Newbie Needs Help

[McHaggis]

 
Hey there
I really hope you find a new kitty soon  - Fig was a beauty 
I have lost cats in the past but the most devastating was a young cat called Eddie who my daughter found dead in the woods near our home when he was only a year old ( we suspect he was poisoned). We had his sister so our home wasn't without a cat at least. I REALLY hope you find the perfect cat soon 

Gillian  & Haggis x

[charley24]

Thanks so much for the replies, thought I would update as I have a thread in rehoming also.

We are off tomorrow to a local cat rescue near to our home, where we hope there will be some little paws for us (or big ones) !!!! We have decided to go for an older kitten/cat so that we know the temprement and also we know how much these lovely fur babies are overlooked, big thanks to the posters on my other thread for their advice which has heped steer us this way !

The lady who runs the centre has some cats in mind so fingers crossed we will be a family with a new addition very soon.

Thanks also for the comments about Figs, named after Pinocchio's cat of course - Mind you, you should have heard some of the suggestions when were naming him ! Hehe I got my way tho, however he didn't often get his full name and many a night was spent shouting 'Figs' or Figgy up the street !

[Sam (Fussy_Furball)]

  to Purrs,

So sorry to hear the sad news about Figaro.  As Ruth suggested the best place to begin your search is CatChat ... you can click on the map of the UK and find all the resuces local to you.  I'm sure you will have no problem finding a suitable friend for your daughter .... Kitten season is upon us and most resuces will be inundated with little ones very soon.

this little lad sounds lovely .... and only about 45 mins away from you  http://www.catchat.org/aristocat/cgibin/prview.cgi?id=2010050402

[SparkleCat]

So very sorry to hear of your loss.   

Figaro will send you a perfect puss very soon, I am sure!!

Love the name "Figaro"!!   

Much love,
Sparklecat and Tulip
xxxx

[Tiggy's Mum]

Hi Charley and  to Purrs

Sorry to hear about Figaro, you can tell from your post how just much he is loved and missed 

I hope you manage to find the perfect cat/kitten for your family. If you are worried about the temperament of the kitten then it might be best to get a slightly older kitten, say 6 months onwards, the rescue centre will know their personalities and whether they are a cuddly cat.

We can't ever replace Figs, but I would like to think that there are some little paws out there that would love a 10 year old girl to stroke him or her for hours each night and if inclined, listen to Harry Potter being read !

Which ever cat/kitten you choose, they will be very lucky 

[charley24]

Hi ill thanks for your post, I am near Sunderland, so very far away from Coventry unfortunately!
Daughter hs said she would love a tabby ! I used to have a ginger tabby many years ago, a right ginger ball of fluff ! She likes the darker ones, she wants to name 'Tiger' she says !

Not sure how common these are as most kittens I see are black and white !

I am planning to call local centres this week, see if they have any kittens or if they have any kittens in the future that may be suitable !

Thanks x

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

  to Purrs and very sorry to hear of the loss of Figaro 

What area are you in, cos wondering if you are close to any of our rescues?

If you happened to be near Coventry,  the Cov Cat Group have some kittens that will be looking for homes in the next few weeks.

We have other rescues registered on here in various parts of the country and think most have kittens coming up for homing soon.

I so hope you find the right one and you have been given very good advice from the others.

[charley24]

Thank you so much Stuart, you are so right, at least he died right next to home and we were able to bury him, instead of being in limbo waiting for him to come home.

The funny thing is, he never usually went onto the road, he loved the back garden, he loved being outside, even in the rain he would chase frogs in the garden, we never set out for him to be an 'outdoor' cat, but he would mew at the door, from that day he went outside he wanted to play with his kitty friends and sleep all day !!! I shudder to think what he used to get up to, but mind he used to come home so dirty and loved nothing more than his paws on my bedlinen !!!
Ah wish I could see those little marks again and I wouldn't complain !

Thank you for the welcome and sorry to see you have lost 2 of your lovely fur-babies x

[Stuart]

Sorry, I don't have any advice to give you

Just wanted to say, My heart goes out to you and I'm so sorry to read about Beautiful Figaro 
It's one of the worst ways to lose a Furbabe to the road, at least your neighbour was kind enough
to knock on your door and let you know you might have never had closure otherwise 

RIP Figaro, taken away too soon 
Play hard at the Bridge wee Man

My two were indoor babes as the road outside was too busy to let them out 

Anyway.........  to Purr's I'm sure you'll get loads of advice once more member's come on today 
it reall is a great place for help and advice concerning all things Cat 

[charley24]

Thank you for the warm welcome Kittybabe

I will check catchat and of course I am happy to have a home check and hopefully they can find the right kitten for our family, I do not mind waiting, if my daughter knows the wheels are in motion for her to think that a special little someone is being chosen just for us !

I really appreciate your advice as I don't feel comfortable buying online because I don't like that people sell kitten at 4/6 weeks and surely even I, who doesn't know all there is to know recognises that this is too young and I worry for those kittens !!!! 

I will look at the sites and then perhaps make some calls next week and see if there is a little someone out there for us, thank you so much x

[Kittybabe (Ruth)]

Charley, first of all to Purrs.

Secondly, I'm very sorry for your loss. Clearly Figaro was much loved and a member of your family. He was truly beautiful.

As regards your query,I can't advise strongly enough against purchasing a cat or any animal online, certainly not from free ads as you might be purchasing a cat from a back street breeder. There are untold horrors encountered with these.

What I would advise is to search rescues direct or via www.catchat.org. Donations are generally accepted and a reputable rescue will want to conduct a home check first and try to match you with the right cat. No rescue would let a kitten go to a new home until it is old enough to cope without mum which is usually around 12 weeks. There are exceptional circumstances to these but they are rare. Certainly the kittens will have had their first vaccinations as well.

What I would say is that you might have to wait for the right cat, however, there are so many needing a good home and many who want to give nothing more than love and cuddles. There are older cats who are just ready to find a lap to cuddle on.

You will find a good number of rescue members here who will also be able to give further guidance on how to help temperaments that might be a bit aggressive. Often more aggressive cats could have underlying problems, and other times it could just be plain boredom. Either way, we're here to help so wish you the very best of luck in your search.

[charley24]

Hello, I am Charley, aged 35 from Tyne and Wear, married with 2 girls aged 10 and 6.  I have been reading the forum and thought I would join

We lost out wonderful Figaro in March, the day before his first birthday to a road traffic accident, to say we were devastated would put it mildly.  Never did I think I could love a little ball of fluff so much.  And never have I felt such anger at the driver when we have a 20mph speed limit imposed on our street.  I just hope that it was quick......I got a knock on the door and neighbour had found him and he was gone   My husband cried digging his grave, he was his alpha male.  His cards went unopened and instead on his birthday we buried him with notes and pictures in our garden, where we have planted a lovely tree in his memory.

However my daughter aged 10 has taken the news very very badly.  She is a wonderful little girl but is so sensitive and suffers from anxiety.  Figaro was her wonderful companion and her little shadow, he helped so much when she was bullied and her knew all her little secrets, she would read to him each night and play with him for hours.

We got Figaro from a friend and he was 14 weeks old at the time, he had lived around his mother and siblings as well as dogs and children, when he walked into our home it was his home and he was so relaxed and happy, always purring and constantly getting spoilt.  We never had any scratching or biting, just licks and love!

I am trying to purchase a kitten online, or from a cat shelter but cannot find a suitable cat, we would ideally like a cat who is good natured and has spent lots of time with Mum so that we know he has learnt to be a good kitty but also learnt to be around children etc. 

Does anyone know where I can find such a kitten ?  The kittens I see are either 6 weeks old, which I thought was too young, or they are older and state points like 'allergic', 'other cat doesn't take to him/her' etc and I wonder whether these cats are safe to buy as sometimes online not everyone is honest !

I am wary of getting a cat that isn't friendly as I have had a bad experience with a 6 week old kitten I purchased years ago which was taken from it's mother too young and was very aggressive, to the point that he bit the vet and was seen by a behaviourist who basically said his parent
could have been Ferrel as he was not play fighting, he was actually trying to attack and showed no mercy ! I had to re home him as I was actually scared of his attacks, the bigger he got, the more he would bite and he wouldn't let me bond with him at all.  Luckily a friend had a kitten also and offered to take him and he was very happy with a playmate, he never did stop biting however my friend has no children so she could manage him , I think he and I weren't suited despite the usual tricks trying to calm his behaviour!  Now obviously I have children the biting issue is a worry, although of course I appreciate kittens do like to play and sometimes feet are their favourite toys !!!!!

Can anyone advise how I can find another little friendly pet, who will love to be stroked and can help my daughter ?   I know she would love a new little companion, but after what she has been thru I want to make sure he is the best choice for our family.  We can't ever replace Figs, but I would like to think that there are some little paws out there that would love a 10 year old girl to stroke him or her for hours each night and if inclined, listen to Harry Potter being read !

I am not sure what I should be looking for in an ad, or whether I shouldn't buy online at all so I would appreciate some advice, we are hoping to have a new kitten soon so that I can see my daughter smile again, it's been a tough couple of monthsand because she does have some issues, she is still crying each night as she misses him, I have discussed a new kitten with her and she is happy to have a new kitten as long as he doesn't look like Figs at all, but because of my experience above I can't take the risk of bringing a pet into our home who may not be the right fit and being in a position of having to rehome like years ago, I suppose I am just wanting a little help in trying to find a suitable kitten and trying my best to know what I should be looking for? What age range should I look for, what should I look for in an advert, or should I not 'buy' at all and go for the adoption route?  I worry about the adverts, I wonder why these people haven't had their cat 'done'?  Figaro had all his injections, was done and we had insurance for him, as any responsible pet owner would have.  I would hate to think people are only doing this for financial reasons, but then understand charging because good people need to know the person who buys can afford the proper care.

Sorry I seem to have written so much, I just miss him so very much and I long to try and help my daughter have a new friend, not to replace Figs (which would be impossible), but to give a new set of paws a little home with lots of love and care.

Thank you so much, i look forward to getting to know you better, have attached a pic of our gorgeous boy !