So do I or don't I?

[FinishWhatWeStarted]

Yesterday I took my friend to pick a kitten from my brothers house.
I fell in love with one of the kittens who was absolutely adorable.
I sent my husband photos and he said 'if you want one get one but I won't be involved' (we all know that would last about five minutes 😂)
After playing with them all for about an hour we pack up friends kitten and head home.
Now I'm thinking I should have brought the one home that I liked. Especially given that it's the only one that isn't spoken for.
We have an older dog who is soft as anything and would wander round the garden with our guinea pigs when we had them with no prey drive at all. She would ignore my mums old cat when we visited. She was more interested in the poop. Which leads me to another con on the list.
My heart says yes but my head says no. We had no plans to get a cat but we can afford one. My kids would love it, but it's, potentially, a 15 year plus commitment.
There are probably more cons than pros!
Realistically I know that it's care would fall to me as the dogs does.
I have no idea how much keeping a cat costs. I'd get insurance because we all know cats can get themselves into sticky situations!
If it makes a difference I did animal care at college and I've worked in rescue and boarding previously.

If you were me what would you do?

Aw she will be fine bless her.

She is only just coming down off the drugs 😂

Aww that little face.
She's gorgeous.

Thank you. Pupils back to normal now!!

Haha she did look as high as a kite bless her.
My cat had all his teeth out and came home so hyper!! He was loving, fussy, jumped on my knee, purred, all things he never does.
When I took him back for his check up I jokingly asked the vet to keep him on whatever he had given him.... No he said 😁
Shame, as he's a very difficult cat

Thought I’d update a year after Cassie moved in!
She’s the most independent cat going! She’s very chatty when you haven’t done something soon enough for her! Particularly when she’s been out in the rain. She really shouts at you then.
She follows us when we do the morning dog walk and if the dog has been out without her Cassie will rub herself all over the dog to let everyone know Gracie belongs to her!
Sadly our pooch has been diagnosed with heart failure and the last few months have been tricky balancing her meds. I’ve found the cat curled up asleep with her more than once as if she’s looking after her.
She still calls for her litter sister every morning and is often found in her house curled up asleep or sneaking an extra meal! The neighbour next to that has an elderly cat and Cass and her sister often go visiting there too. I’ve also found out she nips into another neighbours house and cuddles up with their dog. 🙈
She loves sleeping on our daughter’s beds during the day and if we forget to shut our door will take over our bed too.
She’s such a big character and we all love her so much.

All grown up and still beautiful. I do love a brindled tortie - they remind me of my lovely girl.

What a gorgeous girl I love that she has a little community to be part of. Sounds perfect.

I loved this post. Such a lovely update, she's beautiful.

She went into a cattery for three weeks over the summer.
I was talking to my friend who has her sister about how worried I was because she was so fussy at home with her food. My friend laughed and pointed out that she wasn't fussy about food at her house or at the next door neighbours house 😂
The cattery owner even said she's got a good appetite. Now she knows the game is up she will eat anything put in front of her!

Gorgeous girl! I love that she hangs out with her sister neighbour and the other cat and dog. She reminds me of my beautiful first born.

Hope your dog is doing okay x

Thank you. We've finally got a good balance of her meds. She's been at the vets this morning to check how she's getting on.
The vet said if he had just met her and didn't know her history he would think she's a perfectly healthy dog. Made up with that. She's currently snoring!
Cass was sat in the garden last night watching the fireworks and would not come in. She's so wierd.
Love seeing your cat photos, thanks for the replies ❤️

Quick update. I thought you would all like this photo of Cass. Sadly we lost our dog just before Christmas when she went into kidney failure. It was less than three weeks after she had got a clean bill of health so it was a real shock.
Then we noticed the cat behaving oddly and being very quiet. She was eating and normal otherwise but we kept a close eye on her. She began to over groom the patches above her eyes and had sore scabbed patches. Originally we thought she had been in a fight because she had some other scabs too. (No visitors)
She was on antibiotics which kept infection at bay but nothing more.
After I worked an overnight Dh asked me to look at her again as he thought she was self harming. I did another full check of her I felt a scab on her side. Upon closer inspection it was the bottom half of an air rifle pellet.
Rang the vets and got her in straight away. They operated the next day and did a full x-ray. Suggested some calming tablets for her. She carried on as normal and the patches healed but she's just started doing it again.
I think she's missing the dog a lot. I've suggested an emotional support kitten for her but Dh isn't keen.

Good lord you've had a bad run of luck there. I wish they'd licence air rifles it's not toy.

Go big and suggest a support puppy then compromise with a kitten. Or get both.

Oh the poor love! And so sorry for you and your family 💐
Don't think I would be allowed to say what I think should happen to people who shoot air rifles at animals! Let's just say it involves introducing said item into a dark orifice and firing it, see how they like it 😡

Our old cat had a lump in her skin at the top of her tail , her vet reckoned by the size and feel it was an airgun pellet.
It didn't impact her thankfully , but a centimetre lower would've shattered her spine
She was a rescue , 2yo when we got her so who knows what happened to her .

Just pure luck that it hasn't gone all the way in. I'm assuming it was from a long way off. I think it's happened on the field near us. People are shite.

Yeah it's been so hard. Don't think I could have another dog. It's broken me. I did get to hold her until she was gone which felt like the right thing to do.

Dh took this whilst we waited for the sedative to take effect. She was so tired 😥

It's a very strange feeling being with your beloved pet as they are euthanised. You want them to slip away quietly and be at peace ....but you don't want to let them go .

When I;ve been there with the old cat and some of our guinea-pigs ( some of the piggies went in their sleep , some as we cuddled them, some at the vets ) they usually give the first sedative and you say your goodbye . Then you say , it;s time .
And you have done your best and final act of love to your dear friend .

Beautiful dog , and she looks so serene in your arms .

She looks happy and at peace. Its the best last gift we can give them. All the euthanasias I've been at have been beautifully done, the most recent was just at Christmas. I usually come out of there, whilst devastated, hoping that I get to go out in a similar way. The old vet we had as a child did actually euthanise himself at the end of his life. If you want to be coldly technical about it he "comitted suicide" but that doesn't seem like the right term at all. At the end of his natural lifespan, being ill, he chose to give himself the same peaceful ending he'd given several of our pets.

Thank you both, it was incredibly peaceful and I felt at peace with the decision we made whilst equally I felt cheated of more time with her because she was only 10.
I worked in rescue for years when I was younger and would always offer to go in with an animal that had to be euthanised so that they were comforted as they passed.
It was hard to walk out the room, the vets let us stay as long as we wanted to, and we left her covered in the blanket that they had laid on the table. She's back now in my room in her little box.