I honestly don't know what to do about grad school and my cats

[awfulpetowner]

I'll be moving across the country to a not so cheap Master's program that offers very little in the way of funding.

All the studio apartments that I can find are 1.4k a month. There is one that's income restricted that costs 600 a month or less. The caveat is that you can't have pets. It kills me because I love my two cats and while I can afford the 1.4k a month, it's going to put a strain on my finances and I feel like an awful pet owner for even considering finding them new homes when they've been with me for two years. I don't know what to do. I was so happy over being accepted. This is just stressful.

[quincepessa]

Find roommates who like cats? That could cut your costs.

 

My beloved Quince is definitely restricting where my wife and I can live too - hoping we'll find something good this weekend.

[bsharpe269]

Looking for a roomate is a great suggestion.

 

If you are unable to find one then I would talk to friends/family. Maybe someone is willing to take the cats for a couple years so that you can have them back when you are done.

[Kaitri]

I don't know where you're moving, but I believe that (in Canada at least) while some housing units may say they don't allow pets, it's technically illegal to evict someone or discriminate against them (i.e. not rent to them) based on whether they have pets or not.

 

Do a quick search into renter's rights and see if it's legal in your country to reject an application for tenancy on the basis of pet ownership. If it's not legal, then rent that rent-controlled apartment with a clear conscience (while refraining from disclosing that you have cats, of course).

[DeafAudi]

This is so odd to me! From where I'm from, nearly every place allows cats. It's when you have a dog that it becomes more difficult. I'm very happy to be moving to an extremely dog friendly city.

 

@awfulpetowner (you are not!), I second the recommendation of finding a roommate. Good luck .

[rvict]

Cats also cost $$$ per month. I'd say mine eats at least $100 of food a month. Plus litter, unexpected vet bills, etc. Hard decision for sure. Do you have friends or family who would take them until you finish your program?

[sys88]

Whoa, rvict, where are you buying your cat food from? My cat has to get prescription food (ie $$$) and it doesn't come anywhere close to even half that amount. Vet bills are a real risk, though.

I'm of the belief that when you choose to be a pet owner then it is your responsibility *for the life of the pet* to assure it adequate care. To me this would mean getting the apt that allows cats. Roommates can help. I understand your pain - I have a cat myself and the supply of cat-friendly apts is a small fraction of all apts. Doesn't matter, the cat is just another requirement on my list for an apt (along with things like price, size, and location).

If you honestly feel that keeping the cats would be too much of a strain then it is your responsibility to find them a good home. Please do not just take them to the shelter; put the work into finding them a suitable home. Finally, if it comes to that, think long and hard the next time you're considering a pet. Think about your future plans and be sure that a pet can fit into them. I know you can't always plan 100% but please do your best. A pet doesn't deserve to be shuffled around or killed because the owner had "things come up". If you can't reasonably assure that you can care for the pet for its life then please reconsider getting the pet.

[bumblyboo]

My cat is coming with me. Though I'm moving no more than 4 hours across my current state, I couldn't imagine leaving her behind. I'm currently looking at pet-friendly apartments (especially ones without bread restrictions cus I really really want a shar pei/pit bull mix) and saving up for the pet deposit that will likely be in place. 

[Vene]

Please do not just take them to the shelter; put the work into finding them a suitable home.

In many cases putting an animal in a shelter is a death sentence. You might be able to justify it if it was a healthy kitten, but even that's a stretch.

[pearcema]

In many cases putting an animal in a shelter is a death sentence. You might be able to justify it if it was a healthy kitten, but even that's a stretch.

 

Agreed.  If you absolutely must give your cats up and you can't find someone to take them, see if you can work with a no-kill rescue.  They are often over capacity, but the rescue I volunteer with will sometimes have the current pet owners keep their pets in a "foster" scenario while the rescue helps find a new home.

 

That being said...I can't imagine starting this crazy new chapter of my life without my pets!  Yes it limits my housing choices, but I would be miserable if I came home to an empty house every day.  Grad school is going to be hard enough without my pets to lift my spirits

 

I sympathize with your housing difficulties...it is stressful!  However, I find it hard to believe there is only ONE apartment in the entire area that would work for you.  What sites have you been looking on?  Try craigslist, rent.com, apartments.com, etc.  I suggest also posting in the city guide thread for your school and asking about pet friendly, affordable housing options.  You might even find a roommate!  Good luck!

[rising_star]

I have lots and lots of sympathy for your situation. I moved across the country last summer with a dog. And it was a pain finding pet-friendly apartments/houses because most of them don't allow pets at all or only allow cats. I just sucked it up because I like my dog 99% of the time and wouldn't want her away from me.

[qeta]

Find roommates who like cats? That could cut your costs.

 

My beloved Quince is definitely restricting where my wife and I can live too - hoping we'll find something good this weekend.

Off-topic but I have to ask: is Quince a beagle who likes licking/sniffing big cats? Is that what's going on in your profile pic? That's certainly what mine would do. (God, when did I become a crazy dog/beagle lady?!)

On topic, I second the idea of a friend or family member taking care of the OP's cats for the duration of the Master's, partly because the degree should last only 1-2 years and mostly because human roommates suck.

[rvict]

Whoa, rvict, where are you buying your cat food from? My cat has to get prescription food (ie $$$) and it doesn't come anywhere close to even half that amount. Vet bills are a real risk, though.

He eats a lot. Plus, Canada tax. Wet food is more expensive than dry. Perhaps $100 is too high an estimation, but 80 at least. I don't try too hard to keep track.

It's rather irresponsible to take on two cats 2 years before grad school tbh, but most pet owners are less than ideal. I try not to judge people wrt their attitude about owning pets, but ugh. A cat is a 15+ year commitment. If you think that's too long, your local shelter has plenty of choice to show how many people don't get this...

[RomulusAugustulus]

I also have sympathy for your situation. I had to move with my cat for my MA program (and was moving with a roommate who had a dog so we had to find a place that allowed 2 pets). Now I have to move to NYC with a cat who's used to frolicking outside (ugh x 2). It's hard but not impossible to find cheaper places that allow pets. Obviously it depends a lot on the city. I think the best thing to do is search for apts rented by individuals (rather than apartment buildings), who are often more lenient about pets. There are also housing websites for a lot of cities that allow you to filter apts by "allows cats" or something (craigslist does, although it isn't the best). Finding a roommate is also a great way to get a cheaper place. Often universities have classified ads on the student website where people can advertise for roommates. The school may even have an off-campus housing search engine that might have cheaper options geared towards students. Check their res-ed website.

I'll also second (third?) the last ditch option of finding a family member/friend who can keep them for 2 years and NOT bringing them to a shelter. 

Good luck! 

[awfulpetowner]

Hey everyone,

Thank you for the advice. I've decided to keep them with me, as I don't have any friends or family members that could foster them. I'll be paying 1400-1600 a month instead of <600, but that's just something I'll have to take into stride and get loans to deal with. 

[awfulpetowner]

He eats a lot. Plus, Canada tax. Wet food is more expensive than dry. Perhaps $100 is too high an estimation, but 80 at least. I don't try too hard to keep track.

It's rather irresponsible to take on two cats 2 years before grad school tbh, but most pet owners are less than ideal. I try not to judge people wrt their attitude about owning pets, but ugh. A cat is a 15+ year commitment. If you think that's too long, your local shelter has plenty of choice to show how many people don't get this...

Also, I wanted to comment on this specifically. Yes, I understand it was irresponsible, but they were both originally shelter cats that no one wanted. Maddie is polydactyl which scared people off for some reason, and I couldn't just leave her there. I never had any intention of making a less than 15 year commitment, I just had no idea the discrepancy between a cat free apartment and cat friendly apartment would be 1200 dollars more a month. It was a bit shocking, to say the least.

[pearcema]

I'm glad you are keeping them!  I'm sure you're feeling overwhelmed right now, but it will all work out.  Did you have any luck searching other sites for cat friendly apartments or finding roommates as others suggested?

[awfulpetowner]

 

I'm glad you are keeping them!  I'm sure you're feeling overwhelmed right now, but it will all work out.  Did you have any luck searching other sites for cat friendly apartments or finding roommates as others suggested?

The 1400-1600 per month studio is cat friendly (though I'll have to pay an extra 40$ per month, per cat on top of the base rent). Most of the 2/2 apartments scale with the price of the studio, so I wouldn't end up saving too much money going with a roommate, so I'll likely just stick with a studio.

Edited April 5, 2014 by awfulpetowner

[pearcema]

Wow, what city are you moving to?  Could you move a little further away from the school and deal with a slightly longer commute?

[kglad]

I've had to find a rental that allowed a 88lb dog and five cats, too, in a large city. The best luck I had was posting to craigslist for housing wanted. I got a fantastic second-story 1200sf flat for $850/mo in a cool duplex with off-street parking from a guy who saw my ad. In St. Paul, MN. Normally that type of unit by size and bedrooms would run in the $1100 range. He lived in the 3rd floor unit as my "legal roommate" since the house was, eh, not legally a triplex. It was awesome. You might try posting at craigslist and see if you can find something pop up like that, especially if you are not in a huge hurry to move. The guy that contacted me had just gotten the place ready to rent and did not post it anywhere. I was the only person who viewed it before he rented it out. I wish I still lived there, actually, because it would be less complicated than selling the house I bought after that. Ugh.

 

Another option, which might not be workable in your area, is to find a clean, quiet mobile home park and buy a used mobile home. If all you need is a studio or 1br, a smaller mobile home could suit you ok and be pretty affordable, just make sure you look into "good" parks vs "crime-ridden" parks. That's our game plan for my doctorate, since we're in the same boat-- too many cats to easily find a place to rent.

 

Good luck and I hope you're able to keep your kitties.

[rising_star]

Housing wanted ads! I totally forgot about those. I got a fantastic place to live that way once. Well below market rent with all the amenities I wanted and close to campus. 1.5 years later I moved out because I wanted more privacy (I had 2 roommates) and because they were raising the rent by 25% to put it in line with market rates. You should definitely place a few and see what happens. Some of it will be crap but some will be worth looking into.

[memyselfandcoffee]

I personally think paying an extra 840 a month to keep your cats with you is excessive. Lots of nice people want to adopt pets, could you not advertise and find them loving homes? then again its easy for me to say, I have wanted a dog for ages but have put off getting one as I will probably emigrate in a few years. I would have hard time adopting out my parents dog, but tbh I think if he were with the right people he would adjust.

[RunnerGrad]

I personally think paying an extra 840 a month to keep your cats with you is excessive. Lots of nice people want to adopt pets, could you not advertise and find them loving homes? then again its easy for me to say, I have wanted a dog for ages but have put off getting one as I will probably emigrate in a few years. I would have hard time adopting out my parents dog, but tbh I think if he were with the right people he would adjust.

 

With an attitude like that, I hope you never own pets.  They are NOT items that should just be given away on a whim.  And no, there aren't lots of "nice people" out there who want to adopt pets - if there were, the shelters and rescues wouldn't be full of animals awaiting adoption.

 

Pets are like members of the family.  You don't put your children up for adoption just because you are moving across country and it costs more to rent a place that has room for children than it does for a studio apartment.  In the same way, you don't put your pets up for adoption just because you are moving.  People that do really shouldn't own pets to begin with.  Now, I realize there are some situations where it is truly not possible to continue to own pets (i.e. if you are no longer able to care for them due to severe illness or injury) but otherwise pets should not be treated as if they are disposable.  They aren't.  They are living, breathing creatures with feelings.

[juilletmercredi]

I agree with the former post - pets are for life - but at the same time, I find it a bit hard to believe that the discrepancy between places that allow cats and places that don't is literally $1200/month everywhere.  I also find it hard to believe that all of the 2-bedrooms are literally twice the price of the one-bedrooms, to the extent that sharing an apartment doesn't save you any money.  That's not the way the housing market has worked anywhere that I've lived, and I currently live in the most expensive U.S. city.

 

Are you exhausting your search?  I know that Craigslist is a great way to find an apartment in my city but in other cities, it's not actually the best way.  What about apartments.com, roommates.com?  Does your university have an off-campus housing office that has listings or recommendations for where to find apartments?  Most do, and that's where I found my first apartment.

Edited April 11, 2014 by juilletmercredi

[wandajune]

I was in a similar situation--as if apartment hunting isn't stressful enough. My partner and I struggled to find an apartment that would allow cats when we move for my graduate program. We have two cats and consider them a vital part of our family. Luckily, we found a great apartment in a pretty good location that will allow them. Finding the right place took some creativity, though--craigslist, apartments.com, padmapper, etc. Most of the cat friendly places we found were a bit of an inconvenient distance from campus, but the commute would have been worth it to me. Be persistent, something will turn up!