First Time Cat Owners- What do we need to know?

[WomanInTheBoat]

Hi
My partner and I are considering getting a cat and we need to know what to expect.

We are both nearing retirement and live in a quiet neighbourhood. Both have many years experience of dog ownership but after the last 2 elderly dogs died a few years ago we decided not to replace them. Mainly because we like the freedom to go out for the day, go away for weekends etc etc.

However, we do miss having an animal and wonder whether we might be the right home for a cat. Must admit to feeling a bit nervous as have never lived with a cat and know very little about them.

These are the thoughts we’ve had so far.

Should we get a kitten or an older cat?
Thinking a female but is there much difference in behaviour etc.?
We would like it to go outside so would have a cat flap - don’t mind having a litter tray as well if needed.
We have adult children living locally who have all said they’d be happy to come feed it whilst we are out/away.

Does anyone have any thoughts/advice for us?

@AssassinsEyebrow , mine lick and nuzzle each fairly often. It's hard to say that they had complex plans, but it seems a coincidence.
They seem to have rules for each other.

@EmpressaurusOfTheScathingTinsel , mine are not equals. One is the boss. Yours look beautiful, very sleek.

Most important: Get decent insurance.

My kitten is only 8 months old and so far have spent close to £800 on treatment for a gastric problem- thank god I setup pet plan as soon as I got her!

Also be prepared to accept they are the God who you worship - being dog people you will be used to the other way round so make sure you have the humility to accept this order of things. You must feed, pet and pander to their every need and expect nothing in return!

You will be the slave and they will be the masters. It's just how it works!

I love my girl but we got her as a kitten and bloody hell was she a lot of work. She’s much calmer now as an adult cat. I would say adopt a young adult or a bonded pair.

Along with everything already said, microchipped timed cat flaps are will worth the money. They only let in your cat and you can set a curfew so they don’t go out again after a certain time.

@DuchessOfSausage that's cute. My two seemed to plot how to tackle things together- I saw them hunt together a couple of times, or tackle a bully-cat together. One was a wanderer and would go off for a week every year, the more sensitive one seemed to pick up on our worry and once it reached a certain point he'd disappear for a couple of hours & come back with his brother.

Remember what the late, great Terry Pratchett wrote - the Egyptians worshiped cats as Gods, and they have never forgotten.

My dd woke up one night to a lapping sound and found her cat having a refreshing drink from the glass of water she always took up to bed for herself. She was pretty sure it wasn’t the first time.

I got one kitten

I wish I had got two but I struggle with one, she's a very loved and spoiled housecat but if you can - get two

It's more expensive to get them from a friend... once you add on neutering and vaccinations etc than from a shelter and adopting in hindsight (ours was rescued from now ex friend who wasn't looking after unwanted litter)

Get the easiest and fanciest litter box if you can afford it... that's no fun

Cheapest wet food is still probably better than most expensive dry food

They aren't anything like dogs but do provide emotional support somehow

Our cat ignores fountain

Will only drink from cups left by DC around the place

We have a few now ex kid mugs we rotate and she drinks from those 🤷‍♀️

Cats are weird

I'd go for a bonded adult pair .. lots in rescue .. I saw some today where they were 9 and their owner had passed away .. they were lovely 😻

They aren't anything like dogs but do provide emotional support somehow

Once when I was crying about something, my foster boy sat patting my arm & licking my ear.

Save any cardboard boxes you get, they love an Amazon box.
And tissue paper, ours loves rolling around and playing in it.

She would only drink water from DD's glass when we first got her so she now has her own glass of water on the sideboard.

Mine like newspapers and cardboard boxes - they bite chunks off them.
They also like scrunched up balls of newspaper for catching.

It doesn't matter too much if you get a kitten or adult really just depends if you want the playful cute kitten phase, personally I think kittens are adorable so prefer getting a kitten. But please adopt from a shelter, it can be more of a hassle with home checks etc but they are usually desperate to find homes for kittens and adult cats.

Cats make wonderful pets but the main things to realise is that you can't really train them like you can with dogs, they will come with their own personality and won't change much.

Also please please be prepared to neuter if you get a kitten!

Our cats have always been fine to be left alone overnight with food out, longer than that we have someone to come and feed or use a cattery, but much easier to manage than a dog!

Male or female, have had both and don't think there's much difference, apart from size - our male was huge but female one we have now is tiny

Yes definitely don't spend too much on stuff to begin with, look on freecycle/facebook selling pages etc they are full of scratching posts and beds cats have rejected- if they don't like something you can't make them use it! Better to get a few second hand things and see what they like. Same with beds, some like the igloo type ones so they can hide, others will just pick a spot on the sofa and that's their bed, ours likes the dog's bed best.

Two of mine gang up together. One was closed in the dining room (French doors) with me, and the other was in the living room. The doors weren't secured so Madam set about pushing from her side and His Nibs started pulling from the other side to let her out!!!

The other Lady sits in the dark in the bathroom on the wash hand basin, waiting for a slave to come and turn on the tap for her.... she doesn't like the water fountain. New boy loves it and Girl 2 is copying him!

Re the beds - my two girls loved their igloos winter before last - this winter just gone by, never even looked in them!

I recommend the cardboard scratchers. One cat only likes the flat version. The landing carpet tells me that... the others aren't fussy!

New boy has broken a bowl, a candle holder, a soap dispenser and tonight he knocked my glasses off the table, and I stood on them, plus my new leather sofa is scratched to bits... he's been here for 3 months!!!! It's a good job we love him!

Mine have different personalities. TopCat is better at catching a ball etc but JuniorCat susses things out more quickly and can open the back door if it's not closed properly.

All the cats we’ve had, have had their own little quirks. There was one who chased the vacume, one who licked peoples hair and one who would watch intently whilst you unwrapped sweets and then chase the wrapper round for hours.
A final tip is to buy the humane tube traps for mice. We have half a dozen hidden along skirting boards and catch several mice in them every week.

Don’t let the thought of mice put you off. My two have never caught so much as a leaf. One is too fat and lazy and the other is scared of her own shadow, although coming out of her shell since we lost DDog a couple of months ago.
Scaredy cat likes to sleep on the bed with me, snuggled as close as she can, but I can’t turn my back to her or she gets up and walks over me and then curls up by me again.
She also likes to groom my hand with her rough little tongue, which is ticklish and a sensation I don’t particularly enjoy so just tolerate for a couple of minutes.
I vary their food to stop them getting bored, and they usually only have a few treats at bedtime, although a packet of Dreamies is handy for shaking when I need to go out and they’re refusing to come in.
I don’t have a cat flap. They only get let out of the back door into the garden and I’m up and down like a yo-yo to see if they want to come back in. Boy occasionally escapes through the front when I come in through the door but is usually ready to come back in within a few minutes.
Neither are wanderers luckily. Fatty is too fat to jump the fence now and scaredy cat only goes as far as the neighbours’ garden to look into their fish pond
We took fatboy on holiday (self catering in Wales) with us a few times and he was fine with that and seemed to quite enjoy sitting on the balcony watching the world go by or being left alone there for a few hours but he was very bonded to us. I’m not sure I’d do it now as he was travel sick the last time, and I don’t think scaredy-cat would cope with new surroundings very well.