Pair of male kittens or unrelated male/female pair?

[TryingagainN1mtb]

Hello!

I have a dilemma in that the two cat rescue shelters i have been in touch with now have kittens available. One shelter has a 14 week old black female kitten that has been passed over a number of times because people don't want black cats!! Another shelter has 4 male tabbies (12 weeks) they home them in pairs. Shelter number 1 will home the black kitten on her own. Does anybody have any advice on whether I should get a pair of male kittens (brothers), the single female black kitten (on her own) or ask to take the black kitten and one of the tabby boys?! My worry is that two boys may fight for dominance (even if neutered and brothers). And if I get the unrelated female and male, they might fight anyway.

They are all very friendly and purred when i picked them up at the shelters....

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

[issey6cats]

by the sounds of it the center with the tabbies will only rehome them in pairs so the girl kit and one of them dosent sound like its going to happen, so your chioce is the girl kitten on her own and maybe another kitten a few weeks or months down the line or the two tabby boys, i have four cats three of whom are boys and the odd spat but they dont fight for dominance, though tabbies are cute i would personally feel sorry for the girl kit cos i have a soft spot for black cats, i would go and visit the centers again most rescues dont mind they would rather you took the right kitten and you wont be wasting thier time,, look at and pick up the kittens with no definite idea in your mind and you will find you will know which way to go

[Reaa]

The black one

[TryingagainN1mtb]

Thanks for the thoughts! I also saw an 18 month old female cat at the shelter with the black kitten and want her too... I'm a big softie. So I thought about getting her and the black kitten together. I think if I see them again, I'll just want all of them.

[AllThreeWays]

We have a black cat from a shelter, she is cuddly, nutty and totally awesome. Go the black one:)

[lljkk]

Get the 18m old + the kitten. They'll never be best mates the way siblings pairs are but they can learn to tolerate each other reasonably well.

About your other concerns, I've had brother (neutered) kittens several times in my life and they got along with each other fantastically well.

As boring as I think black cats are to look at (I have 3, btw), I think many tabbies are even more boring, surprised they're so much easier to home.

[VeganCow]

Another vote for the 18 mnt and the kitten. The older one will probably mother the younger one, washing it etc.

I have had 3 neutered boys together who got on perfectly, neutered boys are big softys.

I dont understand the black cat thing one bit. I know someone who specifically trawled the rescues for a black cat as she loves them so. I love them too.

[TattyCatty]

I'd also go for the older and younger pairing. We've got 2 black cats (our 3rd and 4th - also don't get the reluctance to adopt black ones - they are gorgeous!) with a similar age gap. We'd had the older one for around 9 months - he was a rescue off the streets, and came with another rescue cat (female) who was extremely timid and basically feral! Very sadly, she was run over at the beginning of December, and we have since introduced a now 17 week old male kitten. It took a week or so for the older one to tolerate him, but they now get on brilliantly. Yes, they scrap but it's just play fighting and when they have worn their selves out, they cuddle up together and go to sleep.

[TryingagainN1mtb]

Gosh, quite clear voting! I expect the boy tabby kittens will go quite quickly as there are fewer kittens around at the moment.

I do like the idea of two cats being really good friends though - however, our family boy cats have always got into more scrapes/wandered further than the females, even though they were neutered!!

Thanks to everybody for replying .

I'm still not totally sure but will decide today and collect kittens/cat on Monday. V excited!!

[Fluffycloudland77]

We had a brother and sister pair, they got on fine until neutering and then spent the next 14 years hating each other.

At the same time we had an un-related females who got on ok with the sibling pair.

I'd go for the 18m old and the black kitten. I will never know why people don't like black cats. Our cats best friend was a huge black Tom with a very knowing look in his eyes. My cat wouldn't let me fuss him though. Spoilsport.

[issey6cats]

the 18 month old and the kitten sounds like a good pairing as even the older one is still a young cat

[TryingagainN1mtb]

Thanks all... I think female cats (neutered) are less accident prone too. But I guess it's all down to individual personality.

[issey6cats]

let us know on monday which cats are now your new mistresses

[TryingagainN1mtb]

Will do! (I swear I wasn't so indecisive when I was younger...)

[TryingagainN1mtb]

I went for the tabby boys!! I saw them first and couldn't not take them... Thankfully, the black kitten and 18 month old female are about to be homed so that's good.

The kittens are curled up in or warm utility room on the (fluffy) base of their scratch post now - totally ignored the bed I got them and the dark cardboard box with blankets in...

[bamboozled]

Great choice - we have a pair of tabby brothers, now just 12 months and they are such pals - if one goes out on his own, the other sits waiting for him to come back

[Fluffycloudland77]

That's lovely. fancy providing a bed though. Obviously the scratch post is the place to sleep

[TryingagainN1mtb]

Thanks! Yup, no idea why I provided the bed really... Never had a family cat who used one when I was growing up. But they did use one at the shelter so I thought they might! (Still, at least it's only a cheap one - maybe that's the problem )

[TryingagainN1mtb]

p.s. bamboozled - lovely to hear that! Your cats sound great!

[bamboozled]

We had lovely beds for them too, (I'm totally new to cats) but they sleep everywhere but on their bed - or cosy up with the dogs too! I always thought I didn't like them til we got them to make dd sleep through the night (aged10!!).. Was the best thing we ever did, she now sleeps like a dream and I'm turning into an old stinky cat lady! Has anyone given you advice about keeping them in/letting them out as we were given fantastic tips but wouldn't want to be trying to teach you to suck eggs if you have a plan in place....!

[issey6cats]

all i can is awww tabbies lovely are the other kitten and 18 month old girl going to the same house as each other or seperately to different houses

[TryingagainN1mtb]

I think the black kitten and other tabby are going separately.

Bamboozled - plan was to keep them in until neutered! I don't want them wandering or causing trouble/getting into scraps. I appreciate they may wander though, even if neutered.

We've got a big garden (as have all our neighbours) and live in a semi with a high gate to the front of the house. A determined cat could definitely get out. A few neighbours have cats (weirdly, not many) and no road accidents that I know of - touch wood....

[bamboozled]

We kept ours in til 6 weeks after they were neutered - on the advice of our (great) vet. She said that then they have no testosterone in their system at all, so won't roam and as they never have, they don't know what they are missing. It has been amazing - they come back when we call them, just as our dogs do and if they hear our car coming into the driveway, come back too. Always (fingers crossed) come back at dusk and then i don't let them out again til the morning, but they are happily curked up on the sofa or by the fire so dont even try to make a break for it when i put the dogs out late at night. We haven't got a cat flap - I couldn't cope with small creatures being brought in as presents so we just let them in and out and often if I've been out and they are ready to come in, they just sit at the back door waiting. Y'see - I said I was turning into sad old stinky cat lady, makes me smile every time I let them in!
Hope yours make you as happy...

[Alonglongway]

We have 3 cats - 11 month old brother and sister and 6 month old boy. All neutered. The young one has been treated like a baby by the DC and is more or less a house cat - by his choice. The older pair go out but don't seem to go far. We are in a terraced street and they mostly stay in the back gardens but occasionally we meet one of them in the street and they accompany us home - grumbling and telling us off all the way

[steppemum]

our neutered tom is a big softy. He does wander up and down the road, but mostly uses our back garden and doesn't go far from home

[GreenShadow]

I'm sure you'll love your new arrivals.

We also adopted 2 boy kittens (brothers) a few years back.

They have been neutered (condition of adopting them) and have never had any issues with serious fighting. They spend most of the time sleeping cuddled up together. They never wander now - we also have a big garden and they rarely leave it, although when they were young and first allowed out (around 6 months if I recall), one of them did disappear off somewhere a few times.

The only problem is a neighbours cat who uses our garden as a route to and from his. He was here before ours arrived and see them as interlopers. They are terrified of him and need to learn to stand up for themselves.