Want a cat but the smell and worry about it pee'ing in the house. (declawing, vomit)

[keeperk]

My kids have been wanting a cat. Now I have 1 kid at home (one grew up) and he's asked for a cat and I kind of want one too.

I really like cats and would love to have a little snuggley kitty to love.

My concern for having a house cat is from people I know who have cats.

Their house stinks. No matter what. You can smell the cat ickky(litter box).

One girl I knew, her apt. stuck so bad it would make your eyes water and I really had to go home, get a shower and wash my clothes to get the smell off of me if I went to her place. She only had 1 cat.

I don't think you can get the urine smell out of your carpet once it's there. They mark their territory or get P#$$ off at you.

I know people with cats who if they upset the cat's routine the cat might poop on their bed.
Scratching the furniture, getting on the cabinets and dinner table. YUK!

Other than all that, I would love to have a cat.

Are these concerns reasonable or is it possible to have or train a cat that does not do these things?

If I had a cat it would have really soft fur. Not a bald cat or wirey haired cat, not be an attack cat(been attacked) or a scaredy cat(no fun). It would not get on the counters, scratch the furniture or shed all day long.

Any suggestions for a cat? Are there diff. breeds that are better than others or just get a pound cat and hope for the best?

[ouijeewoman]

I don't think you're ready for a cat. You have way too many concerns and getting a cat is a commitment for it's entire life. This is something you have to be 100% positive about.

My advice would be to foster a cat and see if it's something you really want to do.

[keeperk]

Originally Posted by ouijeewoman

I don't think you're ready for a cat. You have way too many concerns and getting a cat is a commitment for it's entire life. This is something you have to be 100% positive about.

My advice would be to foster a cat and see if it's something you really want to do.

Hard hitting. I was afraid my thread would be takin as a cat hater and right off the bat it was.
The reason I'm asking is because, NO I'm not 100% about it for the reasons I asked. I would l like to know if more cats then NOT don't do the stuff I'm worrying about.

I've had cats before.

1. house cat. Loving. Got under the hood of a car, went for a drive, gone for a month, came home and was nuts. He attacked me in the face for petting him. Yes, he was traumatized then so was I.

My bestfriends cat liked to hide behind a wall and attack you and run up your body hissing and clawing up your back if you walked past his lair

MY brothers CATS loved Sitting on the kitchen dinner table. He would invite me for dinner and I'm knowing his cats butts were there as well as on the kitchen counters where they prepared the meals.

I show a house and instantly the shoppers as well as myself can smell cat pee. Appointment for that house is done.
The list goes on.

My last cats were outside cats. They had their own antics which were fun to watch. But I'm wanting a house cat.

So come on, legitimate questions don't you think?
And thank you for responding, really.

[katzenfreund]

I have 3 cats and our house never smells like cat pee. I know my mother WOULD tell me, because she is a clean freak. When we had our house on the market in the past, people would remark how it didn't smell, despite the cats. As long as the cats are spayed, neutered and have access to a CLEAN litter box, preferably a nice large one, there shouldn't be a problem. The box needs to be cleaned at least once a day. If the box smells I can bet you, the people living there are not scooping as they should be.

[FiveHorses]

OP - you sort of have to see this from both sides of the fence.... On the one hand you have concerns - fine, fair enough. But I had to sit there and sort of chuckle my way through your post because some of your concerns are just a little bit .... well, over the top. It's not that I think you dislike cats (if you did why would you be thinking of getting one?), but I think you need to appreciate that with animals that live indoors, a little flexibility is involved.

If ANYONE'S house (and I couldn't give a monkey's who that person might be) smells of cat, dog, rabbit, what-have-you, the people that live there are not cleaning properly. End of story really.

We've been house-hunting for... well, too long. I cannot tell you the number of times I've walked into houses and gagged. How the hell people live like that, I don't know. But please please bear in mind that this is ENTIRELY down to "human error". Give a cat the manual dexterity to clean out a litter tray and the cat would do so. If there are full to over-flowing litter trays... take a moment and spare a thought for the poor cat.

Cats are, by definition, exceedingly clean creatures. If there are animal owners out there that are content to live in filth, that's their business, but I feel sorry for the animals who are never content to live like that.

Fact: cat waste products have a strong odour, and this is why Mother Nature designed them complete with the "I dig a hole and then I bury it" gene.

I have never had a cat do anything on my bed other than sleep - not ever. Cats in my house are not allowed on kitchen counters and the thought of a cat on the dinner table is positively laughable. Again, these things are down to human beings allowing it to happen.

One of ours, if he's in a particularly divilish mood, he'll grab an ankle (no claws, never claws). Occasionally one or another will decide the sofa is the best place in the world to sharpen claws. All it takes is the cat's name said in the warning tone and it stops.

Should you be prepared for the odd thing knocked over and broken, the scratch on something that was unscratched before, the sudden discovery that the cat's figured out how to get in the closet and has made the most wonderful bed of your sweatpants? Yup. It's a cat. It's what cats do.

If you've got some fine furniture or priceless objects d' art, put them in a room and close the door and it's a cat-free room.

One can open cupboards. He likes to sleep in the frying pan. I could, if it bothered me, get a child-proof latch. But I think it's funny so I just wash it before I use it. He also gets under the bathroom sink which will give anyone a heart-attack as you're standing, peacefully brushing your teeth, and the cupboard door silently opens into you. I clean the mirror a lot, but that's because I spat the toothpaste out as I shrieked - for the four hundred and thirty seventh time... (You'd think I'd learn really, wouldn't you? )

So, do you clean a lot more with animals in the house? Yup. Big time. They shed too. Buy a good vacuum.

I did nurse a very ill, dying cat who had accidents. There is no lingering odour. True, there are spots where the cleaner took the colour out of our cheap and nasty carpet, but sure... it's a carpet. You replace it in due course. A few more spots and it'll look like a pattern.

We have a cat that throws up a lot. Most of the time it's on the floor, occasionally she gets the carpet. Does my house smell like cat vomit? No.

We currently have three dogs and three cats. My house does not, nor has it ever, smelled.

ETA - BTW, and just for the record, cats do not urinate on furniture or beds out of anger. That's just complete nonsense. Cats with behavioural issues might urinate or defecate outside the litter-tray as a means of communication (ie, anxiety), but it certainly is not out of anger. One thing I do think would be very much worth your while would be to spend some time reading up on feline psychology and behaviour.

[keeperk]

Well FiveHorses, that's a pretty realistic picture. Thank you. Thanks for taking my thread serious and I know, kind of silly.

I know having pets is a responsibility & extra work and I guess that's why I'm doing my checking and considering before I get one. I'm also looking into a german shepherd, then read a post about a girl that said she got a shepherd, now what do I do? She heard.... this and that. I think I'm ahead of that step this time as I want to be a responsible owner and give my pet the best. I've had a shepherd and feel I was lucky with the one I had.

I actually had a farm with lots of cats (outside, 1 in), 2 dogs(in and out), several goats and pigs and 40,000 chickens so I'm not really a stranger to animals. Just the ones in the house. I had to put my last dog down due to old age. She was an inside/outside German Shepherd cat loving dog. Though she would never admit it!
My eldest kid is gone, grandson gone, 1 child home and I'm animaless now and I'm older now. So responsibilities are leaving me, I have an easy kid, and I know if I get a pet I'm looking at it as a part of my life until I'm in my 60's now. So I am taking the whole idea with much more consideration then OOo lets go to the pound and get a pet! My house is cleaner and it's eaiser to keep with my older kid and just me, and I work a lot so I'm and not wanting to make a pet 24/7.
My new furniture and carpet I do have a concern over an amimal ruining it. I know it would be years before I could replace such a thing again if ever. I think a legitimate concern.

I know animals have personalties and come with risk,
but my question is really does the cat messing stuff up happen more often than not?
I'll take that chance if the odds are in my favor.

[catman]

keeperk: I don't think you're a cat hater, and I don't think ouijeewoman was calling you one. But with good clumping litter, frequently tended to, there isn't a noticeable smell. You're overly concerned about something which doesn't even need to happen.

[keeperk]

Thanks Catman.

I think I'm at the more get educated level then concerned level. I'll be concerend when I get the cat.
I'm wanting to get educated by cat owners.

Clumping litter is a good tip! See, I'm learning here. Why I posted. Thanks.

[FiveHorses]

Originally Posted by keeperk

I know animals have personalties and come with risk,
but my question is really does the cat messing stuff up happen more often than not?
I'll take that chance if the odds are in my favor.

I think it depends on what you define as "messing up". The corners of two sofas are far from ruined, but ..... well, suffice it to say the fabric wasn't supposed to be "nubby". Is it really noticeable? No. I notice it because I know it's there. It's just on the corners and they weren't fine or expensive sofas to begin with. Our carpet? Our carpet was foul, it just came with the house so I ignore it. It's clean, just irregularly spotted with bleached out bits.

I currently have an antique writing desk and chair artistically draped with a big towel each. The cats like to sleep on the top of the desk - it's an item of furniture of huge sentimental value to me and is irreplaceable. So it stays covered - I rest easy knowing it's protected and don't worry about the cats getting on it so I'm happy and the cats are happy because they can sleep on it. That's the sort of "flexibility" I mentioned in my previous post - a willingness to look at a situation and try to find a solution that works for both you and the animal.

Remember that flat sheets are your friend. You can always cover something you don't want cat hair on that way and should you ever have people round for whom you'd like the house to look nice, they can be whipped off and put away. Also, they launder easily.

Cat hair floats. It has aerodynamic properties NASA envies. It finds a way to get everywhere. To a degree it just cannot be helped and I've just learned to see the funny side - like when someone on here once wrote "Cat hair is a condiment." That still makes me laugh.

But yes - gone would be the days of only vacuuming once a week. Gone are the impromptu holidays or overnight stays somewhere. Gone is walking out the door without a backwards glance. There are a lot of things that change.

I would suggest to you that a fully mature cat of say three or four plus years old, a cat that needs a quiet and stable household and perhaps of a nature that requires it to be an only pet would be a good match should you decide to go down this route.

Good luck.

[sunshineleith]

I have two cats and you can't smell the litter either - they are half outdoors/half indoors, so no doubt that helps, but as long as you keep the litter clean and out of the way it should not be a problem. The key is maintenance and cat households that don't adhere to a kitty litter cleaning schedule, smell!

I don't think you are a cat hater But I do think that you may be trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. To own any animal, you have to be realistic about what you are getting - e.g. with most dogs, you will need to walk it daily, you will need to carry a snack bag to clean up their poo, they restrict your freedom as they cannot be left alone for every long, they are emotionally needy, etc. And for dog lovers, those are not a big deal, as the joy they get from what they love about dogs, overcome the drawbacks.

It's the same thing with cats - the fact of the matter is, cats ARE ornery little buggers. If you tick them off they may well take a crap on your bed - or under it. I had one that used to do that occasionally. They can, do and will jump up on your counters and tables. And bookcases and window ledges. Cats like to leap and they like heights and they like surveying their domain from up high!

They WILL scratch your furniture if they so desire. I don't believe in declawing, and I have tried spraying water, loud clapping, newspaper slapdown on the floor, etc. Did any of it work? Nope. So when my last sofa was sufficiently shredded, I replaced it with leather. Neither scratches the leather - but some cats will! The odd waft of kitter litter, pawprints on the dining room table, being awaken at the crack of dawn for food . . . . all worth it - because I LOVE CATS. I truly cannot imagine ever not having a cat. I love the smell of their fur, their grace, their quirky little personalities, the way they purr and their whiskers and tenacity and all the rest of it. And to me, that makes all of the "drawbacks" small potatoes in comparison.

I wish there were magic cures for bad cat behavour, there are certainly some people who have had some success, but cats are far less trainable (and in my opinion much more delightful LOL) than dogs. With that in mind, to make cat ownership a joy for both you and the cat, you need to love cats enough to find acceptable (or at least liveable), the traits and behaviours that 99% of them will inherently display.