student accomodation and pets

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Ive wanted a dog or a cat for years now. For a while canines were my special interest but I tormented myself researching them when I knew that my living circumstances (student accomodation) wouldnt allow me to own one.

Im thinking that a cat could potentially work out. I dont have a catflap but I guess that I could leave a door open for a few hours each day to let him/er in. Then s/he could clamber over to my room. Has anyone made something lioke that work. Im chronically depressed and im thinking that a cat could give me someone to look after thus alleviating the gloom.

my cat has never been outside unless in a carrier. outdoor cats tend to live only a third as long as strictly indoor cats. keeping your cat inside might work out better for both you and the cat.

oh wow I always thought that cats lived mostly outdoors and frequented multiple houses during the day. I would love to have a stay at home cat but I dont see how my landlords would tolerate that

If you provide the cat a litter box, he or she would be happy living inside. Unlike dogs they don't need to be let out.

yehhh I would if I could but theres no way this will be remotely plausible. If im exctremely fortunate and all of my housemates agree to let me have a cat what do I do next year? I also dont like the idea of my housemates having something to blackmail me with - I can envisage a situation where they threaten to inform the landlord if I dont pay their share of the bills...

you are really not in the situation to have a cat if you can not look after it. Cats also live up to 20 years and are a life time commitment. As well as needing lots of attention, needing to live inside for their health and the health of wildlife, they can also be very expensive for vet bills. how will you afford the few hundred dollars if it gets sick?

maybe something like a rat would be better. they can be really cuddly and affectionate and can be trained to do simple tricks too.

or maybe a mini lop bunny and set up a little house bunny project and just take him out when your housemates are not home?

I know I come across as being clueless... but I know all of this. I spent hours poring over dog training websites and even started researching cats for a while. I know that they take alot of commitment. Cats less so but im convinced that the current style of having "Neighbourhood cats" does everyone concerned a disservice.

Im home 80% of the time so if I could get my landlords/housemates to agree I would be in a pretty good position to look after a cat. Also a rat is probably an even worse idea. Keeping a rat will get me evicted in no time. Its tempting but the risk of it escaping is too great. If a rat escaped in the house itd be killed pretty quickly

I retract that you should get any pet.

If you can not look after a rat, really a cat or a dog is a really really bad idea. An animal in a cage that all you have to do is feed, water and remember to lock the cage after cleaning it, to keep it alive, and has a 4 yr life span vs a high maintenance pet that lives 20+ years and costs hundreds just in vet fees a year.

Another thing: an indoor cat needs to have stuff to do. They need toys, scratchpoles and stuff to climb. And they are likely to ruin the furniture at some point. Indoor cats can sometimes be hard to keep indoors, especially if there are other people living there who don't really care about the cat. You'll need to cat-proof the house somewhat. Also, if some of the other people are allergic to these animals that would be a problem.
If you like animals, maybe you could volunteer or work at an animal shelter. That way you could enjoy being with the animals, and help the animals, and learn learn a lot about cats or dogs so that when your living situation is more acceptable of pets you will have more experience with them.

I know of some colleges (mine included, I think) that allow pets in dorm rooms/on-campus living as part of a disability accomodation known as "Emotional Support Animals", they are basically just house pets that have permission to live with you in areas where they otherwise wouldn't. I would talk to your school, or a psychologist if you're not living on campus, and see if you can get them to sign off to prove to your dorm supervisor/landlord that you require an ESA pet.