Hello...Hoping for some advice!

Hi,

I'm not a new member but still a newbie since I've only posted a few times. Not sure where the best place would be for my question so I figured that I'd do a quick intro and slap it in here because it all kinda ties in together...

My husband and I recently lost our Cassie cat. She was 13 years old and suffering from chronic renal failure. Her situation took a rather sudden & dramatic decline, she became withdrawn and stopped eating & using the litter box. After several visits to the vet and a lot of soul searching we finally came to the difficult decision to let her go. That was on March 5th. We miss her very much and definitely feel like we are missing part of our family. Even my 2 year old son asks about her, he LOVED the Cassie cat SO much.

Anyway, a friend of mine has a Himalayan who had kittens on March 9th. She has very generously offered to give us one of her kittens once they are ready (sometime around mid or late May). My husband and I are trying to decide what to do. It's been a long time since either of us has had a kitten. We know the new kitty would not be a replacement for Cassie but we do miss having a cat in the house (she was our only furbaby). One more thing to consider, we are expecting our 2nd child in late June. So we would have a new kitty in the house about a month before greeting our new baby.

Anyone have any thoughts or advice on the matter? If I follow my then we would for sure do it but when I apply annoying things like logic & finances, the answer isn't as clear. WWYD?

TIA!

Hi there, well its a good thing that you are considering all angles before jumping in and committing to a new kitty. As you know you could have upto 15yrs maybe more with a cat. So it is a serious consideration.

A kitten would be lovely as everyone knows how cute they are but you know as a cat-owner, you need money, time, patience and commitment from the word go.

A month with a kitten is not long before your 2nd child arrives, but how does your husband and 1st child feel about their role with a new kitten and a baby too ?

I do not have any children so I cannot comment from this aspect, but we have just inherited a 4th cat, a kitten and it is a bit crazy, and of course we are having to have lots of vets visits, for injections, check-ups, special food to sort a diarrhoea problem, he will soon be neutered, so we are certainly feeling the pressure of all these costs and jobs we have to do.

Dont get me wrong, we love the little Teddy and he is certainly lots of fun and it has brought a different perspective to our original settled househould

So I think if everyone can commit to a new kitty then I am sure you will make it work to the best of your ability but you are right to think before you make any decisions.

Do keep us posted !

Off topic, but did your old cat eat the contaminated food?

Hi there,

I understand how you feel with the loss of your Cassie as I had my Suling for 17 years and was devastated at her loss and it took about a year before I could even think about her without crying. She had a younger sibling, Lady, who was 12 years old as the time of Suling's passing. Lady grieved right along with us and after about a year and a lot of soul searching, we decided to adopt two boy kitties who were babies of a feral mother. They are a handful, want our attention 24/7 but we would not give them up for a minute! We have totally fallen in love with them, and Lady has perked up and if not "in love" with them, she is very interested in them and follows them around and they are always trying to get her to play with them. Sometimes she does. So, based on my story, maybe you have a little more information on which to base your decision. Good luck whichever way you choose to go.

Originally Posted by gailuvscats

Off topic, but did your old cat eat the contaminated food?

Click to expand...

No, she was diagnosed with CRF back in November and put on a special Rx diet for it.

Thanks for your input so far, I appreciate the replies!

Hi & welcome back.

That's a tough question, and I don't think there is a "right" or "wrong" answer to it. If you want a wider response, you might try posting your question in the lounge. There are tons of people who frequent that forum, so hopefully you'd get plenty of responses.

I've never had children, so I don't think I'm in too much of a position to answer your question.

Hola y bienvenido a TCS!..
(Translate: Hi and Welcome to TCS!!!... ..)

See you on the forums!

Dear Tia and Family:

Personally, I would opt for a trip to the local shelter, sanctuary, or rescue for an ADULT cat, who would be calmer, housebroken, and still lots of fun. As you may know, a lot of people adopt kittens, especially "purebred" kittens, while adult cats and especially those of mixed "breed" are passed over, and lose their lives in the millions annually for no good reason except that there are not enough loving homes, and too many people do not spay and neuter their cats. So that'd be my decision, anyway -- we love adult cats here, and of course we're gonna champion them! You do mention finances as an issue, though; if you feel unable to adequately provide for another cat, it would be best to wait.