# how many is too many?



## gryphonclaw (Jan 19, 2011)

im just curious, what is the general opinion on how many cats is too many? some people tell me i have too many cats with just 3. i feel like i would be pushing my limits at maybe 5 cats. but ive known a couple of ladies through work who would not tell me how many cats they had, just that we had 8 on file at work (a vet), and that we were not their only vet!
what do you think?


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## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

The definition of "too many" has various factors.

By law, the city I live in says you can only have 2 cats. (or 2 dogs... or 1 cat and 1 dog... basically 2 pets - period).
However, I know people who have ONE cat and don't take very good care of it. On the other hand, I know several people with more than a dozen cats and they are all pampered!

If you're going by personal choice, and not any laws, I would think that "too many" is more than you can handle... emotionally, financially and otherwise responsibly.

I have 2. While I would love to have more, I've got a tight budget and can't really afford stuff for more right now, even if the law would allow it.


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## morea (Feb 8, 2005)

Vivid Dawn said:


> If you're going by personal choice, and not any laws, I would think that "too many" is more than you can handle... emotionally, financially and otherwise responsibly.


well said.


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## Dave_ph (Jul 7, 2009)

Vivid Dawn said:


> By law, the city I live in says you can only have 2 cats. (or 2 dogs... or 1 cat and 1 dog... basically 2 pets - period).


Move. Now. That's absurd. Call Sarah Palin 'cause that sure sounds unconstitutional to me.

The entire formula for determing the acceptable number of cats for a household is too complex to list here. It involves number of hoomins in the family, square footage in the home, household income, breed, age of cat, age of hoomins and a host of other factors. 

The short formula is "You can just tell".


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## Greenport ferals (Oct 30, 2010)

Vivid Dawn said:


> By law, the city I live in says you can only have 2 cats. (or 2 dogs... or 1 cat and 1 dog... basically 2 pets - period).


I've seen you mention this before. Quotas on pets is new to me. 
Sounds like China. I don't like it.


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## icatguy (May 15, 2010)

gryphonclaw said:


> i feel like i would be pushing my limits at maybe 5 cats.


I think you're wise to be cautious about exploring the limits. There's no cut and dried number. It all depends on some many factors. Many of which you might not even be aware of until they intrude their ugly heads. I learned early on that for me, in my circumstances, three cats was a handful and four cats was too many. But I wasn't wise you like are. I had to learn the hard way, and harder still for the cat(s) who had to find a different home. I think that if you're happy with the cats you have now; if they're all happy with each other .... then why fool with it?


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Greenport ferals said:


> I've seen you mention this before. Quotas on pets is new to me.
> Sounds like China. I don't like it.


Most cities and counties have limits, people just aren't aware of them.


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## Hitomi (Nov 15, 2010)

Here it's three but I know people with more than that.But most people don't get in trouble if the animals are well taken care of.My grandmother was neighbors with a nice old lady(72 years old) who had 20 and all were in good health,her house was clean always(you couldn't smell stinky liter boxes either),and everyone was taken to the vet every six months.I only own one but I might be keeping the little cat my sister has been caring for and that is all I plan on owning.I think it depends on how many you can handle/afford.


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## Vivid Dawn (May 31, 2010)

I also know a lady with a lot of cats (50...all rescues, and many are "special needs"). She keeps her house immaculate! If you were blind and walked in, you couldn't even tell she has cats...no smell at all! (she works at home, so she does have time to take care of everything properly).

And yeah, about the 2-limit law... I think it's kinda ridiculous too. However, I understand that they're probably trying to prevent people getting overwhelmed and/or hoarding. And they DO enforce it...my sister's friend got a cat taken away when Animal Control was doing a random neighborhood inspection and saw 2 cats and a dog in the yard.
On the other hand, a few cities north of me allow 5 cats, and another city I think it's 7 cats (which is the city the rescue lady lives in).

Also, my city does not "recognize" TNR. Even if the cats have tipped ears or some other indication of being in a program, they will be taken away and euthanized if there are complaints made about them. If I am caught caring for feral cats, I am fined for each one, because I "own" more than my limit (ownership consists of feeding and/or caring for). Luckily my neighbors don't mind (one neighbor helps feed them), so I doubt I'll get in trouble.

Currently a law is being reviewed to make it legal to shoot ferals! I really hope it doesn't get passed, because there are a lot of outdoor pet cats that could get mistakenly killed.
I really do want to move. There are so many things I don't like about Utah! Climate, mostly, and several "stupid" laws.


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## Dave_ph (Jul 7, 2009)

marie73 said:


> Most cities and counties have limits, people just aren't aware of them.


At least China limits the number of children too.


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## saitenyo (Nov 28, 2010)

I second what others have said about the limit being the number you have the finances, time, and energy to care for.

I currently can only manage two cats, so more than two would be too many for me. But some people can handle more than two, some people can only currently care for one. It's totally an individual thing. 

As long as someone is taking good care of their cats (providing them with medical care, spay and neutering, good food, attention, play, space, hygiene, etc.) then I don't think they should be considered to have "too many" cats regardless of the number. There are people who can't properly care for one cat, and people who take wonderful care of 6.

And then of course there are individual city regulations which is a whole other matter.  Unless you're a registered kennel, most cities do place pretty strict limitations on the number of pets you can own, although I'm not sure how heavily enforced this is. The only times I've heard of it being enforced are when a neighbor complains (about barking, animal abuse, smell, etc.)


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## Dave_ph (Jul 7, 2009)

I'm a rugged individualist who lives outside the city limts(a good 300 yards) so I don't think there's a limit here. My next door neighbor has reached 3 cats, 3 dogs and (uggh) six kids. 

I was curious about limits in Tampa so I did the Google and I'm proud to say Tampa Bay is progressive on one issue. A few towns here want to do away with the limits.

** As I was typing this Bay News 9 took a break from reporting on local murders and went to a story about a woman that's violating a Homeowner's Association pet limit. HOA's are the essence of evil. She's elderly and ill and is going with "my doctor prescribed them". It looks like there's much local sympathy for her.


Madeira Beach moves to lift pet limit per household

Currently, the city prohibits residents from having more than four dogs or four cats.
Unincorporated Pinellas County, Belleair Beach, Belleair Shore, Indian Shores, Seminole and Treasure Island do not limit the number of cats and dogs that can be kept in a home.

"When you look at the family structure you have today, I* hope if someone's sick, parents have to go into facilities, their children would be able to take their pets. So what if it puts them at five (dogs or cats). Does that really harm the city? No, it doesn't*," Nichols said.


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## Dave_ph (Jul 7, 2009)

:smiles


...
Commissioner Terry Lister does not want to change the current rules.
"I love my wife, but this is just going to let her loose," he said. "How about eight? Just double the number. Don't make unlimited."


"How sad. How very sad," Commissioner Nancy Oakley said. "That makes me want to go get another cat."


"I think it is a pretty neat idea. People should be able to have as many pets as they want," Mayor Pat Shontz said.


In the end, the commission directed its attorney to draft a revised ordinance removing the restriction on the number of pets in residential areas. The commission will have to vote twice on the issue before it can go into effect. No date was set for those votes.


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## suwanee (Jan 22, 2011)

Dave_ph said:


> At least China limits the number of children too.


ha ha. At first this was funny. . . then I remembered I'm female.


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## Stephanieee (Jan 24, 2010)

where i live, you can have 4 animals. if you have 2+ (or maybe it's 3+) you must have an actual fence. while i do believe how well you take care of them is extremely important, the size of your house is too. i have 2 cats and a dog in a 2500 sq ft house. that's fine b/c they can all get away and have their own space. my neighbor has 3 cats and her house is a bit bigger but i just feel like that's pushing it a little. i'd say no more than 3, maaaaybe 4. if you feel you'd be pushing your limits at 5... you will. so 4 or less.


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## StrangeMagic (Feb 1, 2011)

If I had the money, I could easily be "crazy cat lady" and adopt every stray in wine country. 

So often I will read posts on Yahoo Answers from people who say "there is blood in my cat's stool. What is it?" and they say that they don't have the funds to take their cat to the vet. Many people don't understand that you take on a responsibility when you own a pet. You owe it to that pet to take the best care of them that you can, to love that pet and feed that pet and take that pet to the doctor when that pet is sick.

When you can't afford to do all of that, then THAT'S too many.


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## Babyblue033 (Feb 1, 2011)

Sometimes you have the perfect equation and the perfect number, then life throws you the curve ball and you simply stretch the limits and figure out a way deal with it 

At least that's what happened to me. I started out with 2 cats, then added a 3rd one. I was perfectly happy with that number until I came across an older cat on death row that tugged at my heart. 4 cats, still not bad. Then a friend of mine called in the middle of the storm to tell me about a tiny kitten that's crying outside of her apartment, a tiny white kitten that eluded us the entire night in the storm and ended up coming home with me was #5. Then I lost my old guy from a heart disease and was back to 4 cats, but it didn't take long before I met the love of my life Roxy who has Cerebellar Hypoplasia. I thank god every day that I didn't turn her away just because I was over my limit, because my life will not be complete without her. I actually think 5 would've been my idea number but when a random chance brought 2 kittens with the same neurological condition as my Roxy, I just didn't have the heart to say no.

So that puts me at 7 now and I'm definitely over my limit with that number. But that doesn't mean every single one of them doesn't get everything they need and deserve, the shelter, best food, toys, and all the attention they crave (and they crave A LOT of attention, I've been blessed with super clingy dog-like cats). Do I sometimes long for those quieter days with less cats and cleaner house? Certainly! Back in the days when I used to actually wear black clothes that weren't covered in cat hair! But every one of my cats were rescues and I think about the lives I was able to save with a little bit of sacrifice on my part. Not to mention, I had to get to #5 before I met my heart cat! I shudder to think I would've never met Roxy if I had set my limit at 3... :wink


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## Montythecat (Feb 2, 2011)

Wow, I've never heard about there being a limit on the number of cats/pets you can have! I have one cat, and would like a second, but I have a baby on the way so will be waiting until I have the time and money to look after a new cat too! 

Much respect to those looking after lots of cats, especially poorly ones.


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## nicolee (Feb 1, 2011)

I have 2 cats but up until a few years ago I had 8 indoor cats and 2 indoor dogs. That was definitely too much for me. I had to re-home the cats and dogs whenever I lost my house.


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