I think I want to adopt a cat but I’ve never had a cat before and I have questions!

[Pigeonqueen]

Please be kind, some of my questions might seem daft 🙈

I’ve only ever had Guinea pigs before - many, many of them in a huge indoor cage, and I loved them to bits but my health is declining now (lupus, joint issues) and bending down on my hands and knees to clean the huge cage out was becoming very hard for me. Over time the herd became less and less and I sadly lost my very last one 3 weeks ago 😞. (Old age).

So…. Now I am Guinea pig free, and I’m thinking I’d like a cat. But I don’t know a lot about actually the day to day stuff of caring for a cat. I’m googling and watching you tube stuff etc. And I’d like to rehome rather than get a kitten I think (although open to a kitten through a rescue I guess).

The main things I’m confused about are -

If my hypothetical cat has a cat flap and can go in and out as it pleases (we’re in rural Norfolk) do I still need a litter tray?

Is getting an air tag collar a good idea?

Insurance - there’s a difference between costs for the same age of cat depending on whether it’s male (more expensive) or female (cheaper), why is this?

Are kittens easy to litter train? Or am I better to go for an older cat, maybe around 2 years ish?

Really going back and forwards on this and want to make the right choices for the cat and us all. (No other pets now, I can’t work due to disabilities so home a lot, Ds aged 13 and dd aged 21 who is at university most of the time and a dh who works full time).

Thank you for this. This is what I’m thinking really. I don’t mind the extra cost of the food - been googling and the one she is currently on is £30 for 1.5kg (hills urinary and metabolic, she’s rather large apparently!) and it’s a dry food- is wet better then? She’s on 33g twice a day. There are many urinary dry foods that seem cheaper than this but obviously wouldn’t want to compromise her health if it might make her unwell by switching.

I think the main thing is how common it is for bladder stones to reoccur and that’s a bit of a how long is a piece of string question really.

I do feel if we meet and all like each other it would be nice to give a loving home to a cat who otherwise may be overlooked by many. But at the same time I’m just not sure.

I guess we will see how we get on tomorrow - I also have one of the other cat rescues ringing me but they have no cats listed anywhere so they may not have any we’d like.

I’vehad cats all my life. They are litter trained by their mothers so you don’t need to do anything. All my cats stopped using a litter tray once they started going outside and I never used one again. Obviously if they go to a cattery they will use one there.

If you get a kitten you’re more likely to have a settled, un neurotic cat because you have no idea what background a rescue cat has had. On the other hand, it’s a great thing to offer an older cat a home, and they are past the kitten stage.

I have found male cats to be less neurotic than females myself. Fewer health issues and less work.

Obviously get your cat neutered and make sure you have insurance. Get them chipped . If you live near main roads think about keeping them as indoor cats or at least keep them in at night and get a reflective collar so cats can see them. Get a noisy bell to attach to it to cut down on bird killings. They snap off if the cat gets caught somehow.

You need to keep a new cat in for three weeks and then gradually let them out for short periods with you in the garden . Build it up. Kittens shouldn’t go out until they’re vaccinated and chipped.

Plus make sure if you get a kitten that they are at least eight weeks old when you pick them up . Check out the home and the mother and try to ensure the seller isn’t breeding to make money.

Personally I would plead ignorance of the bladder issues to the vet and insurance company. And make sure you do t take her to your own vet until the policy is well established.
It could be that they have been stressed by being in a rescue and that it doesn't reoccur when in a home.

I have considered this 🙈😬 I mean potentially I could adopt a cat from somewhere else and they may not necessarily have any idea of it’s medical history so I’d be going in “blind” as it were and fully insuring them assuming they’d never had issues. 🤔 Would anyone know?! Such a lot
to think about.

Thank you for this but I won’t be getting a kitten via a breeder (I was considering a kitten via a rescue at the beginning of the thread). I think I’ve decided to adopt an adult cat via a rescue.

My sister got her cat from Battersea, she was about five I think. The cat has been great and is less high maintenance than ours, who we got as a kitten, so you can never tell. They are often very grateful for a home and somehow know how lucky they are.

How did you get on today @Pigeonqueen ?

Aw thanks for asking…. Well, sadly it didn’t work out. I don’t know what it was but I just didn’t really feel any sort of connection or anything with her. I feel really awful saying that because I totally understand they’re going to be quite shy / reserved etc and that’s fine but I don’t know what it was, I just didn’t feel the X factor! And I think if I’m going to commit to a cat who could potentially have a long term medical issue I need to feel so overwhelmed with love for them that I’d hand over my credit card if that makes sense! I took both my dc with me too (13 and 21) and we all sat quietly, gave her lots of space etc but none of us felt that special “wow we have to bring this cat home”. So back to the drawing board- well, cat rescue sites! The rescue were very understanding and said they’d put us on the list for others that may be suitable. I’ve already seen a couple on another rescue site so enquired about those. It’s made me realise I want a cat with no medical history so I can fully insure them from the start and go from there.

If you're willing to share what area you are in people may be able to suggest rescues.

Sure, I don’t mind- Suffolk / Norfolk border.

Ive contacted / been watching Feline Care (harling), Blue Cross (Suffolk), the various branches of Cats Protection (one in Framlingham and one West Norfolk) and East Coast rescue (on Facebook, haven’t approached these yet as they’re a little far from me). I’m also watching Woodgreen - these are where the two new cats I’m interested in today have appeared, but this is a little far so I’d rather stay in Norfolk / Suffolk if possible but am willing to drive for the right cat.

I think that's nothing to feel guilty about. It's a big commitment and it's good that you're taking it seriously and thinking carefully about finding the right cat for your family. There's nothing that says you have to take the first one you're offered. She'll be 'the one' for someone else, I'm sure.

Good luck with the search!

You’ve made the right decision, @Pigeonqueen - when you meet your cat, you’ll know! It would be awful to take one & then realise you’d made a mistake.

I’m in Suffolk.
My little girl came from Ipswich Cat’s Protection, and my previous girl was from RSPCA from Martlesham.
I have rescued a cat who has been rehomed via Suffolk Animal Rescue, and have friends who hand rehomed from them too. They are lovely and a small charity.

Thank you for these, I haven’t come across these ones so will add them to my list!

That’s completely understandable (and sensible!). As PP said above, best to be certain from the start rather than regretting your decision when it’s too late.

Looking forward to future updates with photos when you find the one for you and your family.

Thank you for your kind comments re the cat. I feel a bit sad for them but I’m hoping they’ll find their person / people. I’m sure they will. 🤞❤️

I agree with the posters above. It could be a 15 or 20 year commitment and it has to feel right. And there are so many cats out there needing a home that you don’t need to feel bad about waiting to find the one that is the cat for you.

I do get what you're saying, but when we met our two cats, one just hissed at us and hid away, the other ran off. But we had to take them. I had a huge cat-shaped hole in my life after Dcat suddenly getting sick on Christmas Day and having to have her PTS. They were dumped at the battery at 3 months old and had been there for 4 months.

Within 2 days they were purring and having cuddles. It's the anniversary of their gotcha day today and they are very loving and affectionate family members now.

I'm not saying you're wrong for not adopting the cat you met, just be aware that you may not feel an immediate bond but can soon become best friends. Here is an example of Monsieur's behaviour these days

Just wanted to come back and update for anyone that’s interested 🙈☺️

When we went to view the cat I mentioned before there was another cat in the pen / area with them that we all fell in love with, but he was already reserved. He literally threw himself at us, was all up and between my dd and Ds begging them to stroke him etc, to the point I had to poke my head out (from where the other cat was in a different section) and say to the dc don’t get too attached as he’s already taken. So we went away feeling a little deflated and over the next few days I applied for various cats through different rescues but I was either too slow and they’d been reserved already or were unsuitable for one reason or another. Yesterday I had a phone call from the first rescue to say the lovely cat who was reserved is now available again and would we be interested?! 😳

Obviously the dc were literally jumping up and down and so, so excited. He’s a really lovely cat, the right age for us and no existing medical issues. So we are going to meet him properly tomorrow - as when we first saw him we sort of told ourselves we couldn’t have him, and didn’t get to know all his history (but it all sounds fine) and if that goes well I will bring him probably Monday! I am so, so excited - and nervous! 😬 🤩

Oh how exciting! It sounds like it's meant to be ☺️ How old is he? What colour?

Don't forget to come and show us a picture of him when you've got him (fingers crossed).

Fantastic news! Sounds like he is the one for you. Fingers crossed it works out this time

It feels like the universe has delivered 🤣 how strange!

He is 5, which is fine for us as we didn’t want a kitten. He is a domestic short haired grey / tabby type mix - that’s the best way I can describe him. He’s beautiful. It was mainly his character that swung it for us, he was so loving and seemed desperate to be with us, which was nice. He was like “yep, these are my people”.

He chose you!

Hopefully it all works out with your prospective cat.

You've had lots of good advice already. The only thing I would say is that cats have very different personalities. We had a few cats when I was a kid and (from what I can remember) they were very friendly. So I assumed that all cats like to be stroked and petted and to sit on your lap.

Anyway, I adopted two adult cats and they're like chalk and cheese. One of them is a total lap cat, but the other one is a very anxious cat and she doesn't like to be held or fussed over. She will (occasionally) allow us to stroke her back (not her head, for some reason). I have her five years now and she has sat on my lap once in all that time - and then only briefly. Sometimes she will climb up onto the arm of the sofa and rub her face against mine. However, this does tend to coincide with feeding time . She gets very stressed about things like vet visits - the vet has to handle her to weigh her etc. Catching her and putting her into her cat carrier is a major job, given that she doesn't like to be handled. Luckily she's a beautiful cat and her rare displays of affection are very precious.