dreaming about getting a cat, is it really as difficult as it's made out to be?

[openallthetime]

Ok, I've never had a cat. I'm not a neglectful type, so not one of those pets for xmas kind of people. I love animals. I'm just dreaming at the moment. so not very likely to go ahead any time soon if ever. But I wonder would I get the joy out of it that others seem to get? or would I find it annoying and a huge responsibility? Would the joy offset the responsibility?

A quiet affectionate cat is definitely what my Norwegian kitten is. The breed is known for not crying and he makes all random chirps and trilling noises instead. He loves attention but not the same as my ragdolls or any moggy I have had. He would happily come into the room make a friendly chirping noise and sit next to you nicely. He has never been a feisty kitten who went crazy or bit/scrammed and I'm told that's pretty standard for the breed. He plays fetch and he is the most beautiful cat you could imagine (will grow huge though and does need to be groomed).

I got two rescue kittens now a year old, they are dead easy and pretty much look after themselves other than chucking food at them. I have a window I leave open to go in and out and they go out at night, so no litter since they were little kittens. Only one vet visit other than getting them done/vaccinated originally.

They’ve been an absolute godsend for my highly strung middle DC, when she loses her shit she just gets told to go cuddle a pritten (her name for them - pretty kitten) and she calms right down!

We are rural though so no main roads to worry about really.

Getting two kittens in lockdown two is the best thing we’ve done all year. I’ve not found them hard work at all - they more or less eat what we give them, play with each other and us a lot and give us a huge amount of joy. I shut them in the kitchen overnight so they don’t disturb our sleep and I pay for some good quality clumping litter so you just fish out the wee or poo which kind of clumps together. They’re just the best and come for cuddles, we’ve really been lucky! From the spring they’ll start going outside.

I got a kitten in September the only real bad point for me is the claws and the way she climbs me like a tree when I am in my thinnest clothes😂 she's doing it less every day though so hopefully won't last much longer.

We have two. The positives outweigh the negatives but yes there are negatives.

I've decided we can't have a nice house and have cats. We had new carpet in the living room this year and they've scratched it already. One of them is a knob and occasionally pees on the floor- we had to rip up the hallway carpet and replace with wooden flooring. Knob cat also knocks stuff off tables/ worktops etc just for fun. And drinks from our cups.

It's a pain having to arrange for someone to come and feed them if we want to go anywhere for longer than a day.

My cat costs more than the dog in terms of food costs. Cat food seems expensive and they get through it quickly. I have two cats, one an incorrect cat, the other is supposed to go outside but has developed agrophobia. Agrophobic cat hides under the stairs all the time and I rarely see her. My house cat is a total baby and always on the sofa or my bed.

But the responsibility and time is much less than for a dog.

Oh and I have to hide all food away, even stuff in packets. He’s convinced everything is a packet of dreamies so will rip open crisps, packs of wraps, stir fry sauce sachets, etc. He’s up on the worktop looking for stuff to nibble all the time!

@sleepyhead

We had ours for 15 years and miss her horribly, but have hesitated getting another:

• I found litter trays pretty horrible and also messy. It didnt seem to matter what type of litter we got, it ended up scattered and tracked all over the floor.

• vets bills can be eye watering and insurance costs start off very reasonable but elderly cats get expensive.

• they're much more independent than dogs, but obviously it does mean you have to plan for them. Do you have someone local who would catsit or have them to stay if you were going away?

Im sure we'll get another cat eventually as the joys massively outweigh the above, but that's what makes me pause at the moment.

This with bells on. I love Spongecat to bits, but she is getting really more awkward as she gets older. Will love a certain cat food for about a month, then will go off it, would starve rather than eat it, usually after a new couple of months supply has been bought. Then when changed, will do the same thing again. Rinse and repeat. Have lost count of the amount of cat food I have given away on this basis. Also, with vets (like some dentists and car mechanics) you never know if they are trying to rinse you, or cat/car/teeth really need what they are suggesting. Last time cat was at the vets, was emotionally blackmailed into a blood test (came back negative) which was about a hundred quid, done in house and took about 3 minutes...

We got 2 rescue cats this year and they’re great - only use the litter tray in the house and mostly go outside, not picky with food, friendly, not destructive. They do bring in a huge amount of mice though so that is the main drawback, and one got into a late night accident and ran up a £2K vet bill within 2 months (thank god for insurance).

They aren’t hard to look after and they are the best thing we did this year.

I've lived with cats all my life but recently got my own kitten,

She's lovely , so affectionate and playful,
Great company to me and my DD. I grew up with a cat and she went everywhere with me, I loved it.

Cons:

Clearing out litter tray but to be honest it doesn't take long
Expenses and remembering to get working and flea treatment done in time
Fleas - can be troublesome
Panicking about not letting kitten sneak out of the house
Can be needy
Being a menace - scratching furniture, and wanting to jump on things not allowed to

Pros

Affectionate
Playful
Companionship
Needy (can be a pro too)
Low maintenance especially once they can go out
Fun
Stress relief

They aren't that expensive but defo recommend insurance.
I've only had my kitten a few months but have paid approx £50 a month (on treatment, vaccine, food, litter, cat milk and toys)

Time spent doing cat stuff each day? Well I left the house 45 minutes later than I planned today because I was having cat cuddles and playing fetch with a toy mouse.

We have two and genuinely they are the best things to ever happen to us (including my boyfriend and I meeting each other). We did pick a breed that is known for being very sociable and interactive so we get an awful lot of love from them.

I don't really agree with the low maintenance reputation - and definitely not low cost... But a lot of that comes down to how well you want to look after your cat, tbh.

I see people saying things like "I refuse to have a litter tray" but actually from a cat welfare perspective every cat should have a litter tray. For one it's a really useful way to know if anything is wrong health-wise if you see their output so to speak. And in cold weather or with other cats around, going outdoors to toilet is not what cats would always want.

Same with good and costs really - you could just throw the cheapest supermarket dry food into a bowl, or you can do your research and buy the best and serve wet food meals.

I also have a lot of "cat furniture" for them, tall cat towers that do take a fair bit of space but they love being high up.

I've had between 1 and 5 cats for the past 15 years and have loved all of them to bits. The joy definitely outweighs the work. Can't imagine being without cats now. We had dogs in my childhood home and the main thing that makes cats easier is of course not needing to walk them and less need to groom them (our dog was always getting baths and having his paws washed after a muddy walk etc.).

I don't really agree with the low maintenance reputation - and definitely not low cost... But a lot of that comes down to how well you want to look after your cat, tbh

Nice..... each to their own, but honestly, all my cats have lived to very old ages, very healthy, very happy, large and muscly, and most of that is due to being out and about, catching their own additional "varied" diet, catching lots of wild feed, which is also fantastic for their teeth. The most natural thing for a cat to do.

I adored my cat ..she was 21 when we had to put her to sleep. But I don’t miss.
The destruction. She refused to use any sort of scratching post so ruined sofas and carpets.
She declared herself an indoor cat for the last ten years of her life which meant all pooing and vomiting was indoors...
She could be bitey even though very loving to us so we had to warn guests.
Cat hairs even though a short haired variety.

But she was so funny and clever. She knew when DH was coming home and would sit waiting for him at the door. When she was younger she would accompany me to the shops!

I'm not convinced that catching their own food is that healthy. My kitten was forced to catch is own food when only a few weeks old and was riddled with worms and internal parasites. He was very ill for a while.

viccat I think your post is quite unfair tbh, much of this depends on the individual cat rather than owners being lazy.

We had a litter tray for the first 8 months of owning Dcat. Obviously she used it for the first month or two when she was kept in, but since being allowed to go outside she never chose to use it, not even in the pouring rain, so we put it away.

We bought a cat tower but she showed zero interest. She’s much keener on being under things than up high it seems (there’s plenty of high cupboards and shelves here and she shows no interest in sitting on them). So that went too.

We give dry food (Iams) because it’s better for her teeth and because I think it’s nicer for her to be able to help herself when hungry rather than being fed to my schedule. It is also easier, but that’s a side benefit.

So having cat furniture, wet food and a litter tray doesn’t necessarily make you a better cat owner, just means you have a cat who likes these things.

I grew up with cats and have wanted one for ages but finally took the leap this summer and got two kittens. They are an absolute joy! Definitely go with the best insurance you can, I bulked at pet plan as it seemed expensive each month. My best friend who's a vet nurse recommended them. I'm very glad I did as puss number one fractured his tibia in a freak accident at 5 months. He needed a steel pin in it and the cost would've run into thousands but it was all covered bar the excess. Any 'work' that they make is more than made up by how loving, cute and cuddly they are! My teenagers weren't cat people but adore them.

@DrDolittlesParrot I've heard that! My friend's cats were a bit older and more chilled out for Siamese. They were rescues too. They enjoyed playing and were quite chatty but not full on.

Another friend of mine got a rescue cat out of the blue. I was very surprised because she's never been an animal lover but she was lonely and decided to get a cat for company. She lost her kitty this year after about 9 years together and was gutted. She's considering getting another in the future.

The joy offsets the responsibility with dh and I. Thought about it for 3 years before we got our two kittens. They literally are the light of our lives (kids all adults now).

We even love the routine in the mornings.. water, litter, food.. the only negative is not wanting to stress them out by putting them in a cattery when we go away.

I agree with previous posters, they are the easiest pets in the world. All you really need to do is feed them twice a day - 5 minutes max.

We have 2 and they are a total joy and add so much to our lives. They are funny, clever, affectionate, and great stress-relief in the evenings when they lie purring on our laps as we watch TV. I wouldn't be without a cat in my life now.

Our have a litter tray but hardly ever use it as they are allowed outside and prefer to go in the garden. They are naturally clean animals and usually arrive (even as small kittens) already toilet-trained.

Ah yes, the destruction. Fortunately, I am not enormously house proud. Just as well. Despite being female, Spongecat (rescue) manages to spray the full length velvet curtains in the bay window, has scratched the leather chair to near-shreds getting up onto it, and destroyed a leather sofa. Sofa was replaced with a cheap but adequate charity one, and has since being ignored. Presumably not as much fun to destroy as its expensive predecessor . I love her to bits, but I can only say that having a cat destroy your house does in some ways prepare you for your children doing the same .

Weighing up joy vs responsibility seems an odd way to approach it!

I’d never had cats before. Always wanted a dog. As an adult, I ended up with 2 cats and they completely changed my view. Had always thought of them as standoffish, aloof etc. Now, I realise that the totally brainwashed me. I sadly, one is no longer with me, so when I say “they” it’s habit. I understand all the different noises they make - we really do matter to each other. Better recall than my dog 😂.

Litter tray really not a chore (one thing I find odd on here is the moans about litter trays). I use a clumping wood pellet litter. Have a covered tray with a ridged mat outside the entrance - 20 seconds with handheld hoover picks up what gets tracked outside of it.

For insurance, I always recommend a lifetime policy. Premiums are a bit higher, but you know you’re always covered (a godsend for me for my boy who passed last year).

Lots of vets also offer “health plans”. You pay a set amount each month and it covers you for annual.health check/boosters/flea and worming treatment. Works out cheaper than paying for all of these individually (and also encourages people to keep up with basics).

My boy(s) very long-haired. Found spot-on flea treatment difficult, so moved to an injection every six months.

Good luck!

Natter, not matter!