To your cat, you are home.
You are family. Your home is the place they know, the smells they recognize, the routine they understand, and the people they trust. When that suddenly disappears, a cat cannot understand why.
Surrendering a cat is a life-changing event — not only for you, but especially for the cat. We recognize that there are circumstances in which surrender may truly be unavoidable: serious illness, death, major life changes, or other extraordinary situations. But surrender should always be considered a last resort, never simply the easiest solution to a temporary problem.
Please contact us before deciding · Confidential · Reviewed by our Executive Director
Cats grieve the home they lose.
Cats can experience significant emotional distress after losing the family and environment they have known. Some may hide, withdraw, stop interacting, or refuse to eat.
Others may require weeks — or even months — of patience, reassurance, and rehabilitation before they begin to feel safe again.
This is not said to make you feel guilty. It is said because it is true, and because you deserve to make this decision knowing what it means for the cat who has trusted you.
Having a problem with your cat?
Many situations that initially seem impossible can sometimes be resolved. Behavioral concerns, litter-box issues, introductions to other pets, changes within the household, anxiety, scratching, and other common problems may have solutions that allow your cat to remain safely in the home they already know and love.
Before making the decision to surrender your cat, please contact Finding Pasha.
If we can help you find a reasonable solution that keeps your family together, that will always be our preferred outcome.
Contact us about the problemBehavioral concerns
Aggression, fear, anxiety, scratching, or sudden changes in temperament — often workable with the right approach.
Litter-box issues
One of the most common reasons cats are surrendered, and one of the most frequently solvable.
Introducing other pets
A new cat, dog, or baby can unsettle an established cat. Slow, structured introductions usually help.
Household changes
A move, a new roommate, a shift in routine, or a change in work hours can all affect a cat's behavior.
Anxiety and stress
Over-grooming, hiding, spraying, or not eating are often signs of stress with a practical remedy.
Anything else
If you're not sure whether it's fixable, ask. We would rather have the conversation than lose a cat to a solvable problem.
When surrender is truly unavoidable
We understand that some situations genuinely leave a family with no reasonable alternative. If that is where you are, here is exactly how our process works — and what you will be asked to contribute.
Every request is reviewed
- All owner-surrender requests must be reviewed and approved by our Executive Director before a cat can be accepted into our care.
- Submitting a surrender request does not guarantee that Finding Pasha will be able to accept your cat.
- Our ability to help depends on available space, the cat's medical and behavioral needs, and the resources required for appropriate long-term care.
We are privately funded
Finding Pasha is a privately funded 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We do not operate as a municipal shelter and do not receive ongoing taxpayer funding to cover the cost of surrendered animals.
Our rescue work is made possible through donations from individuals, businesses, foundations, and supporters who believe in our mission.
When Finding Pasha agrees to accept an animal, an owner-surrender contribution is required. The amount is determined by the Executive Director based on the circumstances of the surrender, the cat’s age, medical condition, behavioral needs, anticipated veterinary expenses, and the level of long-term care that may be required.
In most circumstances
$8,000 or more
While that amount may initially sound substantial, caring for a surrendered cat can continue for months or even years. The contribution helps Finding Pasha assume the responsibility you are asking us to undertake — not simply for a few days or weeks, but potentially for the remainder of that cat’s life.
What that contribution covers
- Veterinary examinations and medical treatment
- Vaccinations and preventative care
- Spay or neuter procedures when necessary
- Medications
- Dental treatment
- Special diets
- Food and litter
- Housing and daily care
- Behavioral and emotional rehabilitation
- Microchipping
- Adoption preparation and placement
- Long-term sanctuary care when adoption is not possible
A surrendered cat may also require considerable time to emotionally adjust. Some cats become ready for adoption relatively quickly; others may need many months before they are comfortable enough to begin meeting potential families. Adult and senior cats can take considerably longer to place than kittens.
Surrender is permanent
Once Finding Pasha formally accepts your cat and the surrender agreement is signed, ownership of the cat is permanently transferred to Finding Pasha.
You are relinquishing your ownership rights and authorizing Finding Pasha to make all future decisions regarding the cat’s veterinary care, housing, rehabilitation, foster placement, adoption, or sanctuary care.
For this reason, surrender should never be an impulsive decision.
Contact Finding Pasha
This form is the beginning of a conversation — not a surrender agreement. Tell us what is happening and we will explore whether there is a way to keep your cat in your home before we consider anything else.
- Every request is read by our Executive Director
- We look for a solution that keeps your family together first
- Submitting this form does not commit you to surrendering your cat
- Your information stays confidential
If your cat is in immediate danger — injured, or no longer safe in your home today — please say so in the first line of the form. We read those first.
Your cat has depended on you as family.
If there is a reasonable way for that relationship to continue, we encourage you to explore every option before surrender. But when circumstances truly make continued care impossible, Finding Pasha will evaluate the situation carefully and determine whether we have the resources and capacity to help.
Before you surrender, please allow us the opportunity to help you find another solution.
Filling in the form is the start of a conversation. It commits you to nothing.