Cat owner abandons her cat in front of a salon, gets angry when her friend tells her she didn't 'rehome' the cat: 'I told her that re-homing involved finding an owner and vetting them in advance.'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Feb 6, 2025 6:00 PM EST

Nearly every story of having to rehome a pet is deeply tragic. The ones that make me the saddest are when pet parents leave their aging pets at the shelter because they are not young, energetic, and playful anymore. Could you imagine making an animal live out the rest of their days apart from their family because they're no longer entertaining enough for them? It makes me tear up just thinking about it. There are also a lot of inexperienced pet owners who buy a puppy, don't train it, and are shocked when they can't properly care for it, forcing them to give it up for adoption before it's a year old. There is a big difference between rehoming a pet because of genuinely not being able to care for it (for whatever reason) and just giving it up because the going gets a little too tough for your liking. 

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  • The pet owner in this story is the latter. Her cat was going to the bathroom on her bed every day, and instead of checking to see if he had a medical issue or working on going in the litter box, she abandoned him in front of a beauty salon. 

  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10464294656
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 02

    AITA for correcting a friend when she said she “re-homed” her cat?

    My friend told a story about re- homing her cat because it wouldn't stop going to the bathroom on her bed.
    via u/anon_mouse82
  • 03
    Cheezburger Image 10464300032
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 04
    She said she put the cat in its carrier and left it outside the door of a local salon before they opened. She said she checked in later, and one of the girls had decided to adopt the cat, so the re-homing was a success.
    via u/anon_mouse82
  • 05
    I told her that what she did was not re-homing, and that what she had actually done was dump her cat. I told her that re-homing involved finding an owner and vetting them in advance. She got very angry at me for "judging" her. Am I the a hole?
    via u/anon_mouse82
  • 06
    Cheezburger Image 10464300544
    via Obie Fernandez

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 07
    lamIrene She said she put the cat in its carrier and left it outside the door of her salon before they opened. She said she checked in later, and one of the girls had decided to adopt the cat, so the re-homing was a success. Uh...ya. That's not "rehoming", that's straight up abandonment and is illegal in most places in the US. You are NTA. I'd judge the h_I out of her too, lol.
    via u/lamIrene
  • 08
    MattJFarrell Yeah, that might be a friendship ender for me
    via u/MattJFarrell
  • 09
    dev-246 I don't even like cats that much and this would be a friendship ender for me. What a lunatic. This cat was abandoned, not re- homed.
    via u/dev-246
  • 10
    FewStill3958 Me too. One of the few things I actually judge people for is how they treat vulnerable creatures including people.
    via u/FewStill3958
  • 11
    Mediocre Weakness243 • 12h ago Exactly, this is borderline sociopath behavior. How do you not get attached to your PET that lived with you?! I'm not a dog person, but when I was traveling with my husband (long haul CDL driver) we caught a couple of people trying to dump their dogs-one at a truck stop, one at a highway rest stop. We confronted them both times (relatively nicely, using our phone to look up nearby shelters), and reported their license plate in case they drove off and tried that sh
    via u/Mediocre_Weakness243
  • 12
    birdyheard cats peeing outside of their litter box is a sign of stress. she stressed this poor animal out and then abandoned it. this person is scarily stupid
    via u/birdyheard
  • 13
    softsharkskin • 14h ago hijacking the top comment for visibility PSA: If your cat is peeing in a weird place repeatedly, something is wrong.
    via u/softsharkskin
  • 14
    This is how cats tell you they need help. A good pet owner should bring their cat to the vet when they keep peeing outside of their litter box. OP's friend abandoned her animal. She deserves to feel judged because she did a terrible thing. NTA
    via u/softsharkskin
  • 15
    punk_hufflepuff My cat peed in my bed every work day because she was lonely. Thankfully that was painfully obvious, but some coworkers asked if I was gonna give her away?? I found her a friend and they were a bonded pair until she passed away because having a pet is a responsibility that requires effort and financial commitment. People who abandon their pet at the first inconvenience drive me insane
    via u/punk_hufflepuff
  • 16
    poxelsaiyuri I got new kittens in September and the boy one has been peeing on my bed (have been to the vets a few times but they can't find anything wrong with him) but turns out I have cancer, I wonder if this is why he has been so possessive of me (he's obsessed with me and always wants to be near) and if treatment is successful if his behaviour will change
    via u/poxelsaiyuri
  • 17
    Discount_Mithral NTA. As someone who has had to rehome a pet, you are correct - what she did was dump the cat on the street and hoped it would just go away. Proper rehoming involves vetting possible adopters, meeting them before you hand over the pet, and all sorts of other safety checks. What she did was just horrible.
    via u/Discount_Mithral
  • 18
    Rdbjiy53wsvjo7 We had to rehome a pet, it was very hard for us. We had an eldery dog that barked in our 1 year old's face, not a "I'm so happy to see you!", it was aggressive.
    via u/Rdbjiy53wsvjo7
  • 19
    Even though we prepared for it before our kid was born, and she went to my parents where we knew she'd be spoiled, it was very hard. I couldn't imagine just leaving her in a crate outside hoping someone would see her to take her.
    via u/Rdbjiy53wsvjo7
  • 20
    Appropriate-One-8789 NTA. what your friend did is the definition of abandonment not rehoming. Coming back to check if your abandonment had a happy ending does not absolve you for doing it in the first place or make it right
    via u/Appropriate-One-8789
  • 21
    SetIndependent3107 Exactly! It's actually kind of a funny idea...in a way. If she was trying to make sure that her cat will end up with a nice person. Why not just take the cat with her at the salon and just ask people or colleagues if they want to adopt a cat? Right? That would make it more secure...instead of just leaving the cat outside. smh.
    via u/SetIndependent3107
  • 22
    Strait409 Uh, she did dump her cat and she should feel judged. NTA. Also, what the f kind of person tells those kinds of stories? (Well, besides a ☐ one.) I gotta say, if someone had told me that story I'd have been over here channeling the late Southern comedian Lewis Grizzard. "Dayum, sis. Don't b'lieve I'da tole that."
    via u/Strait409
  • 23
    alsotheabyss • 16h ago NTA. But YWBTA if you remained friends with this person.
    via u/alsotheabyss
  • 24
    roostersncatsplz ⚫ 16h ago Hmm, suspect we know why her cat was acting out. Clearly a neglectful pet owner if she felt this was an even vaguely appropriate way to get rid of her cat. Poor kitty. I sure hope the new owner is an improvement. NTA, thank you for not feeding into the bulls spin on abandonment.
    via u/roostersncatsplz

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