Can I take my pets if I become a nun?

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Nun cloistered, or a sister in the community?
 
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If they were allowed, I imagine they would have to be communal pets of the congregation, not you individually…
I know two Sisters who live with a cat. They call her the Mother General. Apparently she faces the statue of the Blessed Mother and meows along with them as they sing the Salve Regina after Compline.
 
I know a priest who have said to us who he was really heartbroken to leave his cat to a family member, because he was entering the seminary.
I also know priests who have dogs. Religious life is not incompatible in itself with pets.

I think it is higly probable that you would have to leave your pets to enter any convent. It is part of rules and detachment to your previous life. In a community, it is likely to be more difficult to have pets!

You may give your pets to associations who shelter abandonned pets, after trying relocation on classifieds. Many youngs people have to leave pets away for differents reasons.
If you are not ready to do that, you are probably not ready to religious life, but you are still young and have time to think of that.

Making an appointment to your diocesan vocations director, or contact the religious community you may interested in can be a good idea to stary to discern.
 
If I may, you seem to go through phases, Rosie11. Reading through older threads, you felt God didn’t care about you because He didn’t answer a prayer the way you wanted or give you something you desired.

Then you decided you and God were on good footing and began going to Medjugorje. Now you want to become a nun.

Have you truly thought all of this through? You want to be a nun now. But what happens when the next thing you desire comes along?

You really need to pray, search your soul and speak to your priest or spiritual director about this.

Also, consider that your health must be excellent. Unlike centuries past, most won’t accept you if your health isn’t good enough to withstand all the work and activity you’ll have.

You see, Rosie, I wanted to become a nun. I felt the Call when I was very young. Made it through most of the process. My physical health tho, wasn’t up to it. I was heartbroken, shattered to the core of my being.

Then a dear friend, God bless her, suggested I become an Oblate and recommended this website.
Page 2. What is a Benedictine Oblate? Of course, you’ll want to read all the pages. But this one’s a start.

While it isn’t the direction I originally intended at that very young age for my life, I felt a new sense of hope and of purpose. It meant I could still have a home and family if I wanted them. I could have a job if I wanted one. I would also still be able to have my beloved pets. And best of all, I would still be able to serve God and in ways I never imagined.

As for pets, then Pope Benedict XVI had at least 2 cats.:grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:
 
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Rosie11 said:
also I know of a nun in Oxford sister Margaret she doesn’t live in a convent she lives in a house with 2 other nuns and they have a cat
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If you had one pet I would say it’s possible, but it’s beyond remote that you would be able to join a convent or community with 5 pets. Even if you found a community where pets were allowed, it would be a zoo if they let everyone have several, so they probably don’t. And it wouldn’t be fair to create an exception just for you…
 
It sounds like part of your wanting to be a nun has to do with wanting to be independent of your parents without getting married. Becoming a nun will involve a discernment period and it’s more formal than just wanting to be one.
 
I wanted to become a nun last year nothing really become of it I didn’t really pursue it but the thought was always there I’m not interested in the things people my age are interested in this trip to Medjugorje rekindled my desire to become a nun
 
also I have good health I’m not allergic to anything I rarely get sick maybe once at the beginning of winter I get the flu or a minor chest infection I also have a lot of stamina I walked 12 miles the other day just to see if I could I’m not a very good runner I get tired quickly but I can walk for miles and miles
 
When Pope Benedict XVI became Pope, he was not allowed to bring his cats with him when he moved into the papal apartments, “for security reasons”. I fail to see how a couple of cats could compromise the security of the Vatican state. You’d think that, as Pope, he could make the rules. But he complied nonetheless. I’m not sure if he is allowed to have cats now, or if he does.

On the other hand, there have been Popes who had pets. One had a pet elephant, and another a monkey.
 
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I once visited a monastery in France where there were several pets including cats, dogs and birds.

I think it depends on the individual order and its rules as well as practicalities (suitability of the location) and the attitude of the abbot or mother superior.
 
There is no upper age limit on when you can take your vows. I would enjoy the next few years with your pets while also exploring the possibilities of lay teaching and exploring other ministry and volunteer opportuities in your community. Make a little money for your expenses, too, so that you can be sure you are not making the decision to simply be out of your parents dependency… There are a variety of orders that focus on different ministries and ways of living. As your pets become elderly and pass away, time will have passed and you will be in further knowing if it’s the right path. Pets are WONDERFUL, but if you are saying that they are your support vs first or also mentioning your prayer life as what got you through hard times, I would say a vocation isn’t something to be rushed into.
 
But my dogs are all only young the oldest is 2 he’s a chihuahua they can live up to 20 years if I do become a nun I wanna start young
 
You may want to start young. But this may not be what God has in store for you. I gave you an alternative to explore which would allow you to keep all of your pets while still serving God. You might think about it.

Honestly, Rosie, what is coming from you is “I want this. I want that.” What should be coming from you is “What does God want of me?” Say you become a nun and the first thing you’re told is to get rid of your pets. All of them. Will you be to do that in total obedience? If not, you’re nowhere near ready to become a nun or even to leave your parents roof.
 
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What if your family refused to take them? Or couldn’t? What if you found you couldn’t re-home them? Would you abandon them? Put them to sleep? Put them in a shelter where they might not be adopted and perhaps put to death anyway? Even “No Kill” shelters put animals to death under various conditions and circumstances.

You see, Rosie, it’s easy to say you’ll do something. But you must consider all the alternatives even those you don’t want to. You don’t know what’s going to happen in the future with your own circumstances, your family’s or your animals.

You also need to be totally honest about your reasons for wishing to become a nun. The period of discernment will not only help you decide which Order you wish to be a part of but will also let you see if your wish to become a nun is for the right reasons or merely reactionary.

I agree with @thelibrarian who encouraged you to explore the possibility of lay teaching and other ministries and volunteer opportunities in your community. The more things you can do and have experience in, the better your chances of being accepted into an Order because you may have that one gift they’ve been praying to God to provide.

There are so many ways you can serve God. You really should explore them all.
 
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Rosie,

You posted, in a thread you started in January, that you just got a dog. You were so happy about it! But now, you’ve re-homed some of your pets. This doesn’t sound very responsible.

You’re in Medjugorje now, right? You should probably wait to get home, before making decisions that will totally change your life. Plus, it sounds as if you do change your mind quite often. At another point, you wanted to become a nun so you wouldn’t sin. There were many who pointed out that there is just as much sin in most convents, as anyplace else in the world.

I know it is against your culture, but you said yourself that you would consider moving out. I think that being on your own would benefit you, enormously. To put it bluntly, you need to grow up!

Your pets look so sweet. Please, don’t risk them on a whim!
 
no one on here is really going to be able to give you a solid answer, it depends on the order you discern with and the convent.

they may, or they may not
 
That was one of my new dogs I already had existing dogs and I’m back I’ve been back 2 days this desire to become a nun has stuck with me for over a year now why would god keep giving me this feeling if he didn’t want me to be a nun
 
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