20/01/2024
Things to think about when you want to adopt a cat "for free."
Cats live, on average, 15 years.
In that 15 years, you can expect to spend at least 40,000 aed on vet care, supplies, food, etc. if your cat is perfectly healthy for their entire life. If not, it could cost you 100,000 aed or more to maintain their health due to special diet, medication, or surgeries. Cats are particularly susceptible to long term illnesses like slow kidney failure, diabetes, and intestinal and digestive issues.
Also, if you are an expat, the cost to move your cat with you when you go will be between 4,000 and 12,000 aed depending on your destination.
15 years is 180 months.
That means each month you should budget at least 500 aed per month for basic maintenance and health savings and another 300-1000 aed per month to make sure that you have enough savings by the end of the first year to take them with you.
A rescuer has already arranged 1500 to 2000 aed worth of veterinary care by sterilizing, vaccinating, and microchipping them at 2/3 of the cost.
On top of that they have fed them and nursed them back to health, sometimes with significant vet costs and immeasurable emotional toll.
So a rescuer asking for you to pay just enough to cover those basics at 1000-1500 aed is entirely reasonable.
Have any questions? Adopt-a-Cat UAE is happy to help demystify the process of adoption.
Also, this lovely kitten, Artemis would love to have a human to call her own!
