My husband's best friend may be moving away, and he is unable to take his six cats with him. His mother and father said he can bring one or two of them. Well, he asked us to take a few of them. He said we are the only ones he would trust with his cats because our cats have their own bedroom and couch. He doesn't want someone to end up putting them outside because they have never been outside before. He is very heart broken over the whole thing. He lost his job though and he can't afford to live in his apartment anymore, or keep all his cats. Unfortunately, he will be moving out of state so he won't get to visit often. His ex is taking one of the cats that is very skittish and doesn't like anyone, and the only one his parents want him to bring is a siamese that doesn't get along very well with the other cats. This leaves four. I am thinking about taking all four of them. This will mean we will have ten cats. We can afford all of them since we were both promoted at work, and we aren't lacking room(three bedroom house, only two humans living in it) or time to spend with them. If we need to, we can even seperate the four new kitties from the six old incase they fight. He is going to give us his giant kitty tree that is ceiling high, and three more litter boxes if we end up taking them. I was trying to find homes for a few of them at work but everyone kept saying "That would be nice to have a cat, but I'm not keeping an animal in my house." Maybe I am over doing it though. Four dogs and ten cats in the house sounds a bit crazy to everyone else I have talked to. His cats are just so sweet though, I don't want them to end up in a bad situation.

There gets to a point where it is worse for the cats to be with that many other animals. Cats are territorial and they're not really pack animals, and they do best when there aren't LOTS of them all together. Too many cats in one house leads to really stressed out cats. You may have the physical space and money, but how are you and your husband going to really give enough individual attention and playtime to EVERY animal EVERY day. Cats should have a minimum of 15 minutes of individual playtime a day. With 10 cats, thats 2 1/2 hrs a day, plus the time devoted to cleaning (what should be) 11 litterboxes daily, plus the time to care for the dogs. I know you're trying to help the cats, but in my opinion, it would be doing more harm than good taking in four additional cats.

There gets to a point where it is worse for the cats to be with that many other animals. Cats are territorial and they're not really pack animals, and they do best when there aren't LOTS of them all together. Too many cats in one house leads to really stressed out cats. You may have the physical space and money, but how are you and your husband going to really give enough individual attention and playtime to EVERY animal EVERY day. Cats should have a minimum of 15 minutes of individual playtime a day. With 10 cats, thats 2 1/2 hrs a day, plus the time devoted to cleaning (what should be) 11 litterboxes daily, plus the time to care for the dogs. I know you're trying to help the cats, but in my opinion, it would be doing more harm than good taking in four additional cats.

^ I agree with this. My bf and I were taking care of my mother's cats for a while and it got to be a little stressful. Yes, it was only 4 cats and two people in a 3 bedroom house, but my cat and the bf's cat had to be separated from each other and both had to be separated from my mother's cats. One of mom's cats wouldn't come down from the attic (remodeled into a bedroom). The other was easy in the attention aspect, but kept having some frustrating medical problems that needed close monitoring. Making sure that each cat got the attention they needed and deserved was a logistical nightmare. Granted, that's if you have to keep them separated, but since it's a possibility, it is a good thing to keep in mind.

Even if you don't have to keep them separated, that many animals in a house is really, really stressful, both for the humans and for the other animals.

Have you considered contacting a local rescue and tell them that you'd be willing to foster the cats if they will help you find good homes?

Have you considered contacting a local rescue and tell them that you'd be willing to foster the cats if they will help you find good homes?
That's an excellent suggestion. As I've mentioned before, I volunteer with my local Humane Society and that's the kind of thing we offer people all the time. Sounds like it'd be best for you, FG, and for the sweet kitties.

Oh wow, 10 cats. You have a really big heart, though, to want to do that. :) I hope it works out.

Yay for 10 cats! :smitten:

There gets to a point where it is worse for the cats to be with that many other animals. Cats are territorial and they're not really pack animals, and they do best when there aren't LOTS of them all together. Too many cats in one house leads to really stressed out cats. You may have the physical space and money, but how are you and your husband going to really give enough individual attention and playtime to EVERY animal EVERY day. Cats should have a minimum of 15 minutes of individual playtime a day. With 10 cats, thats 2 1/2 hrs a day, plus the time devoted to cleaning (what should be) 11 litterboxes daily, plus the time to care for the dogs. I know you're trying to help the cats, but in my opinion, it would be doing more harm than good taking in four additional cats.
Why would I need 11 litterboxes for 10 cats? I have 4 right now for 6 cats and they are scooped daily and dumped when needed. They seem to do just fine. I usually keep 1 litter box for every 2 cats. I've had 8 cats at one time, and I've never had a problem with them becoming stressed out. We had 8 cats in my mother's house before we moved out, and there was never a problem. My husband also had 12 or 13 cats when he was a kid. He said that he never had any problems with them fighting or not getting along. Our cats get a lot more play time than 15 minutes a day. They get 15 minutes of play time each atleast, and we play with them all together for sometimes hours at a time. The dogs also get more than their share of playtime. A lot of the time we have a bed full of cats or dogs. I knew the sacrifices I would have to make when having so many pets running around the house.
I've been thinking about it for a week or so now, and we are most likely taking the cats. Our back yard is in the process of being fenced in, so the dogs are going to have a lot more outside time so the house isn't going to be as active when the new cats arrive.
My friend didn't want to dump his cats at the SPCA because he wants them to go to someone that he knows, not a stranger. He would like to be able to visit his cats and possibly get them back in the future.

:kiss: You are an awesome friend for considering this arrangement. It sound temporary and even though it is alot of animals in "itty bitty living space" I applaude you for doing what you can to help out your furry friends.:) If it helps any I know someone who built a cattery in a barn and has resued 70 cats. The secret is to make sure that every cat has a place that is theirs when they want to be alone.I send encouragement whatever you finally decide.:D