Daughter wants a cat? Anything I should know

[Halftermisnearlyover]

Daughter wants a cat for her birthday this week. DH doesn’t want one but he hates pets anyway so I’m going behind his back 😩 we already have a hamster and a dog.

Is there anything I should know before I decide? Is it ok to purchase one on gumtree.

Is it better to get a boy or girl cat or does it not matter.

I'd take her to a cat café for a special birthday treat instead (depending on her age as some have minimum age limits).

If you really want a cat, take some time to do your research and contact a rescue. The ones round here are full to bursting with kittens at the moment. They'll match you with the right cat/kittens for your home and lifestyle and you'll be sure of getting a healthy pet, or at least knowing about any issues in advance. They'll also have sorted out neutering, vaccinations and the first set of flea, tick and worm treatments.

In terms of cost, here's the breakdown of what I'm currently paying each month for one moggy:

Insurance: £16.96
Vet plan: £15.99 (covers flea, tick and worm treatments, vaccinations and 3x checkups a year)
Food: £80 (you can get much cheaper but I pay for a premium subscription)
Tracker subscription: £5

The exact same insurance for my pedigree cat is £36 a month.

it really pisses me off when people have one animal and then introduce another animal that generally aren’t suited to each other. Why would you do that?? Have you thought about how your dog is going to cope? Have you thought about how your hamster is going to cope? Have you thought about how the new cat is going to cope?
Just stop and think about it.

And that’s before we even enter into “going behind husband’s back” territory….

My neighbours wanted a dog. Shes 10. They hit her one. She cared about it fur one week and that was that.

kids are fickle. A cat is for its lifetime. Which can be over 20 years. Dont do it for a child who likely will change its mind by next week or next year….