I'm Gonna Get a Cat, Any Advice?

[ssBaldy]

Thank you to (almost) everyone for your replies. I appreciate the collective wisdom of the Sherbros.

I have very, very good reasons for the laundry list of desired traits in a new cat. They are beyond my control. I realize that this may take months to find the right cat but I want to make sure that we are 100% right for each other. This is something that I am taking very seriously.

FWIW, I work from home and will have lots of time to devote to the kitty. I have always wanted a pet and finally I can and am very excited to have a little ball of floof to hang out with. All my friends with dogs and cats always remark on how good I am with them and have told me that I really should get a pet of my own. Even strangers out for a walk tell me how much their doggies like me. (I always have to get a few rubs in for any good boy or good girl.)

I'm planning on getting an automatic feeder, one of those cat fountains, and an automatic litter box. Not sure about the toys yet...already have a laser pointer though, lol.

If you have enough time and energy for your potential cat and are good with animals, I revoke the "don't take from a shelter" advice.
Also please don't think that I thought you were some a-hole wanting a toy instead of a pet, this is not the case.

 

[BFoe]

Thank you to (almost) everyone for your replies. I appreciate the collective wisdom of the Sherbros.

I have very, very good reasons for the laundry list of desired traits in a new cat. They are beyond my control. I realize that this may take months to find the right cat but I want to make sure that we are 100% right for each other. This is something that I am taking very seriously.

FWIW, I work from home and will have lots of time to devote to the kitty. I have always wanted a pet and finally I can and am very excited to have a little ball of floof to hang out with. All my friends with dogs and cats always remark on how good I am with them and have told me that I really should get a pet of my own. Even strangers out for a walk tell me how much their doggies like me. (I always have to get a few rubs in for any good boy or good girl.)

I'm planning on getting an automatic feeder, one of those cat fountains, and an automatic litter box. Not sure about the toys yet...already have a laser pointer though, lol.

If you adopt a young cat, be ready to play A LOT. They are like little kids, and require a lot of play and attention. They are basically learning their hunting skills. We have cat toys all over our floor, and a bunch more in a cabinet so we can swap them out from time to time so she doesn’t get bored.

I don’t know if every cat owner would agree with my view on laser pointers, but personally I do not use them. I don’t like making my cat chase a thing that she can’t catch. I feel like every thing used for “hunting play” should be something the cat can catch, and of the kitty is very young and clumsy I play at their level. It’s important that they succeed and catch the “prey” from time to time. At the end of play, I give her a treat or some small amount of food, because that’s what happens in the wild: when you’re a good hunter, you get food

 

[BFoe]

If you have enough time and energy for your potential cat and are good with animals, I revoke the "don't take from a shelter" advice.
Also please don't think that I thought you were some a-hole wanting a toy instead of a pet, this is not the case.

FWIW, I think I understand where you were coming from. My cat was found at 3 months old, by herself. We don’t know what happened to her mom or litter-mates. She was taken to a shelter, and we adopted her from there.

I had no idea how well adjusted she was or wasn’t, what behavioral issues could manifest from being separated (abandoned?) by her kittty-mom, how litter box trained she was or wasn’t…. I’ve had cats my whole life, I’ve raised many, but this could’ve been a very difficult cat to raise.

Luckily she is not, she’s very good. But for a brand new cat owner, it’s a gamble.

 

[SummerStriker]

Cats need a lot of attention. Get two the same age that can interact with each other. If you're clean, 2 cats don't stink. It is the third that causes cat smell.

 

[Jack Reacheround]

Get your cat from the shelter. There is no reason not to.

Keep your cat indoors. You only have to keep them indoors for their first year and they won’t have much interest in going outside.

You don’t want to constantly have to worry every time you see a dead animal in the street that it’s your cat.

Have more than one litter box. You want one more litter box than the number of cats you have. And fucking clean them.

If you treat your cat well, they will be kind, loving, playful, etc. But they are not like dogs. They don’t respond to verbal commands, and if you treat them like shit, they’ll do the same to you.

If you want your cat to stop whatever it is doing, don’t yell. Just calmly pick him up and move him away from whatever it is he’s doing. Do it consistently and he will get it.

 

[BEATDOWNS]

The cat will choose you!

 

[bobthebuilder]

I'm gonna get a cat, I'd love a dog too but don't have the schedule for it.

I need a cat that's quiet, low-energy, non-destructive, friendly, tolerant, and hypoallergenic.

I'm going to a couple of shelters tomorrow to see what they have, I'll be patient since I know I have a long requirement list. I might end up needing to get a specific breed and visit a breeder but I'd like to try and find a shelter kitty first.

I'm figuring that I should get a cat that's a few years old so their personality will be evident.

Any advice?

I suggest getting your cat used to being picked up and given oral medications as a kitten.

 

[Satur9]

Maine Coon.
Bonus: Maine Coon's love water.

Had a maine coon and he was a complete dick, but I loved the little/big asshole. Died of kidney failure last year.

Cats are awesome. Not so needy, for the most part, and they are individualistic, so they don't need constant attention and work. You can leave for a day or two and they wont flip their shit. That is a huge plus if you like to get up and go.

Hopefully you have a patio, or some way to keep the litterbox outside. Even with good litter and contact scooping, I can smell an indoor cat upon entering a house unless the house is fairly big.

 

[Jackonfire]

If you adopt a young cat, be ready to play A LOT. They are like little kids, and require a lot of play and attention. They are basically learning their hunting skills. We have cat toys all over our floor, and a bunch more in a cabinet so we can swap them out from time to time so she doesn’t get bored.

I don’t know if every cat owner would agree with my view on laser pointers, but personally I do not use them. I don’t like making my cat chase a thing that she can’t catch. I feel like every thing used for “hunting play” should be something the cat can catch, and of the kitty is very young and clumsy I play at their level. It’s important that they succeed and catch the “prey” from time to time. At the end of play, I give her a treat or some small amount of food, because that’s what happens in the wild: when you’re a good hunter, you get food

When one of my cats was a kitten, she liked to play fetch just like a dog. We also played this game where she would lie on top of the dresser and I would toss a ball upwards and she would wait for it to come back down then snatch it out of the air. Her hunting skills were on point.

 

[BFoe]

When one of my cats was a kitten, she liked to play fetch just like a dog. We also played this game where she would lie on top of the dresser and I would toss a ball upwards and she would wait for it to come back down then snatch it out of the air. Her hunting skills were on point.

Hells yeah! Cheers to good cat dads helping their cats be good hunters

We have a wand with a string and feather-bird on the end. If I make it fly through the air, she can jump up, swipe it out of the air with her paw and jam it in her mouth, so that by the time she lands on the ground she has it in her jaws

They’re amazing predators, really. They’re strong for their size, and claws and teeth and crazy sharp. So goddamn fast, too.

 

[CyberRubberDuck]

Gwt a dog

Can I pet that dawg?!?!

 

[Tone C]

You work from home ?

Be prepared to have a cat sit on your work.

 

[PeterGriffin]

Yeah
Don't

 

[Tone C]

View attachment 1061611

Cats also smell cancer in humans, it's just they don't give a fuck.

 

[deucesarewild]

I'm gonna get a cat, I'd love a dog too but don't have the schedule for it.

I need a cat that's quiet, low-energy, non-destructive, friendly, tolerant, and hypoallergenic.

I'm going to a couple of shelters tomorrow to see what they have, I'll be patient since I know I have a long requirement list. I might end up needing to get a specific breed and visit a breeder but I'd like to try and find a shelter kitty first.

I'm figuring that I should get a cat that's a few years old so their personality will be evident.

Any advice?

Don't have nice furniture. They shed plenty even in the off season. Get an expensive self cleaning litter box.

 

[UberHere]

Don't have nice furniture. They shed plenty even in the off season. Get an expensive self cleaning litter box.

Most cats won’t scratch your furniture if you get them plenty of stuff to scratch like posts, trees, and those cardboard scratch pads.

 

[MLarson]

Gwt a dog

Dogs are too needy

 

[UberHere]

Dogs are good company but I prefer cats. Low maintenance and can leave town for a weekend and they’ll be fine.

 

[BEATDOWNS]

View attachment 1061611

too bad the dog can't talk and say hey bud you have cancer. literally a useless thing. lol

 

[HHJ]

As times passed I've gotten the impression black cats are less likely to be negative sterotypes. Like 3/4s of the time theres a well behaved cat or a cat with an interesting personality I see online its black.

I fuckin love black cats and thats the fuckin one I would get