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It doesn't sound like you have the time to properly love and care for a cat. It's a myth that cats are fine being alone for 12 hours a day, they may act disinterested in you when you are home, but they get lonely too. It's also my concern that you have no support to help take care of your cat, like cleaning the litter box EVERY day, brushing, proper feeding, fresh water, supplying the necessary scratching posts, cat condos, toys, etc. If you add a second cat to the mix for company, preferably litter mates, it's even more work if you take care of them properly. Cats are not an ornament that just hang out requiring little to no care or love. Enjoy your mom's dogs if she breeds, sounds like for right now, you're not ready for any animals. It's nothing to be upset about, you just don't sound like you're in a position to care for an animal properly. Sounds like you're very young and have plenty of time to consider if adding a cat to your home is appropriate. There should be a lot to think about and so many people pick up dogs and cats and then return them to shelters because they had no idea how much work [or trouble] it would be. For animal lovers, the "work" is enjoyable and we love our pets like children. Doesn't sound like you've really thought it through, please do so. You have lots of good responses to your post about what's specifically involved in having a cat.
wel i work 12 hour days for five and i have off five. And my sister in-law i know will help me out she loves cats but my brother won't let her have one because i know they had one before and he started getting sick so he took it back to the shelter. She grew up with cats.
Last week when i went to my OTHER sister in-laws house she got a new cat and i was inlove with it and i don't see any scratches on her furniture. I never had a cat in my life and always wanted one. And right now everytime i walk through my house i keep thinking about a cat. I love my dog but at the same time I want to see a cat oneday on my bed and also sleeping on my pillow and to be at my front window once i get home. I understand their is work thats why right now i am doing alot of research.
OK, some people here are very adamant about certain things, and you can choose to listen to them or not.
I would not have a cat with front claws in my house because they will destroy your furniture.
This is a complete lie. None of our furniture was or is being ruined by our four cats. Are you too cheap or too poor to buy a few inexpensive scratching posts and a cat-tree from Petco or Petsmart? Cats will only damage furniture if you have nothing else for them to scratch on. What else can they do if nothing in your home is theirs to claw? You've cruelly mutilated your cat when that money could have bought a few scratching posts and a cat-tree.
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For sure. If you don't care, then don't get them declawed. My cats have suffered no ill effects from this.
That's only YOUR OPINION. You have no way to know how much pain they're in being forced to walk on the stumps of their toes. They can no longer climb and jump like normal cats. They can no longer use their paws as they did before.
And many cats have serious side effects or complications from being de-clawed. Why do you think so many nations have banned the practice?
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If you are absent 12 hours a day, your cat will not care as long as he is warm and cozy and has plenty of dry food and water. Just give it attention when you get home. Lastly, we have had the best luck with orange male cats. They are very sweet and loving.
Kittens can get bored and lonely when left alone all day. In that case it's better to adopt two from the same litter or around the same age. Provide a few scratching posts, a cat-tree and plenty of toys plus a window to look out.
And right now everytime i walk through my house i keep thinking about a cat. I love my dog but at the same time I want to see a cat oneday on my bed and also sleeping on my pillow and to be at my front window once i get home. I understand their is work thats why right now i am doing alot of research.
Make sure you also have a PLAN in case you get married and/or pregnant. What happens to the cat or cats then? What if your husband or BF doesn't like cats and demands you get rid of them? What if you lose your job and have to move back home with your mom?
You don't want to get a cat or two and then dump it in a shelter when your life changes.
I do not think that being gone 12 hours a day is a problem, in and of itself, and I'm glad you're giving the whole thing thought and doing some research. That shows the responsibility and maturity that others here have accused you of lacking. Again, I'm sorry about the confusion we had regarding your living arrangements here...
Some things you might think about:
Although being gone 12 hours a day isn't a dealbreaker, you do need to make sure that you've got the time and energy to properly care for the cat when you get home, or before you leave, or both. The big thing that most people wind up neglecting is the litterbox, and this is a problem because cats will eventually go elsewhere, your house will stink, etc. The box must be scooped on a DAILY basis, if not twice a day. I also do a full change out and wash the box weekly (I do it on trash day, so the old litter goes right out.) This procedure if kept up with should take maybe 5 minutes a day for a single-cat, single-litterbox household. Why so many people neglect to do it is beyond me.
You might consider, instead of getting a kitten, possibly getting an older cat. Ask around rescues and shelters, they've usually assessed the personalities of the cats to some extent. If you get a cat that is pretty mellow and chill (stay away from Bengals, for instance, as they have SERIOUS activity levels--think Border Collies, you've got to exercise and work them)...anyhow, a more mellow cat might be less demanding and cool to spend a 12 hour day alone napping in a sunbeam and looking out the window.
Obviously long haired cats require grooming, some of them need it daily. But I've found that with some short haired cats, you wind up with cat hair all over everything even worse than a long haired one. Are you cool with cleaning up the hair and/or grooming the cat?
Although it sounds like you live in a rural area, please think about the possible dangers if you let your cat out...a cat can live a very happy life completely indoors, or with an outdoor enclosure or leash walks, as many here have described.
I would not have a cat with front claws in my house because they will destroy your furniture. For sure.
That is not a guarantee. We have three cats, all with their front claws (and all strictly indoor cats). None of them ever scratch on the furniture or anything other than the various scratching pads and posts around the house. The cat I used to have a number of years ago also had all of her claws and did not tear up my furniture.
On the other hand, we know some cat owners who do have an issue with this. So yes that is a possibility, but it is not a guarantee that they will destroy your furniture.
The only thing to really avoid is leather furniture; many other types of fabrics / materials will be fine with an occasional, inadvertant scratch, but leather forgives nothing.
PinkAquarius, I agree with a previous post that an older cat from a shelter might be a better choice than a kitten, a cat that has a calm disposition if you're going to be away most of the day. But I remain concerned that you are fantasizing about seeing a cat looking out the window, laying on your bed, etc. Proper care of a cat is a lot of work, and helps you bond with your cat. Cats are very smart, they know when you're tending to their litter box, for the most part enjoy being groomed and they know when you're paying attention to them and seeking out their love despite how indifferent they may behave. I would be concerned that without that kind of care, you'll regret getting a cat and within months, he or she will be back at a shelter, or worse, just left go in the wild which a lot of people living rural do unfortunately. Please please think about your desire to do the daily chores necessary to properly take care of a cat, or any in-home animal for that matter, and try not to focus on the more romantic aspects of having a cat, that will not carry you through to properly take care of your cat. I'm glad you're reaching out for feedback, I just hope you're processing the feedback you're getting, and I would talk to cat lovers, if any, in your family about the care cats require and see if it's something you want to do.
I grew up with dogs in my household and always loved dogs.
After moving out on my own, I did not have pets for many years.
A few years ago, my wife and I came upon a "half-stray" cat near our home. "Half-stray" means that she was being cared for, but left outside, as the folks taking care of her had other indoor cats, which were their "preferred" cats.
Long story short, we ended up adopting this cat.
I was hesitant at first, but eventually fell in love with her. She is part of our everyday lives now. Cats are intelligent animals and make great pets. They are also a bit easier to maintain than dogs are.
Don't get a cat because they're easier to care for than a dog, or the fact they can be left alone...you should get a cat because you love cats. What if the dogs get hold of the cat? What if something happens to you, will anyone care for that cat? I probably am wasting my time saying all this anyway....
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