[blparent] Adopting a Pet

[Michael Baldwin]

 Well, I am personally not fond of cats, but here is my take on it.
Cats choose their owners, not the other way around. If the cat don't like
you guys, it will eventually slip outside and leave.
If you think you can keep the cat inside all the time, then yes, de-claw it,
but otherwise don't. The cat needs the claws for climbing, catching food,
defending itself, etc. If you take that away, you are making the cat more
dependent on you, or you have sentenced it to possible death if it gets out.

Introduction of cats and dogs is best done at puppy and kitten stage so they
grow up with each other. I have known cats and dogs to live together with no
issues. If the dog is aggressive towards the cat, and the cat has claws, the
dog will soon learn to leave it alone.

About the child, I would not worry about it to much, just explain your
babysitting the cat for a few days. If you decide not to keep it, just say
it was time for it to go back home. The kid will probably want to be all
over the cat at first. It is important to teach them to be easy.

Michael
-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Jo Elizabeth Pinto
Sent: Thursday, October 06, 2011 11:57
To: NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List
Subject: [blparent] Adopting a Pet

Hello.  Gerald and I are considering in taking a stray cat who needs a home.
The cat is healthy, has had his shots, been checked for worms and leukemia.
He's not fixed or de-clawed.  I don't know much about cats, so I have a few
questions.

What do I need to know before trying to introduce the cat to my guide dog?

I'd like to take the cat on a trial basis for a few days.  How can I make it
clear to my three-year-old that the kitty is going to stay through the
weekend, and then we'll see from there?  Would that idea be too hard on her?

I know de-clawing is beyond the scope of this list, but is it something I
should consider doing because of Sarah?

Jo Elizabeth

"How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young,
compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of
the weak and the strong.  Because someday in life you will have been all of
these."--George Washington Carver, 1864-1943, American scientist
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