Where to buy a kitten?

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pollyanna24
pollyanna24 Posts: 4,370 Forumite
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in Pets & pet care
Might seem like a silly question, but do I just on the net to find one?

I want a kitten rather than a cat as it is for my 9 year old daughter and she wants to start from the beginning rather than getting a rescue (which is fair enough - if it was just for me, I would just go to a cats home).

I don't particularly want a pedigree as the prices seem extortionate, so a mixed one would be okay.
Pink Sproglettes born 2008 and 2010
Mortgages (End 2017) - £180,235.03
(End 2021) - £131,215.25 DID IT!!!
(End 2022) - Target £116,213.81
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  • NeilCr
    NeilCr Posts: 4,430 Forumite
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    Our local rescue has kittens. Quite a lot of them sometimes as they get mothers and babies together.
  • pollyanna24
    pollyanna24 Posts: 4,370 Forumite
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    NeilCr wrote: »
    Our local rescue has kittens. Quite a lot of them sometimes as they get mothers and babies together.

    I've looked up the local rescues and they don't seem to have any. But thanks. That's where I got one of my dogs and my last cat from.

    Do you think it is worth contacting them to find out if they have any pregnant cats as I am not planning on getting a kitten right away?
    Pink Sproglettes born 2008 and 2010
    Mortgages (End 2017) - £180,235.03
    (End 2021) - £131,215.25 DID IT!!!
    (End 2022) - Target £116,213.81
  • NeilCr
    NeilCr Posts: 4,430 Forumite
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    pollyanna24 wrote: »
    I've looked up the local rescues and they don't seem to have any. But thanks. That's where I got one of my dogs and my last cat from.

    Do you think it is worth contacting them to find out if they have any pregnant cats as I am not planning on getting a kitten right away?

    I would and register an interest. They may well get some come in, too, in the intervening period.
  • Mojisola
    Mojisola Posts: 35,557 Forumite
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    pollyanna24 wrote: »
    I want a kitten rather than a cat as it is for my 9 year old daughter and she wants to start from the beginning rather than getting a rescue (which is fair enough - if it was just for me, I would just go to a cats home).
    pollyanna24 wrote: »
    Do you think it is worth contacting them to find out if they have any pregnant cats as I am not planning on getting a kitten right away?

    Contact them and register an interest and, in the meantime, take your daughter to visit the rehoming centre a few times. You never know, she may fall in love with one of the adult cats.
  • Rubik
    Rubik Posts: 315 Forumite
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    Kittens are cute, but require a LOT of work and time and attention. Will someone be at home all day for the first few months with the kitten? If not, it is not fair to leave what is essentially a baby/toddler at home alone for hours on end.

    Rescue centres are full of unwanted young cats, left there because the owner didn't realise the time a kitten needed, or because they stop being quite so cute after about 6 months. Our own cat was a Christmas kitten - bought as a present for two young children who quickly lost interest in her, and by the 3rd of Jan, she was dumped at a rescue centre. She was about 7 months old when we adopted her (after being in the centre for 4 long months).

    Why not take your daughter to your local cat home on an adoption day - she may well just meet her perfect companion who is in need of a loving home and a doting human.
  • GwylimT
    GwylimT Posts: 6,530 Forumite
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    Rescue, a !!!8216;crossbreed!!!8217; would mean you were supporting back yard breeding.
  • Silvertabby
    Silvertabby Posts: 9,023 Forumite
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    edited 20 April 2018 at 5:31PM
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    If you really want a kitten, then look for a 'homes wanted' notice in your vet's surgery or pet shop.

    However, bear in mind that a kitten left to its own devices all day will get into mischief!
  • Red-Squirrel_2
    Red-Squirrel_2 Posts: 4,341 Forumite
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    Definitely rescue, there's no shortage of kittens needing homes you might just have to wait a little while.
  • DD265
    DD265 Posts: 2,202 Forumite
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    A lot of the mother cats taken in by rescues are little more than kittens themselves. Cats do seem to take a long time to 'grow up'. I was watching one of ours (almost 2) going mental over a bit of cardboard earlier today. :D

    Our boys were 15 weeks when we adopted them from a rescue, because they'd had a hard start in life so it took a little longer for them to be ready for rehoming. I think the norm is about 12 weeks - this allows time for weaning, spaying/neutering etc.

    Depending on where you are, some rescues (such as Yorkshire Cat Rescue, where our boys came from) will rehome all over the country. They've partnered up with Battersea (I think) because there's a 'shortage' of cats down south but way too many needing homes up here. You'd just have to drive up/down/across.
  • boots_babe
    boots_babe Posts: 3,234 Forumite
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    We've just confirmed adoption of a rescue kitten - can't wait until she arrives with us in a month's time!

    Like you, we looked around lots of rescue centres and could see no kittens. We did finally find one, but on speaking to some of the rescues they were saying the kitten season only really starts around now, and then runs to around September.

    So that's why you're struggling to find any. Why don't you contact a couple of local rescues and register your interest, that way as soon as some kittens are brought in they will contact you. There are enough homeless animals in the world, without encouraging breeders to breed more :-)
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