Should I take the cat to work??

I constantly worry about the kitty all day long when I'm at work - about whether she might be lonely / too hot / managed to bake her head in the micowave / scared herself silly about something and 1000 other things - and I've just been told that I can bring her in to work with me and keep her in my office during the day, if I'd like - it's a big office with a secure door.

I'm not sure if this is a fantastic or a crazy idea? She's 2 years olds and I've had her about 8 weeks. She's lovely and affectionate with me / vistors but hates other cats - lots of hissing and hiding from them at the shelter - hence why I'm reluctant to get her some fellow cat company. Although I'm hoping to try kitty company for her once she's a lot more settled. Any thoughts on an ideal partner for her would be great!

I guess the dilema is whether she'd be best left alone all day or whether she might take to commuting (it's a 15 min drive each way)? Or would that be more traumatic and only end up making me feel better? Is it OK for a cat to be alone for typically 10 hours a day? She's quite lethargic in the evenings - will play for about 15 mins before losing interest - just wants to cuddle instead.

If anyone has any thoughts / experience that would be much appreciated!

Thanks

I would NOT take her to work. She might get scared of the new place and run off, not to mention that you'll be more distracted if the kitty is there. If you're that concerned about her, put her in one room with food, litter box, and toys while you're at work. Another idea would be to get another cat for her to play with and so that she won't be lonely.

Stephanie

I think she'll be ok at home. Cats are pretty self-sufficient, and she'll probably just be sleeping all day anyway. If you're really worried about her boredom issues, do what a friend of mine does and leave the television on for her. I put some bird feeders outside the windows for my cats, and they seem to think that's pretty entertaining. You could also get her lots of toys for at home.

Taking her to work is probably a bad idea. The commute might scare her, as would changing environments. You wouldn't be able to concentrate your attention on her, and who knows what she might get into!? She could also find some way of escaping, and get lost.

Give YOURSELF some time to adjust to your new kitty. Eight weeks isn't very long, and you're still feeling anxious about her. Just get used to it

And if you still have a big problem, you can always get her a kitten! My Cheshire Cat had a hard life before he came to live with me, and he has some major issues. I won't bore you with the details, but he had a hard time. I eventually got him his own kitty to play with - Dinah - and a lot of his issues just disappeared! They didn't like each other at first, of course, but then he decided to be her mommy and everything worked out... no more lonely/bored kitties around here

Wow I want a job where I can bring my cat to work! She absolutely LOVES people and wold love to be in a new place and meet new people all the time. I guess it depends on how you think your kitty could handle it. I would think that with you there all the time with her, she would be okay. But you need to consider how she will react to other people, sounds, smells all sorts of things.

Other option would be to get her a friend to keep her company at home.

I'd leave her at home. Most cats like routine and familiarity which she'd get better at home. Would you actually get any work done if you had her at work? I know I wouldn't - I'd be too distracting either playing with her or keeping an eye on her to make sure she's ok. It might be a big office but presumably people come in and out throughout the day? Lots of opportunities for her to escape. And presumably you wouldn't be able to fill the office with toys and scratching posts like you could at home? If you think she's lonely why don't you get her a companion instead?

I like the idea of putting her in one room that you consider relatively safe, with litter box, water, lots of toys and a good bird watching window if possible. Leaving on the TV is also a good idea, there are DVD's for cats that are set to play over and over on their own, they feature all the things kitties love to watch, but regular TV would be good too, at least she'd hear human voices all day. And if she's like most kitties, she's sleeping 9 of those 10 hours when you're worried sick about her anyway

Eventually you probably will want a play mate for her. I wouldn't wait too terribly long, I found that waiting years before adding another cat to the house made things very difficult, if I had it to do all over again, I would have adopted a second cat within a few months of getting the first one. The introduction won't be easy, but if you can keep them in two seperate rooms during unsupervised time, that will help.

Thank you all for the good advice!

I think you're right that a playmate is the best option all round - and I do need to chill out and stop fretting so much - she got really sick just after she came to me and although she's all better now, I got into the habit early on of just worrying and worrying...

So, any thoughts on what I should go for companion-wise? The shelter I got her from told me there was a 1 year old male cat that adored her (fancied her I think!) - and he looks just like her - but she was scared silly at the time, so maybe a kitten would be better so that she was definitely top-cat?

Is there any wisdom on whether cats get on better with other cats that look like them / or look completely different? Or maybe that's a whole other thread!

Thanks again!

I'd get one that's similar in age and temperament. If the shelter still has the male cat and they got along well at the shelter, that might be a good fit.

Stephanie

Originally Posted by stephanietx

I'd get one that's similar in age and temperament. If the shelter still has the male cat and they got along well at the shelter, that might be a good fit.

Stephanie

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Me too. A buddy is best - if you don't believe me, have a look in fur pics forum of my Sláine thread and you'll see.

If you do get him, remember that they'll smell different and will need time to get to know each other again.