Cats...

[Matt Meiser]

We (my daughter) got a cat. The original plan was for it to be an outside/garage cat. He came from next door where they have a few outside cats to take care of mice in the horse barn. Since he's still tiny he was in our garage over the weekend, but we had a contractor here to finish a flooring job so I put him out in my shop. He's litter trained (seems to be doing good) and I'm toying with the idea of letting him live in my shop. Pros, I do get mice over the winter which he'd probably take care of. Shop stays heated all winter (42 when I'm not using it.) Drawbacks? Besides maybe not getting the attention he'd get in the garage where she at least goes 2x a day on the way out and the way home?

Plan C, if he really is litter trained, would be to let him live in the basement, which is where her "hangout" is so she'd be down there a fair bit but I'm not ready to go there yet.

[Peter Kelly]

If you haven't already, get him spayed and de-clawed asap.

[Jerome Stanek]

If he is an outdoor cat then don't have him declawed as that is his defense from predators and that way he can hunt.

[John Coloccia]

I don't declaw my indoor cats either. I don't see why you would automatically do that "asap".

[David Weaver]

Yeah, no declaw. Do the spay, though. Spay or spray (as in the cat will pee on stuff if it's a male), your choice. That'd be my only drawback in the shop, the cat may spray stuff to mark it or poop in places where you don't want him to.

I know when I was a kid and we were on relatives' farms, you never just shoved your hand straight into the sawdust/bedding pile. The cats kind of ruined the fun for us there.

[Belinda Barfield]

Matt,

So far I've rescued six cats, working on taming #7. Two live at home with me. I wouldn't recommend spaying "him". I would recommend neutering him as soon as the vet says he's old enough. My male cat at home was neutered at about six months, if I recall correctly, and he has never sprayed. Three of the other rescues are our shop/office cats at work. Rescue #6 has been a challenge. He was abused whereever he was before he came to me. He is somewhere between 5 and 8 years old. He was neutered last year but continues to spray. At this point I don't think he'll ever stop spraying, so I'm working with him, taking him out two to three times a day and encouraging him when he sprays outside. He's starting to get the idea that outside is "good", inside is "bad". He is very eager to please.

While he is a kitten please keep him somewhere that he can interact with someone on a fairly frequent basis and become accostomed to regular household noises and the movement of people - unless you want to rarely see him and have a reclusive cat. PLEASE don't declaw him. If he is already litter trained give him a shot at the basement until he is a little older. Two drawbacks to shop cats . . . they really like to help out, and they like to sharpen claws on wood.

[Jerry Thompson]

Pete;
Hims aren't "spayed.''

[Lee Schierer]

Matt, we have had several cats that lived in the house. They can easily be trained not to claw furniture, but give them a scratching post for their claws. We've never had one de-clawed and don't regret that choice. Our current cat is strictly an indoor cat as our previous cat was an indoor/outdoor cat (he had his own door) killed too many songbirds. Cats that go outdoors are more likely to have health issues and are more prone to be killed by cars or predators. Our current cat plays with the dog and easily puts the dog (50#) in his place if he plays too rough.

[Ted Calver]

Cats bond with people and if it's your daughter's cat and she hangs out in the basement, that's where kitty should live. Then your daughter can help with scooping the litter and feeding and watering. Pets are a good way to teach kids responsibility...or you can just give up and take care of them yourself like we always did.

[Curt Harms]

If you haven't already, get him spayed and de-clawed asap.

I'm hearing that declawing can cause litterbox and other behavioral issues. There is a procedure where the claws are not removed (kinda like cutting all your fingers off at the first knuckle I'm told) but instead sever the tendons that extend the claws. I don't know if that procedure alleviates the behavior issues or not.

[Greg Peterson]

I would rather not have a cat than have a declawed cat. I know there are vets that still perform this procedure, but informed cat owners are not likely request this service.

Cats can be aloof at times, but they are also very social creatures. If they are around people they are almost always looking for a warm lap, especially when it's cool enough to us humans to wear a sweater.

[Curt Harms]

Cats bond with people and if it's your daughter's cat and she hangs out in the basement, that's where kitty should live. Then your daughter can help with scooping the litter and feeding and watering. Pets are a good way to teach kids responsibility...or you can just give up and take care of them yourself like we always did.

Boy, do they ever! We have a female Maine Coon rescue. She's dad's girl. She 'knows' her property boundaries, has a very good idea when her 45 minute outdoor no-leash walks are up, knows what "okay, let's go in" means and will make her way to the front door like a well trained dog. I'd never have believed it if I didn't see it first hand. And as Belinda says, they do 'like to help' even if if the quality of help is of 2 year old child caliber. And don't leave small hard-to-replace parts laying around.

[Matt Meiser]

I've never been a cat person. But this thing is cute. I worry about him being out in the winter. Even the garage drops below freezing and I worry about him getting hurt or worse climbing under one of the vehicles for warmth.

We were going to let her get a cat last summer but the neighbors' litter was gone by the time we decided. Then we tried to adopt from a rescue organization which ended in a major fail when we said it was going to be outside. Then we decided to adopt a second dog, which also was a major fail as he was a breed we couldn't deal with (which we didn't really understand what he was at the time) with major behavioral issues we couldn't deal with so he ended up going back. Partly we are spoiled because the first dog is just such a good boy. So when the neighbors offered again there wasn't much option to decline and it happened kind of fast.

[Belinda Barfield]

I've never been a cat person. But this thing is cute. I worry about him being out in the winter. Even the garage drops below freezing and I worry about him getting hurt or worse climbing under one of the vehicles for warmth.

We were going to let her get a cat last summer but the neighbors' litter was gone by the time we decided. Then we tried to adopt from a rescue organization which ended in a major fail when we said it was going to be outside. Then we decided to adopt a second dog, which also was a major fail as he was a breed we couldn't deal with (which we didn't really understand what he was at the time) with major behavioral issues we couldn't deal with so he ended up going back. Partly we are spoiled because the first dog is just such a good boy. So when the neighbors offered again there wasn't much option to decline and it happened kind of fast.

I was never a cat person either, until my first rescue. He started as a feral kitten from a stray that we had started feeding at the shop. He went missing one winter day and I finally found him curled up in the corner of an old plastic sign that was on the ground. He was unresponsive. I took him into my office and put him in a box with a towel. After a couple of hours he roused up enough to eat a little bit then went right back to sleep. I took him to the vet at 2 or so that afternoon and he spent 3 days at the vet's with pneumonia. I picked him up on a Friday, thinking I would take him back and let him live in the shop but no, the cosmos had other plans. He had to have antibiotics every two hours and had to stay inside. So, I became a cat owner. He is the snuggliest thing ever. He sleeps with me and every morning gets a 5 minute massage before we get out of bed. I would worry about him being out in the cold. On my FB page he is the black cat in the "Flower Child" photo album.

I think if you give this kitten a chance he'll grow on you (pun intended). I can't stress enough that he does need to bond to a family member and have play time every day.

Pics?

[Mike Henderson]

If you haven't already, get him spayed and de-clawed asap.

Do not declaw. Especially if he's an outdoor cat. But even if he's an indoor cat, don't do it except as a very last resort.

Mike