Dog person- tell me about cats please

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So I've always had dogs. Soppy daft fun ones- labs and spaniels. Unfortunately I can't have another as I work 3 long days a week.

Cats seem to like me in that if I visit someone with a cat it will sit with me / on my lap. DH's family have cats so he grew up with them. I would love a house pet.

I think we're ready for a cat, we have a gaggle of rabbits in the garden but they're in secure hutches/runs and well used to the neighbour's cats. An elderly hamster only inside the house. DD is 9 and very calm / quiet / good with animals.

Please tell me- this might be a daft question- but are there specific cat breeds who are a bit similar to dogs in bonding to humans and being affectionate? It would be a bit disappointing to have an aloof cat (of course I would love and care for it though). Male or female? Happy to do grooming, etc as we have long haired rabbits.

If so please recommend and guide me to how I can find out more. How do you find a good breeder? Thanks!

Just read this back. I don't want to sound as though i'm 'settling' for a cat. It's just I've never had one -what with growing up with dogs around the family were very 'dog-orientated'. A cat was never an option in our house.

I would just go with a moggy some of the pedigree cats are less friendly and some breeds can be quite noisy ( Siamese, Bengal ). We have 2 dogs and a cat, the cat is in charge and often curls up with the dogs. Cats are much easier to look after than dogs even more so if they are outdoor cats. My cat sleeps on my bed all day, drags itself downstairs about 5pm, has a cuddle and some food and then goes out, he comes back in the morning for more cuddles and food , he looks after himself really.

He sounds great! Are kittens very destructive? Do they just go everywhere or are you meant to 'train' them like dogs? i quite fancied a Bengal after reading about 'dog-like' devotion. My friend has a Siamese and she is a real lap-cat but DH prefers a big cat.

I'm a dog person too but we nearly got a cat a few years ago and I was looking at Ragdoll breeders as they're apparently very affectionate and cuddly.

Ragdolls are soft lumps but do need lots of grooming

I've got 2 moggies and they both think they are dogs -come when you call, play fetch, nuzzle your hand for a bit of fuss -but they are much more pleasant to share a bed with than dogs!

Ha, the Ragdoll cats are affectionate and cuddly, not the breeders .

I wouldn't get a bengal as a first time cat owner, or a siamese. They are high maintanance.

Try a moggy at first.

I think moggies are great. When i lived in London my parents gave me a Birman kitten as a present and her son is still with me now in France 15 years later. They are lovely if you want a cat that thinks it is a person (I am the human service element!). But at the time the idea was that in London I'd have an indoor cat. I have owned and fostered moggies too and I think they can bring so much love and fun, as Marne says some breeds can be aloof. Why not see what animals are out there looking for a home? I find boys more soppy (once neutered) but i've been 'owned' by both. I think you just need to go and see. There's lots of people in UK better qualified than me to suggest where to start but go for it! You won't regret it.

I've a Siamese and a moggy and I'm a dog person really...the Siamese is like having a badly trained dog that you don't have to walk basically, lol.

The Siamese is wherever I am, unless I'm out and then she either picks someone else to follow or goes off upstairs. She is pretty vocal, but I quite like it mostly, she has little conversations with me. She's cuddly, she plays fetch and she adores me, what's not to like? Lol

The moggy is less adoring, but then that makes her less demanding to be fair, she says hello, eats, goes off out to do cat things and comes back later to say hello and eat again. She's also very shy and hides from anyone who doesn't live here.

So, if you want a lap cat, either pick one of the breeds that are known to seek human company or get an adult rescue that you know is already like that as moggy kittens might end up being fairly independent and aloof.

I have two ragdolls. I adore them, they're the best! one is not so much a lap at but very interactive and chatty and the other is always sitting on you! Both greet me at the door and follow me round the house. They also sleep on the bed. One needs grooming every couple of days and the other not so much - ime they aren't a hassle to groom, nothing like a Persian, just have the brush handy when they lie on you/by you in the evening and give a quick nice over, they're not bothered. Never had a proper scratch or bite, they're very gentle. My very anti cat dad absolutely loves them!

cats are all different, one of mine is very dog like, smelly, tatty, boy, better recall than most well trained dogs, sits on command, helps everyone by supervising all bathroom visits..... his actual sister is the most prim proper neat aloof cat you'd could ever meet, she will allow us to touch her, chatter to us, but so opposite to her littermate it is incredible.

I'd love a siamese, but certainly believe they are quite high maintenance for a first timer.

i'd also never get two cats together again...they are lovely and nice, but no where near as close to us as our previous cats were.

Thanks guys, very helpful. Can you get a feeling from kittens which ones are likely to be friendly as adults (a bit like choosing a puppy)? Or is it not possible to tell until they're adults? Happy to re-home an adult having said that as all our rabbits are rescues.
Fluffy by high maintenance can you expand? Am used to dogs so are they more so?

I'm a dog person. I've also got 3 cats - a Siamese, an oriental x peterbald and a rescued moggy who I found as a teeny tiny kitten, so he completely thinks I'm his mum.

I love my cats, but I have to admit that I find the oriental and the Siamese easier as they're more my "kind" of animal - more dog like in how they seek affection. If I couldn't have a dog, I'd definitely have that sort of breed although some are more high maintenance than others, especially as kittens - mine are now nearly 3 and nearly 4 and are more cat like in that they sleep.

My old Siamese was amazing though - he used to play fetch for hours at a time and would beat up all of my dogs

Ragdolls sound fun. I'll take a look. Are all cats generally ok with people being out of the house/their own company (they will be alone 9am-6/7pm 3 non consecutive days/week). The rest of the week I am at home for cuddles

Code, yes, I definitely think so. However, with my own two as they are from breeders was on waiting list and had to travel far to get them (one was Leicester from London) so didn't meet until it was time to take them to mine. Lots if photo updates though!

I also didn't get them at the same time, one is two years older than the other. Have found them (raggies) to be great with other animals though in case that's important to you, as I know it is to me.

Could you expand on 'high-maintenance' statements a little please? Do you mean needing company or destructive habits?? Ta

I look after other people's dogs all day but my home is entirely ruled by her majesty Queen AlpacaCat. Who is a Domestic Short Hair of uncertain lineage, born in the garden shed of a friend of my mothers', who had no idea a stray cat and her kittens had taken up residence until they turned up in her kitchen! She then presented kittens to more-or-less anyone who wasn't an obvious axe-murderer who visited her home...

AlpacaCat doesn't require walking and costs far less in vet's bills than our client's dogs. She does however dislike being left along for more than a day or two, even though I get someone from my own dogwalking agency to come in and feed and cuddle her when I go away myself. Next time we go on holiday I'm going to get one of the staff to actually stay here to be with her I think.

Thanks smoke - would prefer if they get on with other animals although not essential. The rabbits are pretty bombproof and next door's moggy loves them and lies with them when they're out. We have cats either side (one was a fighter but he's old now- he'll be quite put out to 'lose' our garden). We've a nice big garden with lots of greenery to hide out in, forest at the back and the road out the front is very quiet. There are foxes but the cats chase them off!

Loud, persistent, destructive, too clever for his own good, able to open doors/drawers etc.

It's not for the faint hearted.

My Siamese is definitely more demanding...but no, not compared to a dog.

I do get moaned at if I'm out all day, but she's asleep until she hears me come in and once she's told me I'm not supposed to leave her she's fine again.

The other cat doesn't care who's in as long as there's someone to stroke her on the rare occasions where she decides it's compulsory.

My moggy as a kitten was very affectionate and outgoing and it was only as she became an adult that she went aloof and shy, so based on that I'd say you can't tell how they end up.

My only advice is get a neutered male and if you must get a female, don't get a tortoiseshell (anti-social). Cats are great - enjoy :)

AlpacaCat sounds great. i love that she loves you!

Thanks everyone, can you point me towards some useful reading/websites?
I think I'll be alright with mischievous / high maintenance, it doesn't sound as bad as a puppy or toddler or rabbit fights, have survived those experiences.

Go for a reguular Mog.

Every single cat is different. We have a brother /sister combination and they are like chalk and cheese. Physically, in terms of coat pattern the look very similar, but you can't get them mixed up. Boycat looks like a barrel on legs and Girlcat resembles a whippet. Vets are happy with their condition and their weights.

He is very laid back and chilled, more than happy to accept and return affection any time any place. He tries to sneak onto my lap but he's quite a big cat and you really can notice a 5kg cat landing suddenly on your lap.

She is what can only politely be termed "high-strung". Until she was about 6, you approached her at your peril. She would accept a bare minimum of touch and affection and it was always at her behest that you touched her. After a week in a cattery, she had a personality transplant. Seriously needy and desperate for touch, she will go totally nuts if you try to stop fussing her- she ha sbeen know to put her teeth around your hand if your try to take it away.

They were from the same parents, same litter, same experiences. Totally different cats.

Oh, and he frightens the vets. Even though he has never lashed out at them.

They all say "he's a bengal, isn't he?" In wary tones.

"No don't!" Was the most used phrase in our house while he was a kitten.

Our neighbours don't talk to us because he goes into their house and attacks their cats.

But, if you've got your heart set on an energetic breed then its the cat for you.