Hoping for some advice

[gingerpurrfect]

Long time lurker, first time poster looking for advice from experienced cat mums.

Sadly my beautiful, 4 year old girl died last Sunday from feline cardiomyopathy. Fortunately she went peacefully in her sleep, and although knowing this hasn’t lessened the depth of my shock and grief, it has given me comfort that she didn’t suffer in any way.

It’s still early days, but nevertheless it’s clear to me that I definitely have room in my heart for another cat to join the family later in the year. I say family, but in fact it’s just myself and my little boy cat (5 years old). He’s a rescue that I took in as a 5 week old kitten and he’s been with me ever since. Unfortunately, due to a dog attack, he has very limited use of his back legs so has compensated by developing a particularly strong front end that he uses to get himself around. Horizontal is fine, vertical a bit more challenging. His relationship with my girl was an interesting one. Despite his disability he was definitely the dominant cat and the occasional tussle would break out to prove it. I can probably count the times they snuggled up together on one hand, but they co-habited fairly well helped by a reasonable sized house and garden where they could each find their own space.

And so I’m seeking advice from anyone who’s been in a similar situation. Based on the profile above, has anyone got any insight on the best cat match for my boy i.e. male/female, kitten/older cat? Or am I over-complicating things and what’s really important is how you introduce them, regardless of sex/age/character?

[Trustyourself2]

That's very sad & so young. Sorry for your loss.

Your Dcat sounds like a very resilient lad. I'm wondering if a kitten from a rescue centre would be a good idea? In my experience, you just don't know if they'll click but just hope that they will. It's great when they do get along though. My recent female addition to the house absolutely hates my other female Dcat and I have to keep them apart, which is a shame & a pain.

[gingerpurrfect]

Thank you trustyourself for replying.

I was definitely planning to re-home from a rescue centre and perhaps a kitten would be easier to introduce to my dcat without putting his nose out of joint too much! It would be great if they could get on, but like you've found, there can be no guarantees. I'm sorry you're having to keep your two apart - I hope with time they'll begin to tolerate each other a bit better.