Need advice from the cat owners

[MN ChimpH8R]

I am thinking of getting a cat and asked some cat owning friends for advice on selecting a breed. I like bigger, medium-to-long-furred cats with laid-back personalities and the kitty will be alone during the day while I am at work. Short-furred cats make me sneeze but for some reason longer-furred cats do not. Most common suggestions have been

Maine Coon
Ragdoll
Norwegian Forest Cat

They're all great looking cats. Any cat-owners out there have any experience with these breeds? And is it better to get a kitten or a young adult cat?

[Psst_Im_Not_Here]

1. Maine Coon

I love mine! They are the sweetest guys, not to mention great mouse hunters!

[Misunderestimator]

52. best cat I ever had... Maine Coon definitely!

[demnan]

2. Consider getting two cats

that way they can keep each other company and will not become too needey if you are gone for a good part of the day. If you get two fairly young cats or kittens they should adjust well.

[no name no slogan]

12. agreed-- they take care of each other

we adopted two brother-cats together, and they are the best of pals. they are both very affectionate and entertain each other endlessly.


i get them back for good from my ex-wife tomorrow!!! :woohoo:

[Arugula Latte]

30. Yes -- I wholeheartedly agree. Please get two kitties.

You can find bonded pairs pretty easily in rescue groups.

Plus, cats are addictive. One is just not enough!

Mine have brought me more joy than you can imagine.

[girl gone mad]

43. Not to mention..

watching two cats play together is one of the most sublime events on the planet.

[NaturalHigh]

3. My advice...

Take in a stray or go to the pound to get one. You'll fall in love and never care whether you even have any idea what breed it is.

[Cornus]

5. I agree

My stray arrived over 15 years ago, had only one kitten (my friend told me it was a male...guess not!) and they are both lounging out on the deck right now.

So many to choose from at animal rescue centers.

[expatriot]

13. very well said....

http://www.itsmeowornever.org/homeless.html

[Mz Pip]

4. Adopt a pound kitty

or if you are really set on a particular pedigree check for a rescue group.

If you are going to be leaving the kitty alone all day, I'd get a young adult. Kittens can be really creative in their distruction if they are left to their own devices. :-)

Mz Pip
:dem:

[MissMillie]

20. I second the motion

there are too many kitties out there need good homes--no need to get breed particular and pass up on a perfectly delightful pound kitty.

[Tallison]

42. Agree w/this

And you never know what may turn up at a shelter. I've seen every breed dog and cat pass through rescue hands in my life. There are probably thousands if not more half-breed Maine Coons in needs of homes. Do a little research; I don't think it'd be hard to find one of them...

[girl gone mad]

44. So true.

The most beautiful cat I ever laid eyes on was at a shelter. Just a phenomenally georgeous medium haired himalayan.

I'm a sucker for the more downtrodden, though, and I was sure she would be able to find a home.

We adopted the sweetest little short-hair tabby and he is absolutely angelic. He gets in bed with us every morning and puts his face right up against ours and just purrs like mad. I wouldn't trade him for a million bucks.

I also agree about getting two cats who are a few months apart in age. My older cat "minds" the kitten very well and they get along splendidly.

Here is a website that can match you with a shelter animal of the breed you are looking for: http://www.petfinder.com/

[Tallison]

45. Very cool

Just PM'ed him that link to make absolutely sure he got it. What an awesome service that site provides. I need to keep my distance, lest I wind up with a 5th... (And there's already a stray in the neighborhood whose destiny I sense is already entwined with mine) :crazy:

edit for my awful, awful grammar

[girl gone mad]

46. Good idea..

It is a fantastic site.

My sister was going to buy a labrador from a breeder, but after visiting petfinder.com, she was able to adopt a beautiful, healthy full-breed puppy and for several hundred less than what a breeder would have charged.

[ScreamingMeemie]

6. Get a stray kitten and love the hell out of it...

and it will love you and be laid back and give you about 20 of the best years of our lives. Ours started out a little ragtag baby of a feral mom and tomcat at my fil's workplace and he has been the best damned cat in the world. :hi:

[LynneSin]

7. Find your local cat rescue group and find a young adult who needs a home

I've worked with cat rescue groups here in Delaware and the kittens find homes easily. Unfortunately the grownups don't. And I know we got plenty of long-haired cats in there including Maine Coons (pure & mixed).

[MN ChimpH8R]

16. That's a good idea, Lynne

A friend of mine used to work for a cat rescue organization - I will talk to her. I'd probably be more interested in a young adult cat and it would be easier to find one at a rescue/shelter place.

[yellerpup]

8. About that sneezing...

I developed an allergy to my short-haired cat that vanished when I changed his food. I had been feeding him (his fave) one can of kitty sardines a week as a treat for a few weeks when the allergy came up. It disappeared as soon as I switched back to Iams. I rescued him off the streets of NYC, and he was the best dang kitty who ever loved me. Good luck!

[fudge stripe cookays]

9. PLEASE don't feed your pets Iams!

They are horrific in their treatment of animals. reprehensor knows if he brings a bag of Iams in to the house he will be read the riot act. These guys paint themselves to be so great, and they're just sadistic.

www.iamscruelty.com

FSC

[expatriot]

11. I second that. thanks fudge stripe!nt

[Tallison]

26. Really?!?

How so? Do you guys have any links? I've been buying Iams for years, and this is the first I've heard. Please let me know; my cats are so used to Iams and seem to enjoy it, but if there's a good ethical reason to stop patronizing the brand I'll do so immediately.

[expatriot]

35. here it is....

www.iamscruelty.com


from the "Why Iams?" link


For nearly 10 months in 2002 and early 2003, a PETA investigator went undercover at an Iams contract testing laboratory and discovered a dark and sordid secret beneath the wholesome image of the dog- and cat-food manufacturer: dogs gone crazy from intense confinement to barren steel cages and cement cells, dogs left piled on a filthy paint-chipped floor after having chunks of muscle hacked from their thighs; dogs surgically debarked; horribly sick dogs and cats languishing in their cages, neglected and left to suffer with no veterinary care.

Iams lied to PETA with promises to improve the conditions for animals in its contract laboratories, even assuring us that enrichment programs were already in place, but our undercover investigator saw otherwise. She fought for six months to have a single cheap, rubber toy placed in each cold, lonely kennel. This is Iams’ idea of enrichment.

Our video footage shows Iams representatives touring the facility and witnessing dogs’ endless circling in barren cells, sweltering in the summer heat. Iams knew the truth yet did nothing to protect the animals.

The dogs and cats in Iams’ tests are no different from our dogs and cats at home when it comes to deserving companionship, play, a stimulating environment, and the right not to be tormented in painful experiments.

Luckily, caring consumers know that advances in nutrition don’t have to come at the expense of animals in labs. Help PETA force Iams to end these painful and unnecessary tests, as many compassionate companies have already done.

[Tallison]

41. Holy shit

I don't know what else to say, I'm so shocked, really shocked. Thanks for the link. No more money for Iams...

[fudge stripe cookays]

47. Yay!

I tell everyone I KNOW to stop patronizing this montrous company.

For a long time, believed that anything I bought in a vet's office had to be better than the supermarket stuff. WRONG! Nutro is no better. They're very red.

Check the DU Pets forum. Lorien is quite good at knowing the types of blue and organic pet foods that are good for our babies and our consciences!

FSC

[LynneSin]

14. And please don't feed them Nutro - CEO is a repuke contributor

I find that Royal Canin is a safe bet!

[expatriot]

10. Before you do anything you MUST watch this video I found:

http://www.itsmeowornever.org/homeless.html
Don't breed or buy.... ADOPT

[expatriot]

15. Both of our children were strays.

Look how beautiful they are... We call Sonora a "tabby point" because she looks like a tabby point but we don't have a clue of about her bloodline (but believe me, SHE does).

[madinmaryland]

17. Maine Coon.

They are very people friendly cats, and very easy to live with. Ours at the age of 16 passed away last winter. My wife had him from the time he was a 10 week old kitten. As long as he was fed, he was a happy cat! They are also very good with children.

Truffle:

[jbane]

18. Whatever your do, be sure you adopt a stray.

I have three.
Tater, he's the longhaired black cat, very sweet.
Tonya, all white with a blue eye and a yellow eye, beautiful cat.
Spike, he's the baby, all legs and ears, very lovable.
We adopted all three and we love them very much.

[ET Awful]

19. You can get all those qualities in a random pound kitty :)

See what I mean? :)

[MissMillie]

21. that's a fabulous picture!

Wow.....

[ET Awful]

24. Purrrrrrr

Thanks :)

[Felix Mala]

22. Manx Cat, I love mine. They don't go berserk if they're left alone

and, I think, actually prefer their own company to that of other, lesser, cats. They have thick rich fur and love to be brushed in the winter, but it's not excessively long. They were bred for work on fishing boats, thereby being the only existing "working breed" of cat, which might account for their independence. Mine has more personality than most people. Check it out:




He's a little thug:




Ask him if he approves:

[Felix Mala]

23. He's very compact and very stout, strong.

[juslikagrzly]

40. OMG this could SO be my manx, Stubbs

who died last October at age 19. This is spooky!!!! I even called mr. juslikagrzly in to see these pictures.

Thanks for posting, the pics bring back such wonderful memories. Stubbs was absolutely the best cat ever. Sweet and loving to all our other critters and kids. We sure miss him.

BTW, he was a stray who found me. Almost all our critters are strays. They're the best.

[Bridget Burke]

25. Joining the crowd....

Get a pair. They'll keep each other company while you're away.

I'd recommend a good cat adoption center rather than "the pound." At the latter, you may be tempted to rescue a dozen cats & a few dogs!

Kittens are cute (duh!) but require more supervision. And it can be hard to tell whether a kitten will grow up a longhair.

[Felix Mala]

27. I've heard it's best to offset a pair by a few months. Make sure

they bond to you and not to each other, leaving you out of it.

[Bridget Burke]

29. I've got a pair who were adopted together as kittens.

They are indoor cats--part of the reason they are now elderly.

No bonding problems at all. They know who feeds them, brushes them & cleans the litter box.

[Felix Mala]

28. You must watch this video about adopting kitties.

http://www.big-boys.com/articles/pinky.html

[MN ChimpH8R]

31. Eeyouch

I am looking for a slightly mellower cat...

[Rhiannon12866]

32. I have had both long and short haired cats

And I learned something, not long ago at my vet's, that I never knew! My beloved Rhiannon was long-haired. From the very beginning, she insisted in getting on my bed. I tried to discourage her because I knew I had allergies, though not severe enough to keep me from having cats. But I felt that it was just asking for it if I let her lie on my pillow! However, she was a persistent little thing and I soon gave up. And my allergies never bothered me. I assumed that it was psychological, since I know that allergies can be that way. I was wrong.
:dunce:

My kitty, Catlin, who I rescued from outside, was also black, but short-haired. On a visit to the vet's, one of the techs there, who always makes a huge fuss over my guys, was carrying her around and giving her kisses. When she put her down, she noticed a slight rash on her neck. And she explained to me that this was because my cat had short hair. She said that she's not allergic to long-haired cats, but is to the short-haired variety. Apparently, they have different dander!:shrug:

I stupidly assumed that the longer the hair, the more dander. I was dead wrong and now know the truth.
:wow:

So if I had to choose, I'd go with one of the longer-haired varieties. It's a safer choice. And I'd also choose an adult cat. Kittens are adorable, but they can be little hellions and can do a lot of damage, even if you were around to supervise all of the time.:eyes:

And I'd also choose a cat from rescue, rather than spending a lot of money for a particular breed. You can find cats of all varieties in shelters or from rescue groups, even particular breeds. They are the ones who need good homes and it won't cost you a fortune, just health care, which you'll have to face, anyway, like necessary inoculations and spaying/neutering, which may have already have been done if you choose an adult cat. And, if I had it to do over again, I'd adopt two who are already companions or just get along. They'll keep each other company while you're not there and, hopefully, out of trouble. My friend, who recently lost her beloved 17-year-old cat, plans to do this when she's ready for another companion. Good luck!:hi:

[MiniMandaRuth]

33. I've had a Maine Coon

One heck of a personality, but I also hear that Ragdolls are great cuddlers...

And Norwegian Forest Cat is considered to be the cat for dog people

[Sanity Claws]

34. How about one adult and one kitten?

I adopted one adult cat and one kitten together and they're happy together. The adult was a Maine Coon mix -- very even-tempered and smart.
The other is your regular short-haired tabby. Very nice and loving to me but not as even-tempered or smart as the Maine Coon mix.

[expatriot]

36. great idea... adult cats rarely have a chance at the shelter :(

in our shelter that my wife volunteers at, they can't find a home nearly all the kittens, let alone the poor adult cats... it is so very sad.

[khashka]

37. Balinese

Medium sized, long furred, same colours as Siamese. Intelligent, affectionate, but like doing their own thing, too.

I had mine for 12 years and she was great.

Khash.

[warrens]

38. Get two maine coon siblings

Smart, cool and affectionate (although it takes a bit). Get two if you travel. They can take care of each other and the wrestling is hilarious.

[City Lights]

39. My Maine Coon is an absolute delight.

He's the kindest, gentlest soul around. Very tolerant with my kids. Very loyal. And, of course, he's gorgeous.

That said, I felt extreme guilt for a long time after adding him to the family. I volunteered at an animal shelter at the time, and every time I worked my shift I felt like a complete louse. Seeing all the sad eyes at the shelter nearly broke my heart. Eventually my husband helped me realize that our Maine Coon needed a home too, and I finally learned to stop beating myself up over it.

I agree with the other posters who've suggested checking local animal shelters for Maine Coon purebreds or mixes. The shelter I volunteered for had purebreds come through now and then. (We fostered one for awhile.) The purebreds don't usually last very long - the shelter I volunteered for even had waiting lists for specific breeds.

Good luck!

[MN ChimpH8R]

48. Thanks everyone!

I will definitely start with my local cat rescues/shelters. I am sure that I will find a perfect adult kitty or two there.

[hickman1937]

49. I read a study somewhere awhile ago,

but it was about kids allergic to cats. Apparently it's not the dander, but the spit. Damn, I really have to start saving this stuff.

[bertha katzenengel]

50. You've probably read a LOT of responses that weren't what you expected

i.e., get a pound cat (I'm guessing; I haven't read the thread yet). Count my voice with them, for the most part.

But I can answer your question directly:

We have a Norwegian Forest Cat mutt. Since she is only small part NFC I can't tell you that this is part of the breed, but she is something of a little shrew. Her nickname is Wenchzilla.

I've heard Rag Dolls are your best bet for laid-back-ness.

And since you're probably going to pay a breeder, get an older "ugly" cat that the breeder couldn't get rid of. I don't know from experience but I've heard this happens.

Good luck making your choice :hi:

Oh: one more piece of advice: get two. Really. You'll be happier but more important, the cats'll be happier.

[MN ChimpH8R]

51. Kitty found!

I researched my local cat rescue places and last night made a call about this little fella. His story just broke my heart and I knew he just might be the kitty for me. We're both survivors. I will meet him at the foster's home on Sunday




Isn't he adorable? :loveya:

Poppy
Cat
Himalayan,Domestic Medium Hair - buff and white Mix

Size: Medium
Age: Adult
Sex: Male
I.D: Foster_Poppy

Notes: Hi, my name is Poppy, and I have a sad tale to share with you. I'll start as far back as I can remember.

When I was just a little kitten, I had a home of my very own. It was warm and I had lots of toys and food. Then, when I turned six months old and I was no longer a little baby, I was put outside to become an "outdoor cat". I begged and tried to get back in the house, but they wouldn't let me in. So that is when I started my life outside. This went on for seven entire years. That means I lived outside for seven freezing cold winters and seven hot dry summers. Not a very good life for a cat like me. Fortunately, the people that I lived with as a kitten left food outside for me, so I decided to stick around. Being outside for so long took it's toll on me, both of my ears are missing due to extreme frostbite. Minnesota winters are not kind to cats at all.

Then one day, the people that were feeding me decided to move away and leave me all alone again. To make it worse, it was the dead of winter. Luckily, one of their neighbors took pity on me and called Feline Rescue. When they heard my story they immediately knew they had to help me so I would never have to live outside again.

Well, now I'm about nine years old, and I'm finally living the life every cat was meant to have! Despite my rough life on the streets, you will never find a more loving and affectionate cat as me. My foster mom said she can even hear me purring from across the room when she starts talking to me. I will sit on your lap all day long if you'll let me. I also love to be brushed which is good since i have a beautiful thick coat of fur. I give kisses and will lick you to show you how much I love you.

The home I think I would enjoy most is one that is more on the quiet side. Due to my previous life on the streets, loud noises and fast movements tend to scare me, so small kids may not be the best. My foster mom says I act like I've been abused because feet scare me and I act like I'm going to get kicked. I have too much dignity to admit that so I chose to forget my not-so-perfect past and move on. Also, other cats tend to pick on me, which makes me sad. I would prefer it if I could be the only kitty in the house, or maybe it would be ok for me to share a home with a quiet and submissive cat. The main thing I want is a human that has lots of time to cuddle and play with me. I have no desire to go outside ever again, so I hope we can spend lots of time together snuggled up on the couch!

My beautiful blue eyes may still have a sad look in them sometimes, but I promise you, I'm not sad anymore. The only thing that would make my life complete is to find a person that will adopt me and love me unconditionally FOREVER. If you open up your heart and your home to me, I promise you we'll live happily ever after. Since I'm living in foster care, please call _____at ___ _______to hear more about me and my winning personality. I'm looking forward to your call!

[bertha katzenengel]

53. This is great news! Congrats to you and thank you for giving Poppy

a home!

Start a new thread! Everyone should hear about this, MN. :loveya: thanks for adopting a homeless kitty!
:yourock:

[miss_kitty]

55. sweet. Keep us updated with pics and stuff

Congrats, and thanks for saving a kitty!

[zanne]

54. If you go to your local animal shelter...

The cat will pick you. Just try it; you'll see what I mean. Five years ago, I went to the local shelter looking for a cat, as I had lost my 18-year old cat a month before. There were two rooms full of cats. All of them were beautiful and my heart broke for them, and I didn't know what to do. Finally, I felt a paw on my arm and looked down to see a little black cat with yellow eyes. I took her home and she's been delighting and exasperating me ever since. One of the shelter volunteers had told me that one cat would really "talk" to me. She was right.