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I am looking for a kitten to give to my wife as a present for christmas. She has been begging me for years to get one, and we are finally in a situation in life (buying a home) where I am not afraid of ending up in a home that wouldn't accept cats. I had cats when I was a kid, as did my wife, we have plenty of expierience there.

I would like to find a short-haired cat with a decent temperment, but I know nothing about the different types. Any suggestions on what I should be looking for?

Skeeter

Hi Skeeter - we love Siamese.
Our current Siamese is a female seal point - she is just beautiful.
Siamese are quite vocal - they like "talking" and when upset about something can make a LOT of noise. They make you work for their affection but you're well rewarded.
Siamese like spending time with you and like sleeping on/in your bed. Our Siamese always sits with me and comes looking for me if I leave the room while she's asleep.
One of the reasons I love the breed is the range of emotions they display - they are very human in lots of ways. The breed is also, very intelligent.
Our current Siamese is our third - our first was very in-bred and died at 2 years of age.
We did lots of research and our second cat was stronger and died at 10 - our current Siamese is 7 and going strong - she is the strongest of our three Siamese - she came from an excellent breeder, very particular about his cats.
We hope our female seal point is around for a long time to come. We allow her to wander and sleep in the garden on nice days.
We have had both sexes and don't have a preference - all of our cats have been desexed.
We also, like Abyssinian cats - incredibly affectionate and very hardy - they are ferocious hunters so not a good idea if you live near a bird sanctuary. The Aby has a dense coat, not really short hair.
My parents had Burmese for years - again, beautiful, loving cats.
I'd check out some websites and read up about the breeds - even visit a breeder or two and look at their cats - most are welcoming.
It's very important to buy a pedigree kitten from a breeder with a solid reputation.
Good Luck - I always say you can buy a house BUT put a cat in it and you have a home!

Siamese are beautiful and friendly cats (for adults - not so great with kids, but I'm pretty sure Skeeter is CF)

But, with that being said, I am always a fan of shelter kitties. For one thing "mutts" (be it dogs or cats) are usually more hardy, because not having the selective breeding keeps the genetic diseases down. But also, there are just so many little sweeties out there that need good homes.

Two of our three cats came from the shelter, the other just kind if wandered up to out house and wouldn't leave, LOL!

But my last kitty, Trouble, definitely chose me. I was walking straight past her cage, going to look at a sweet little black w/ white paws, when all of a sudden this little paw reached out of a cage and grabbed me! I looked down, and she was just staring at me meowing away , until I started petting her - then she became a purr machine (she's always reminded me of the Tribbles from Star Trek). When I finally detangled myself and walked wodn to where hubby was, she pitched a fit - it was just like listening to a baby crying. The volunteer got her out of the cage for us and she snuggled right up in my arms and went to sleep.

The funny thing was, when we tried to adopt her, we were told she was not suitable for adoption, because she had tried to claw the guy's hand off that caught her, and was extremely "unfriendly".

I'm sitting there with this curled up puffball, purring away in my arms, and go "This is unfriendly?" Of course when they tried to take her away from me she pitched a holy fit! Since my in-laws volunteer at the shelter, and it was pretty obvious this cat wanted us, they let the adoption go through, although we had to sign a waiver. {roll eyes}

She now weighs 20 pounds 5 years later!

Anyway, it always seems like at the shelter, the cat will pick you. You don't have to worry about whether you get one that is the right temperment - as long as you don't get you heart set on a particular "look".

I'm right there with you, Michelle.

Our current cat chose us. She was a half-grown, starving, stray that a few different neighbors were putting out a little food for, but after a couple of weeks, she was going to other porches less and less... then she figured out how to break into our apartment! At that point, we knew she was ours.

I grew up with "mutt" cats, and had planned to eventually get a shelter cat, but I wanted a cat with pretty markings. The cat who chose me is silky and cute, but her markings are only pretty in places. And she's dark. I usually find lighter colored cats more to my liking. Overall, she's an attractive animal, but her markings are dark and a little odd, so she doesn't LOOK like the cat I would have chosen. I suppose love actually is kind of blind. She hung around and made me love her for reasons beyond her exterior appearance and now I forget that I never would have chosen her based on looks. It's been a while since I've even thought about that.

My point, skeeter, is that Michelle is right. The cat you should have will find you, even if he or she isn't what you had in mind. The best pet in the world is the one who choses to live with you.


Description of markings, if you're curious: She's a gray and black tabby, but one of our household jokes is that her markings were painted on and the painter made pretty stripes on her extremities and then got lazy. The stripes blur on her sides and there are odd patches of a rusty tan mixed in. The middle of her belly is striped, but the rest of it is a blend of tan and cream. Her face is kind of tabby, but her chin and mouth are starkly white (the only true white on her) with black skin barely visible beneath, there's a tiny rust patch above one eye, and her eyes are ringed in a light tan.

I agree Siamese are not good with little children - they don't like being pulled about and hassled - however, I know Skeeter is CF.
We have always paired our Siamese with a "deathrow cat" - I have always felt sad that so many cats are abandoned and unwanted - thousands are put to sleep every year. My sister is a vet and often knows of gorgeous moggies looking for homes. We often say she needs more relatives and friends for her adoption program.
We have also, found that the tabby usually doesn't tolerate the "princess" behaviour of the Siamese so keeps her grounded and our moggy is more vocal, it seems in an attempt to compete with our Siamese - so we think it's a great combination.
Our moggy was an adult cat - he was unlikely to find a new home -the people at the shelter were overjoyed when we adopted him.
Needless to say, he has totally forgotten his humble beginnings!
Good luck in your search Skeeter.

Thankyou so much ladies, I will deffinently take this information to heart when looking.


Skeeter

Deborah,

Your entire description of how your cats get along is so funny! Cats have such strong personalities, and it is really amusing to watch them interact sometimes.

It's interesting that they don't have a lot to do with each other at home - they live happily together at a distance with the occasional wrestling session. They have different routines - the tabby likes patrolling the garden and walking along the fenceline, climbing trees and sleeping on the warm brick path while the Siamese prefers to be indoors (most of the time anyway) sleeping on the window seat or on the bed - she'll take a stroll in the garden if the weather is just right...
If however, a neighbourhood cat decides to hassle the Siamese - the tabby appears from nowhere and positions himself in front of her - the other cat backs off quickly - our tabby looks formidable with the dark stripes on his face and his solid build.
We've noticed that she's becoming quite brazen with the neighbourhood bullies - screaming at them like she intends to tear them to pieces but only with the sure and certain knowledge that her bodyguard is not far away.
We're also, told by the cattery people, that when our cats are in residence, they sleep together on the same blanket - I suppose reassuring each other in our absence.
So, we think they have a real brother/sister type relationship.

Reading those posts made me smile. I have always loved cats, and many people (not cat people of course) think I am crazy with my descriptions of the furry members of my family. They all have distinct personalities, especially at different ages. We have a shelter rescue at this time, and he is an adolescent....hilarious to watch, still unsure and finding his way. My cats have always been like my children, although, I now have 3 non-furry children along with 4 cats and 1 big dog.
I have NEVER had a specific breed, but have always gone with the cat who has chosen me. Except this last round we have 3 emergency rescues (2 were destined to be 'put down' b/c their 85year old owner passed away) and one shelter kitty. The other a friends cat.
I never heard them called Moggy's before, and I have to say I love it. I truly think I would choose a 'Moggy' over a specific breed any day when given a choice! Thanks for the smiles!

Skeeter, did you get a kitten yet?