Home checks for adopting cat and a messy home

fly-catchers

Bluntly my home is a bit of mess and a bit chaotic. I keep loads of boxes which I use for eBay sales and apart from the garage there is nowhere to store them. And in the garage they deteriorate quickly due to damp. And there is all the usual stuff which accumulates with storage unavailable. Would this deter any local cat rescue centre or Cat Protection from allowing me to adopt another cat? I lost my last one recently to liver disease. He just turned up about 7 years ago and after checking vets etc if he was chipped or was somebody’s else’s looked after him. I will endeavour to get my home as clutter free as possible but there is only so much space!

Mnoee

It's difficult to tell how a local shelter will react - mine were fine when I wanted to adopt two  cats when I had barely any furniture (when I finally bought a house and my first priority was cats!) because what few items I had included a cat tree and litter boxes.

I will say that a young cat may do more damage to boxes than a damp garage. You'll only know when you get one home. Just do your best, if it's not dangerous, they shouldn't have a problem. 

SensibleSarah

I've carried out cat homechecks for a local rescue that I volunteer for and it absolutely wouldn't factor in unless it was a genuine hazard i.e. high chances of falling boxes etc. If it's all stacked somewhere out of the way then not an issue at all for me. My only questions are usually about things directly related to the cat, where you plan for it to have litter tray, whether having outside access once settled in etc. 

fly-catchers

SensibleSarah said:

I've carried out cat homechecks for a local rescue that I volunteer for and it absolutely wouldn't factor in unless it was a genuine hazard i.e. high chances of falling boxes etc. If it's all stacked somewhere out of the way then not an issue at all for me. My only questions are usually about things directly related to the cat, where you plan for it to have litter tray, whether having outside access once settled in etc. 

When they say secure garden which is a term I have seen often. Does it mean a garden a cat cannot get out of? Or simply a safe space they can enjoy. I have a huge garden mostly fenced but have yet to see a cat not be able to scale them if felt inclined!  

SensibleSarah

Never had to check for a secure garden for a cat (there's no such thing really, unless it's properly cat-proofed) - only for dogs. Like you say, cats can easily scale fences of pretty much any height. My cats certainly have no issues getting over the 6-8ft fences around my garden.
No main roads (or being very close to) is often an issue, but the only concern I'd have for garden when doing a homecheck for a cat is possibly if it's communal and used by other residents with unattended dogs etc - just from a safety standpoint. 

TripleH

When our rescue arrived, we had a pile of boxes in the hallway on the top floor.

Our ground floor was strewn with cardboard boxes (we had a cat food delivery and had just lost our eldest cat 4 days before the inspection) that the other 3 were playing in (we felt rotten taking them away as it made them happy).

The cardboard boxes will become the bestest toy ever for a cat of any age.

RobM99

I don't think planning permission wou'd allow a fence tall enough to keep a determined, agile moggy in a garden!  (He's right, you know  =^..^=  Love, Dinner The WonderCat)