Conference misery::feline

    I would strongly recommend going to a shelter and rescuing 1 or 2
    kitties.  A reliable shelter will have checked the cats for diseases,
    might even have already altered them, also they will have a pretty good
    idea of the cat's personality.
    
    Often cats at a pet shop, if "purebred" come from "kitty mills" similar
    to the puppy mills we've seen on the news from time to time.  If you
    want a purebred, go to a responsible breeder and check out the cattery for
    yourself, otherwise there are so many beautiful cats waiting for a good
    home at your local shelter.
    
    Kittens shouldn't be taken from their mothers before 8 weeks at least. 
    Purebred cats usually aren't sold until they are 4 months old.
    
    Have you read the note in Feline about cats looking for a home?  There
    are lots of cats listed there.  
    
    I hope you will find the special cat(s) for you.
    
    Steffi

     I agree with Steph...if it's a purebred your looking for start by
    talking to some local breeders.   If your happy with just a "mutt"
    kitty there are many wonderful cats waiting for you at shelters.
    
    In either case...you need to ask the breeder/shelter many questions
    regarding health, shots, altering, personality etc.   
    
    Sandy 

    I third the motion of a shelter kitty over a pet store kitty! ;-) And
    also, local breeders for pure bred kitties. That way you can see the
    conditions they were raised in, to check for cleanliness, and how the
    kitties are socialized to people.
    
    There are many wonderful kitties at the shelters right now waiting for
    their special someone to take them home. And two are better then one of
    course! 8-)
    
    Love,
    
     Yonee
                                    

    Count me in!  I would recommend that if you are looking for a "mutt"
    cat, check your nearest shelter.  If you are looking for a purebread
    cat, then I would check for reputable breeder.  I actually got my
    Harley from an add in the paper for Free kittens, but I have been to
    the shelters looking for a playmate for Harley and they are all so
    lovable I wanted to take them all home.  I agree with the last note.  2
    are definately better than one.
    
    Dawn
    

    
    	My experience and knowledge of Pet Stores and kitties is not good.
    	They often take in kitten from someone walking in off the street.
    	They don't verify age, medical history, or anything and often the
    	poor little things are loaded with ear mites and fleas. They just
    	stick them in a small cage in the middle of the store hoping their
    	"cuteness" will sell them fast. I almost bought one once, until
    	I asked for a copy of the medical records (they claimed the kittens
    	had shots) and got quite the run around. I was also at a store once
    	and watched the manager bartering with a "client" over taking in 
    	some kittens!
    
    	The only good side is that they ofetn DO get adopted quickly and
    	the new owners care enough to get the animal checked out by a vet.
    
    	One poor little guy/gal gets real lonely and usually gets into
    	more trouble by themself. I've never regretted having more than
    	one ... and my shelter mutts give even more love (if possible)
    	cause I give them a good home.
    

    Actually, my Furby is from a pet store, but I know for a fact that Big
    Steve's has the kittens checked out at the vet that is right next door,
    and the price of the kitten includes a check up with the vet also. They
    give you a coupon worth (at the time) 19.00 for the officew visit.
    
    I guess I was very lucky with her. I really hadn't intended to pick out
    a kitten that day. I really went in for fish food, but totally fell in
    love with her! She never had any problems stemming from the pet shop.
    
    My daughter had a lot of trouble with her kittren that she got at
    a pet store. He alsmost died from a URI that he came with, and when the
    girls went to ask them to take care of the URI, they just wanted to
    trade the kitten, or give them their money back! She knew they weren;t
    going to care for the kitten, so she made enough of a scene that they
    gave her back her money, AND she kept the kitten. She used the refund
    to pay for the vet visit to cure the URI. He's been fine ever since.
    This pet store was somewhere in Rhode Island, near he college.
    
     So, I guess there's good and bad, but I know the shelter kitties are 
    well taken care of, are test for FELV, have their rabies and distemper
    shots, and are spay/neutered if they are old enough. I guess I'm
    partial to the shelter kitties too, as I know them personally! ;-)
    
    Hope this helps.
    
    Love,
    
     Yonee
     
     

    I think you have to be careful if you're going to buy from a shop.
    Rosie was a shop kitten and I KNOW she was younger than the eight weeks
    he claimed she was. I had to bottle-feed her because she wasn't fully
    weaned, she has never quite got the hang of the litter-tray and she was
    very nervy - I assume because of the noise in the shop as her cage was
    next to a parrot's cage. She was healthy, though. 

I've heard and read several times that the shelters will neuter the cats
"when they are old enough".  What would they consider old enough?  I don't 
like the idea of neutering underdeveloped cats.

Bob

Oh,...and thanks for the previous replies.

Bob

    Bob,
    
     The Framingham Shelter spay/neuters at 6/9 months respectively. If a
    kitten is adopted before this age, it comes with a spay certificate
    from one of our two vets that honor our certificates. This is included
    in the 40.00 cost of the adoption. 
    
     Rabies shots are given at 6 months, and I forget how old they need to
    be for distemper. They are also wormed when they get to the shelter.
    This is more of a precautionary step when we don't know the history of
    the cat.
    
     I believe the Pat Brody Shelter alters their kittens earlier, but I'll
    let Sandy explain their policy, lest I mess it up! ;-)
    
    Yonee

    Not all pet stores are bad.  I got mine at a pet store and he is great,
    but you have to be careful what type of pet store and where they get
    their kitties. Stop by a few times and talk to the owner/manager.
    See how they are around the kitties.   AVOID mall pet stores!!
    
    Down here in Atlanta most pet stores do get their kitties from people
    who just drop them off.  I know of one place in particular where the
    women who owns the place is great.. The vet she uses happens to be
    my vet.  She really loves all those kitties and gets upset that people
    will just leave them at her door step. She also works with feral cats
    and kittens.  I went in there yesterday to get some food and she
    only had 1 kitty.  most of the time she has about a dozen.  The
    place is called Petville.  
    	A neighbor of mine once captured some kittens that were born behind
    her office building. (actually she only managed to get one) and we
    brought it to one of the pet stores so that it could get it's shots
    and then be adopted.  We knew that it would not be put to sleep, and
    would get good medical care and a home.
                                                   

    What a tough choice!!  If you get kitties from a shelter or a pet
    store, you're rescuing them from an uncertain life, or in some cases
    death.  The main differences seem to me, at least in most cases, that
    shelter kitties are better cared for prior to being adopted, and that
    shelters, more often than not, stress responsible pet ownership.  That
    is not a certainty at pet stores.
    
    My wife and I rescued our little Cally from a mall pet store.  When I
    saw that pitiful little face and heard that mournful cry, I knew I
    had to bring her home right then.
    
    I guess my point is that I just can't stand to think of little kitties
    being unwanted or "thrown away".  I can stand it a little more at
    shelters than I can at pet stores.  At least shelter kitties know
    some love and kindness at shelters, even if their lives are cut short.
    I'm not so sure about the pet store kitties.
    
    I want to rescue all the little kitties, but I know that it's not
    possible.  When we rescued Cally, I felt she needed rescuing more
    than the shelter kitties.  It was an agonizing choice.
    
    Carl

So Sandy, where is Petville located?

Bob

    re:.12
    Same with me - Rosie looked so small and frightened in that cage that
    I HAD to take her home.                            

    Petville is in Duluth GA, off of state bridge road/Pleasant Hill
    Rd, right around where it changes names.  It is where it intersects
    with 141/peachtree industrial blvd.
    
    Sandy