midnight shift worker wonders whether a cat

c1atsite

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midnight shift worker wonders whether a cat would
be an appropriate pet for me . 5 nights a week i
leave the apt at 1130 PM. i return home aroud 9 AM...

no other person or animal lives in the apt, just
me ----i was wondering - will the cat be lonely?
cats have been in my family since 1981 and i miss
having one around now that i'm on my own
thanks
alex
 
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c1atsite

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I guess the breed matters too, so I should add that I really want to buy a RagaMuffin because of their easy going personalities

Thanks for your help and feel free to email me directly. Email is listed below
 

safron

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Welcome to the site
!

Maybe you could get two cats who are littermates. Two cats really aren't that much more work. Then the cats would also have one another to keep them company when you are gone. Personally, I don't think that breed matters that much when there are so many homeless cats. This time of year is breeding season so I would recommend checking out your local animal shelter
.

-safron
 

-bunn-

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I agree on the getting of two cats. The woman who lives next door to me is a single woman, she works some of the funniest hours I've known. Sometimes she goes out all night to stay over at the hospice she works for, other times she's out all day. But those cats are so happy together.

There's always pairs of cats at shelters, they are usually from the same home that gave them up, so they will (hopefully) get on. If you cats are going to be in all day make sure they have something to keep them occupied, with two it's not as much of a worry because they'll entertain each other, but one cat would become bored.
 

spooky

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Hi and welcome.
DEFINITELY get 2 cats. They will both be happy and they will keep each other company and entertain themselves for hours. I work the day shift and hubby works the night shift, so together, we don't have as much time as we would like to play with our 2 cats. We adopted them together (bro and sis) and they are really happy. Difinitely look into adopting 2 that are together at your local shelter. I'm sure they will be grateful and give you many kitty purrs.
Let us know what you decide to do.
 
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c1atsite

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thank you for the suggestion. having 2 would be a new experience for me bec we've only ever had one at a time. it's good to know there's a website like this out there for me to ask questions......i'll keep everyone informed.

for those in the USA, happy holiday weekend! make the most of it!
 

mupcat

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Hi c1atsite,

I'm certainly not going against the opinions offered so far. If I've learned nothing else in my many years of single pet ownership it's that I will forever more get 2 of whatever. Don't think of it as double the trouble but rather double the love and more importantly they'll have each other when you're away. I know I wouldn't want to be by myself with no where to go or with nothing to do waiting for my significant other to return. It's the only humane thing to do, if it's at all possible for you to do it.

Good luck and I know what you're going through looking for the breed you want. I'm doing the same thing but what a fun "problem" to have.

Keep us posted and happy hunting.
Barbara "mupcat"
 

tigger

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Hubby and I work 6p - 6a three nights a week one/4 nights a week every other week, and we have 5 cats
You could always get 1 kitty and see how he/she does by itself, and maybe if it seems lonely, get a 2nd!
 
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c1atsite

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I was thinking, well, wondering really, ..... if I'm working from midnight to 8, the cat would be sleeping, no?

Trying to recall the sleeping patterns of previous family cats is not helpful either! - Reason? The cats slept so often... Bedtime seemed to be all the time. However if my memory is intact, I don't remember any nights where they caused a ruckus, so maybe they were sleeping. So who knows -- Comments please! My preference is to have one cat..... two would enervate my financial situation.

Oh, and I wanted to whine a little. That cute cloned cat named CC is going to a family in Texas and they're very excited about her arrival. Lucky them!!! I'm green with envy! -- CC is amazingly cute!!! She's the first cat cloned but I hope she's the last too
 

okeefecl

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I think the whole sleeping issue depends on the cat, and how you "train" them. When I first got Ivo, she would wake me up at all hours of the night to play or to get lovings. Now, she knows that if I get up to go to the bathroom or get a drink in the middle of the night, I'm fair game. Also, she doesn't bother me in the morning until about 10 minutes before I get up (now that I'm no longer a student, I keep a regular schedule). She does play by herself at night, however. My apartment is small, so when she chases her ball around, I can hear it. I guess what I'm trying to say is that her schedule is similar all day long-periods of sleep, followed by periods of eating and bird watching or playing.
 
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c1atsite

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Just a quick note to say thank you for all your feedback and this is a quick update to say that Im still undecided on the issue of 1 or 2 cats (leaning towards 1) but the priority remains to make the apartment cat friendly. It's definitely human friendly after 2 years of tailoring.

i've created a space for the litter box and it's far away from the space for the food/water bowls. i'm going to order a 15-inch softy cat cube with a climb-in hole as his/her house and now for my question...... i am going to get a radiator cover but since those still get hot, can i get a slab of marble and put that on top of the cover to protect the cat? marble always stays cool, is that right?? thanks
 

cheryl

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Marble will heat up if you put in on a radiator. Apparently cats are pretty heat tolerant--I've been learning this on a different thread

I know Cleo will climb on the radiators when they've just warming up or after the steam has shut off but they're not fully cooled down.

As for sleeping--I've been working strange hours the last few months and she's adjusted to what I laughingly call my 'schedule.' I'm taking next week off and then going back to straight days after that--let's see what she does then!
 

jeanie g.

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If you want to be sure your new baby is really happy while you're gone, and cozy at night I also recommend adopting two. They pile up on top of one another and sleep, and groom each other and chase each other in and out of paper bags! They have so much fun that it's obvious even to us human beings! I've never had only one cat. One other thing: My niece lost her first cat two years ago and was inconsolable. She said she would never have only one cat again, because the pain of losing one and then coming home to an empty house was unbearable. That's sad, but makes a lot of sense.
 
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c1atsite

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Ugh, too bad marble gets hot. I'm glad I asked!
What could stay cool then?
 

okeefecl

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When Ivo first adopted me, I was worried about the radiator issue, too. I have one in my bedroom that is always on (the knob is broken) and one in the kitchen. I asked my vet and she said "Cat's are smart, they know well enough to stay off when the radiators are really hot. I have radiators, and none are covered". She was right. The only time Ivo even looks at them is when they hiss.
 
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c1atsite

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alrightie then, as a plus, i dont have to spend on a radiator cover.

again, thanks ... i prefer being overinformed rather than under

i want to share a site with all of you. what i like is that it's got much information and it's not 'just a store'

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/shop.cfm?siteid=1

they sell cat treats, glow balls, igloos, vitamins,
cat furniture, carriers, leashes, flea drops, heated
window perches, etc!
 
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