I need suggestions.

[green_dreams]

So. Barring a sudden and wondrous reversal of fortune, I cannot keep Toby any longer.

The vet describes his ideal situation as living in shelter (the specific example was a horse barn; he's very kindly checking with some people out in more rural areas) with the option to go outside; either a single pet or one of two cats; still on his special diet; and with enough close, regular, and attentive contact from humans that they will notice if he gets sick again.

• He is on Hill's Prescription Diet c/d (the canned food, not the kibble, mixed with a little water to make sure he stays properly hydrated). It's not much as such things go--about $1/day--but it's really important for him.
  
• He's somewhat prone to urinary tract infections, though they clear up promptly with antibiotics.
  
• He's currently on antidepressants, though he might not need them if rehomed; they're largely to try and control whatever short circuit in his brain makes him pee outside the litterbox, and if he can wander outside or pick an unused shed corner, they might not be necessary.
  
• He's nine years old, neutered (also, he pees like a girl due to surgery when he got blocked), microchipped, has all his claws, and is up-to-date on all shots (he gets them done in November).
  
• He cannot (much as he might love to, in his little Mighty Hunter heart) be a wild and roving purely outdoor cat; he needs his prescription food and a human to keep an eye on him and notice if he's in pain.
  
• He cannot (much as I would love him to be, in my breaking pet owner heart) be an indoor cat; he is currently peeing everywhere[1], and attempts to keep him in rooms where he won't destroy things have resulted in him crying for hours and chewing up the doorjamb to get out. (It's actually rather impressive. I'd need to go after it with a screwdriver to inflict that much damage.)

If we had a garage, or a basement and a backyard, or even yardspace to set up a heated shed[2], I would not be doing this. But I've literally got no place to keep him, and since it would involve buying a house I can't afford to get him one.

He is, for all the problems he currently has, mellow and gentle and well-behaved. I want him to be happy. I just can't take care of him anymore.

If you can think of *anyplace* I might try to see if they can take him--outside of the clinics and the pet sanctuary and Friends of Abandoned Pets and the vet schools in Guelph and Montreal--please please please let me know.
---
[1] No. Everywhere. I've tried, I really have, but it is just not manageable any more.
[2] Looked at prices. Seriously not joking.

Comments

[fairestcat]

*hugs* I know how hard a decision this must have been for you. He's a beautiful boy and I really hope you're able to find a place for him.

I watch the kittypix comm here on lj and they're a large but pretty close knit group and I've seen them help out with re-homing cats and such quite a bit. It's one of the reasons I watch that particular place of all the various cute cat pic comms on lj. I can post about Toby over there for you if you'd like.

[torrain.livejournal.com]

If you could, that would be *great*. I've submitted a request to join, but I'm waiting on approval, and waiting is not great right now.

Feel free to grab any of the pics in this comment (http://torrain.livejournal.com/211181.html?thread=885741#t885741) if you figure it's appropriate (he *does* look cool in that hat, I think), and/or link back here; meantime, I'll add it to the list of online posts about Toby that I'm obsessively hitting refresh on.

(On a total tangent, I need to find Rayne's number/e-mail; do you know how I would go about this?)

[fairestcat]

putting together a post now. Actually, I don't have Rayne's number. But let me check around my email, I might have an email for her.

[fairestcat]

Made a post at kittypix here. I copied out your post from here and also linked back to this entry.