Pros and Cons of having cats as pets

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What are the positives and negatives of having a cat for a pet?
I'm thinking of the years ahead when I'll probably be on my own, so the idea of having some animal friends sounds appealing.
Thanks

Cats are pretty independent compared to dogs. They don't need a lot of attention.

The downside is that they may not be as friendly as dogs. They don't follow you around and stick their tongue out.

Depending on the breed you get, you could have the best friend ever or a satanic little demon with a cute face.

Cats are very diverse, and each have their own unique personality. Sometimes it can be considered a pro, sometimes it can be considered a con.

The biggest thing to consider is if you've willing to keep up with a litter box.

Last edited by MakaylaTheAspie on 18 Oct 2013, 11:17 am, edited 1 time in total.

From somebody who has a cat, and has known/owned others in the past:

Pros:
Cats can be entirely kept indoors unlike dogs or pet pigs, in fact some breeds require this for specific reasons

Many cats aren't as emotionally 'needy' as dogs, although some cats/breeds can be extremely affectionate and will seek out human contact

Cats don't really have an odor, the most stinkiest part about having a cat is it's litterbox

It's possible to toilet train a cat to eliminate into a toilet (thus even negating the whole litterbox stuff entirely)

Since cats are small, they are more easier to lift then a lumbering 60-70 pound dog

Cons:
Some cats can be extremely finicky when it comes to food or use of the litterbox. None of my cats were like this, so it depends on the cat and how it was raised

Cats like to claw stuff. It is their natural instinct and a big part of the cat's nature. It can't be 'trained out' but it can be redirected to acceptable objects

Cats will scratch if they get angry or scared. It's another part of the cat. If you have kids, expect them to get scratched at some point, but just as important, teach them to respect the animal and it's body language. This is one of the big reasons that cats get put to sleep, is that some kid teases the cat, cat gets mad and scratches, parents go into 'mama bear mode' and kitty takes the one way trip to the vet.

Some cats will eliminate outside the litterbox if they are sick or upset for some reason. Usually it's a medical issue (urinary tract infections) but sometimes the cat is upset or is finicky with it's box. My cats didn't really do this (save for one that did it later in life because of old age) but again, it really depends on the cat. This is another reason that cats take that one way trip to the vet, people don't care to find out whats wrong with the cat.

Neutral:

Cats are obligate carnivores.

Cats can't be starved or made to drop weight too fast, they get Fatty Liver Diease

I would recommend visiting a friend with a cat to see if you have any allergies to them. Some
people don't know they have allergies until they bring home a cat.

The 'aloof cat' is a stereotype. Cat personalities exist all over the personality spectrum, not just that one type.

Cats can live 12-15 years. But cats older then this are not uncommon.

Hope this helps

The cat that stays with me has two annoying habits.

1. She doesn't use a litter pan and goes outside. The problem is she can sometimes abuse that in & out privilege and get me to get up and open the door often.

2. Sometimes she meows and scratches the closet door to wake me up to open the door at the most inopportune time, usually 3 - 5 in the morning.

I can't comment on cats in general, but only in reference to the cat my family had when I was growing up.

PROS

Very cute and fluffy and warm; liked to cuddle in bed with me and make me feel happy and loved.
The purring sound of a cat cuddling into you is (to me) one of the most relaxing sounds in the world.
Hilariously funny sometimes when playing.
Didn't need walking.
Could be ignored for long periods of times and didn't get upset (unlike a dog).


CONS
Brought dead mice and birds into the house to show us.
Was so agile that she could jump up anywhere she wanted (onto furniture and tables etc) which was unhygienic and also led to potential breakages of things being knocked down and smashed.
Completely ignored the scratching post bought for her, and destroyed sofa and wallpaper instead.
Lots of shed hair.
Didn't want to sleep in her own official "bed" but preferred stealing the dog's bed instead. Also had a fondness for sleeping in weird random places. When she had kittens, she did not approve of their designated cardboard box, and carried them all to sleep in my under bed drawer instead. It was very sweet to hear all the little squeaking noises coming from under my bed but it was rather inconvenient that all of my clothes in that drawer were now being used as kitten bedding. We had to keep carrying the kittens back to the cardboard box, but she tirelessly kept carrying them back to my clothes drawer again.

I don't have alot of expedience with having a cat; just living with my girlfriend & her cat for a year but I'll post the pros & cons I can think of off the top of my head
They use litter-boxes so there shouldn't be poo & pee to clean up in other places but you have to clean the litter-box & some sand can stay on them & can be tracked wherever the cat goes & can blow around the house so there's more dust & litter-box sand can causes or aggravate sinus problems. Being allergic to a cat, get allergy testing if your not entirely sure before deciding to adopt one because an allergy can aggravate sinus problems alot. I'm allergic to cats but I had sinus problems throughout my life & I'm taking a couple meds now that are helping & I may of built up a tolerance to cat allergy after living with one for a year. Short-hair cats may be alittle better for allergies & shorter hair also means less shedding so they may lick themselves less & licking themselves more causes them to spit up hairballs & vomit which is more mess to clean. Calws can be an issue if the cat isn't declawed because they can unintentionally scratch you while climbing on you or while playing & they may scratch on the carpet, furniture & other things you may not want claws to touch. Trimming their claws if they're not declawed is good but that can be difficult & it helps to give them a scratching post or something they can scratch on. Might not be good to declaw them if they're an outside cat or inside & outside one because claws can protect them from animals they are trying to attack. If the cat goes outside he/she cant be contained in a fence like a dog can so the cat can go all over the neighborhood & get into trouble; neighbor might get mad at having their flower-bed dug up & set a trap to kill or relocate the pest or the cat can get killed by a neighbor's dog or something. Cats can be very inconsistent like wanting one thing until they get it & then not wanting it; for example scratching at the bathroom door when you go in & then scratching to be let at as you close it after letting them in, or they jump on your lap only to jump off 1ce you start giving them attention, or ruining around like their hungry but only look at the food or eat 1 bite 1ce food is in their dish, or acting like they want to play with you but lose interest after a minute. It can be fun to watch them chase a laser-pointer but as I said about inconsistency be prepared for them to lose interest quickly. It can also be very fun to have them attack a string in your hand or on a stick that your holding but be careful you don't accidentally get scratched & they could still lose interest quickly. Some think cats are more independent & need less attention than dogs & that may be true but as I mentioned they can be very inconsistent with it & they WANT IT ON THEIR terms NOT yours. Cats sleep alot but they can wake up alot for brief periods & they are somewhat naturally nocturnal so they may be more active at night/late evening/early morning times. They may attack things they're not supposed to like the mouse for your computer, charger cord for your phone, or other pets. if you don't spcil the cat too much with food he/she is more apt to eat mice/rats & other pest in your home. It may be good to have a room that's off limits from the cat; our cat isn't allowed upstairs(we have a gate thing set up at top of the stairs) & I have my desktop in the spare bedroom as well as my pet chinchilla(it's an exotic rodent) & it's probably better for me & my girlfriend's allergies(my sinus problems & her asthma) that Nimi(her cat) cant go in the bedroom we sleep in & I think I sleep better without a cat climbing & jumping on & off me.

Those are gifts to you. The cat has gone to the time and effort to give you something of value: food.





I have a cat that can knock over a rocking chair in a single bound.




That happens. I have an old sofa they can scratch all they want. It was a new sofa, but with the cats scratching it, it had to be replaced. They STILL go after that sofa and no other furniture. Must be something with the fabric they like.



I don't have that problem because I have short hair cats.



They decide they like some place and that's it.

Pros - you have someone to be affectionate towards and they don't speak a human language so you can avoid fights : D

Cons - Hairs. The evils of litter trays the pooping there outside.

+: Follow you around and stick their tongue out. (Since he lost his last teeth but one. ^^)

+: Purring

+: Cuddling


-: Hair

-: Follow you around all day, wont let you play a computergame in the evening for an hour without disturbing it with his need for hugging.

-: Cat toilett.

-: Hair

-: Expecting their food on weekends at the same time, as during the week.

-: Expect you to wake up, if they have hugging need at 3:00 in the morning.

-: Hair.

-: Not willing to give up the authority upon his field kingdom freely, even when having no teeth anymore. Causing tons of veterinary costs, until he accepts, that he is senior material and so must reduce his kingdom size upon his garden.

-: Pukes from now and then spontaniously, anyway where he is right now.

-: That include laps.

-: Looks at you disgusted if he finds on accident puke on your lap, right in front of him.

-: Hair

-: Thinks himselves that he has to much hair, so wants you to brush him (his a shorthair cat) everyday, so he can focus on the "finishing and details".

-: Chases in his youth almost everything, being smaller then his head in blind stomping rhinomethod. Manages to stomp into a ... my english is bad ... but the holes, where animal farmers, gather all their "organic garbage" from their animals. Expects you to clean that.

-: Hair, sometimes wet with pee and poo until the skin.

-: Need someone to take care of him, when going to vaccation.

-: Thinks that the meaning of vegetable and fruit beds, are to offer him an additional cat toilette.

-: Hair

-: Thinks of him as an gourmet chief, and so insists on marinating catched mouses in his wetfood O_o, if the door is open, and we dont mention him early enough.

-: Sometimes forgets that mouses fake dead, and blames us for them getting away in the house, if he manages to trick us, and brought the mouse within.

-: Hair

-: Trains you not to leave food unguarded in your house.

-: Trains you to close the toilette-lid.

-: Trains you to put fresh washed clothes instantly in your closet.

-: Hair in your fresh washed clothes, if you dont give them instantly into the closet.

I see. Thank you for clearing that up.



Off-topic: My dog does something similar. When given a bone or a chew or a pig's ear, he likes to hide it somewhere safe before he decides to eat it. The "safe place" he likes to leave it is usually on my pillow!!

I am touched that he trusts me sufficiently to leave it there, but it's rather stinky.

Back on topic: everyone, continue to talk about cats.

I once bought a kitten, thinking it would be an easy pet.
It turns out I was allergic to it. My eyes puffed up to disfiguring degrees and I was in constant discomfort. Plus it peed on everything, not wanting to use the litter box. I did not know how to train it to use it. I was miserable. I had to return it to the pet store.
Make sure you are not allergic to cats before you get one. Also, make sure you know how to train it to use the litter box.

PS. If you live by yourself or plan to get your own place, having a pet might limit your options of where you can live.
Also, if you ever get into a serious relationship, it might be a problem if your significant other is allergic to cats, or owns a dog.

Mostly, the positives out-weigh the negatives.
So long as they have a scratching post, then hopefully they wont "claw" furniture.
If you have an indoor cat I would recommend the type of litter-box that is enclosed. It looks a bit like a pet carrier, with a door flap at the front. It will save you having to clean up the scattered cat litter, as it literally gets everywhere because cats bury what they have done in their litter box but in the process they scatter the litter all over the floor. An enclosed litter box will prevent this.

When a cat is a kitten they can cause all sorts of damage (ripping up carpets, climbing and tearing net curtains, pulling & chewing wires, ect.). My advice for someone that would rather that a feline friend is the least destructive would be to get one that is older than 5 years of age.

In me & my girlfriend's apartment search I noticed that places are more apt to allow cats than dogs or they'll allow cats & dogs & fish but no other pets. Some places that don't allow pets are willing to make an exception if you have a medical reason. The place we're at now doesn't allow pets without medical reasons which me & her have;my case my GP wrote I have Aspergers & had been having my chinchilla for 10 years so it's better for my mental health; & my girlfriend's councilor said she needed her cat because of her mental issues that include depression. She had to pay a higher security deposit at her last apartment for having a cat thou but we didn't here.
Allergies can be bad; I know because as I mentioned in my other post I'm allergic but I don't think my cat allergy is anymore of a problem than other allergy things now thanx to meds & maybe building up a tolerance after living with her a awhile. Allergy shots might could help build up a tolerance if the exposure to cat is infrequent for awhile. Antihistamines(over counter or prescription) &/or prescription nasal-sprays can help some alot with cat & other allergies. My body has a tolerance to that stuff because they help alittle but not alot & they seem to only last about half or maybe 2/3rds as long as they're supposed to. I take Xyzal which is the last one approved by the FDA & is similar to Zyrtec but more potent so it's prescription only & I also take Singulair which is approved & used more for asthma but is approved for allergies as well but it works as a preventive measure & takes awhile to build up so it has to be taken regularly; it helps me better than everything else I've been on except for steroid stuff. I would suggest looking into Singulair for minor to moderate asthma or asthma that is made worse by allergies like cat.
Dogs & cats can sometimes learn to get along but they should be supervised together for a while or just be kept separated instead of both having free run of the house at the same time; like the cat staying inside & the dog in the backyard & backporch.