Are Men With Cats Considered Odd? Tips for Living Alone with a Feline Companion

  • Thread starter FlexGunship
  • Start date
In summary, Flex is considering getting a cat, but is worried about the judgment he will receive living alone with one. He thinks that a slightly older cat from a shelter or from someone on Craigslist would be a better option.
  • #71
Hunter is handsome. Tulip is small and probably won't eat much, plus she is FREE. Her adoption fee is covered. As for the names, you can change them easily. A cat won't care much what you call it, especially when you are opening a can of food.
 
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  • #72
Wow, it's very tough to say...I mean, they all deserve a chance at a good life! But that Hunter, he looks very sweet and affectionate.
 
  • #73
turbo said:
Hunter is handsome. Tulip is small and probably won't eat much, plus she is FREE. Her adoption fee is covered. As for the names, you can change them easily. A cat won't care much what you call it, especially when you are opening a can of food.

I saw that she was free. The adoption fee is only $90 there, so money is not a concern. In fact, I suspect that I will donate a bit to help them subsidize the cost of another cat's adoption; if I adopt a free cat, I'll just leave them a bit more.

lisab said:
Wow, it's very tough to say...I mean, they all deserve a chance at a good life! But that Hunter, he looks very sweet and affectionate.

I talked to them a bit more today, Hunter has one black mark on his permanent record. Someone reached into his cage and he nipped them... pretty hard, actually. They're not sure if the person scared him, or if he just hates being in the cage. There has been no repeat incident, and he is very social out in the open.

I have a housekeeper and friends that come over, not to mention my brother has Asperger's and he loves animals once he's used to them, but is unlikely to be able to read the cat's willingness to be held.

EDIT: I also considered Sam (14yo) and Sassy (7yo). They came from the same home and are friends. There is a problem though, Sam probably won't last as long as Sassy, and Sassy is not as personable as Sam. I don't want to have a favorite. All the drama...

Next time on All my Cats:"Meow?" "What?" "Meow meow!" "Fine! You're right! I wish it had been you on the vet's table! There, are you happy? I said it! I'm awful!"
 
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  • #74
FlexGunship said:
[STRIKE]Hubble - http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/21088276[/STRIKE]
Hunter - http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20927676
[STRIKE]Kit-Kat - http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/21038725[/STRIKE]
Tulip - http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20989181

An update. Kit-Kat is out, I think. I can't provide her a place to go outside. I have a patio and a small area of grass before the woods, but I hear fisher cats out there and some people let their dogs run around (the dogs are fine, and the owners are usually responsible about cleaning up). I don't think Kit-Kat would get a chance to play outside much at all.
 
  • #75
FlexGunship said:
I saw that she was free. The adoption fee is only $90 there, so money is not a concern. In fact, I suspect that I will donate a bit to help them subsidize the cost of another cat's adoption; if I adopt a free cat, I'll just leave them a bit more.
That's nice. We paid $150 to adopt Duke, but we had been donating food, cleaning supplies, treats 'way before we adopted him, as well as after. My wife hits a lot of "bargain" stores on weekends, so when she sees deals on huge packs of paper towels, detergents, cleaning supplies, she often thinks of the shelter. It's better than giving them money, because they don't have to waste employee time shopping and pay retail. We have several large stores (and a couple of regional chains) in the area that buy overstocks, manufacturers' overruns, salvage from insurance claims, bank-owned inventory from defaults and bankruptcies, etc. Some of the deals are pretty amazing.

If you have any stores like this in your area, you might want to call the shelter and ask if they have any important recurring needs, and then go shopping with list in hand. If you can get a deal on a case of Lysol or similar, jumbo jugs of laundry detergent, a case or two of paper towels, or some other supplies, they would probably be thrilled with your donation. The ASPCA shelter here tends to get lots of food and treats when the discount stores feature them, but cleaning supplies/disinfectants are also really important and can be expensive.

Whichever cat you choose, good luck. It's nice of you to be concerned with your brother (in Hunter's case) though cats tend to be drawn to people who don't look directly at them. They take it as an invitation to get closer. Who knows? Hunter might adopt your brother.
 
  • #76
Oh my science! Did any of you folks know that you can basically buy a clubhouse for cats?! It's like a tree-house with platforms and little rooms and it's all carpeted!

I was thinking I would have to build something since cats seem to like to be high up and I wanted to avoid TV and speaker climbing... but they make products like this that look freakin' awesome!

Look at this thing: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003BYQ150/?tag=pfamazon01-20

31MoxVFmSqL._SL500_AA300_.jpg


It has a hammock! A feline-hammock. A feemmock! Just got to replace the carpeting with something black.
 
  • #77
The suspense is killing us Flex, when are you going to announce your selection ?

Rhody...
 
  • #78
rhody said:
The suspense is killing us Flex, when are you going to announce your selection ?

Rhody...

Well, I have to actually get to the shelter which is X miles away. I will travel at an average speed to Y miles per hour. Now factor Z hours for meeting each cat, making a selection, and finishing any and all paper work.

I must find (2X/Y)+Z hours between 11AM and 4PM on any day except for Wednesday (when the shelter is closed).
 
  • #79
FlexGunship said:
Well, I have to actually get to the shelter which is X miles away. I will travel at an average speed to Y miles per hour. Now factor Z hours for meeting each cat, making a selection, and finishing any and all paper work.

I must find (2X/Y)+Z hours between 11AM and 4PM on any day except for Wednesday (when the shelter is closed).

ACK ! I feel like am dealing with Pengy now (take that as a complement please).

And the winner is: Hunter, Tulip, Hunter, Tulip... Let's see... I am going with Hunter... do I win a prize if I am right ?

Rhody... o:)
 
  • #80
rhody said:
ACK ! I feel like am dealing with Pengy now (take that as a complement please).

And the winner is: Hunter, Tulip, Hunter, Tulip... Let's see... I am going with Hunter... do I win a prize if I am right ?

Rhody... o:)

X = 56 miles
Y < 60mph
Z = ?

Sorry, no prize planned... but I'll let you know. I'm going to adopt whomever can sit in my arms the longest without running away or clawing my ugly mug.
 
  • #81
FlexGunship said:
Sorry, no prize planned... but I'll let you know. I'm going to adopt whomever can sit in my arms the longest without running away or clawing my ugly mug.

:biggrin: Good Luck. I know you will make a wise decision.

Rhody...
 
  • #82
FlexGunship said:
Oh my science! Did any of you folks know that you can basically buy a clubhouse for cats?! It's like a tree-house with platforms and little rooms and it's all carpeted!

I was thinking I would have to build something since cats seem to like to be high up and I wanted to avoid TV and speaker climbing... but they make products like this that look freakin' awesome!

Look at this thing: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003BYQ150/?tag=pfamazon01-20

...

It has a hammock! A feline-hammock. A feemmock! Just got to replace the carpeting with something black.

$100?!

You could probably build one for half that price with very little effort. I do agree that it's pretty cool. It can also serve as a scratching post.
 
  • #83
Dembadon said:
$100?!

You could probably build one for half that price with very little effort. I do agree that it's pretty cool. It can also serve as a scratching post.

Well, that's the thing. I could definitely build one for less, but covering it in carpet and wrapping the posts in rope is costly and time consuming.

Besides, I don't have a garage to work in, and it's cold out now. I'll pay someone $100 for something that would cost me $50 and take up 4 or 5 hours in the cold (probably longer, honestly).
 
  • #84
FlexGunship said:
Well, that's the thing. I could definitely build one for less, but covering it in carpet and wrapping the posts in rope is costly and time consuming.

Besides, I don't have a garage to work in, and it's cold out now. I'll pay someone $100 for something that would cost me $50 and take up 4 or 5 hours in the cold (probably longer, honestly).

Good point.

I don't think the carpet would be too bad; just a staple gun and a utility knife, but I agree, your time is certainly valuable enough to pay someone else.
 
  • #85
Home-made is good IF you have the time and some space to work in. When I had a parrot, I went out back in the woods and cut down a dead, barkless tree, brought it home and leveled and fastened it to a plywood base. It had lots of branches that I trimmed to fit the room, and I installed dowels as a spiral staircase so that she could climb the tree to the branches so that she could get to the perch where I had installed a food-dish. She LOVED dried chili peppers!

When we had ferrets, I made playgrounds for them, too. One of our ferrets was a rescue, and the owner demanded that I pay $50 for the large multi-level cage. I paid the jerk and turned that huge cage into a playground for all our ferrets. One of their favorites was a ferret tube-hammock that I made out of a cut-off pant-leg from old jeans. At times there were two ferrets crammed in there snoozing together. Another favorite was a slide from one level to another, made out of some slippery flexible plastic scavenged from another project.

Ferrets are not destructive with their claws and don't need scratching-posts, but some of my additions included carpet.
 
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  • #86
FlexGunship said:
Well, that's the thing. I could definitely build one for less, but covering it in carpet and wrapping the posts in rope is costly and time consuming.

Besides, I don't have a garage to work in, and it's cold out now. I'll pay someone $100 for something that would cost me $50 and take up 4 or 5 hours in the cold (probably longer, honestly).
It's awesome, get it! I've seen that unit at the store for $150+, so that's a good price.
 
  • #87
Do you really think getting that thing would prevent the kitten from investigating and running around her/his new place? :biggrin:P.S. Did you get the cat?
 
  • #88
drizzle said:
Do you really think getting that thing would prevent the kitten from investigating and running around her/his new place? :biggrin:

P.S. Did you get the cat?

I'm not getting a kitten. Both cats are at least 2 years old. I hope he or she DOES explore. Cats are awesome like that. But when it gets down to it, he or she will want to be atop the highest perch in the room. In my living room the two highest objects are my expensive speakers and my HDTV. Sooo... no thank you; we won't be climbing those.

Rather than deprive the adventurous fellow/gal, I'll get him/her a piece of furniture to call his/her own. I'll leave it near the sliding glass door for entertainment and sunlight.

I'm trying to go tomorrow to look. They have awful hours and they're over an hour away. He or she will need plenty of time to get used to the place, so I've cut out pieces of cardboard to cover my speakers and TV for the first day that I'm away.

I was going to go this Caturday, but there's just so much purr-pressure.
 
  • #89
FlexGunship said:
I'm not getting a kitten. Both cats are at least 2 years old. I hope he or she DOES explore. Cats are awesome like that. But when it gets down to it, he or she will want to be atop the highest perch in the room. In my living room the two highest objects are my expensive speakers and my HDTV. Sooo... no thank you; we won't be climbing those.

Rather than deprive the adventurous fellow/gal, I'll get him/her a piece of furniture to call his/her own. I'll leave it near the sliding glass door for entertainment and sunlight.

I'm trying to go tomorrow to look. They have awful hours and they're over an hour away. He or she will need plenty of time to get used to the place, so I've cut out pieces of cardboard to cover my speakers and TV for the first day that I'm away.

I was going to go this Caturday, but there's just so much purr-pressure.
Cats LOVE shredding cardboard. I used to put a large piece on the floor in the utility room for my cat, it seemed to satisy his need for sharpening his claws. Made a mess though, but that one one happy cat.

You sound like an excellent cat daddy!
 
  • #90
I knew it! :biggrin:

Well, no pressure, you don't have to get a cat if you don't want to.
 
  • #91
Evo said:
Cats LOVE shredding cardboard. I used to put a large piece on the floor in the utility room for my cat, it seemed to satisy his need for sharpening his claws. Made a mess though, but that one one happy cat.

You sound like an excellent cat daddy!

Wait, wait, wait...

So the cardboard might attract attention?

Before:
1055dfk.jpg


After:
ekgw8w.jpg


drizzle said:
I knew it! :biggrin:

Well, no pressure, you don't have to get a cat if you don't want to.

Wait... what did you "knew?"
 
  • #92
FlexGunship said:
Wait, wait, wait...

So the cardboard might attract attention?

Before:
1055dfk.jpg


After:
ekgw8w.jpg
Yeah, but it's just cardboard, so you've done the right thing. Cats just love the feel and sound as the cardboard rips into shreds. Very gratifying.
 
  • #93
Evo said:
Yeah, but it's just cardboard, so you've done the right thing. Cats just love the feel and sound as the cardboard rips into shreds. Very gratifying.

Well, I don't want to associate scratching my speakers with a gratifying experience!
 
  • #94
Flex, please don't turn your speaker columns into scratch-posts. Set some rules and enforce them.
 
  • #95
That you are NOT going to get a cat.
 
  • #96
turbo said:
Flex, please don't turn your speaker columns into scratch-posts. Set some rules and enforce them.

I didn't know cats love scratching cardboard. I just don't know what to do while I'm at work. Drizzle is making me get a cat tomorrow and I have to work Wednesday.

drizzle said:
That you are NOT going to get a cat.

Ugh... well, I'm moving as fast as I can. Cats can live to be 20 years old! That would be a 15+ year commitment. That's longer than most marriages. Would you get married after the first date? That's what I'm trying to do... I just want to make sure I've got it all figured out.
 
  • #97
Just heard that Hunter is on a 10-day hold because he bit again; an employee this time.

I don't know what to think. I'm sure he'd be fine in a nice home, but I don't want to risk it with a cat that has a history. Tulip might be my gal.
 
  • #98
Flex, don't let the pressure get to you, you in part generated the excitement here, we are happy you are giving a loving cat a great home. That being said, don't be surprised when you bring your cat home, that he/she is skittish at first. Mine hid under the bed for a day, then slowly but surely sniffed and explored every inch of our place, mapped it to her kitty brain and after a week was right at home. We tried not to make her feel pressure at first, and let her come to us, putting toys on the floor to play with.

Make sure you introduce her to kitty litter box and watch how he/she uses it. Some cats don't like the litter you choose, and clean it every two days or so. If you let it go too long, the cat won't use it any more and then you will be finding little surprises behind furniture, etc... Once the cat goes there even with a clean litter box, the scent makes them return. I used everything to try to stop it because I made that error only once. Vinegar works the best but your carpet will smell funky. I even put a garbage bag folded with duct tape on the floor where the smell was and that stopped the peeing.

One bit of advice about cat treats, I use hard ones, Pounce, and have found over the years that other brands make her throw them up, so find what works for your cat and stick with it. I am sure you will be posting pictures. Take your time and don't let the excitement pressure you.

Rhody...
 
  • #99
Flex, Hunter is a beautiful guy, but if he is unpredictable with people (even if the physical damage is light), he may not be a good fit with you and your brother. Get a cat that is sweet and accepting of people.

My sister's cats were unpredictable, and clawed and bit me even though at other times we had gotten along well. It might have been "playing" to them, but it was not to me. My favorite cat of all time was a deaf, white, blue-eyed Persian female that stuck to me like velcro. The other cats weren't all that much interested in me, but Midnight wouldn't allow them within a country mile of me in any case. When I'd go to Dave's place for any reason, that deaf cat would meet me at the door and shadow me. If I sat down, she'd be on my lap in a blink! I am not a cat-lover, but that one stole my heart.
 
  • #100
turbo said:
Flex, Hunter is a beautiful guy, but if he is unpredictable with people (even if the physical damage is light), he may not be a good fit with you and your brother. Get a cat that is sweet and accepting of people.

That's what turned me off to him.

turbo said:
My favorite cat of all time was a deaf, white, blue-eyed Persian female that stuck to me like velcro. The other cats weren't all that much interested in me, but Midnight wouldn't allow them within a country mile of me in any case. When I'd go to Dave's place for any reason, that deaf cat would meet me at the door and shadow me. If I sat down, she'd be on my lap in a blink! I am not a cat-lover, but that one stole my heart.

I would love a cat like that. And I've told both shelters I've talked to that a cat with disabilities is welcome.
 
  • #101
rhody said:
Flex, don't let the pressure get to you [some other text] and don't let the excitement pressure you.

Rhody...

I've had cats live with me for short periods of time and I think I'll be okay with the normal stuff, finding the right food, finding appropriate treats, and setting up the litter box.

I'm more worried about advanced behavioral stuff like scratching, sleep habits, and learning to high-five.
 
  • #102
Personally, I see a pet about same level as a partner. I would go for a healthiest, sweet, and beautiful and well bred pet and favor some private place over animal shelters.

You should also look for other places beyond animal shelters too.

I hope you find an amazing cat!
 
  • #103
rootX said:
Personally, I see a pet about same level as a partner. I would go for a healthiest, sweet, and beautiful and well bred pet and favor some private place over animal shelters.

You should also look for other places beyond animal shelters too.

I hope you find an amazing cat!
Some of the best pets can be found in shelters, and those most in need of a home. Flex is saving their lives.
 
  • #104
Evo said:
Some of the best pets can be found in shelters, and those most in need of a home. Flex is saving their lives.
Some of those pets have problems, but many can be a perfect fit, even if they have identified problems that can be addressed. Go Flex! Save a good pet!
 
  • #105
Evo said:
Some of the best pets can be found in shelters, and those most in need of a home. Flex is saving their lives.

I wouldn't use "who needs me most" in my criteria list. But then I am not willing to take a role of a savior. I would rather volunteer or contribute financially o:)
 

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