Every year, thousands of families walk into shelters hoping to find a pet, but many don’t realize that adopting a cat  involves a careful, sometimes emotional process designed to ensure the right match for both humans and animals.

Before you adopt 

Before you adopt your new kitten or cat there is a very simple process that must be completed before you take home your cat. The Assistant Feline Adoptions Manager at the MCSPCA gives us some steps to look at before you take home your cat. She says “Our process starts with a “Feline Adoption Survey,” which has some basic questions about the people living at home, any pets living at home, and what type of pet a potential adopter is looking for. Once the potential adopter is at the SPCA, they walk through our cat adoption floor,” (Feline Adoption Assistant Manager” She continues to explain what the adoption center steps before taking home your cat. After forms are filmed out you are ready to take a look at some cats. Basic information like the cat’s name, age, and gender hang in front of where the cat lives. Once an adopter sees someone they’re interested in meeting, they work one-on-one with an adoption counselor. The Adoption counselors will ask adopters more specific questions about taking care of the cat things like would they keep the cat indoor only, would they ever be looking into the declawing process, have they ever owned a cat before, etc. Then the adoption counselor will do a meet & greet with the cat and adopter. This is where the adopters usually make their final decision on what cat they would like to adopt.

The Adoption Process

Now once you have your forever cat you need to begin the actual adoption process. The feline adoption assistant manager says “We go over all of the medical information and take-home resources with the adopters before signing any paperwork. If the cat or kitten is already spayed or neutered, then they go home with their new family the same day. If they haven’t already been altered, we put an adopted stamp on their card and hold them for their family until the surgery is complete.”(Feline Adoption Assistant Manager) Once you are able to take home your cat the final step is a vet technician’s final exam. This is to make sure the cat is fully healthy before you take it home. The MCSPCA will send you home with the food the cat has been eating, some toys, and bedding if they have something they really love.

After you bring your cat home 

Your final step now is what you have to do in the beginning at home with your cat. Lastly the Feline adoption assistant manager says “When you bring a new cat home, you need to have a smaller, confined area set up for them. Cats are known to struggle with changes in environment more than some other pets, so we strongly recommend picking one room to get them used to the new house. By having everything they need in one room, it allows them to decompress in a safer, smaller area, and then once they feel comfortable in the house, you can expand their area to new rooms” (Feline Adoption Assistant Manager) Things you should have for the cat when it arrives home is litter box and litter, a variety of toys, a cozy bed ( recommend one that’s covered so the cat has a safe hiding spot and one that’s open), scratching posts, a bowl of fresh water available always, and another bowl for food. Cats also should only ever travel in carriers, so cat owners should buy a hard plastic carrier to take them home in. In the end the goal is to make the cat as comfortable as possible so for the first couple days or weeks you are on the cat’s timing the cat has to make itself comfortable. Don’t force the cat to explore or overwhelm the cat with a bunch of people. This is a very important step, you do not want to create fear within the cat.