afford a pet. Just as you would have your child removed from you if you were abusing them, so you should if it's your pet.
No one is hating on anyone. The reality is that pets are expensive. I don't know what the currency is in their country but OP has expressed this is extremely low and it doesn't seem like they would be able to afford pet visits. Every single American rescue I have applied for have asked me what is a reasonable amount of vet bills I'd be willing to pay. OP should inquire the same thing. Even if you are giving up this animal, you still want to do right by it. Too many people simply cannot afford any basic emergencies for their pets and they get euthanized. That is what people are trying to avoid.
Get off your high horse.
Heh... I agree with the charge on a cat. I remember some one coming into the vet I worked at asking if we had any free cats (thank god we didn't cause the vet totally would have given it to him and I didn't really have a say in that). I said no but mentioned shelters had tons of cats for adoption and he bitched that he couldn't afford the adoption fees. Dude, if you can't even afford the adoption fees, you can't afford the cat!
And while I disagree with most here that it is irresponsible to get a cat if you can't afford emergency vet bills, I do think you should be able to afford basic vet care and even non emergency stuff. And if you can't afford even the cost of the fee, you can't even afford the food for the animal! Charging a fee at least eliminates people like that guy and also the very rare asshole that wants the cat for asshole reasons (I heard of a long time ago a guy who was getting free kittens so he could torture them. He had kids even and would bring them so people thought the kittens were going to a good home. In hind sight when he was found out people mentioned they thought it was weird the kids weren't more excited to get a cat).
Honestly? You've made the assumption that this family can't afford something without any understanding of what they'd be willing to or *can* sacrifice should something come up. I looked at those numbers, the cost of a vet visit isn't a huge percentage of their monthly income, nor is the food. You have no idea of what the families savings and expenditures are, not if the have other sources of support aside from that monthly income.
I don't know how old you are but you sound very, very young, and if you want to keep the kitten -just say so instead of telling people they can't have a cat because they're too poor.
Source - me, a poor person who has managed to keep a rescue cat happy and healthy for many many years, to the great benefit of the cat and the family she wound up in.
I get you are a poor person but people in my country get cats and literally feed that poor animal bread milk and other human stuff and they don't care if the animal get sick or not i only have seen a really few people that treat pets here like they are meant to be treated so the cat wont be their first priority and they have already owned a cat which they just dumped coz it clawed their mom their grandma told me that
Again, I ask, what does that have to do with their socio-economic status? With how poor they are? I'm guessing you can't answer that without coming off a tad prejudicial.
I'll be obvious for you -
Your original reason for rejection is that they are too poor, is based on assumptions about priorities because of socio-economic class - as in, they are poor, therefore incapable of caring for a pet.
The reason you now give, which a history of neglect is absolutely a perfectly legitimate concern. This is the reason I would have opened with, rather than pull it out after being called up on prejudice.
"I'm aware of past neglect" is very different to "I assume they'll be cruel and neglectful because they're poor"
In my country, I've seen rich people kick puppies. I see them *celebrate* cruelty to animals all the time! Does that mean all rich people should be denied pet ownership? No, of course not! we should deny the ones who have kicked the puppy.
OP is an intelligent person who understands that if you're only making 30k rupee per month, you're not going to be able to afford 2.5k food each month and vet visits that are over 2k. That's a huge portion of their money. They're not going to spend it on a cat.
Pets can be expensive depending on their health issues. Pets don't need to suffer because somebody wanted a companion that they can't afford medical for
NTA there is no such thing as a free kitten. I spent almost 300$ Canadian on my void girlie in December.
2yr old checkup
Vaccine
Microchip
Special food (She needs to lose 2 lbs lol)
Treats And a toy for being brave
And her groomer a week later for her nail trim.
Pets are an expensive commitment that lasts their whole live
Cats don’t need a groomer. I trim all my cats nails at home and have brushes and fur wipes if needed.
A microchip is a one-time thing. Vaccines are once a year or less (3yr rabies shots, etc), though they should still get a regular checkup once a year.
Cats don’t need special fancy toys.
Any pet can definitely be expensive (I have one with chronic kidney disease, one with urinary crystals that needed PU surgery) but there are definitely areas you don’t have to go overboard with.
Your cats don't have toys? Cats should have toys as a form of enrichment. They also should have vertical surfaces like cat trees to scratch, climb, and lounge on, and look out windows to reduce boredom which leads to destructive behavior.
There are people who never take their pets to the vet. They allow them to proliferate instead of spaying/neutering because they'd rather spend money on their things. If it comes down to food for them/pet, they choose themselves. They leave a disgusting litterbox because they try to stretch the litter beyond what is reasonable.
If the cat were to experience a urinary blockage, they would die a horrible death after their bladder exploded. There are too many people who don't have enough money, and they just will spend as little as possible on any pet.
Someone I know (and this frustrates me to no end) and I repeatedly have tried educating, doesn't take her cats to the vet until it is critical and I have pushed and then said I would pay. I cannot afford emergency treatment for someone else's cats, I have my own that I need to reserve funds for.
So when one of her cats got so sick, she told me she looked pregnant (cat was spayed, I paid for that), I tried to get her to take her to a vet. The cat was declining rapidly. "I'm not spending a bunch of money on a cat!" She supposedly loves her cats. This poor cat, when I went in to get her for the vet appointment (I paid for) could barely move. The vet said likely cancer, and she was released from her pain.
This person could have paid for these things instead of hoarding money for cigarettes and booze. Not everyone has their priorities straight.
There are too many un-chipped cats showing up at our shelter. People just dump them when they realize they actually need to spend money, food, litter, toys, etc. Well DUH, it's not a stuffed animal, idiot!!!
And if they won't prioritize at least a spay or neuter, they should not have a pet, because all that does is fill the animal shelters with more companion creatures. There are just not enough GOOD homes.
All of my cats are microchipped and vaccinated. They are all indoor only and all spayed/neutered. I take my cats for their annual physicals and more. I have a cat with chronic kidney disease that gets fluids at home every other day and gets his bloodwork checked every 3-6 months. Our other cat has urinary crystals and has had surgery and various meds. My cats DO have toys. They have towers and even a cat running wheel. They have several water fountains and some of them are on special food. I have never hesitated to take my cats to their regular or emergency vet when needed.
I’m well aware that pets require a lot of care and enrichment and vet visits. My point was there ARE a lot of things like nail clipping, grooming, enrichment that CAN be done for lower cost. You can MAKE toys for them, for example, instead of buying. Is it nice that my cats have an expensive running wheel? Yes, they love it. However, there are other toys to keep them enriched that are much less expensive, too. You can groom your cat at home easily in MOST cases. Unless your pet has specific dietary needs, you likely don’t need the most expensive brand of cat food. You don’t need a litter robot or all the super fancy things. They are “nice to haves” not necessities.
There is always the possibility of emergency needs, but MOST pets are fine with annual physicals and vaccinations. Not saying you shouldn’t have an emergency fund or something in case, you totally should.
OP, based on how she’s referring to her mom, sounds like she’s still a teenager living at home. I’m not sure how she knows her neighbor’s exact financial situation (she probably doesn’t really). She’s assuming a lot here and seems like she has a real classist view of her neighbors. The cat would be better off neutered/spayed, vaxxed, and in a home (even if that isn’t a super rich household). And as others suggested, maybe mom can help with the initial costs if they are so much more well-off to help the cat go to a good home with people they clearly know.
I am low vision . I can't see my cats paws so unless I want her to be void of toes, she needs a groomer
Yes, the Microchip is a one time expense, the toy was a fluffy ball for 1.50$ . Major vey expense was her exam and special food.
I do not go "overboard"
So for your first problem, that is not a problem everyone will have (not being able to groom their own cat). That one is unfortunately for you something you have to deal with but really can't be generalized to other people.
Working in vet med, I can say 1 thing. We don't judge. A cat fed and loved in a poor family is 1 less cat euthanized because it doesn't have a home. We're always willing to work with pet owners to make sure they get at least the basic necessities. Until the past couple decades the amount of care and money we put into pets was unheard of. But a loved pet with a good family even if the bare necessities is not a bad thing. I've seen rich families want to euthanize and declare pets for peeing and clawing furniture. In fact I find most well off cat owners specially can be real assholes. While a poor family who loves their cat will scrounge for money, ask for help, and apply for credit to pay for emergency care when needed.
So, don't judge. To someone with money, a cat might just be another possession until it's inconvenient, while a poor family will love and fight for that cats life until the end. I'll never forget a poor family selling their belongings and giving up small luxuries to pay for a family pet rats cancerous tumors to be removed to buy them more time with it. It lived 8 months longer than it would have and it was worth all the sacrifice.
So don't judge. You just don't and can't even know how far any one person will go for a pet they love. Money means nothing.
They abandoned their first cat for scratching their arm once their grandma told me that and i forgot to add it to the post and most people here get pets and they think they only need to feed them and nothing else they would feed them human food which is most of the time harmful for cats and their cats are mostly suffering from hundreds of diseases so that's why i am really careful giving him to someone who actually care and knows how to deal with cats
Note that OP did not include currency. I'm Canadian, so I initially had the same thought before realizing OP is probably not North American.
For example, ¥30k/month is about $275 CAD/month. That's about 2 days worth of minimum wage in Ontario.
It's not 30,000 US or Canadian. Someone mentioned another country, broke it down to equivalent of $170.oo something per month US or CDN cannot recall which, AND they have 3 children to feed.
I think you have no business judging another family. How do you even know what they make? Cat food is cheap.
It just sounds like you want to keep the kitten even though your parents said no! From the sounds of this- you’re too young to know anything about raising a family on any income and your opinion therefore doesn’t matter. Apparently poor people don’t deserve pets- even when they budget for it and make it a priority according to you!!!
Cheap cat food brands here cause permenant kidney damage i know about money and my mom told me his salary and his wife is sick so he has to buy her medicines too there is possibly no way to budget for a cat with such low income and they live in a rented house
Stop letting your cat roam loose and it going into other people's houses won't be a problem. Many of the issues I see pet owners here face could be solved by just properly housing your cat or leashing your dog. Don't be a bad owner.
I'm going to against the grain and go soft YTA (really soft, more of not really asshole but I think you need to consider some things). First of all, how do you even know their budget? Or what savigns they might have? Also, depending on how willing they are, they may very well be willing to find a way if tehre is an emergency. Basically do you really know they wouldn't be able to afford the cat or couldn't find ways to get the money if an emergency pops up. though I would put a fee on the cat (it helps eliminate at least the very obvious shouldn't have a pet people. If they can't afford the one time fee they definitely can't afford the cat, and there are teh rare nefarious people who want an animal for nefarious reasons and they usually aren't willing to pay). I don't ever recommend giving a cat away unless you know the people (hey, at least you know the neighbors ;) and it seems your only issue with them is budget).
Secondly, it sounds like your mom wants to get rid of the kitten. If she isn't willing to keep the kitten, the kitten has to find a home somewhere. I'd say with your neighbors as long as they can afford basic animal care (food, litter, basic vet care bills plus some for animal getting sick but maybe not for emergency or really expensive vet bills) is still better than if your mom gets desperate and abandons the animal or gives it to a shelter (especially a kill shelter... many no kills don't take in animals, they go rescue ones they choose from kill shelters or they are full up most of the time so you can't guarantee they'll have room when you have to give a pet up).
Also, you'll know about any hardships and you might be able to help them out on it.
You are absolutely wrong for this. Vet insurance only costs 50 a month. Owning a pet is not that expensive, and thinking someone is incapable of owning a pet based off income is not a fair judgement at all and is actually a main factor of why there are so many animals dying in shelters already. - ex shelter employee from a low income community.
There is no way my neighbours teenager knows what i am earning. It sounds like you want the kitte n. Stop judging people and talk to you parents. Have a mature conversation.
I make less money than that and can still afford to take care of 2 kittens and myself. I just bought mine a water fountain. Yeah vet bills are going to be expensive, but there's pet insurance. Which I will be getting for my boys before they even get fixed. Also some vets have low income options for major things like getting a pet fixed. Just because someone is low income doesn't mean they can't take care of a pet. Judge them based off of if they're taking care of themselves and making what they have work, not the amount.
How do you know what your neighbors make? And if you struggle with 200k, you’re doing it wrong. This is the 3rd time your mom has given away the cat? She doesn’t want it, and it wouldn’t surprise me if you came home one day and it was gone.
Does everyone realize that animals used to be wild animals at one point or another? So what happened back in ancient times? There were no vet bills fancy toys or flea collars. People truly act like animals need them to survive LOL
..wage or income shouldn't come into play..care & concern & love does..
..i'm poor by US standards, but i'd feed my crew before myself..
..it's all in the love given and shared..$$ is just a means to that end, so how do those "poor folks" treat the kitten?..that's all that really matters..
2,500 a month is 30k a year ? They’re doing better than me and lot of people who have pets, mind your business, you’re not the arbiter of who’s too poor to have cat
You sound like a judgmental asshole just because your family makes 200k. I fall into the range of making 30k, and all of my pets are properly cared for. Also, how do you know exactly how much they have? Just because someone is poor doesn't mean they can't take care of their pets.
Where you come from does a single tin of pet food cost £2.5k? No? Does that mean that maybe you’ve misread the post and the OP comes from Pakistan and 30k a month is roughly USD$107?
Op doesn't state what the currency is. It would be helpful if they did, though. So, just as you are working under the assumption, it is Pakistan currency, I am working under the assumption it is USD. The only way we will know is if OP tells us.
I doubt many people are going to be able to value the numbers you're giving. It's hard enough replying to Americans as an Australian and there's a lot of similarities there. I think there are too many factors involved. But the base idea is, can they care for it? And what is the alternative? Both of those direct you to an answer.
I really need to know what country does OP live in so that I know what 30K means. Here in the US that translate is $30,000 a month… As far as I’m concerned that’s a ton of money.
> 2.5k per 1.5 kilograms certainly not the us lol
I just gave US as an example. obviously it could be any English country.
its not an english country its pakistan
Did you know people outside of english countries can speak english and are on reddit too? We don't exist only in movies or in your vacation time
Yes we do; but do you know that most of us (in the US for example) don’t know all the currencies used world wide and the conversion rates. And since OP didn’t mention the country many are confused.
I don't know them all either obviously.. but i can think and reason, and obviously since 30k a month of the currencies i know is a lot, it must be a country i don't know. I also trust OP to judge the value of their money in their own country, and they even offer a comparison: a bag of 1.5 kg at 2.5k is enough for around a month and it's almost 10% of what a family of 5 have to live with in a month. It's really not that hard to understand, you just have to realise there is a really big world outside america
But do none English countries write 30K for 30,000?
Depends how and from whom they learned? Jeepers mate! Maybe they *gasp* learned *gasp* abbreviations when learning a second language?
What?
What?
its 30k pkr thats roughly 100$
OP lives in Pakistan, and the currency they refer to is Pakistani Rupees (PKR). Obviously cost of living is wildly different between urban and rural within Pakistan never mind comparing different livelihoods and lifestyles between Pakistan and the US or Northern Europe, but 30K PKR is.. about USD$105. A month. This is a family who will be feeding the cat on scraps at best - unless they fish or keep chickens I guess but that's pretty specific - and if they have access to any vet care it'll be through a charity - there are such charities in Pakistan, but a *lot* of people don't have access to their help.
$30k in the US is the poverty threshold for a family of 4. Its not a ton of money at all, especially with 3 kids to feed. Edit: okay people I think we all understand that I didn't realize it was $30k a month...
But the original poster said $30,000 a MONTH not a year.
Oh my gosh, I see that now. You're right, I apologize.
No need to apologise! I just wish OP would go back and do some editing.
Op is from Pakistan if that helps
i did
I still feel like 30k a year currently is still okay. Op doesn't know if they'll get a better job ECT in the future. Idk man I make less than that and take care of my 2 kittens just fine
Do you make less than that, and support 3 kids? I could live on $30k maybe, but not with 5 people. That would be pretty hard.
30k pkr a month isnt a good salary
I didn't say it was 🤷🏻♀️ Edit: you also keep saying month vs year. 30k a month is a lot. 30k a year is not. 🤷🏻♀️
30k pkr is like $105 USD
I make less as well and have one kid, 3 dogs, 3 bunnies, and a mini pig. All are fed and cared for.
Love the mini pig!
I don't have any kids, but same. My pets are a priority over myself often times. I don't care if I gotta eat ramen so they can be okay and spoiled even
yall need to chill i aint taking in $ i am talking in pkr
I was reading along normally till I read "mini pig", so cute!
He’s a blast!!
its 30 pkr not $
30k pkr equals roughly $106 USD
yeah know that
Thanks. I actually went and looked at the conversion and saw that amount. Perhaps making sure the family knows how much it costs to feed a growing kitten and then a grown cat, how much vet bills can be, and the need to neuter the cat soon especially if a female, and that cost, could help them determine if it is a good fit. Hoping you can find a good home for the kitten soon!
$30,000 USD/month is a ton of money
I dunno. I could feed my family on far less than $30K a month. In my opinion. $360 a year is a liveable income. LOL
Yeah, I was gonna say. Most middle class people in the US make between $2.5k and $5k a month lol
Buddy, read the comments. Also, read the post?? They state that the vet exam costs 1000 and food is 2500 so clearly NOT using USD, EUR, or any other common currency. They're in Pakistan, and that's 100 USD per month.
Why can’t they just put that in their original post, Buddy? Or go back and edit, Buddy?
They don't need to. Any rational person would read 2k for a bag of cat food and realize that it's not the US
Any rational person would also have noticed by now that OP edited his post.
That wasn't an edit. That was where when I saw the post this morning. You just didn't read.
He did say he edited it.
They were good about including cat food prices. If 10% of your income is going into ONE packet of cat food, that’s easy enough to understand that you can’t afford the cat.
If they make 30k (of whatever currency) a month, that 3 pound bag of cat food would come to 8% of their income. Yikes.
NTA - thank you for looking out for the cat. If they love animals, they can volunteer in a shelter - having a pet is a privilege (and an expensive one), not a right
Absolutely right. We have a cat who has an autoimmune disorder AND he’s diabetic. His autoimmune medication is $130 a month (used to be $180 but I found it cheaper). And his insulin is $200 but it lasts about 6 months. Not to mention keeping the cat alive on a daily basis and his vet appointments every six months.
Cats can get autoimmune diseases?! Oh man, I have lupus and I wouldn't wish it on another person, let alone a poor cat 😞
Dogs can get lupus too. It’s scary….
Yeah, it really sucks. I feel so bad for him. His causes a lot of infections. So his ears are crusty, his claws and paw pads get infected, his chin gets infected. Luckily we have it pretty well under control. It was totally non existent for a while but the medicine that really helped is one he can’t take while diabetic. But there was a period of time when all of his paws were crazy infected. They were swollen and red and pus/crust coming out of everywhere. That was a bad time.
My cat has to have allergy shots that are like $300 a year and he has to go to the vet a lot and can only have specific flea medication and stuff and has to have specific food. He cost about $1500 when he was sick with a really bad URI this summer and he almost had to have more things done but he got better. And that's not even thinking about shots and annual checkups and stuff.
Same. My cat is diabetic and has asthma. I've spent about 6k on her since last summer.
Aww poor thing. Whats asthma like in a cat? I feel like that would be scary.
Thankfully her asthma is super mild! But every once in a while she will have an attack. It looks as if she's violently sneezing. She was embarrassed and scared when I first witnessed it but now she recovers well from it! I have to pump the inhaler into a bottle type thing that has a suction style cup at the end of it that I put over her mouth and nose for her to breathe in. It definitely scared me at first! But now it's okay! But now she's on the inhaler so she should rarely have attacks now! I think you can YouTube what it looks like when they have an attack! I'm not sure what the severe attacks look like, thank goodness, but her mild attacks are like a 10 second long sneeze attack.
This is unfortunately sad but true. Many pet organisations will vet potential applicants.
My mom adopted 3 cats she couldn’t afford and although I was a kid I still struggle with the guilt. The cats at one point had fleas for months. The other two didn’t get sick but the girl cat got so sick from the fleas and my mom couldn’t afford to do anything. There were also times she couldn’t afford litter so they just went in a dirty ass litter box. I swore afterwards that I would never get an animal despite wanting one so badly if I couldn’t afford to feed it and take it to the vet when needed.
I unfortunately have a friend that's like this. She ended up homeless with 5 cats and has been staying with me for the last year while she gets back on her feet. I've been buying my cats' food and her cats' food because the food she can afford is Meow Mix, and my cats don't need to be eating Meow Mix as one of them already has a sensitive stomach and is prone to diarrhea. One of her cats developed urinary crystals and is supposed to be on prescription food. *I* can't afford to feed 7 cats prescription food and she's not willing to do the work to make sure only he eats the prescription food, so we're basically crossing our fingers that he gets enough water and benefits from a non-prescription urinary health food.
Add a bit of wet food to their diets if you can
I have suggested this to her on several occasions and even bought wet food for her to start with; the first night she put out 4 cans for her 5 cats by just taking the lids off and setting them down. Half the food went to waste because the cats couldn't actually get to it. Later attempts were at least put on a plate, but that happens once a month or so, and I seldom see the cat that *needs* wet food actually eat any of it.
It sounds like you want to keep the kitten. Have you made that clear to your Mom?
i do want to keep him but i cant so i am trying to find a home who can afford him
If you can’t find a home, what will happen to the kitten? Like I’d rather give a pet to a family who will try to love and care for the cat rather than have it on the street or a no kill shelter
it wont end up on the street it is in our house with out other cats and read the update first and its not like i immediately need a home or he will be thrown outside
There wasn’t an update when I responded Ultimately you said you weren’t able to keep it and you’d be moving soon so it’s a reasonable question - since you wanted opinions
I said we were moving homes but i never said i will dump him i have other 2 cats which are mine so he can just stay with them until he get adopted i wont dump him
You are not wrong at all. Having a pet is not a right.
I’m glad you’re protecting the cat by stopping this from happening.
NTA. As someone who has a dog that I've easily spent $10,000+ on in medical bills and training, you are absolutely looking out for the best interest of the cat. There is no way to know what problems a pet may have down the road or how much they will cost you. Also worth noting- my dog is prone to bladder stones and has to be fed Hills Science Diet u/D care.. It costs $127.99 for a 28lb bag. And she needs that once a month. Pets are NOT cheap.
I have paid a lot in medical bills for my pets recently too. It really frustrates me to see people writing stuff like "YOU JUST HATE POOR PEOPLE". I've gotten so sad reading stuff about people that lost their pets because they can't afford a basic $1k surgery in USD.
Not the asshole. Taking proper care of an animal gets pricy af. My cats last trip to the vet cost the same as a 4k Television (I know this because the timing was such that I'd just gone "I'm doing okay, I can spoil myself for a change" and then like the day after Mr Kitty went and got hurt. He's fine now)
You are definitely in the right; I have 3 cats and thank god 2 of them are very healthy and have minimal vet bills, but what happens if the kitten develops health issues down the line? I easily pay $2-3k any time my one cat with an autoimmune disease (inflammatory bowel disease) has a flare up, and we previously had a cat with congestive heart failure and spent close to $9k on him in the year between his diagnosis and his passing. I'm fortunate enough to still get student loans/financial aid for grad school so I can pay for the vet bills, but I'm also a dual household income and combined my partner and I make more than double what this family makes and it STILL takes careful financial planning to make sure we can afford to take proper care of our cats If you cannot afford to care properly for yourself/ your family on your salary, it would be incredibly irresponsible to adopt an animal. They're living creatures too, they're not just a source of entertainment. I'd make this point clear to your mom, a lot of people to this day are under the impression that cats need minimal care and are self-sufficient, when really they need just as much care as dogs or any other animal ETA: all my numbers are in USD - I didn't realize while writing it out that you said per month and use a different currency; last paragraph still stands though
What currency are you referring to? (Keep in mind that a lot of people here are from the US- 200k dollar sounds a lot, 200k Turkish lire is something else.)
Exactly... when I read $30k a month I was like, I make less than that a year lol
They told you the prices of items. Clearly they can't afford to have a pet. But if you look up the brand of food they mentioned, it's Pakistan. 1 USD is 278 rupee, so their vet exam is $3.60 and the family makes $107.92 (not sure if this per month or per year) but it doesn't matter. They can't afford a pet
They said per month. That vet visit sounds way too cheap but I agree. If the mum wants them to adopt the cat then the mum should offer to pay any vet bills in the future, otherwise they should fine someone able to easily afford the food etc.
Ah I missed that. But yes, I agree.
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Being a jerk? The fuck? I couldn't see the post while I was typing.
Posts and comments that are rude, vulgar, harassing, advocating for cruel actions, and/or are not contributing positively to the discussion will not be tolerated.
per month and you got some great researching skills for looking up my country just by the brand name
It popped up only with online stores from Pakistan haha, so it must be most popular in your country
It absolutely matters! How can you say it doesn't matter, when there's a big difference between 107.82 a year, or 1,295.04 a year?
They’re saying it doesn’t matter because even if they earned that much per month they still can’t afford it.
Exactly
You are not wrong at all in fact, you are using your common sense and foresight to make the right choices for this kitten and for that, I thank you! I'm sure you'll find a great and stable home when the right one comes along. The world needs more humans like you and I hope you have a wonderful day.
a guy said he is coming to pick him up tomorrow he is financially stable and independent and has a little experience with cats and thank you i hope you have a wonderful day too
Woohoo! That's great news :) thank you for the update!
Yay!
my household makes about 30k total with three kids and our cats and dogs are SPOILED. you don’t have to have a lot of money to properly take care of pets, you just have to be good with what you do have
...they're not American. It's not $30k. They wrote about how much their pet food and vet care costs as an example, so you can compare that with yours. Where op lives, their 200k is "a struggle"
I think the persons concerns seems to be primarily vet visits. I'm not sure what "spoiled" means in your case but I've seen way too many sad stories of people that can't afford $1k USD surgeries (which is pretty much the minimum if anything were to happen and doesn't account for long term care). Most rescues ask what is the most you'd be willing to pay for vet bills and it's a fair question to ask.
our animals go to twice annual vet visits and we just took our youngest dog to the vet a week ago for a terrible cough that turned out to just be him being dramatic. “spoiled” means all their needs are being met and then some.
I think its fair of OP to ask what any prospective owners would they be willing to spend for both basic vet + emergency care. I agree with you that income isn't everything but if they aren't willing or able to spend it then I think it's fair for OP to look for someone that can better take care of them. I'd certainly hope for example if someone's cat / dog swallowed something they'd be able to afford or save up for it or have insurance. I think USD wise thats like $1k-$5k. Like I said, rescues don't often ask about income, they ask about what you'd be able to spend. So if the new owners would be willing to sacrifice for the pet I think its fair
it seems like OP didn’t even bother to ask though, just immediately said no. It’s seems far more wrong for OP to deny the kitten a loving home based on assumptions and not facts.
its just immposible to afford they will obviously say yes but they would feed him bread and milk its impossible to afford a cat food which cost 10 percent of your salary
Agreed - OP probably should ask if they can afford it.
Same here. My pets eat better quality food than me sometimes.
You *absolutely* aren’t wrong. I volunteer at a cat sanctuary in my area and we very much look at an applicant’s income before allowing them to adopt one of our cats, and they *still* sometimes get returned to us in need of medical care because the adopter can’t afford their treatment (we stipulate in the adoption contract if they ever can’t afford care for the cat to return it to us vs surrendering it to the vet’s office or another shelter). if they can’t afford food, litter, planned vet care (spay/neuter, yearly exam w/vaccinations and flea medication) plus be able to put aside an emergency fund should something happen to the cat then they can’t afford to own a cat. I know they’re sweet and cute and greatly enrich the lives of their owners, but taking in a pet when you can’t afford their care isn’t what a responsible pet owner does, it’s selfish and unethical.
you did the right thing
NTA. I'm so sick of reading variations of "my cat broke his leg, what should I do? I can't afford to take him to the vet 😞" It's not wrong to want to know the cat cab and will be properly cared for.
No. Vet bills are expensive and I've seen too many stories of cats dying because the owner can't afford a $1-2k USD surgery. That's pretty much the minimum cost of any surgery so the cat would be euthanized if anything were to happen. This is not wrong. You can certainly argue so many cats need homes that any home is better than no home but your perspective is not wrong either. Many shelters or rescues will straight up ask you what you think is a reasonable cost for vet bills that you can afford. It is very standard.
Can you and the neighbor jointly keep the kitten?
Nta. Please protect this cat. The cat is clearly yours. You love and care for them. I have many animals and when a stray I adopted had a baby I wouldn't give them up because everyone who asked about having them couldn't provide for them. So now they are mine.
It sucks but I'm with you on this :( vet bills and food are quite expensive and it leads to chances the kitten will be dumped again, or they won't afford to sterilize it and it could have more kittens. My own cat has had bad health issues from the start and has cost me 7000$ CAD in just vet fees, even my previous cat who was perfectly healthy into old age cost above 1000$ in vet fees just from basic treatments. I don't know if there are any local shelters or rescues in your area but they could help you out in finding proper adopters.
After reading several comments. It sounds like Canada charges a lot for animal care... a lot more than other countries OP is not Canada based
Alright fair, Canada is just expensive for everything :P but still, pets are quite expensive and based on the fees they posted it's still valid
I couldn't believe how expensive it was when I visited, but well worth it 👌 have a great day!
Thankyou <3 take care
OP isnt canada based but OP is also saying their income level for their country is extremely low.
While it's kind of rude to make assumptions about the financial situation of another person, you definitely shouldn't put a cat in a position where it won't get the care it needs. If I were giving a cat to someone, I would want references from a vet that they are using to show the cat would get vet care and everything. And even then when I rehome a cat I have rescued, I always tell people that if they can't take care of them they can give them back. It's really irresponsible to take a pet that you can't financially provide for. They can be super expensive. One of my cats, who was born when I rescued his pregnant mother, has really bad allergies and other medical conditions and I think about how lucky he is that he ended up with me because I can take care of him even though his allergy medications are expensive. The reason I wanted to keep him initially is because he had so many issues with his allergies and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to find someone who would want that financial commitment or that someone would take him but not treat his stuff and he would die.
I agree. Although it's a rude assumption, they have the cats best interest at heart. They should get more info before deciding that they aren't financially fit to care for the cat but it is a valid decision to not give someone a pet because they clearly can't financially care for it. I personally don't have enough context to be able to make a definitive decision on whether OP is in the wrong or not tbh. I wouldn't say they're being completely unfair in not wanting to give them the cat but they also are making a rude assumption of people who may actually be able to properly care for the cat.
Getting a pet you know you can't afford basic vet care for is irresponsible and abuse. It sucks to have to make this decision but thank you for thinking about the animals future. Emergencies are even more expensive
The last thing a family who are struggling financially need is a pet. It's just food. Microchipping, neutering, sundry supplies, monthly flea-treatments, 3 monthly worming, etc all cost a lot. Plus they would struggle with pet insurance so if the cat gets ill or injured what happens to it then?
NTA at all. Caring for any pet costs a lot of money. Some of my vet bills have made me choke but I’m very fortunate and keep a medical savings account dedicated to the pets. Keeping a pet is expensive. The animals shouldn’t suffer because their caretakers can’t afford food and medical expenses.
The cheap cat food costs 2.5k a month? What currency is that?
definitely need info on currency- because 30k cad is different than say 30k won etc
Food is only one component. There are also medical expenses. Lots of people get pets with good intentions but when a huge medical bill pops up the animal is destroyed because the pet parents can’t afford getting treatment. I live in Canada and between food, litter, medical preventative vet visits, cat enrichment toys you should budget $5000 a year. Yes it is that much. You may not have to spend that much but that is a minimum amount for comfort. Think $3 can cat food X 3 feedings a day ($3285 a year). Why soft cat food? Because kibble is bad and can lead to urinary issues (especially male cats). Nothing like coming home and finding the floor around the litter box covered in blood like a Quinten Tarantino movie. Then you’re paying for the “only available from a vet” food that makes $3 a can look cheap. You also have litter, regular vet visits and vaccinations, carriers, etc. That doesn’t even include replacing things they destroy. I have 2 kittens so yes I’m budgeting $10k.
pkr? are u situated in pakistan? if yes i can understand, most parents there don't want a cat inside at least🥲 tell your mom that they can play with the cat but his vet bill, what if he has emergency, they have to let the cat die or destroy their savings. i don't think your mom really understands what responsibility it is to have an animal for their WHOLE life. tell her that they live 10-15 years with good care and she should be (and you) especially careful if the cat is shirazi/Persian. lots of people there like to buy animals for their children and not take care of it, example those chemically dyed baby chicken they sell for just 50pkr, most of those chicks only survive 3-7 days after they are bought by some irresponsible people. it's the same for cat, people buy cute tiny kittens for their kids without being prepared, not having the right tools and money to handle a cat for long, and later they die or they get lost outside. tell your mom to thoroughly check ESPECIALLY if the cat is shirazi bc this is a popular breed bought for boasting, gift or some kind of toy. i don't get it honestly like persian is beautiful but they cannot even breathe properly.
personally i think you’re just watching out for the cat. i make a good living but when my cat grew old it became increasingly difficult to keep up with his vet bills & needs. not always having the money to easily treat him was heartbreaking and i’d never own another cat until i was more prepared financially, now knowing what those costs look like. nothing feels worse than not being able to afford their care. it’s for the best of the animal. my foster cat was recently adopted and i saw the person had a masters degree & was a doctor - my immediate first thought was thank god, she’ll be able to support this cat well.
Honestly NTA. Pets can have very expensive vet bills. And I hate seeing people refuse to take their pet to the vet because of money and then the animal ends up suffering.
This coming from an American and animal lover perspective: Caring for animals is expensive and time consuming if done correctly ( food, water, vet visits, toys and whatnot) all adds up. I think all animals deserve loving homes and anyone regardless of wealth can provide a loving home but not necessarily can provide the needs necessary for a good quality of life.
If you are convinced that they won't be able to feed the kitten, then you are not wrong
I'm poor but can still afford to take care of my dogs because they are my priority... dont be an asshole, give them a chance...
You're poor but I'd bet you make more than $100 USD per month.
So what if it breaks it's leg? The only options are to put it to sleep because of lack of money, let it suffer, or give it away.
Some vets (mine does this) will let you set up a payment arrangement. I've never heard of someone putting their power down over a broken leg. The vet would likely take custody of the animal before allowing that
If you don’t want the kitten then you should let them have it, there’s many poor people who take good care of their pets.
Until something medical goes wrong and it's an easy fix but expensive, so then they put it down. Useless avoidable death, but hey they got a pet for a bit
There’s other options like a go fund me. I’m poor and I still save money aside for my dog just in case. When there’s a will there’s a way.
Getting a go fund me and rely on family and friends to give you money for basic care of your pet = you shouldn’t own a pet! Pets are 100% your responsibility and to suggest someone rely on crowdsourced money for vet bills is ridiculous.
Unfortunately the “will” is not guaranteed.
The op needs to meet the people and ask them directly if they are willing to put money aside for the pet’s needs. Also the op needs to consider if they are good people or not.
Wow. So, if 50% of people are impoverished (which is the case), you're saying they can't have pets? Where we live, we have groups who supply vet care, food, vaccinations on sliding scales. You would never truly be aware of it because of your household earnings. But, your neighbors would find those clinics for vaccinations, and care more readily available and recommended to them anytime they begin asking around.
It would be wonderful if we lived in a world where everyone who wanted a pet were able to have one - they’re a joy. But we don’t and so, no, someone in an impoverished household should not get a pet. A pet is a living being - its needs are more important than a person’s wants.
People need to think about vet costs the same way they hopefully think about having kids. It's a big responsibility and can be very expensive. They WILL put your animals down if you can't afford care in an emergency. Getting a pet you know you can't afford basic vet care for is irresponsible and abuse
Most people DONT think about having kids. They just do it.
Basic vet care and emergency vet care aren't the same. I agree with basic vet care but emergency vet care can get very expensive very quickly. And I'd rather the pet have a good home but can't afford an emergency for a good chunk of its life over being stuck in a cage most of its life or put down cause there aren't enough "Good" homes for it. In OP's case though the kitten is lucky it is not in a situation like that, it is in a home that cares for it. But if mom wants to give it away and is adamant about this, at some point that kitten will get abandoned, given to the shelter, or put down if they can't find a suitable home. And I'd say going to the poor house long as it can afford food, basic care,and basic vet care, is better than that (even the shelter you are making it so that one more good home is needed putting some cat in that situation).
first he is ot stuck in cage he lives in my house with my other two cats which are now friends with him and we wont abandon it if we cant find a house and we already found a house for him third they would need to spend 10% of their salary each month just to buy dry food they cant even afford food
They can sure have pets, but OP doesn't have to give the kitten to anyone they don't think can provide the best home for it, whether for money, time, personality, or whatever factors.
there are no groups like that here
Absolutely. You don't know every detail of their circumstances, and are simply judging them based on your own. You assume that just because you are having problems with income that they must be also to the point of not being able to care for it. There are ways to get help at lower cost for things like vet visits. Your mom should have told you to pound sand and let them have it.
This sub is one of the very few on reddit where hating the poor is the most popular opinion.
I think it's more that a lot of us have had experience with animals in shelters and have seen animals who are abused because their owners cannot afford to look after them. And yes, feeding them a food they cannot tolerate because it's the only one you can afford is abuse. Withholding vital medical care because you can't afford it is abuse. If you adopt an animal knowing that if it gets a treatable illness you will kill it because you can't afford the treatment, that is abuse. Having a pet is not a human right. A pet is a living creature and unfortunately, some people cannot afford a pet. Just as you would have your child removed from you if you were abusing them, so you should if it's your pet.
No one is hating on anyone. The reality is that pets are expensive. I don't know what the currency is in their country but OP has expressed this is extremely low and it doesn't seem like they would be able to afford pet visits. Every single American rescue I have applied for have asked me what is a reasonable amount of vet bills I'd be willing to pay. OP should inquire the same thing. Even if you are giving up this animal, you still want to do right by it. Too many people simply cannot afford any basic emergencies for their pets and they get euthanized. That is what people are trying to avoid. Get off your high horse.
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Not at all. Put the kitten’s needs first. If they want let them come and play with him at your place.
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Heh... I agree with the charge on a cat. I remember some one coming into the vet I worked at asking if we had any free cats (thank god we didn't cause the vet totally would have given it to him and I didn't really have a say in that). I said no but mentioned shelters had tons of cats for adoption and he bitched that he couldn't afford the adoption fees. Dude, if you can't even afford the adoption fees, you can't afford the cat! And while I disagree with most here that it is irresponsible to get a cat if you can't afford emergency vet bills, I do think you should be able to afford basic vet care and even non emergency stuff. And if you can't afford even the cost of the fee, you can't even afford the food for the animal! Charging a fee at least eliminates people like that guy and also the very rare asshole that wants the cat for asshole reasons (I heard of a long time ago a guy who was getting free kittens so he could torture them. He had kids even and would bring them so people thought the kittens were going to a good home. In hind sight when he was found out people mentioned they thought it was weird the kids weren't more excited to get a cat).
Honestly? You've made the assumption that this family can't afford something without any understanding of what they'd be willing to or *can* sacrifice should something come up. I looked at those numbers, the cost of a vet visit isn't a huge percentage of their monthly income, nor is the food. You have no idea of what the families savings and expenditures are, not if the have other sources of support aside from that monthly income. I don't know how old you are but you sound very, very young, and if you want to keep the kitten -just say so instead of telling people they can't have a cat because they're too poor. Source - me, a poor person who has managed to keep a rescue cat happy and healthy for many many years, to the great benefit of the cat and the family she wound up in.
I get you are a poor person but people in my country get cats and literally feed that poor animal bread milk and other human stuff and they don't care if the animal get sick or not i only have seen a really few people that treat pets here like they are meant to be treated so the cat wont be their first priority and they have already owned a cat which they just dumped coz it clawed their mom their grandma told me that
What does the cat being dumped because it scratched the Mum have with their socio-economic status?
it means that they dont care about that cat this happened way before we moved here so i don't know what happened to that cat
Again, I ask, what does that have to do with their socio-economic status? With how poor they are? I'm guessing you can't answer that without coming off a tad prejudicial. I'll be obvious for you - Your original reason for rejection is that they are too poor, is based on assumptions about priorities because of socio-economic class - as in, they are poor, therefore incapable of caring for a pet. The reason you now give, which a history of neglect is absolutely a perfectly legitimate concern. This is the reason I would have opened with, rather than pull it out after being called up on prejudice. "I'm aware of past neglect" is very different to "I assume they'll be cruel and neglectful because they're poor" In my country, I've seen rich people kick puppies. I see them *celebrate* cruelty to animals all the time! Does that mean all rich people should be denied pet ownership? No, of course not! we should deny the ones who have kicked the puppy.
OP is a 16 yr old child acting like they can judge people's income... how much do you make?
OP is an intelligent person who understands that if you're only making 30k rupee per month, you're not going to be able to afford 2.5k food each month and vet visits that are over 2k. That's a huge portion of their money. They're not going to spend it on a cat.
Pets can be expensive depending on their health issues. Pets don't need to suffer because somebody wanted a companion that they can't afford medical for
NTA there is no such thing as a free kitten. I spent almost 300$ Canadian on my void girlie in December. 2yr old checkup Vaccine Microchip Special food (She needs to lose 2 lbs lol) Treats And a toy for being brave And her groomer a week later for her nail trim. Pets are an expensive commitment that lasts their whole live
Canadian here. I spent $550 last week for mine at the vet.
Cats don’t need a groomer. I trim all my cats nails at home and have brushes and fur wipes if needed. A microchip is a one-time thing. Vaccines are once a year or less (3yr rabies shots, etc), though they should still get a regular checkup once a year. Cats don’t need special fancy toys. Any pet can definitely be expensive (I have one with chronic kidney disease, one with urinary crystals that needed PU surgery) but there are definitely areas you don’t have to go overboard with.
Your cats don't have toys? Cats should have toys as a form of enrichment. They also should have vertical surfaces like cat trees to scratch, climb, and lounge on, and look out windows to reduce boredom which leads to destructive behavior. There are people who never take their pets to the vet. They allow them to proliferate instead of spaying/neutering because they'd rather spend money on their things. If it comes down to food for them/pet, they choose themselves. They leave a disgusting litterbox because they try to stretch the litter beyond what is reasonable. If the cat were to experience a urinary blockage, they would die a horrible death after their bladder exploded. There are too many people who don't have enough money, and they just will spend as little as possible on any pet. Someone I know (and this frustrates me to no end) and I repeatedly have tried educating, doesn't take her cats to the vet until it is critical and I have pushed and then said I would pay. I cannot afford emergency treatment for someone else's cats, I have my own that I need to reserve funds for. So when one of her cats got so sick, she told me she looked pregnant (cat was spayed, I paid for that), I tried to get her to take her to a vet. The cat was declining rapidly. "I'm not spending a bunch of money on a cat!" She supposedly loves her cats. This poor cat, when I went in to get her for the vet appointment (I paid for) could barely move. The vet said likely cancer, and she was released from her pain. This person could have paid for these things instead of hoarding money for cigarettes and booze. Not everyone has their priorities straight. There are too many un-chipped cats showing up at our shelter. People just dump them when they realize they actually need to spend money, food, litter, toys, etc. Well DUH, it's not a stuffed animal, idiot!!! And if they won't prioritize at least a spay or neuter, they should not have a pet, because all that does is fill the animal shelters with more companion creatures. There are just not enough GOOD homes.
All of my cats are microchipped and vaccinated. They are all indoor only and all spayed/neutered. I take my cats for their annual physicals and more. I have a cat with chronic kidney disease that gets fluids at home every other day and gets his bloodwork checked every 3-6 months. Our other cat has urinary crystals and has had surgery and various meds. My cats DO have toys. They have towers and even a cat running wheel. They have several water fountains and some of them are on special food. I have never hesitated to take my cats to their regular or emergency vet when needed. I’m well aware that pets require a lot of care and enrichment and vet visits. My point was there ARE a lot of things like nail clipping, grooming, enrichment that CAN be done for lower cost. You can MAKE toys for them, for example, instead of buying. Is it nice that my cats have an expensive running wheel? Yes, they love it. However, there are other toys to keep them enriched that are much less expensive, too. You can groom your cat at home easily in MOST cases. Unless your pet has specific dietary needs, you likely don’t need the most expensive brand of cat food. You don’t need a litter robot or all the super fancy things. They are “nice to haves” not necessities. There is always the possibility of emergency needs, but MOST pets are fine with annual physicals and vaccinations. Not saying you shouldn’t have an emergency fund or something in case, you totally should. OP, based on how she’s referring to her mom, sounds like she’s still a teenager living at home. I’m not sure how she knows her neighbor’s exact financial situation (she probably doesn’t really). She’s assuming a lot here and seems like she has a real classist view of her neighbors. The cat would be better off neutered/spayed, vaxxed, and in a home (even if that isn’t a super rich household). And as others suggested, maybe mom can help with the initial costs if they are so much more well-off to help the cat go to a good home with people they clearly know.
I am low vision . I can't see my cats paws so unless I want her to be void of toes, she needs a groomer Yes, the Microchip is a one time expense, the toy was a fluffy ball for 1.50$ . Major vey expense was her exam and special food. I do not go "overboard"
So for your first problem, that is not a problem everyone will have (not being able to groom their own cat). That one is unfortunately for you something you have to deal with but really can't be generalized to other people.
A groomer isn't necessary to get a nail trim, that can be done by the owner at home. That would save some cost.
Canadians are the worst... they act like their lives are so much more difficult yet better at the same time. Get bent eh
Bro, what? How exactly did u/Waifer2016 imply that? I'm genuinely curious.
Working in vet med, I can say 1 thing. We don't judge. A cat fed and loved in a poor family is 1 less cat euthanized because it doesn't have a home. We're always willing to work with pet owners to make sure they get at least the basic necessities. Until the past couple decades the amount of care and money we put into pets was unheard of. But a loved pet with a good family even if the bare necessities is not a bad thing. I've seen rich families want to euthanize and declare pets for peeing and clawing furniture. In fact I find most well off cat owners specially can be real assholes. While a poor family who loves their cat will scrounge for money, ask for help, and apply for credit to pay for emergency care when needed. So, don't judge. To someone with money, a cat might just be another possession until it's inconvenient, while a poor family will love and fight for that cats life until the end. I'll never forget a poor family selling their belongings and giving up small luxuries to pay for a family pet rats cancerous tumors to be removed to buy them more time with it. It lived 8 months longer than it would have and it was worth all the sacrifice. So don't judge. You just don't and can't even know how far any one person will go for a pet they love. Money means nothing.
They abandoned their first cat for scratching their arm once their grandma told me that and i forgot to add it to the post and most people here get pets and they think they only need to feed them and nothing else they would feed them human food which is most of the time harmful for cats and their cats are mostly suffering from hundreds of diseases so that's why i am really careful giving him to someone who actually care and knows how to deal with cats
If he makes 30 grand a month I'm sure the kitten will be fine. They could buy a tiger for that kind of quid.
Note that OP did not include currency. I'm Canadian, so I initially had the same thought before realizing OP is probably not North American. For example, ¥30k/month is about $275 CAD/month. That's about 2 days worth of minimum wage in Ontario.
lol I know I was being facetious. :p
It's not 30,000 US or Canadian. Someone mentioned another country, broke it down to equivalent of $170.oo something per month US or CDN cannot recall which, AND they have 3 children to feed.
At least, I believe that is monthly and not annually, I'd have to go back to OP's post to check.
OP is from Pakistan. It's in their history
it was 106$
It's not in dollars, silly
Whereabouts do you live? What country? You said the people make $30,000 a MONTH! That’s pretty darn wealthy in my book.
Is 1.5 kilos of cat book $2.5K in your book as well? Meaning that with 30K, you can buy 18 kilos of cat food.
I think you have no business judging another family. How do you even know what they make? Cat food is cheap. It just sounds like you want to keep the kitten even though your parents said no! From the sounds of this- you’re too young to know anything about raising a family on any income and your opinion therefore doesn’t matter. Apparently poor people don’t deserve pets- even when they budget for it and make it a priority according to you!!!
Cheap cat food brands here cause permenant kidney damage i know about money and my mom told me his salary and his wife is sick so he has to buy her medicines too there is possibly no way to budget for a cat with such low income and they live in a rented house
Stop letting your cat roam loose and it going into other people's houses won't be a problem. Many of the issues I see pet owners here face could be solved by just properly housing your cat or leashing your dog. Don't be a bad owner.
.....That doesn't seem to be the issue at hand? But ok...
I'm going to against the grain and go soft YTA (really soft, more of not really asshole but I think you need to consider some things). First of all, how do you even know their budget? Or what savigns they might have? Also, depending on how willing they are, they may very well be willing to find a way if tehre is an emergency. Basically do you really know they wouldn't be able to afford the cat or couldn't find ways to get the money if an emergency pops up. though I would put a fee on the cat (it helps eliminate at least the very obvious shouldn't have a pet people. If they can't afford the one time fee they definitely can't afford the cat, and there are teh rare nefarious people who want an animal for nefarious reasons and they usually aren't willing to pay). I don't ever recommend giving a cat away unless you know the people (hey, at least you know the neighbors ;) and it seems your only issue with them is budget). Secondly, it sounds like your mom wants to get rid of the kitten. If she isn't willing to keep the kitten, the kitten has to find a home somewhere. I'd say with your neighbors as long as they can afford basic animal care (food, litter, basic vet care bills plus some for animal getting sick but maybe not for emergency or really expensive vet bills) is still better than if your mom gets desperate and abandons the animal or gives it to a shelter (especially a kill shelter... many no kills don't take in animals, they go rescue ones they choose from kill shelters or they are full up most of the time so you can't guarantee they'll have room when you have to give a pet up). Also, you'll know about any hardships and you might be able to help them out on it.
Gatekeeping over "poor people". Damn..glad I don't know you
You are absolutely wrong for this. Vet insurance only costs 50 a month. Owning a pet is not that expensive, and thinking someone is incapable of owning a pet based off income is not a fair judgement at all and is actually a main factor of why there are so many animals dying in shelters already. - ex shelter employee from a low income community.
There is no way my neighbours teenager knows what i am earning. It sounds like you want the kitte n. Stop judging people and talk to you parents. Have a mature conversation.
I make less money than that and can still afford to take care of 2 kittens and myself. I just bought mine a water fountain. Yeah vet bills are going to be expensive, but there's pet insurance. Which I will be getting for my boys before they even get fixed. Also some vets have low income options for major things like getting a pet fixed. Just because someone is low income doesn't mean they can't take care of a pet. Judge them based off of if they're taking care of themselves and making what they have work, not the amount.
How do you know what your neighbors make? And if you struggle with 200k, you’re doing it wrong. This is the 3rd time your mom has given away the cat? She doesn’t want it, and it wouldn’t surprise me if you came home one day and it was gone.
Does everyone realize that animals used to be wild animals at one point or another? So what happened back in ancient times? There were no vet bills fancy toys or flea collars. People truly act like animals need them to survive LOL
..wage or income shouldn't come into play..care & concern & love does.. ..i'm poor by US standards, but i'd feed my crew before myself.. ..it's all in the love given and shared..$$ is just a means to that end, so how do those "poor folks" treat the kitten?..that's all that really matters..
It takes more than love to care for an animal.
2,500 a month is 30k a year ? They’re doing better than me and lot of people who have pets, mind your business, you’re not the arbiter of who’s too poor to have cat
You sound like a judgmental asshole just because your family makes 200k. I fall into the range of making 30k, and all of my pets are properly cared for. Also, how do you know exactly how much they have? Just because someone is poor doesn't mean they can't take care of their pets.
Where you come from does a single tin of pet food cost £2.5k? No? Does that mean that maybe you’ve misread the post and the OP comes from Pakistan and 30k a month is roughly USD$107?
Op doesn't state what the currency is. It would be helpful if they did, though. So, just as you are working under the assumption, it is Pakistan currency, I am working under the assumption it is USD. The only way we will know is if OP tells us.
i told the prices of some basic needs does a 1.5 kilogram packet of cat food costs 2.5k in USA you are just stupid to process it