Bloody hard trying to get a cat!

[maggiethecat]

First time trying to get a cat and don't know if its bcos of lockdown demand but cannot seem to get one. Have contacted a number of Gumtree sellers (within our price limit) but they don't respond either to availability enquiry or request for viewing information. Even if I respond to ad within hours of first posting. One person did get back to say she had had too many enquiries and that she would update me on availability but has not got back.
I will try a rescue centre although I do prefer a kitten rather than an adult cat which a rescue is likely to be.
How did you get your cat and was it quite a faff?

Please run a mile from Scumtree and Pets4homes etc.
Our first pair came from a rescue in Surrey.
Our latest are two tortie kittens. Also rescues.
Rescue will evaluate character and ensure the best match.

We got 3yo rescue sisters in May and they are so lovely, I would highly recommend younger adult cats. Kittens are hard work.

@LightDrizzle we had a similar experience here, although the adult cat showed his temperament very quickly. Sadly it looked like he had been quite badly abused in his previous home. The rescue kept him in an enclosure and as in your situation hadn't really been able to assess his character fully.
Next time we adopted from a fostering charity , so the cats had been observed with others in a domestic setting. The cat we adopted had also been fostered as a kitten and only given up due to allergies, so we were fairly confident that we knew what we were getting.
However it is true, at the end of the day they are animals and not that different from their wild ancestors. I hope you and your daughter would consider another cat, although I understand such an experience can really create fears around animals (eg I'm afraid of dogs due to being nipped repeatedly under the dinner table by my grandma's Alsatian... who was in a cage.)

We got two kittens from a rescue centre, we did have to phone round a few different rescues until we found one with kittens rather than an adult cat.

One of my friends had a cat from Kitten hood that just randomly bit

I was always scared of him, when cat sitting I learnt to give him what he wanted. After 3 days or so he would be desperate for affection so I would sit on the floor so he could get on and off my lap without using claws and teeth

He was HUGE and heavy and I was still sad when he died. He was a vicious critter though until the bitter end!

We got ours from Facebook, it was just a woman whose cat had had kittens rather than breeding them for money. I think we paid £40.

We would have had a rescue cat but we have young children.

Tiddle Sorry you had a similar experience, a few years later we did get an adult cat, she wasn’t a rescue, the breeder didn’t want any more litters out of her, she was a Birman, my first and only non-moggy.
She was the sweetest cat! Other cats over the years were farm kittens and after their initial shyness, lovely cats all.

I love both cats and dogs.

There tends to be an awful lot of "young adult" cats at rescues, between about 9-18 months. So a kitten would soon be a young adult, within 6 months of you getting it anyway, with potentially another 15-18 years of life. Personally I wouldn't want a kitten, as they are escapologists and house shredders .

Why would you prefer a kitten anyway?

My son has 5 to get rid of

We got our 2 beautiful girls from an RSPCA centre when they were 3 months old. They were neutered, inoculated & toilet trained. £75 each.

I personally wouldn’t buy from a breeder while there are cats & kittens in rescue centres.

I don't ever want a kitten. Quite happy with me rescued adults. My house has remained I trashed.

@Newwayofthinking

My son has 5 to get rid of

Nice.

@Newwayofthinking

My son has 5 to get rid of

I hope he's going to get his cat neutered.

Rescue will evaluate character and ensure the best match

This, so much this

I got my demon kitty from a rescue - Cats' Protection
The foster carers will be best placed to know what the individual cats need.
In our case our cat needed a mature couple, quiet environment, and absolutely no kids, no pets

We were able to make a fully formed decision whether said cat would be suitable (and she is perfect)

Our cat was a year old at the time of adoption and she's pretty playful, even now, seven years later

Do call your local vets. They have to put down many strays each year.

None of my cats whom I have all had from being kittens has ever trashed my house
The most they’ve done is a couple of litter tray accidents that’s it

I agree with getting a young adult cat from a rescue - we did and are so happy with her. We knew she had been a pet not a stray, they said not abused as far as they could tell, as very confident and friendly with humans. She still is

Kittens are much harder work and you really can’t tell what they will be like - they may not be friendly no matter how nice you are to them. A friend got 2 sister kittens, one is friendly and likes attention, one is barely seen 🤷‍♀️

Sadly vets get many strays that are not microchipped and are never claimed. Ring your local vets and ask to be put on a waiting list for a stray kitten. The history will be unknown but it will have been health checked and sometimes had flea/worm treatment.

@stophuggingme I know of homes that have had wallpaper stripped, leather chairs shredded...

Where are you? I have a boy and girl kitty that need homes. My newly adopted stray (as in she adopted us - we fed her occasionally over the winter when she turned up all straggly) came to us pregnant in March, moved in by force and 'blessed' with her brood! She's settled herself in quite nicely and got her paws right under the table 😂 They're actually a gorgeous bunch to be fair, so much fun and so loving, but oh my lawd what chaos! We've rehomed all bar two (and of course my kids have convinced me to keep one!) Message me if you like. I'd love them to find a home soon.

[quote RandomMess]@stophuggingme I know of homes that have had wallpaper stripped, leather chairs shredded...[/quote]
Yes I know so do I.
Little buggers. Mine have cost me a fortune but at least not in replacement curtains or wallpaper 😂

I just got mine from pets4homes but I knew the seller

The mum is a darling too. We absolutely adore her. She's very sweet and such a good mum. No chip, have checked all local areas for lost cats we involved cats protection who were happy to see her stay with us and confirmed she was a stray based on how skinny and flea ridden she was. She's great now though, medical check etcetc and treated by vets just before lockdown. She's happy and healthy, if a bit skinny still. Kittens are very used to being handled by children too. They're absolute bundles of confidence.

[quote RandomMess]@stophuggingme I know of homes that have had wallpaper stripped, leather chairs shredded...[/quote]
In my experience when that happens its because the kitten is bored (they're best in pairs) or under-stimulated and not played with enough.

Like a PP I've had five cats - four from kittenhood and we've never had any destruction. Currently we have three of different ages and no issues at all.

We foster for a local rescue. Last summer they had 95 litters of kittens to try to rehome. There will be some around if you get on a waiting list, but you’ll probably need to be approved first and then offered a kitten when ready.