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Adopting a cat?

IdLikeToBuyAVal

IdLikeToBuyAVal

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Apr 23, 2009
Messages
219
DH and I are thinking of adding a kitty to our little family. We currently have a rescued yorkie (Barkley) and a rescued border collie x lab mix (Riley). Both love kitties (they try to play with my mom's cat) and would be excited to have a new addition.

Here's our dilemma. We went to the humane society today (same one we adopted Barkley from) and we found a cat we both like. The cat is 3, was picked up as a stray (but is declawed so obviously belonged to someone and wasn't on her own for long), and has been at the shelter about 6 weeks. The bio on the cat states that she is shy and can be timid. Our household can sometimes get pretty boisterous with two dogs and their craziness. Plus, we don't know if this kitty is okay around dogs. We'd like to adopt an adult cat since they are so rarely adopted, but shy and timid gives us some reservations. We took her out in a little "meet and greet" room and she was very aloof at first, but I scooped her up and scratched her neck and she purred almost immediately. She also loved DH. We're weighing our decision tonight and hoping to make a decision tomorrow.

What do you guys think? We're VERY supportive of rescuing animals so we don't mind the age of the cat or that it isn't purebred. (And of course, how can you make a decision without a picture :) )

get_image.jpg
 
She's so cute!!! Is there any chance you can bring your dogs over and so they can meet?
 
I wish we could but they said no. I believe it's just because there is a health concern about bringing in your animals in a place where unevaluated surrendered animals are brought in too.
 
Darn. Yeah I thought about that too. And no chance you can take the cat with you, get her checked by a vet, and then introduced to your dogs?

I guess I'm not sure what advice to give - sorry :( It's hard to predict whether she'll adjust to the dogs and be fine, or end up hiding under the bed everyday. If it were me, I might not take that chance and keep looking, but that's just me.
 
Do they have some kind of policy about taking her for 5 days? I know some shelters do when there is concern about it. Does she seem to react badly around dogs in the shelter? Honestly, I would probably take her. I would always be thinking of her and if it really isn't the best for her, at least you did what you could to give her a good home. pretty markings too.
 
Ditto - most shelters have policies stating that if it doesn't work out you can take the animal back and try another, if you so wish.
 
Wow, she's gorgeous! And, she sounds like a little love! :)) I say - Go back and get her! She's been there for a while, and you both took to her right away. It could be that she was very timid when she first came in. I'd be timid too if I was living on the street, got picked up and put in a cage, you know. It's often hard to determine what they will be like in a home environment. Plus, you are never going to know if the cat will get along with your dogs until you try it out. Even if a cat's intake sheet says he or she lived with dogs before, you won't know if they will get along with your dogs.

If it doesn't work out, uhm, sounds like your mom has only one cat. Err, I'm sure I sound terrible for suggesting it, but I've given my mom two cats that I adopted from shelters that did not work out well in my household. :rodent:

Let us know what you decide and definitely post more photos if you take her. She is gorgeous!
 
Aww, I hope she will get along with your dogs, she looks like a sweetie. Sounds like you guys were a good match. Yea for getting her at a shelter too, thats great.
 
She's beautiful. And terrified in that pic. And I WANT to say yes. But... I'm thinking there's no way to know until you get her into your house.

BUT, you do have control over the situation. There are some cats that are just NEVER going to work in your household. But there are others that... with a lot of patience with introductions and so forth could work. I have no way of saying which one this lady will be, but if you are willing to give it a couple of months to try, and commit to re-homing her (and keeping her in her own room until you do re-home her if it comes to that) if it doesn't work out, you can give it a shot.

Do you know how to introduce her to your household? That you will need to keep her separate until she's used to you and hubby and a little more secure in your house. Then do careful SHORT intros to each dog separately after she trusts you a bit? Then to stretch out the introductions until they are more comfortable. And to be VERY firm with you dogs that they can't "play" with the scared and possibly pissy kitty? Do your dogs obey you? Can you control them? And you will need to keep them supervised until the kitty gets her legs under her. Just want to make sure you guys know what you are getting into. I love cats, and have 4. Including one who does not in anyway (after 2 years!) get along with my others so I have to keep her in her very own princess room and spend alone time with her everyday to make sure she's happy (she's my AV). It's a big commitment.
 
I don't think you'll know how any cat reacts to your dogs until you get them home. Honestly I wouldn't place too much stock in shelter descriptions of temperament, only because it's such an unnatural environment for animals to be in. Plus I think you're going to have a hard time finding a cat who actually *wants* to play with your dogs. (Poor dogs...they try so hard to be liked by cats but it never seems to happen! :cheeky: )

If you and your husband both like this gorgeous girl, I would take her home and, like Gypsy said, sloooooowly introduce her to the dogs. Good luck and I hope it works out!
 
Hope I'm not too late:

I would get her. She looks darling. If she does not settle at home you can re-home her yourself. I would give her a chance. Best of luck!
 
Thanks everyone for your replies! We are going back to see her again today. We're going to see if we can get her to play a little in the meet and greet room and see if she'll come out of her shell a little more again. In general, we're thinking she hasn't been adopted for six weeks because she's shy and if you don't spend time with her she isn't very responsive. With that in mind, we're willing to work to make her comfortable and to make her more confident. The only thing holding us back right now is the concern about bringing her into a rowdy house with dogs and having her be shy and timid and hate it here.

The cats are in a different area than the dogs at the shelter so we can't get a good idea of how she is around the shelter dogs (but of course that would be shelter dogs too, not our dogs). Adopting her and rehoming her with my mom wouldn't really be an option, the adoption contract states she must be returned to the shelter if the adoption does not work out and my mom's cat is not fond of other cats anyway. I would hate to adopt her and give her back - I think if you've made the commitment you've made the commitment for life. But then again, I certainly wouldn't want her to hate life everyday if she thinks our house is the equivalent of kitty hell.

Either way, I will keep you guys posted. You've given us a lot to think about :)
 
Quick update, we went back, she recognized us and was pretty responsive. We got some toys from a volunteer and she played. She seems very taken with DH and rubbed all over him. We just got home with her and she's upstairs in the guest room. She seemed tuckered out so when we left she was trying to settle in for a nap under the bed. Will keep you updated and post more pics later today. Thanks everyone!
 
I would take her as well. Animals are so adaptable, i think with time she's sure to fit in. You just have to be prepared that it may take a bit of time, she wont be comfortable straight away.

We adopted a kitty from a shelter two months ago and she's just only starting to be herself now. And she's gorgeous :bigsmile:
 
Thats great! Fingers crossed that it works out!!
 
That's great! I can't wait to see pics of her. Have you named her yet? She looks like a Grace to me.
 
:appl: I hope she gets along with them well! She's a gorgeous girl-I can't wait to hear what you name her!
 
Congrats on the new addition! I hope everything works out! It's great to hear that she was coming out of her shell a little bit earlier while at the shelter. She looks like such a sweetie pie! She's a very pretty girl. Do you have a name for her yet or will you keep the name the shelter gave her if any?
 
Congrats!

She is certainly a beautiful kitty, and she sounds like a sweetie. I really hope everything works out!
 
Thank you all! We think she is beautiful (I MUST get better pictures of her gorgeous blue eyes!) and she is soft like a bunny! We LOVE the name Grace, her name at the shelter was Tanya but she was a stray so they just gave her that name when she arrived. She doesn't really respond to it so I don't think changing it would be a problem.

She is still very shy and is hiding under the bed in the guest room but we've made it a little kitty sanctuary until she feels a bit more at home. So far she has seemed a little freaked out by the windows (?) I opened the blinds a few inches at the bottom so she could peek out if she wanted but it seemed to make her nervous so back down they went. We brought the dogs in (one at a time) and they both investigated the kitty items and then we had each lie down by the bed so Kitty and dog could scope each other out. The good sign? No hissing. At least now all parties are aware of the others.

The dogs are ridiculously excited. Riley brought a rawhide to the door of the guest room like she was going to bring it to the kitty (SO CUTE!!)
 
Aww, how adorable of your doggie! Don't be worried if the kitty wants to stay under the bed for a couple days, when we got our cat he barely came out from under the couch for a good 48 hours and now he is SUCH a lover. They just need to be allowed to think things are their idea...

I hope you enjoy your beautiful new girl!
 
oh that's so lovely :love: im so happy you brought her home, i realised just now that you'd posted about it just before i did =)

i think it sounds like she's found a furever home, im so glad for her! enjoy her, and yes more pics please :appl:
 
IdLikeToBuyAVal said:
Thank you all! We think she is beautiful (I MUST get better pictures of her gorgeous blue eyes!) and she is soft like a bunny! We LOVE the name Grace, her name at the shelter was Tanya but she was a stray so they just gave her that name when she arrived. She doesn't really respond to it so I don't think changing it would be a problem.

She is still very shy and is hiding under the bed in the guest room but we've made it a little kitty sanctuary until she feels a bit more at home. So far she has seemed a little freaked out by the windows (?) I opened the blinds a few inches at the bottom so she could peek out if she wanted but it seemed to make her nervous so back down they went. We brought the dogs in (one at a time) and they both investigated the kitty items and then we had each lie down by the bed so Kitty and dog could scope each other out. The good sign? No hissing. At least now all parties are aware of the others.

The dogs are ridiculously excited. Riley brought a rawhide to the door of the guest room like she was going to bring it to the kitty (SO CUTE!!)
Click to expand...

Aww so cute that the dogs want to be friends! I hope things all work out - I'm rotting for you guys!
 
Hi,

I don't have time to read all the replies, but want to comment that I adopted a cat through the human society around the end of April and the only issue is most of the animals there do have a greater chance of having upper respiratory infections. When you adopt from there, they give you a coupon for a free animal check up at a vet and I suggest you do that during the one week the coupon is valid. I did take my cat in right away and he was infected and needed antibiotics.


ETA - just saw you adopted her. Congrats. Be sure to have a vet check her out. Enjoy your kitty!
 
The name Grace seems fitting! I don't really think she looks like a Tanya and since she doesn't respond to that time, I think you're good to go on that name change then!

And your doggies are so sweet, welcoming her via rawhide!!! I think they're gonna get a long just fine!! Congrats again on the new addition!!
 
Grace is a great name. Duncan hid under the bed for three days, till I just couldn't handle it and went in there after him. He seemed to figure out that I really wanted HIM, so he just stayed out after that. My advice is to let her settle in for a few days. Occassionally putting her out of her comfort zone by picking her up, carrying her over to the windows, walking with her... just generally socializing her in SHORT bursts. If she freaks or struggles let her go immediately. So she'll learn to trust that being held doesn't mean being detained.

Can't wait for extra pics!
 
Hey everyone! Just a quick update...she is really opening up and is such a sweetie! She loves brushing and will do just about ANYTHING to be brushed (and considering she is long haired, this is a good thing!). She is still wary of, and a little curious about, the dogs and this morning got a big lick in the face (through a baby gate) from our Yorkie (who was thrilled). The pups can't WAIT for playtime with the Kitty. We keep telling them they have to be good so Kitty will decide to like them. I wonder how long we can keep THIS going? :naughty:

We are still trying to figure out a name for her. We're thinking about Sabine (after Sabine Schmitz of Top Gear/car review fame), but we're not sure it fits. It's kind of a big name for a little kitty!

Here is one of the better pictures of her beautiful little face. She has very delicate features and is a pretty small cat under all that fluff.

baby blues.jpg
 
Several of you asked about the vet check, we use the vet services that are attached to the humane society. We've found them to very knowledgeable and all proceeds go to the humane society. Both dogs get their regular checkups and shots at this facility (Barkley and the kitty will get 10% off all services for their lifetimes since they were adopted from there).

She got a full screening when she went into the facility, they did a physical before we took her home (temp, check eyes, nose, weight etc.) and she will be going back in two weeks for another general checkup.
 
SHe's beautiful, Val :love: im so happy she's settling in =)
 
Oh I'm so happy this is turning out so well. My best wishes for continued good news. She's darling. Those blue eyes are killer! She looks like an Anabelle to me.
 
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