Looking to Adopt

[catsarebest]

Hello All. Ever since I lost my kitty to cancer, my house seems so empty. I've been thinking of adopting another cat (or maybe two).

Previously, I wasn't looking for a pet, but a friend's newly adopted cat unexpectedly turned out to be pregnant, so I took on one of those kittens. I lived in a tiny, rented flat at the time so could only take one. We had nearly 2 decades of happy times together and I miss her so much.

I now own a 3 bed house with enclosed garden, so thinking of adopting 2 cats. I would like to adopt from a rescue, but I've no experience of this. They all seem to have a different process, but similar fees. Some want home interviews, some don't. Personally, I think the home interview sounds a good idea as they can see where the cats are going, but I guess they don't all have the resources to do that? So far I've had a glance at the RSPCA, Blue Cross, Cat Protection and Battersea websites. I think there are a few local places, but their websites are not up to date and I don't know if they are as 'regulated' as the larger places? I'm not sure which is best.

Also, I keep seeing cats with FIV. I wouldn't mind adopting one of these, but would I be able to get insurance for them? Has anyone had experience of this? I've never heard of FIV before, so absolutely no idea what to expect there other than what I'm reading online, but I can't find anything about being able to get insurance and if the cat will have a lot of health problems, tbh I couldn't afford that without insurance (especially if I got 2 with FIV).

Finally, as I said, my previous cat happened to come to me, I didn't 'choose' her per se. Now I'm finding it hard to choose a cat from the vast numbers I see on various websites. How do you pick one (or two)? If I could, I would adopt them all which obviously isn't possible, so any advice on how to choose my new cat/s? How did you know yours was 'the one'?

Thank you for your help.

I've got the lady from Cats Protection coming for a home check tomorrow. As far as I know, if we're approved we'll visit the cats in their care on Sunday and see which ones choose us we like. I don't even look at the websites as far as which cats are available, I'll just see when we get there. She has a rough idea of the ages we want and said she has plenty. Just give them a call and have a chat.

As a volunteer at a small cat charity, I'd say don't overlook us small charities! I'm not sure what you mean by 'regulated' but often the independent ones are extremely good and run by a committed team of volunteers, often out of their own homes. (I have foster kittens in the spare room upstairs as we speak!) If you can let us know where in the country you are, people here may even be able to recommend some charities to you.

Ideally you should choose a charity you like and stick to them, and let them match you with the most suitable cat/s. Especially if you're a bit more open to older or FIV cats, they might be able to suggest cats you wouldn't have initially picked out from the website. Is it just you or do you have children?

As far as I know FIV cats are perfectly insurable and most have no particular health issues compared to any other cats, and live happily to old age. Most cat rescues can set you up with a month's free insurance when you adopt anyway, which you can then continue.

I used a smaller rescue when I adopted my pair, partly because just about all the larger places only had cats which needed outdoor space, whereas I wanted indoor only cats. I also wanted to give a home to cats who would be harder to home e.g. elderly, FIV positive etc.

The place I went to Rolvenden was amazing. The couple who run it live on site in a caravan, and know each and every cat there personally. They were very careful about matching me to the right cats, and only introduced me to suitable ones - including a bonded pair outside my initial spec as they were only 2 years old, who now run my life and with hindsight turned out to be perfect for me.

My sister also got her 2 cats at different times at a local rescue, an "all pets" type one with most of the animals at foster. Again good at matching, animals clearly very well cared for and lovely follow up etc. So please don't dismiss smaller rescues, though do a bit of research on them first of course, most are fantastic and need the help more than the larger national places.

Where abouts in the country are you?
I adopted from Celia Hammond Animal Trust in London and would really recommend them!
They did a home visit and I then booked an appointment for a few days later to visit their shelter and see who seemed a good fit - they took a note of what I was looking for and had some pairs lined up in mind, but let me have a little look around the whole building which was lovely! They had over 200 waiting cats in East London alone when I went - lots of them adults who've been waiting a long time.
They were very quick and efficient considering it seemed to be pretty much entirely volunteers! I approached RSPCA & Cats Protection and neither got in touch for weeks and weeks about having availability yet to do a home visit - with CHAT I was bringing my cats home within about 10 days of my initial email!

All unhelpful if you aren't close to London of course! But I'd echo what others said above - finding somewhere that the staff have a real sense of each cat is the best way to go I think in terms of finding the best match.

Thank you so much for your helpful replies! I do live just outside of London, so I will be looking further into the Celia Hammond Animal Trust and Rolvenden. There are 3 small places around my area that I looked at and I was shocked at their websites. 'If this link doesn't work then Charlie is no longer available. If it does work, then he is, so contact us 9-5 if you're interested.' or the ones that didn't even have a pic of the cat 'We always have lots of cats, come have a look.'

The larger places had detailed info and pics, sometimes videos of each cat, 'Charlie is a beautiful boy who was found as a stray. He has been microchipped, vaccinated, neutered, and our behaviour team says he's now ready to find his forever home. He loves Dreamies, sitting on your lap and he can live with other cats, no children or dogs.' etc. This is why I was questioning the smaller places, but now looking at the two recommended sites above I can see not all small sites are the same! (THANK GOD!!! )

I live on my own, no children and I am completely open to any cat(s) that needs a good home. Part of me is glad to have a cat in the house again, but the other part of me feels so guilty for even considering it. So I think I need to go slow on this, and working with someone who can recommend 'a good match' for me would be really helpful.

Best of luck with your home visit today Rockbird! I hope you are able to take your new kitty home tomorrow.

Ah if you're looking at Celia Hammond and Rolvenden, that means you must be Kent area or close by. Another one to try would be Anim-Mates in North Kent - that's where my sister got hers from.

There's also Foal Farm near Biggin Hill

If you're near London, you might also be close to The Scratching Post Cat Rescue, The Catcuddles Sanctuary or Feline Friends. I also second the recommendations for CHAT and Foal Farm.

All very committed charities, mainly run by volunteers and who really know the cats.

Thank you so much for all of the referrals! I am researching all of them.

I would like to say that if you know of a great smaller rescue centre outside of London, please still list it here in case others might find it useful. It's good to have options outside of the 4 or 5 well known larger places, and who knows, you just might help someone else to find their next cat(s)!

Many moons ago we got our cats from Katz Castle in Cobham. We wanted a pair and they had quite a few. Let us meet each pair and see what cats gelled best with us. They do an amazing job.
Today I volunteered at a shelter near us. They are a smaller organisation and do an incredible job. So many lovely cats.

Further afield outside London I also recommend Keighley Cat Care in Yorkshire and Alley Cats & Kittens in Southport as two great small charities.

For anyone looking near their area, there's a website called CatChat that lists a lot of charities by area. Of course you'll have to then do your own research to find the good ones but it's a great resource (most charities even list some of their cats for adoption on there).

Wonky pets is another one to check out, I’ve heard really good things about them. Thank you for rescuing

I’m collecting two 7 month old lovelies tomorrow from the Scratching Post Cat Rescue. Someone mentioned them up thread. They’ve been great, know the cats, look after them well. Web/FB doesn’t always have all photos etc but that’s because they are a small charity with little capacity for that side of things. Best to visit (a few times if necessary) and Talk to them about their cats. They are near Waltham Abbey. Opening times on their FB page. Good luck!

I was shocked at their websites

Try not to be. Smaller charities generally do amazing work and pour their resources into looking after their animals. They cannot afford the specialised IT support the bigger charities have.

I got my Ebony from Cats Protection in February.

I just liked her photo but it turns out that the description they gave wasn't very accurate.

She's been really nervous of Everything so I darent let her outside.

But she seems to like me & follows me all round the house, she has a very sweet nature & likes to play & eat a lot!

Btw I get Ebony insured with Tesco pet insurance.

When I first went to Cats Protection I had to fill in some forms & said I was interested in Ebony so was taken to see her.

I didn't have a visit as they looked up my home on Google Earth, also they had to make sure I don't live near her original home.

They vaccinated her then I got her - all within a few days! I paid £70 for her.

Ebony is beautiful tierraJ! Hopefully she will settle soon and you'll have many happy years together.

I really admire all of you who volunteer at the animal rescues. I couldn't do it. I'd want to take them all home with me or keep any that I fostered, so it's wonderful to hear of the people that do that amazing work to help these animals find new homes. Thank you!

Hope your collection goes well niceberg!