I might get a cat

[DaveSimmons]

Outdoor cats often don't live that long compared to indoor-only. Growing up I thought the natural lifespan of a cat was around 5 years,

Get a cat for companionship not mousing. Some hunt anything smaller than themselves, some flee from little bugs (aka "the scaredy cats").

Siamese can be high-strung so you might be better off with a tabby / tiger stripe cat. Don't try for a purebred, they might be inbred cats rejected as "defective" by their scummy kitty mill breeders or someone who bought from them.

 

[MrSquished]

Definitely get the cat litter box with the cover. That will save you some mess.

That, a food dish and a water dish, some cat toys, treats and a cat hair brush is all you need. Some sort of flea/tick killer if your cat goes outside like Frontline.

A laser pointer is a nice interactive toy to get. All cats go nuts for that shit. And it will amuse you at the same time. Try to play with your cat sometimes. Whether it's a laser pointer or some sort of cat toy on a fishing pole. It's good for the cat, and bonding time for you two.

Oh and my favorite litter of all time is Fresh Step. Costco has it.

 

[Carson Dyle]

Try to play with your cat sometimes. Whether it's a laser pointer or some sort of cat toy on a fishing pole. It's good for the cat, and bonding time for you two.

You think the cat is thinking to itself "This is so awesome. He's paying attention to me. Just like it was meant to be. I love these times we have together"? Nah, the cat is only thinking: "I'm gonna catch that fucking thing and eat it."

 

[MrSquished]

You think the cat is thinking to itself "This is so awesome. He's paying attention to me. Just like it was meant to be. I love these times we have together"? Nah, the cat is only thinking: "I'm gonna catch that fucking thing and eat it."

It's possible. Some cats are very affectionate. My last cat would come to the door to greet me every. single. time. that I got home. Whether I was gone for an hour or for 8 hours. Always running there when he heard the door open.

Not all cats are created equal.

 

[Carson Dyle]

What happened to esquared's post? -- poof --

Growing up, we never trimmed our cats' nails. Admittedly, our sofas and upholstered chairs and carpeting showed it. If your cat won't let you trim their nails, how does the vet do it? Does he sedate them?

 

[esquared]

Ha ha

What happened to esquared's post? -- poof --

Growing up, we never trimmed our cats' nails. Admittedly, our sofas and upholstered chairs and carpeting showed it. If your cat won't let you trim their nails, how does the vet do it? Does he sedate them?

Changed my mind.
I will say that cat's nails need to be trimmed at least a couple times a year. My past cat allowed me to do so. My current cats I got from the shelter will not allow me.
So I take them to the vet.

They don't sedate the cats for nail cutting. It just takes two people to do the job. One to hold the cat firmly and securely while the other one cuts the nails.
I bring them in and they're back to me in 15-20 minutes.

 

[MrSquished]

What happened to esquared's post? -- poof --

Growing up, we never trimmed our cats' nails. Admittedly, our sofas and upholstered chairs and carpeting showed it. If your cat won't let you trim their nails, how does the vet do it? Does he sedate them?

I've trimmed cats nails before. I'd never declaw them, it's too cruel. My last cat would let me trim his nails for at least 2 paws before he started to protest. And I could finish the last two no problem if I persisted.

 

[pcgeek11]

If you get a cat to get rid of mice you have the wrong idea. Unless you don't feed the cat and force it to hunt for food. Then you have the remains of the mice to deal with. If you feed the cat normal amounts of food they will not hunt, but they will be chill.

 

[mikeymikec]

Allergy test your family with the cat first; you wouldn't want the cat to be allergic to any of them.

 

[Red Squirrel]

My cat is declawed, as she used to be very destructive, and dangerous, she'd jump up and climb on your leg etc. There is no way she would let anyone try to trim them either. That said I don't think I would get a cat declawed again, I would either deal with the claws or just keep trying harder to trim them. Maybe do one at a time in their sleep or something.

In some situations declawing might be more humane than the alternative though. Ex: cat attacks a visitor, visitor sues, and cat has to be put down.

 

[lxskllr]

I'll always have at least one cat. I have two now. My girl makes a good hunting partner. Between the two of us, we can catch mice. She points them out and keeps them corralled, then I catch them and take them for a long walk. The boy sucks at hunting. They're both a pita, but good company.

I think my girl might be diabetic. I need to get a tester, then if she is, figure out what I'm gonna do about it. Anyone know anything about that? I feed her food with cornmeal. I wonder if grain free food would help?

 

[Craig234]

http://www.acehardware.com/product/..._clickid=67cc5844-973a-42e1-bd7c-889e7571b164

 

[pcgeek11]

I'll always have at least one cat. I have two now. My girl makes a good hunting partner. Between the two of us, we can catch mice. She points them out and keeps them corralled, then I catch them and take them for a long walk. The boy sucks at hunting. They're both a pita, but good company.

I think my girl might be diabetic. I need to get a tester, then if she is, figure out what I'm gonna do about it. Anyone know anything about that? I feed her food with cornmeal. I wonder if grain free food would help?

I had a dog that was diabetic. It sucked giving her insulin shots twice a day.

 

[lxskllr]

I had a dog that was diabetic. It sucked giving her insulin shots twice a day.

See, I'd like to avoid that. My cat's worship me, and if my girl runs in fear because she doesn't want to get ear pricks/shots, she won't have any kind of life to speak of. I guess I need to see where her sugar's at, and figure it out from there.

 

[IronWing]

We had one diabetic cat which got one insulin shot every day. It wasn't too bad but he didn't mind being handled. We've had other cats we had to give sub-dermal fluids. That's a bigger challenge as the cat has to be pinned down for several minutes while the IV is attached.

 

[Linflas]

I'll always have at least one cat. I have two now. My girl makes a good hunting partner. Between the two of us, we can catch mice. She points them out and keeps them corralled, then I catch them and take them for a long walk. The boy sucks at hunting. They're both a pita, but good company.

I think my girl might be diabetic. I need to get a tester, then if she is, figure out what I'm gonna do about it. Anyone know anything about that? I feed her food with cornmeal. I wonder if grain free food would help?

We had a diabetic cat and he really didn't notice when we gave him the shots, we used to do it while he was eating. This was some years ago so things may have changed now but back then we didn't have to test him, the goal was to find the proper amount of insulin give him on a daily basis.

 

[Ryland]

Some cats will chase mice. One of our cats is our ourdoor mouse/squirrel/bird/rabbit'er and her daughter was our indoor mouser. Cats dont look at mice as food but as playthings that go splat and leave nice red streaks so if you do get a cat that likes going after mice make sure you are close enough to take its "toy" away from it or else you will be cleaning blood up from everywhere. You have been warned

Make sure to take your daughter with you when going to the shelter and have HER spend time with the cat. You need to see how it acts near little kids and how she acts near cats. At four she might not realize that tails arent handles, cats cant be ridden, etc. An older cat might be better if you can find one with a good attitude but it might not go after mice...

 

[Pandora's Box]

I'd suggest going to the shelter by yourself and find a cat you like. Then come back with your daughter. That way you can introduce yourself to the cat and then once the cat knows you, bring your daughter. Also avoids any issues if you decide to not get a cat after visiting the shelter (disappointing daugher)

 

[clamum]

It's possible. Some cats are very affectionate. My last cat would come to the door to greet me every. single. time. that I got home. Whether I was gone for an hour or for 8 hours. Always running there when he heard the door open.

Not all cats are created equal.

Yeah I think the breed makes a difference. I have a Ringtail cat and man he's a social guy. Sometimes he'll be scratchin at the door when I'm unlocking it after a longer day at work, and then proceed to do his famous "rear up" maneuver where he jumps up on his hind legs and brushes against me if I put my hand down. LOL it's so funny/cute. He also always sleeps next to me up on the bed at night and if I lay down on the futon to take a nap it's a matter of seconds before he jumps up and cuddles next to me.

KITTY

Loaf mode engage (I call it his "loaf mode" cause he looks like a loaf of bread lol)

 

[RLGL]

Not all cats will catch mice. Over the years I have had two that could care less about mice.
Try cleaning up the food source and get the entry points closed up

 

[dave_the_nerd]

It's possible. Some cats are very affectionate. My last cat would come to the door to greet me every. single. time. that I got home. Whether I was gone for an hour or for 8 hours. Always running there when he heard the door open.

Not all cats are created equal.

When we lived alone, my cat would do that. I'd come home, she knew my car's exhaust sound - I'd see her pop her head into the kitchen window as soon as I closed the car door, and then she'd be at the door 30 seconds later making squeaking noises.

We moved in with my housemate and two other cats, and she didn't take to them well. She spends most of her time in my bedroom now, hiding under the bed. But if I sit down at my computer, she climbs up on my shoulders and tries very hard to squeeze her entire body under my chin. (It was her preferred sleeping position when she was a kitten - she doesn't fit so good anymore.)

 

[Tormac]

Some of my best friends have been strays that I have adopted. Good luck with your cat.

 

[louis redfoot]

there are 4-5 cats that come through my backyard regularly, i just leave some food out. blue buffalo salmon, the good stuff

 

[lxskllr]

We had one diabetic cat which got one insulin shot every day. It wasn't too bad but he didn't mind being handled. We've had other cats we had to give sub-dermal fluids. That's a bigger challenge as the cat has to be pinned down for several minutes while the IV is attached.

We had a diabetic cat and he really didn't notice when we gave him the shots, we used to do it while he was eating. This was some years ago so things may have changed now but back then we didn't have to test him, the goal was to find the proper amount of insulin give him on a daily basis.

That's encouraging. I still need to find out what's up with her(she pees a lot). If her sugar isn't high, I'll definitely have to go to the vet, cause anything else is outside my field of experience.

 

[IronWing]

That's encouraging. I still need to find out what's up with her(she pees a lot). If her sugar isn't high, I'll definitely have to go to the vet, cause anything else is outside my field of experience.

Thyroid problems are common in cats and are treatable.