This lil 9 week old guy adopted us 4 weeks ago. Showed up on our doorstep, crying and scared. He took to us immediately, and because of an impossibly dumb rule I made years ago, he now lives with us permanently. We named him Critter, and according to the vet (and the size of his paws), he's expected to reach the 17-18 lb range. He has become incredibly affectionate, and being my first ever pet (in my late 40s), I can't get over just how much joy he brings us. I'm in love.
I have yet to upload it anywhere, but one of our cameras captured a rather remarkable moment when Critter made his move to join our little family of two.
Anywho, new to the world of cats, and so far it has been the most rewarding and fascinating experience of my recent life. Hope to share more of Critter's future with the community.
I can see why you love him already!
As a new cat owner there are a lot of pitfalls (I've stumbled into plenty in my time). Figure out how he acts normally, and whenever he strays from that normal - go to the vet.
For example: regular advice is if cat seems more withdrawn than normal they are sick - for me cat was more affectionate than normal so didn't realise they were sick,
Another time I was toilet training cats, and the one who got it turned out to be sick, because potty training isn't very normal and hides changes in urine and poop schedules.
And speaking of: if you have outdoor cats, keep them inside for three days now and then to have them go in a litter box just to check that they don't have parasites, bloody stool, pain around peeing, frequent pees etc.
If its an option, always have the insured for the vet, and better safe than sorry. Cats are experts at hiding their pain and injuries until its too late, so any change can be a symptom.
Not to bee a gloomy doomy - my current bastard is nearing 20 years old (with regular vet visits and daily medication no one guesses his actual age). They are for sure the light of your life, and I hope you have a long full life together!
Thanks for all the RL advice! We're a child-free couple (I have an estranged one from a previous nightmare), so we're probably already oversensitive to all of his needs. Being my first pet, and a kitten at that, learning how activeness can escalate from 0-10 immediately has been a experience. Yesterday, he was just chillin' and I was convinced there was something wrong. He reminded me that I was being oversensitive by pouncing on my arm and playfully gnawing the heck out of it.
this is debatable. just avoid banfield clinics if you can and you'll be fine. source: a very famous and well-connected veterinarian told me. you all know his dad.
What is a banfield clinic and why should we avoid them?
Big Venture Capital funded corporation went around buying a bunch of small practices everywhere and creating a network. like there are Banfield clinics in petcos and shit. They are generally the ones pushing insurance (that is so not financially worth it when you read the fine print). They are not good to work for, as a veterinarian, tech, office staff, you name it. They just bleed their patients and employees dry.
That's the short of it but i can ask Dr K next game night he hosts if there's anything i missed