Those Who Have Given Pets as Gifts UPDATE page 4: The cat has come home!

[C.Ann]

J ust wanted to make mention of something.. DD's MIL had a male cat - not "people friendly" - as you have said about the roommates cat.. When I had to move out of my house towards the end of my DH's life, I could not take my cat with me to my DD's because she already had 2 cats and a dog.. So - her IL's were kind enough to adopt my cat - also a male.. (Both cats were neutered..) Well - from day one, MIL's cat starting pooing all over the house, many, many times a day - not because of anything physical - it was pure jealousy.. On the rugs; on their bed; on the sofa; on the kitchen floor; in the laundry baskets; etc.. This went on daily until my cat passed away 5 years later.. As soon as he was gone, her cat returned to using his kitty litter box on a regular basis and has never pooed anywhere in the house again..

You might want to consider the "jealousy" factor if another cat is brought into the apartment..

Good luck with your decision..

 

[chyam]

Could you possibly give him a certificate from the shelter? Ask the shelter about this, then put the certificate in a new litter pan and some other cat accessories in a box for under the tree.
I personally would want to pick out my own cat, after all the kitten you pick out may like you but it may not like him! And I also would like to be able to pick out the sex and the coloring of "my" cat.
Also with the kitten certificate you could possibly give him a gift certificate for say Petsmart or another Pet place.
A lot of shelters will not even allow adoption of pets that are for gifts.

 

[chyam]

On another note...most cats accept a kitten into the home, it's when you try to introduce an adult and another adult to one another that "sometimes' you will have problems. I have never had an issue with bringing a kitten into my home with my adults...and I have 4 males, non of which spray or do anything horrible like some have mentioned. I also find the males to be much more affectionate then my female. But then again cats choose the people they love.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

The roommate's roommate (apartment he just moved out of) had a cat and this one tolerated it fine.

I took the advice on this thread. I brought Aaron the starter set (box, mat, food dishes) that I bought and told him it was for his Christmas gift. We discussed it, and we are going as soon as they open on Wednesday to pick out his new cat! We're both very excited and now I'll know that it's one he'll hopefully get along with.

 

[Planogirl]

I've often brought adult cats into households with other cats and while all cats are different the established cats seem to handle the newcomer well if you lavish the old-timers with attention. Oh, they hiss and fuss but eventually everyone seems to get along just fine. But maybe we've just been lucky.

 

[monkey68]

The roommate's roommate (apartment he just moved out of) had a cat and this one tolerated it fine.

I took the advice on this thread. I brought Aaron the starter set (box, mat, food dishes) that I bought and told him it was for his Christmas gift. We discussed it, and we are going as soon as they open on Wednesday to pick out his new cat! We're both very excited and now I'll know that it's one he'll hopefully get along with.

I came into this thread late, but I think that's a great idea. This way, he gets the fun of picking out his own pet, you get to be there to see it, and the cat will get to choose him

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Well...We picked up our new friend today! His apartment manager said it could not be a kitten and had to be declawed. I'm not a fan of declawing, I think it's cruel, but we were able to find a cat that was already declawed so it worked out.

Captain is a 9 year old white and orange cat. He has been there since July! He is such a friendly cat. As soon as we got back to the apartment, he was wandering around, saying hi to everyone. Aaron was so cute with him too. He was talking baby talk to the cat, reassuring him on the car ride, etc. I will post a pic as soon as I have one.

 

[DMRick]

I'm so glad you were able to find one alredy declawed. Was the apartment a furnished apartment and that's why the landlord was worried? Is it his furniture?

Congrats on rescuing a older cat..they are the hardest to adopt out, once they are over the age of 6. That was so kind of you guys!

Well...We picked up our new friend today! His apartment manager said it could not be a kitten and had to be declawed. I'm not a fan of declawing, I think it's cruel, but we were able to find a cat that was already declawed so it worked out.

Captain is a 9 year old white and orange cat. He has been there since July! He is such a friendly cat. As soon as we got back to the apartment, he was wandering around, saying hi to everyone. Aaron was so cute with him too. He was talking baby talk to the cat, reassuring him on the car ride, etc. I will post a pic as soon as I have one.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I'm so glad you were able to find one alredy declawed. Was the apartment a furnished apartment and that's why the landlord was worried? Is it his furniture?

Congrats on rescuing a older cat..they are the hardest to adopt out, once they are over the age of 6. That was so kind of you guys!

No, it's not furnished. But they are very nice. I guess kittens are too destructive and I guess they don't want the carpet/walls clawed? It worked out well for everyone involved!

 

[mum4jenn]

I don't think most vets declaw cats older than kitten stage so its a good thing you found this one. We have an orange an white male cat and he is so sweet.

 

[Scurvy]

That's wonderful! It's a shame that the landlord is encouraging the declawing of cats like that - it's really quite inhumane. (And almost always completely unnecessary.) But Captain is so lucky to have found you and your boyfriend. It's always so nice to see an older cat get another chance at finding a loving home. Kittens are so cute, so they tend to get adopted fast. But adult cats who get adopted can be the very best pets of all - it's like they realize how lucky they are to have found a home.

 

[samshane]

How awesome of you for adopting an older cat! I wish you the best with him - We have always adopted older animals (I hate the baby stage - I remember being outside with our dog as a puppy at 2am - not for me anymore).

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I'm trying to upload the photos from my Blackberry onto Facebook so I can post them, but no joy. It keeps acting like it's uploading, but then when I go to the album they're not there.

 

[taximomfor4]

Well...We picked up our new friend today! His apartment manager said it could not be a kitten and had to be declawed. I'm not a fan of declawing, I think it's cruel, but we were able to find a cat that was already declawed so it worked out.

Captain is a 9 year old white and orange cat. He has been there since July! He is such a friendly cat. As soon as we got back to the apartment, he was wandering around, saying hi to everyone. Aaron was so cute with him too. He was talking baby talk to the cat, reassuring him on the car ride, etc. I will post a pic as soon as I have one.

OMG, Bless you for saving a grown, mature cat. Around here, their chances of adoption are NOT good. I hope he's a wonderful companion for Aaron!

 

[monkey68]

Congratulations on the new addition! I wouldn't declaw a cat either, but if it's already declawed, there isn't much you can do besides give him a nice home!

 

[pixiewings71]

YAY! I'm so glad it worked out for you all!

 

[simba928]

Well...We picked up our new friend today! His apartment manager said it could not be a kitten and had to be declawed. I'm not a fan of declawing, I think it's cruel, but we were able to find a cat that was already declawed so it worked out.

Captain is a 9 year old white and orange cat. He has been there since July! He is such a friendly cat. As soon as we got back to the apartment, he was wandering around, saying hi to everyone. Aaron was so cute with him too. He was talking baby talk to the cat, reassuring him on the car ride, etc. I will post a pic as soon as I have one.

Congratulations!!! That is so awesome that you adopted a 9 year old cat. It seems like once kittens are bigger than the little 8 week old ball of fuzz they wait MUCH longer to be adopted. Can't wait to see pics if you can get it to work!!!

 

[WDSearcher]

Well...We picked up our new friend today! His apartment manager said it could not be a kitten and had to be declawed. I'm not a fan of declawing, I think it's cruel, but we were able to find a cat that was already declawed so it worked out.

Captain is a 9 year old white and orange cat. He has been there since July! He is such a friendly cat. As soon as we got back to the apartment, he was wandering around, saying hi to everyone. Aaron was so cute with him too. He was talking baby talk to the cat, reassuring him on the car ride, etc. I will post a pic as soon as I have one.

Hurray to you and Aaron for adopting a 9-year-old cat! Cats that old are seldom sought after (hence the fact that he had been there since July) and are the hardest to place. Kudos to you for giving that cat a forever home.