Rescue kittens

[Chippyeggs]

We sadly lost our cat a few months ago. We live in a quiet cul de sac and he ventured down to the “main” road (which is still quiet) and got killed by a car.

I want to get us a new kitten, but all the rescues want you to take bonded pairs.

Is this usual? I am thinking of the fact it’s then 2 lots of neutering/vaccinations/flea/worming/insurance and it’s going to be pretty costly. One cat was fine, but I’m not sure how keen I am on doubling the price of everything.

Someone I know is offering her kittens for £170 but they come with nothing done. Which I am hesitant over as that seems like an exercise in just making money (non pedigree cat, no idea who the father is!)

I have always had lone cats and kittens, but most places seem adamant I must take two.

Have you thought about having a young adult, rather than a kitten? They home kittens in pairs for good reason, as they play with each other & the social interaction between cats is very good for them.

Plus points of a young adult are that you miss out on the most destructive stage of kittenhood while they are still playful, and you have a much better idea of their personality.

If you think about it, you'd only be missing a year or so out of up to 18-20 years, and the full kitten thing only last a few months of that anyway

I've got a 2.5 year old. He's like a giant kitten. I second getting a young adult. But having two cats is great. (As long as they get on!)

If you're going to go for kittens then yes, two is best. They play together and get rid of that crazy kitten energy on each other rather than on you and your furniture.

Why not go for a single young adult cat instead?

The kids really want a kitten (we got our last one as a kitten). I do get the sense of two as our last cat was an absolute menace until he was a year and used us as if we were his play buddies and therefore was quite a vicious bugger!

I would probably find something 6-8 months old to be more of an idea for us though!

Your friend allowing her non neutered cat to have kittens by some random wandering tom is a menace, and there’s no way I’d be giving her money to further encourage her to put her poor cat in that position again.

There are so many cats looking for a home and the insistence that it has to be a kitten because the kids really want a kitten and yet you’re not prepared to pay for two so that the kitten can have a playmate maybe suggests that you need to give a bit more thought to the wellbeing of the cat rather than just seeing it as a cute toy for your kids.

I have always had rescue cats. Some a year old, some older, and tbh I’m thankful not to have to train them from kittens or to have everything being clawed to shreds by tiny little dagger claws. Give an older cat a nice home - they can still be playful and fun, and your kitten will only be tiny for a few weeks before you have a cat anyway.

@BigPussyEnergy it is not a crime to prefer a kitten, nor is it a crime to suggest that two is an extra expense.

My pets are well looked after, the fact I am looking at a rescue again shows I want to do the right thing. The reason we didn’t get a rescue last time is we were turned down due to one of the children being younger than they accepted.

No where have I “insisted” it must be a kitten, nor have I said my children view it as a cuddly toy. We had a cat before and we have a dog and they are well versed in pet ownership.

Im quite happy to take an older cat but the preference is a kitten.