New furbabe for home with young kids, advice please

[Millys Mum]

An adult cat is a good idea, as Ela says a 9week old kitten can be lovely but at 6 months be a horror!

Also every time I have kittens it reminds me why I don’t want one to keep.

Totally agree!

[Catjane]

The good thing with getting a cat as opposed to a kitten is that the rescue may well know whether or not the cat is ok with children - you can't tell with kittens.  These people sound like they'll do fine

[ccmacey]

My cats are fine with my son and vice versa, I would say it depends on the cats personality but they can come round to liking each other. These people sound like they know what they are doing 

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

Kocka only had to hear a child and she would run and hide 

[COSMIC CREEPERS]

i would say a kitten deffo

i have moomin mango and luna and i have a 4 yr old and a 2 yr old

i got moomin when anna was 2 and phoebe just born then mango when anna was 2 and half and phoebe 6 month then luna anna aged 4 and phoebe aged 2

the children have been brought up with the cats and vice verse i think becasue we got as kittens all of them , they are kind of bomb proof they have to be used to the noise more than anything
and they always sleep on the girls beds and they always go to them for a nice play , phoebe loves throwing the ping pong ball on the stairs everymorn for mango

i wouldnt have it anyother way than having them from a kitten but then again it depends on the reserch the rescue does

[Rosella moggy]

All I know is that, whenever kids have come to our house over the years (not often), every cat we've had has done a runner within seconds of the kid's arrival.  Even Gandolf, who was very dominant in the cat world, headed for the proverbial hills like a shot. I thought perhaps a young cat say 12 to 18 months would be more lively and therefore more able to cope with kids. I hear what you say though about choosing a cat that has already lived with children which of course makes sense.

[Ela]

I think it depends entirely on the parent’s attitude and the behaviour of the children.

Some rescues will not home kittens  while there are children under 5. A child doesn’t suddenly change when it becomes 5, so in my opinion it is a stupid rule. I would think most rescues have cats that have lived with children and of course fosters soon get to know the temperaments of a cat and their suitability to a certain type of home. You can adopt the sweetest kitten on earth that will purr and sit on your hand but by the time it is a few months old its temperament forms and it can turn out to be the ‘they who must be obeyed’ type. So sometime I think a cat is more suitable to certain situations than a kitten. Also every time I have kittens it reminds me why I don’t want one to keep.

[Rosella moggy]

Not sure how serious she is but neighbour thinking of giving a cat a home as one of her 4 year old twins wants a cat (for some reason he doesn't want a kitten!). She has 3 boys aged about 10, 4 and 4. She is a teacher, he a headmaster. They are responsible people with 3 boys with lovely manners. She has had a cat when she lived at home. I suggested a rescue cat but I'm just thinking that an older kitten/young cat would be more appropriate than an older cat that may have more problems and be more wary of kids. I don't have any kids so wonder what others think?