How can I convince my mom to let me get a cat?

Question

I'm 14 years old. My sister is about to go off to college.

I'm going to be all alone for the most part at home. I think it would nice to have a pet (in this case, a cat) to keep me company.

My family has had two cats before, but we kept each of them for only a week because my mom is ridiculous and didn't want them.

I've recently started to talk to her about getting me one since my sister is leaving. She firmly says no. Her reasoning is that she doesn't want it to "destroy the house" and she doesn't want to have to be alone with it during the day while I'm at school.

I've assured her that I will take care of it fully. The only time I won't be able to is while I'm at school, but other than that, I'll be very attentive.

My dad also would like one, but my mom is very selfish and for some reason thinks that it's just her decision.

How can I convice my mom to get me a cat?

Answer 1

I'm 20 and my mother was also like that.

I finally decided last year that I was bringing home a cat (ended up being 2 sibling kittens, about 4 months old) because I felt I was responsible enough to take care of them. I had a plan in order to send them to a loving home if it didn't work out at my house. I've wanted a cat my entire life and have only had a fish or 2 growing up. It probably wasn't a good idea to just bring home cats into a house I do not own, but it worked out for the best. My mom fell in love with the cats and they're almost her cats more than mine now. The only thing  that upsets me is that she secretly got them declawed (im totally against that),but since it is her house, I can understand that she didn't want her furniture scratched up--despite that I explained how there are caps for cats' claws and the overall procedure, etc.

My advice to you is to perhaps "pet sit" a cat or kitten a friend may have or via a temporary job. You can ask your mom if you can pet sit cats or kittens to make some extra cash. Post an ad on craigslist or something. See how your mom reacts about having the cats around the house for a few days. If she's warming up to the cats, you may want to ask her if you can get your own.

Or you could discuss why you are responsible enough to take care of a cat and how you will prevent the cat from "destroying" her house. It seems that her main concern is that the cat will be a mess. Honestly, dogs are messier than cats and in my experience, cats are easy to take care of. Undoubtedly, the cat will explore. It will jump on tables and in empty boxes...but nonetheless, it will go to the bathroom in its designated litter box. It will eat its food in its bowl and will clean itself regularly. There are ways to train cats to stay away from scratching furniture with sprays and gadgets. Of course, I'm sure this depends on the age of the cat. Even without claws, my cats tend to make the scratching motions on certain objects...instinct will kick in.  

Answer 2

Tell her dogs are stupid and cats are intelligent.

If its a mothered cat and its from a good home, the mother will teach it everything, from using only scratching posts to using the litterbox to hunting.

Answer 3

this link is about convincing parents to get you a pet.

http://www.gomestic.com/Pets/Convincing-...

We have cats.. 5 of them - ALL are fixed.  2 were left here by the previous owner.

DO NOT get a kitten - kittens WILL destroy the house - get an older more settled cat - even one that is already declawed..

I personally DO NOT feel it is in the best interest of the CAT for you to get one - becaues your mom clearly IS NOT a good pet owner.. and this is unfair to the cat!

so save your money and adopt one later when you move out..

because otherwise.. in 4 years you will be 18 and will move out.. and what if you cannot find a place that allows pets? your mom will dump the cat, and at that age - nobody will want it.