Hi guys, I'm finally allowed to have a pet, so I've been taking frequent trips to the local shelter to look at the adorable cats. There was one cat that I'd always see there, who was very vocal, confident, and friendly. My third time there, my friend and I were allowed to "visit" with Kitty (take her into a separate room). She is the sweetest little thing, gave me a few licks and spent the rest of her time just sitting in my lap and being pet.
I left the room to talk to an adoption counsellor, who told me
- Kitty has a mild URI, and the virus will stay in her body forever + flare up from time to time (?)
- Kitty has Ortolani positive hips, and must maintain a healthy weight so that her joints aren't stressed
The first bit doesn't bother me at all, but the second one made me hesitate. From my extremely limited understanding of feline hip dysplasia (the adoption counsellor + Internet), it's a degenerative disease that will eventually require medication and maybe expensive hip replacement surgeries in the future. Even then, I would do anything for my pet, but I don't know if I would be able to afford the medical bills without financial support from my parents, and that's not fair to them.
I went back to the room where Kitty and my friend were, and she made a beeline for my lap, which made me feel terribly sad; I would have gone through with the adoption that day had I not known about her health issues. The rational side of me says that since this will be my first and maybe only pet, I should adopt a cat that is healthy instead of a cat that is guaranteed to develop painful issues down the line, and that Kitty will have another family willing to adopt her and care for her, maybe people who have more money + experience than me. There are plenty of other homeless cats out there waiting for me. But another part of me wants to care for her and give her a happy life, and I'm worried that she won't go to a good home. When I asked my dad, he said that he personally wouldn't adopt a cat like her, but he would understand if I felt sympathetic + went through with the adoption.
I know this is a personal decision, and she's probably going to be adopted by someone else soon, but I wanted to get some other perspectives. I went home with the mentality that I'll keep looking at other cats, but I can't stop thinking about poor Kitty.
Questions
- Is hip dysplasia more or less serious than I'm making it out to be?
- How would you move forward, in my position?
- If I adopt her, would it help to get pet insurance?
Additional information
- Kitty is only 2 years old, so I assume she has little to no symptoms yet
- I am a student with a part-time job
TL;DR: Confident, sweet cat has URI + hip dysplasia. I want to do the responsible thing for me and this cat. Where do I go from here?
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from Pets https://www.reddit.com/r/Pets/comments/d0aubx/the_cat_i_wanted_to_adopt_has_hip_dysplasia_do_i/
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