What to think about when considering a cat?

[Esgaroth]

We recently moved from a little flat to a semi with our own garden and I've been giving more serious consideration to getting an animal and I think a cat could be a good fit for our family. However I haven't had a cat since I was a child so very little experience and don't know what to think about.

We have two children aged 7 and 9 who are very good at being calm and gentle around animals. Our new house is in a quiet neighbourhood and backs onto a pedestrian path and park. There are lots of cats around.

I work at home so am not often out for more than a few hours but of course we do go away sometimes and then we'd need someone to pop in and feed the cat. Is this OK? We definitely used to do this with my childhood cats but they were very very pleased to see us when we got home so not sure if it's still considered OK?

I think I'd want to get an adult cat so that the personality is somewhat known and we can have just one that we know prefers being an only cat.

I've heard if you get kittens you should get at least 2 for socialisation and company but then they might not get on as adults. I remember this happening with the two brothers we had when I was little - they were best mates as babies but then they completely ignored each other and when one died the other was so much happier and more confident.

Does this sound like a realistic plan, to adopt a youngish adult? Are rescue cats often traumatised with behavioural problems like rescue dogs can be? Are there general differences between males and females? What else to think about?

Get up, trip over cat, get escorted to kitchen while being miaowed at loudly, be supervised putting food into dish, make coffee, feed cat, empty tray, change water, top up biscuits more expensive than gold, go to work, rinse and repeat in the afternoon. Provide evening treats as reward for being alive

That's what we just did this summer. She was great. Or get a few people to do 4 days each. Just more organising.

We asked the rescue place for a cat who would like to be inside.

Cat is great, we have had her 7 years. No fleas, no worms, no fights!

Most cats prefer to have option of in and out but ours appears to have PTSD so she can;t handle outside, dogs cars etc. She likes chilling out, being brushed, biscuits and is really affectionate and gentle. We love her!

Second getting cat snipped and chipped and all vaccines. We don't have insurance, we put money away as she is unlikely to get run over etc but we know as she gets older vet trips will occur.

You will have 3 children not 2.

You can no longer cook or eat anything in peace. Cats are masters of guilt tripping, also they jump on worktops all the time.

Your plan of a rescue cat is a great idea. I have two older cats but the first one was happily a solo cat for several years.
Older cats are great as you've suggested because you know their personality and often they are calm and sleep a lot. I wouldn't get two unless they were bonded, I had a lot of trouble getting my two just to co habit nicely.
Some rescues are quite challenging and so worth looking at a few rescues places.

holidays, you can also get house sitters but a couple for days most cats are OK with a daily visit.

Good luck !

We are open to a kitten...

My DH would prefer a kitten but his reasons are 'because they are so cute', 'because rescue cats are more likely to have behaviour issues and that's why they need to be rehomed in the first place' and 'because kittens are so much fun to play with'.

Which I don't think are great reasons although kittens are undeniably completely adorable and I do admit it's tempting. Maybe the second one carries some water?

I am trying to get him to understand that you get a cat for 15 or even 20 years and they are kittens for a year of that, kittens are more work, their personalities are unknown, and young adult cats are also cute and can be playful.

He's never had a pet before at all so I don't think he fully gets it, though he's on board with the idea, and I want him to go into it with eyes open. But I do think we could provide a good home for a kitten so I would consider it.

Really it would be my cat I think! I wouldn't get an animal at all if I wasn't prepared for it to be 'mine' since I know I'll end up taking most of the responsibility whatever.

As a new kitten owner, very unexpected, long story, the first few days have been hard work. This might sound mad as it's just a kitten, but the following things are my experience -

• after settling in well, he is confident enough to walk around the house and do what he wants, which means I now have to shepherd him away from the bathroom and bedrooms, keep doors and windows closed which normally I like to keep open, and try not to step on him.
• he screams at the top of his voice which can get annoying after a while
• he has learned very quickly how to jump from the floor (he's a tiny 13 week old) up on to the kitchen worktops, walk around the surfaces, lick the frying pan, and cause chaos when I'm trying to make a sandwich.
• part of the kitchen chaos last night was him smashing a plate which he knocked off the worktop onto the floor.
• although he got a slight fright from this, straight back up onto the worktop, remove him, jump up again, repeat repeat repeat....
• my two kids aren't keen on having a cat, and I'm trying to take him to another room to play and keep him occupied while they eat dinner or go in the bath, which is taking up my time when I need to do other stuff.
• the kids are big enough to be in on their own if I need to pop out, but now it's like suddenly having a new baby and I'm back to square one. I know that won't be forever, but it literally is a baby, and they don't want to be left with him yet.
• he's cute, yes, but....

We swap cat feeding with our neighbours - or there are local teenagers who will come and feed a cat twice a day.

A decent rescue will match the cat to the household and be able to tell you honestly all about what the cats are like to live with.

The rescue has been in touch to discuss more about our circumstances and what we're looking for and the volunteer is going to think about the cats that might suit us and send us some info this evening 😀

I said we wanted a young adult but were open to a kitten, which I assume means we'll get offered adults as kittens must be easier to rehome.

We've been offered two male cats to choose between. Approximately 5 years old, one is black and white and the other ginger and white. From the videos/pics sent they both seem absolutely gorgeous and friendly boys.

I am going to ask if we can come and meet them. Any tips on how to decide which one is for us?? I already feel terrible about choosing one because it means not choosing the other! But we really would prefer just one cat! Will we just 'know' when we see them in person?

Such gorgeous boys 😍

I quite wish they'd just shown me one 🫤

I have 8 rescues. They all tolerate each other. My neighbor looks after them when I go on holiday as I look after his. They have a cat flap with access to the garden. No negative issues at all

I know cats can tolerate each other and many do bond and love each other... but my experience with my old boy who blossomed so much as an only cat has prejudiced me to prefer to get just one.

I don't particularly want a pair..

I think you'll know. I met my older guy in the garden of one of the rescue volunteers. There were maybe 4 or 5 other cats in the pens she had in the garden ... a massive shed built for the rescue !
I just knew, this old guy was shouting and purry and came over immediately to see us. I chatted about his personality with the rescue lady and that confirmed it for me.

As soon as she hears I'm awake she comes in for a cuddle. Unfortunately this is usually 5am and I'm not actually 'awake', I'm turning over in bed.

But anyway, awake now as I have whiskers in my face and a paw tentatively on my chest so I give the required 20 minute cuddle.

Go down for breakfast, we eat together while my coffee brews. Scoop litter tray if needed. She miaows at me to leave the room momentarily so she can wee in her litter tray. Miaows again when she has finished. I scoop, like a good slave.

Daytime she sleeps a lot but will come down at lunchtime for more food and 5 minutes in the garden (she is largely indoor by choice).

Back upstairs for more sleep. Down again in evening for food and lap sitting.

Bedtime (my bedtime), again the required 20 minute cuddle. I fall asleep and she goes and patrols the house for a while then sleeps in another room.

Rinse and repeat.

1. Don't install a catflap. You be in control of when the cat comes and goes.

There’s no reason why you can’t control comings & goings with a cat flap. We have a chip controlled one which only opens for sodding cat. It has 4 settings: open, locked, out only, in only. We live reasonable roaming distance from a park which has a busy road on our side. Sodding sticks to the gardens on our street during the day but we lock him in a sundown until the morning because he roams further at dusk.

To the question about catteries, we have good neighbours with their own cats & do reciprocal feeding for holidays in the summer. We’ve left sodding cat for 2 weeks and our neighbours have got him in each evening (with treats) and changed his litter tray ehen needed. He would be freaked out by a cattery. He is happier in his home environment and patrolling neighbors’ gardens, even without us here.

He is also shut in the kitchen at night. Being woken at 3am for Dreamies is totally owner choice. We all sleep soundly.

My tips from my experience of owning cats:

1. If you get kittens get at least two, preferably from the same litter. They learn important cat-behaviour from each other. However, they may not get along as they grow up, so make sure you have enough space to give them each a place where they can sleep in peace.
2. Train them as early as possible to accept nail cutting, holding, examining, wearing a harnass, going other places then their own territory amd even taking a bath if you can manage it. This will make vet visits so much more bearable. Mine weren't trained (adopted when older) and taking them to the vet is a nightmare each time.
3. Have one more litterbox than you have cats and place them separately in less travelled areas in the house (and preferably never move them). Cats like privacy, just like we do. Scoop the litterboxes in the morning (Cats are usually most active at dusk and dawn and will most often use the litterboxes at that time), this keeps the smell and the mess down to a managable level. Also, I find that simple litterboxes, that are easy to reach into and scoop, are the best.
4. Don't leave food sitting out. Have a feeding schedule and stick to it. This way you know what your cats are eating and also makes it easier to give medication
5. Leave the travel carriers somewhere for them to sleep in. This makes the carriers trusted places and reduces stress when you have to take them somewhere. Cats don't travel well naturally, so the early you start taking them places and the more comfortable you make the carriers, the easier it will be on them and you.
6. Watch the body language of the cats. They will trust you best if you are entirely predictable, but also allow each cat some boundaries. One of my cat hates being held, so I do it as little as possible. When I cut her nails I let her take her paw away when she wants me to stop. This creates trust, so she will allow me to do a little more when it's medically necessary.
7. Have sleeping places all through the house and accept that you may have to cover your couch in blankets to protect it from their nails.
8. Have cyprus grass they can eat, so they leave your other plants alone. Some house plants are also poisonous to cats.
9. Have plenty of places for them to scratch and climb.
10. Preferably don't let them roam free. Either build a catio or cat-proof your garden. Cats get hit by cars every day and they also hunt endangered bird species. neighbours may also not like cats coming into their garden and some phsychos like to leave poisoned food out for cats.

Thanks for insight into routines.

Silly questions coming up: what does scooping involve? Is it getting out poo or wee? How many times a day do they go? Do you do it with a plastic bag or does a plastic scoop come with the tray/litter/cat?

Does anyone use an automatic litter box?

Oh and does a short-haired cat need brushing, grooming or washing?

Both poo and wee. My cat wees twice a day, poo is every other day (bit unusual, usually cats go more often).

I use clumping litter, you just fish out the wee as a solid clump. You can't use that for kittens though. Poo you also use the plastic scoop to scoop it out. I change the litter in the box every week and clean the box, others do it more or less frequently.

I don't groom my shorthair cat, I tried brushing and nothing really comes out. She washes herself, sorts out her own claws (don't have to trim them). She washes her face with the water from her water bowl, so I try and have a second water bowl out too for drinking.

Ours is fed first thing with wet and dry food, water changed, litter scooped/topped up. He might go out in the garden but if no-one is home in the day he is in when we leave for work - we don’t have a cat flap.

During the day he sleeps in various spots, plays with his toys, and if one of us is at home he gets lunch (we just give him half his food at breakfast then the rest when we eat). If I am working from home I sit at the kitchen table so he likes to come and sit there with me.

Dinner is at 6.30 for him and then once we’ve eaten about 7.30 he gets brushed. As soon as our dishes go in the dishwasher he starts shouting for brush - he absolutely loves it. He’s a short haired cat but still sheds a lot. He’ll usually go out for a bit after that, then gets supper about 9. He tends to have a bit of a mad half hour around 11, then gets into his bed in the kitchen. He’s shut in the kitchen overnight because he’s an early morning pest.

Litter is tended to/floor swept as needed - our previous cat toileted outside but this boy comes in to use the tray. We have three trays but he mainly uses the kitchen one and poos and wees at different times to make sure there is plenty of sweeping to do. Our cat tends to poo once or twice a day, wee twice, and generally has used the tray when we get up in the morning. Per pp I do a full disinfect of the tray weekly, but don’t use clumping litter so just turn it over/top it up after a wee.