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Kitten from Santa

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  • 15-11-2011 10:28pm
    #1
    April1969
    Registered Users Posts: 3 ✭


    Hi, my daughter is looking for a kitten for xmas. Would anyone know what's the best place to get one in the Sligo area.
    Many thanks.


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    #2
    PaulieBoy
    Registered Users Posts: 534 ✭✭✭PaulieBoy


    Must be plenty of toy shops in your area, where you can get a kitten complete with batteries. At least when she gets bored with it won't mind languishing in a corner as she moves on to all the other toys.
    Kittens are not play things for children. I thought we had grown up in this country. Clearly not!!


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    #3
    mymo
    Registered Users Posts: 3,553 ✭✭✭mymo


    You won't find many kittens at this time of year, let alone christmas.
    Animals at christmas are never a good idea anyway.

    The kitten season (yes there is one) starts in the spring, females come into season around march or april and kittens start arriving around may onwards.

    How old is your daughter?
    If you really want a kitten as a family could you get her a toy one and all the bits needed and tell her its practice, she has to feed it, brush it and play with it and when the warm weather comes and the kittens are born you can get one? Tell her you can go and pick one then


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    #4
    MaryK666
    Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭MaryK666


    First of all, before you get the deluge of replies advising you against getting a pet for christmas, make sure you and your daughter know what you're letting yourself in for.

    Kittens are small and cute and cuddly and make adorable pets.

    But -
    they cry and eat and puke and get ill and tear up things in your house and have dodgy tummies and need vet care and vaccinations and don't like being left alone when they're babies.

    They grow up into big cats who can, if not properly looked after, spray your house, scratch your furniture and get ill regularly, especially if they're allowed to roam.

    I have four cats who I adore and who are my little family so I know how much work and expense they can be but I also know how much love they can provide and how wonderful they are to have around.

    Your daughter needs to know what's involved in getting and raising a kitten, especially if she's young (your daughter, that is - not the kitten).
    How to hold them so she doesn't hurt them, how to look after them, feed and groom them and make sure that they're vaccinated, neutered, fed properly and not left to their own devices.

    If you've both done your homework and looked into all that's involved, including potential cost, then the best option is to look to local rescue groups who will probably have kittens available to adopt at this time of the year and who will be able to give you all the right advice before adopting.

    Too many pets are adopted at christmas, only to find themselves out in the cold once the novelty has worn off so people tend to be wary of families looking to adopt at this time.
    If you have done all your preparation and really want to go ahead with adopting a kitten for your daughter, I'm sure you'll find plenty of little bundles of joy available in your area.


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    #5
    April1969
    Registered Users Posts: 3 ✭April1969


    It has taken me a very long time to post my question as I was afraid of these sort of judgemental responses. My daughter is 11 she is not looking for a toy but for a companion. Our cat passed away recently. We had him 7 years together with our best friend 13 year old black labrador. We also have a turtle and a fish and they are doing very well in case you are worried. Santa brought the turtle about 5 years ago.
    As for your comments, you have just reminded me why animals are far more superior to humans.


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    #6
    zuroph
    Registered Users Posts: 11,097 ✭✭✭✭zuroph


    April1969 wrote: »
    As for your comments, you have just reminded me why animals are far more superior to humans.

    Believe you and me, if cats could type, they'd be internet warriors too. :p


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    #7
    anniehoo
    Registered Users Posts: 6,596 ✭✭✭anniehoo


    OP, have you thought about this decision and really feel you and your daughter are up for this mega commitment....and i mean MEGA! I watched a beautiful pussycat put to sleep last week who was 23 years old. 23!!!:eek: Even i was impressed. Why not look at a rescue in your area such as sligoanimalrescue Their website isnt great unfortunately and as mentioned kitten season is over.

    You are going to get the "pets arent for christmas" argument and to be honest, is very valid and should be listened to if you havent done your research. A Wii,Hello Kitty toy or "adopt an Dublin Zoo animal" is a much better present for your daugher unless you can tell us why this is the best decision for you both.

    Does this sound patronising? Yep, im sure it does. But, this forum isnt here to mollycoddle and coo over adorable puppies and kittens (well we do sometimes :D).We're here to give sound practical advice for your pets if you show you're responsible.

    Unfortunately with such a low post count and with no more information you wont get very helpful responses here bar "dont do it"! If you can come back and let us know what you think we'll all be a lot more helpful to ya ;)


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    #8
    TooManyDogs
    Registered Users Posts: 1,634 ✭✭✭TooManyDogs


    Getting new animals for christmas isn't a good idea for many reasons, including the holidays make it very hard for an animal to settle into a new home because of the lack of routine, people are simply really busy and flaky at christmas!
    I get the impression from your post that the new cat will be a new family cat rather than your daughter's pet specifically?

    Why not give your daughter the accessories with a note to say that you will go looking for a kitten in the New Year?


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    #9
    Cherry Blossom
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Regional North West Moderators Posts: 6,928 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cherry Blossom


    Mod Hat - OP for the most part you have been offered realistic, factual and good advice, if you are offended by a specific post, report it. Making abusive sweeping statements against the general community of people who post in the forum is not tolerated.

    You have been told that there are no kittens at this time of year - this is a fact. If you want a young cat that has been assessed for suitability to living with a child I suggest you contact your local rescues, if you approach them looking for a present from Santa however, you can guarantee it will be a short phone call. What on earth is wrong with getting all the bits and pieces and and involving your child in the process of getting the cat after Christmas. How do plan to determine if they will get on or not if they aren't given the opportunity to meet so suitability of the right animal can be assessed properly?


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    #10
    mymo
    Registered Users Posts: 3,553 ✭✭✭mymo


    April1969, I assumed your daughter was younger, at 11 she is old enough to understand that there is a good time of year to find a kitten.

    I would also suggest looking at animal rescues, we went to Ash in wicklow about 2 1/2 years ago looking for a rescue cat, we found a lovely, house trained, used to dogs and cats and kids (I have all three), neutered, young (about 2 we think) friendly cat.
    He had been handed as he had a touch of cat flu and his owners wouldn't bring him to the vet as "they had lots of other animals and it was too expensive"
    I will never regret getting Toby, he's mad in a good way, lively, fun and sooo affectionate.
    Would you consider a young adult cat? There are loads around the country in rescues, some will be under or around six months by now and will be neutered and vacc'd and ready to go.


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    #11
    lorebringer
    Registered Users Posts: 1,712 ✭✭✭lorebringer


    April1969 - your best bet to do the whole Christmas present thing is to bring your daughter to a rescue to pick out her own new pet maybe a week before or after Christmas day. There will be loads of older kittens (maybe 5/6 months old) and adult cats available that will be healthy, vaccinated etc. and she will have some input into picking her pet. You could even drop in, have a look and a think about it and come back a little later to pick up the cat. Quite a few rescues will test cats out with dogs to see if they are ok with them and they can give you an idea what the cats temperament is like so you will know before you bring your new pet home!


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    #12
    anniehoo
    Registered Users Posts: 6,596 ✭✭✭anniehoo


    April1969 wrote: »
    It has taken me a very long time to post my question as I was afraid of these sort of judgemental responses. My daughter is 11 she is not looking for a toy but for a companion..
    April, please dont be put off ok. We are genuinely here to help and if you'd posted the extra bit of info above (about having pet experience) we'd be gladly helping you out...and will, but a first post of "wanting a pet for christmas" is not going to go down too well. :o

    Searching for Cat Rescues in Connacht comes up with a good few, including Sligos one so give them a buzz. You may surprise yourself and fall in love with a "teenage" kitty (>5mths) ;)


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    #13
    Discodog
    Registered Users Posts: 15,822 ✭✭✭✭Discodog


    April - you can hardly blame posters for replying to the words on a page. We are not clairvoyant. As an animal lover you & your daughter must be aware of the huge problems with rescues being full of unwanted Christmas presents. I am sure that your daughter would want to help a kitten that desperately needs a home & she wouldn't be too worried when it arrived.

    Try a few local Vets. My own Vet has had a succession of rescue kittens.


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    #14
    zuroph
    Registered Users Posts: 11,097 ✭✭✭✭zuroph


    April1969 wrote: »
    It has taken me a very long time to post my question as I was afraid of these sort of judgemental responses. My daughter is 11 she is not looking for a toy but for a companion. Our cat passed away recently. We had him 7 years together with our best friend 13 year old black labrador. We also have a turtle and a fish and they are doing very well in case you are worried. Santa brought the turtle about 5 years ago.
    As for your comments, you have just reminded me why animals are far more superior to humans.

    all that said, if you were worried about judgemental responses, you could have said all this in the first post.


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    #15
    Tranceypoo
    Registered Users Posts: 1,531 ✭✭✭Tranceypoo


    April1969 wrote: »
    It has taken me a very long time to post my question as I was afraid of these sort of judgemental responses. My daughter is 11 she is not looking for a toy but for a companion. Our cat passed away recently. We had him 7 years together with our best friend 13 year old black labrador. We also have a turtle and a fish and they are doing very well in case you are worried. Santa brought the turtle about 5 years ago.
    As for your comments, you have just reminded me why animals are far more superior to humans.


    Maybe if you'd put all this information in your original post you wouldn't have gotten such 'judgemental responses', your original post was very short 'my daughter wants a kitten for xmas, where can I get one', what resonse did you expect?


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    #16
    PaulieBoy
    Registered Users Posts: 534 ✭✭✭PaulieBoy


    April1969 wrote: »
    It has taken me a very long time to post my question as I was afraid of these sort of judgemental responses.
    So you knew in advance that you would get "judgemental responses", and took a long time to post, but when you did you posted with a post exactly designed to get the response you expected... I am even more dubious now!


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    #17
    portgirl123
    Registered Users Posts: 657 ✭✭✭portgirl123


    i was looking on face book today and i have seen lots of rescues and vets saying that they cant believe that there is so many kittens still coming in. one said this time of yr they usually wouldnt see any tiny kittens but sadly this yr there still coming at a alarming rate.
    so maybe if your are serious about getting a kitten it might be better now to looking into getting one before the madness of xmas starts. i think myself that bringing a pup/kitten into a house hold at xmas must be very upsetting for the pet. i would rather see them going either before or after so that the pet can settle better


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    #18
    planetX
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,441 ✭✭✭planetX


    check with your local rescues - most have been inundated this year. Summer kittens are about 5 months old now, and are still babyish and great fun. You can probably find one that's been neutered already - that plus vaccinations will save you around 130 euro:)


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    #19
    who the fug
    Registered Users Posts: 4,041 ✭✭✭who the fug


    zuroph wrote: »
    Believe you and me, if cats could type, they'd be internet warriors too. :p


    A cat would never lower itself to type, they would get their slave to do that


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    #20
    tk123
    Registered Users Posts: 14,020 ✭✭✭✭tk123


    I would hold off until the new year - for the simple reason that kittens and christmas trees don't mix! Out cat was around 6-7 months at xmas the year we got him - he climbed up the tree and wrecked it, batted ornaments off it and bit them, ate tinsel, got wrapped up in the lights one morning and had to be rescused - and he hissed at us when we were freeing him from the wires the cheeky fecker lol!! :D You could always give her a present of toys, a bed, cat tree etc or even a special visit to the pet shop to pick things for the kitten and get it in the new year?


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