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Old September 13th, 2012, 02:06 PM
Dakkar Dakkar is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Hamilton, ON Canada
Posts: 10
It seemed more reasonable to address all the concerns in one go, than reply individually since most comments have a lot in common.

In regards to paperwork for surrendering the kittens, there wasn't any. No one until now had alluded to any paperwork of any kind. So there was no surrender contract.

In regards to the household / financial situation. The person in question didn't set foot in my home. I received a phone call asking if I could have the kittens ready to go in 20 minutes to be picked up. Towards the end of that conversation I was told that Princess and Puffy could be taken to get their needles as well. That was done last minute, I was busy collecting toys that Dot and Mark played with to send with them. So I grabbed the cat carrier from outside, tossed a t-shirt in (so they could have me scent to help keep them calm), put Princess and Puffy in and off they went. This all happened on my porch.
My financial stance was, and still is, that I wouldn't be able to afford 4 cats. If I could have, I would have. I like all animals but I have a preference for cats, which being a guy, I'm sure seems pretty odd. Guess that makes me odd, I'm okay with that. However, given the size of my apartment and that a cat should have approx 6 sq. ft. to claim as their own, my finances and apartment could afford 2 cats.
My original reason for contacting a rescue was to have Dot and Mark adopted. I didn't want to put them in the paper because you just have no way of knowing if they'll end up being tossed out on the street when they're no longer "cute kittens". I didn't want to use the SPCA because if they were unable to adopt them, they'd be euthanised. My thoughts have always been that if someone is willing to pay an adoption fee, which seems to average around the $100 mark, then they'd be more likely to be the responsible type that would truly provide a "forever home".

As for the reason she said she wasn't returning them... Then the original reason she gave me would have to stand. Fleas. No one ever inquired if I had flea control products prior to them being picked up. I did, but the package said I couldn't use it until the kittens were 12 weeks old, and that it shouldn't be used on a pregnant or nursing cat. So I didn't. I also warned the person before pickup that fleas were present. Fumigation I'd covered in the first post.

Towards sterilization, I was told that by this [rescue] they did not provide sterilization. I was directed to the HBSPCA who run a geared-to-income spay-neuter clinic. Princess has already been accepted, but was unable to attend an appointment because she was not in my care. Puffy is too young to be spayed, but she too is in the program. They will provide the spay, a microchip, and a rabies vaccination (unless the pet has had it already) at a cost geared to income. For me, I was quoted $55+hst. This is in no way meant to represent the cost for anyone other than myself. Knowing that the [rescue] does not provide sterilization and that it is left up to the pet owner to get it done... makes that argument invalid. Especially considering Puffy was only 8 weeks old and not even spay-able. So in answer, the $50 (per cat) was for needles to the best of my knowledge.

Most of my correspondence with the person in question has been through emails and facebook. I'm still wondering why facebook is being used so much, but hey ho. I have, and always will, remain civil. I've read the guidelines for the forum and I'm going out of my way to not slander or malign. I cannot post our correspondence here, because it's truly not the place for it.

My whole problem lies in the fact that the SPCA, who let's face it are the only people that have a say with any weight, said that this isn't acceptable. The police are involved in trying to resolve the matter. That should go a long way into understanding that this may not be the best move this person could be making. I just don't understand the ongoing defiance. If the threat of having them adopted wasn't hanging over my head, I'd just let those authorities take their sweet time about it. And yes, she has said she will put them up for adoption as of September 14th if she didn't get her $100, excuse me.. I mean $125 as of the last facebook message.

This whole nightmare has been an everyday thing for me from August 30th and it's still going. It aggravates my disability with all the worrying. I have no clue the conditions my cats are being kept in. For all I know they're being kept in cages and being fed dry food only. These are cats that are used to wet food in the morning for breakfast, wet food for dinner, with dry food available all day if they get peckish. They eat breakfast at 7am and dinner at 7pm. Princess has been in that habit for 3.5 months, Puffy only a couple of weeks. They have only really had each other for company, god knows how many other animals they've been forced to co-habitate with. I don't know if they're getting all the petting they want. I'm betting Princess is missing her cat brush, I used to brush her twice a day and she loves it... especially on the back of her head and of course the corners of her mouth. Puffy loved to climb up to my lap and step all over my keyboard when I was on the computer. She would chase the mouse pointer around and drive me nuts. They've both been dumped in a strange environment, the comforts they had here whether it be brushings or playing 'drive the human crazy' while walking back and forth on his keyboard, aren't there. By now, the t-shirt I'd put in that old beat up carrier will have lost my scent. The cat I rescued from living on the streets, the one whose kittens may not have survived had I not brought her in... She probably thinks I've abandoned her. Yet another person who didn't want her. That's HORRIBLE. It makes me feel like... the adult synonym for CRAP.

Oh, and as for the Diatomaceous Earth, that is correct, you want the food grade version, usually 1% or less silica.

Last edited by growler~GateKeeper; September 14th, 2012 at 01:28 AM. Reason: removed potential identifying reference, mention of names leads to slander/liability issues
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