Help - where do you actually get kittens?

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

Our old DDog sadly died last Christmas and we’re now ready to welcome a new pet. We’d like a couple of kittens ideally.

I’ve approached a few shelters who are either not accepting any more applications for kittens or haven’t got back to me at all.

I’ve looked on local ad sites too quite reluctantly as I think they might be dodgy/kitten farms - how do I know who is reputable?

Is it just the case of waiting now as kitten season is over and demand is high, or is there an established route to take?

Any advice very welcome, thank you.

I got my last pair of kittens from Battersea (pre-Covid). I had put my name down with them - but also visited regularly to keep reminding them I was serious. They then contacted me about two black kittens available so we took them.

This was in kitten season though so you may have to wait for a while.

So if going via the rescue route - persistence is key.

Would you consider a bonded pair of adults? You may have much more luck finding them in rescues. I know that there are few things cuter than kittens, but in the scheme of things they don't stay kittens for long and adult cats are generally easier - with kittens you have to go round blocking things up because they get into everything, and you can kiss goodbye to your curtains (unless you fancy perforated curtains). Plus you know what you're getting in terms of personality and temperament.

Thanks @Grumpyoldpersonwithcats that’s good advice. I will get back in touch with the rescues - I don’t want to bother them as I know tones are tough so will try to get the balance right.

@WitchesSpelleas yes potentially, but as you say there are few things cuter. You’re right though about temperament and also availability. I will suggest it to the family tonight.

We have been on several rescue lists for about 6 months, one is where we adopted another cat from a few years ago so we are known to them and have been home checked but no kittens have been available.
I did start looking at ad sites but I didn't like the risk involved or the costs. When looking at several sites you would find the same kittens listed by the same people all with different prices and descriptions.
Finally asked on a local Facebook site about any rescues with kittens and got a good response. Our new little girl will be ready at the end of the month so it might be worth reaching out to the smaller, local rescues.

Huge supporter of cats protection here. Have you contacted them?

@Nosnogginginthekitchen I’ve looked on the local site but no process to follow, I’ll try again though.

@Worried74 thanks for the tips - I’ve now joined a couple of relevant Facebook groups for rehoming and rescue cats.

Cats Protection.

Cat protection have a website. Or ring the main number. The local branches will contact you from there if there isn’t an obvious contact.

I’d recommend speaking to the HQ and going from there. They do need to know you are serious.

They will ask questions. If they ask what colour kitten you want, the answer is “any colour”.

Have you been on catchat website, brings up all the tiny local rescues that a google search might not find.

I got my cat from a cats protection open day, she was an RSPCA rescue and is the sweetest cat. She was only about 2yo. It's worth a look.

Agree with CP but suggest you look for the website for your local Cats Protection (or perhaps your most local 2 or 3 branches) rather than the main CP website. Cat chat is also worth a look. Celia Hammond if near you. Smaller rescues that only have facebook pages can be a good source and less competitive than the bigger rescues, so have a look on FB.

Also agree with PP about considering an adult cat rather than kittens. There is no way to tell what the personality of a kitten will be when they grow up - I have a friend with two sibling cats, one friendly, one absolutely not friendlu. As kittens they both appeared friendly and have had the same upbringing. We rescued our cat as an adult and looked for one that sought us out rather than hiding. Of course, confident friendly cats are in high demand (but still probably less high than kittens).

Better to wait IMO than use gumtree or equivalent, frustrating as it is, as you’re unlikely to find anyone reputable there, especially at the moment when there is a premium price on kittens due to lockdowns so many people are cashing in. Responsible pet owners will have their cats neutered so they won’t “accidentally” get pregnant.

I also agree with adult cats. They are kittens for such a short time, but you have to live with the adult they grow into!

I have an ex breeding cat dumped on a rescue at 18 months old because she was no longer any use. She was kept on her own in a building having litter after litter. Because she’s a grey tabby, and everyone wants grey kittens 🙄

Call for @thecatneuterer ! TCN works for Celia Hammond IIRC and is the font of all knowledge when it comes to cat rescues

(Oh, and I adopted 2 young adult cats who have been a pure delight, so second and third looking beyond kittens)

Kittens are only cute so you don’t murder them! We got a rescue pair from a lovely local rescue.
They managed to get inside the sofa. And wreck.
They bit or scratched both kids.
We love them but the cats we had before were a young adult pair. They got on much better and their personalities were much clearer.
We love the tortie terrors but I wouldn’t have kittens again.

We adopted a 1 year old cat from Battersea. She was still young enough to be very playful and kitten like (still is at age 4) but while being more streetwise and used to things like litter trays.

You can also see the personality of a 1 year old cat. All kittens are cute and playful but don't necessarily stay like that when they grow up a bit. After having experienced a cute kitten growing in to quite a grumpy and snappy adult cat when I was a child I wanted to make sure our family cat had a sweeter nature for my own children.

bluebluezoo that’s really sad. I have a feeling my rescue has a similar history, she was 18 months when we got her, had not been neutered by previous owner (but had been allowed outdoors 🙄) and was very thin. She’s ginger and white so like yours a “popular” colour. People who gave her up gave an obviously bullshit story to the rescue.

Yes it is really a case of waiting as kitten season is more or less over and demand has gone through the roof with this second lock down. We still have loads of kittens, and we know of more still that need to come in, but we only have a limited number of people sorting out the homing, a limited number of vets to treat and neuter the kittens, a limited amount of space to put them, and a limited amount of money to do it all, so everything is moving more slowly than we would like. I'm sure most rescues are experiencing the same.

By the time April/May comes everywhere will be flooded with unwanted kittens. If you do want them before then then it is just a question of patience. Or consider adult cats.

To make sure you have tried all local rescues you can find details of all rescues here: www.catchat.org

A lot of the Cats Protection adoption centres are doing hands free rehoming even during lockdown so maybe search for your nearest. The branches are run differently and they will vary between areas. You can find the adoption centres from the main CP website.
Lots of other rescues are doing similar hands free to CP so I agree with finding out all your local options too.
I agree with an older bonded pair where their personalities are known. This time of year there are the 6 months old or so who turn up in rescues so that could be an option as still kittenish?

Brilliant thank you this is so helpful. I’ve contacted our local cats protection (they cover quite a large area) and will also look up catchat.

I really don’t want to go down the gumtree route as don’t want to finance dodgy breeders...I also grew up with rescue cats so it feels like the right thing to do.

Realise I may need to be patient given season and current situation.

Thanks again all, really helpful.

You’re also selling me onto the idea of adult cats, although kittens are just so gorgeous I know they’ll grow up fast.

I contacted Cats Protection directly by email at my local branch with what I could specifically offer a cat (indoors only, so suggested a cat with extra needs, like vision loss or FIV) and they paired me with the perfect little girl of eleven months old who needed to be the only pet in a quiet household due to a traumatic kittenhood.

If you are rescuing, you will need to fit in with what the rescue needs right now, or be prepared to wait a longer time. If you are buying, you'll need to find a proper breeder and be prepared to pay more. Otherwise it's taking the risk on any random, who may or may not be caring well for them and probably won't provide microchips, spaying or neutering, health checks, worming and flea treatment or vaccinations.

I think a lot of shelters avoid rehoming around Christmas, particularly young animals too.

A pair of bonded adults can be harder for a rescue to home, as many people want either kittens or just one cat. Not being fussy about colour is also important, though a slight preference for black or black & white rarely hurts as those are the least popular colours.

I was so lucky with mine and got almost exactly what was on my wish list - adult, bonded pair, black (or black & white), indoor only. The only thing on the wish list was age - I'd wanted an older pair as I know those are harder to home, but in my case it turned out that the pair hardest to home at that rescue were only 2yo.

Thanks again all, I emailed my local Cats Protection asking for consideration for a bonded pair either kittens or cats, at some point. They got back almost straight away and after some questions and finding out our suitability we’re going to visit the kittens this weekend. (won’t say ours yet as don’t want to count my chickens).

Cats Protection were brilliant, and I also love Mumsnet! Thanks again.

Oh wow! Great news OP.