Considering a kitten..

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  1. #1

    Join Date
    May 2006
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    340

    Considering a kitten..

    Hi all,

    My pet story first: I've lived in HK for 3 years now, and it's pretty much the first 3 years of my life without either a dog or a cat in my home. When I was very young, I had cats, then Rex, a Golden Retriever took over as my best friend for 13 years back in Norway. But we lost him a few years back... I then got a cat, a tabby when I lived in Australia. An amazing cat, but when I moved to HK, I left it in good care of my brother and his fiancee until I got settled. But, as probably many others here felt when they moved here, I just didn't have the heart to bring him to an apartment here as he was used to a big garden and fresh air in Melbourne. What's best for the cat is what's important. They love and take care of him, so I have left him in great hands. I don't think they would give him back now anyway! If they couldn't take care of him, I would of course bring him over, as I would never give him up to people I didn't know.

    But, now I'm really considering getting a kitten for our home in HK. I would love a big dog again, but with the amount of hours at work, I don't feel I have enough time take care of a dog.

    As I strongly believe a pet is for life, I would want to bring him/her with me if/when I should go back home to Europe or wherever time will take me. Does anyone have any experiences bringing pets FROM HK to other countries? I wouldn't want to put my pet in a little quarantine box for 6 months.

    Also, when I go overseas, I would want to leave the cat in safe hands in a good caring environment. I wouldn't want people to come to my home while I'm not here, so it would have to be a kennel. Back in Australia, there are some really nice kennels where the cats have lots of space etc, and not locked up in a tiny cage. If that's the only option, I could never go overseas. Any good experiences?

    Lastly, I don't know if I should adopt or go to a breeder. I would prefer a good breeder to find a type that I like the most (ragdoll, tabby, bengal), but my conscience is saying adopt an abandoned kitten. It's difficult.

    Ok, I realize I don't have many questions. I guess I just have to share a little to get some input as I am yet to decide if I should do it or not.


  2. #2

    Join Date
    Aug 2007
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    I ll strongly suggest you adopt a kitten. Spca are quite good here and pet shop have very bad reputation. Adopting from spca is really simple, and i have heard many horror story from pet shop here.

    Many kennel here where you can put your pet when you go on holiday.

    I don't know which European country you come from but i had no problem bringing my cat back to France. Make sure you have all vaccination done and up to date all the time else you can have quarantine. Like for France you need to have rabies shot up to date but in Hong Kong you don't need this.


  3. #3

    Join Date
    Apr 2008
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    281

    Norway, I'm guessing from the story and the flag...

    Most European countries have a government website where they list the requirements for import/export of animals.

    I agree, if you live in HK it is probably easier (on you and the pet) if you adopted a cat rather than a dog (unless you've got a house with a garden) I generally have friends come over and feed/play with the cat when I'm out of town, and as more independent creatures they deal better than dogs when left alone


  4. #4

    Join Date
    Feb 2007
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    1,561

    Regarding boarding, if you end up with a new kitten, Ferndale Kennels and Cattery in Sai Kung boards cats. I don't have cats, but have had my dogs there and toured the cattery area, which was clean and nice. A British couple runs the place.

    My neighbors took dogs back to the UK recently without quarantine. There was a bit of paperwork, but not too bad. Not sure about other European countries. You can take dogs and cats back to the US from HK without quarantine (with the proper paperwork) also.

    If you go the adoption route, Hong Kong Alley Cat Watch, in addition to the SPCA, always has a selection of well socialized kittens in various sizes, ages and colors. The web site doesn't always show all the kittens available so if interested, give them a call.

    HK Alleycat Watch !

    If you buy, try to go direct to a decent breeder (or consider importing from a breeder outside of HK, although this has its own issues like the animal must be 5 months old to come into HK) rather than a pet shop...there are other posts on here detailing the risks associated with purchasing a pet from a HK pet shop.

    Last edited by hello_there; 23-12-2008 at 08:00 PM.

  5. #5

    getting a catty friend depends on your luck

    I have had 4 cats before (different times) and cats are so hard to tell their characteristics. I used to have a kitten (we bought it when it was 5 weeks and need milk to survive)and it was purring all the time, once it grew up, very distant from me. You cannot even hold that for over a minute. This happens to most of my friends having cats .

    Now, my little girl was an adopted one, she kept on purring whenever we touch her or pamper her, she can purr for 3 hours continuously in my quilt, and every time, she sees me, just kisses me with her rough tongue.
    Nothing in the world can compare with her purring sound, so gentle and content!!

    So, good luck on your cat picking, to me, cat's characteristics are far more important than the breed, but a purring and kissing cat is really really hard to get, ha ha! Put these rules (purring and kissing) in your judging list as well, ha ha!!

    And, if you do get a cat, strongly suggest to use de-composable cat litter as our World takes in too much garbage every day, not enough for any more concrete cat litter. Also, natural cat litter benefits the cats a lot and reduced chances of kidney failure. I am now using Feline pine.


  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by happydogsx3:
    ...Also, natural cat litter benefits the cats a lot and reduced chances of kidney failure. I am now using Feline pine.
    pardon my ignorance, but how on earth does it do that?

  7. #7

    Join Date
    Aug 2006
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    820

    If anything, there should be an increased chance of toxicity with pine, with its essential oils. Pine and cedar litter is particularly toxic to for example gerbils, it's not unreasonable to expect there might be a problem for cats as well. Inert matter like silica gel and bentonite is way better if you're really worried about toxicity.


  8. #8
    deleteduser

    Definitely adopt. But look to private rescue groups such as HK Alleycat before going to SPCA. SPCA try to swindle you out of as much money as possible when you adopt, then they will spam your mailbox with junk mail every week.


  9. #9

    Most of the current controversy swirls around cat litter is about the use of Sodium Bentonite, a highly absorbent clay. Brands that do not contain Sodium Bentonite seem to be considered safer(natural ones).

    When one of my cats began suffering respiratory infections shortly after adopting, the vet suggested ditching the clumping litter due to dust concerns. We switched from the clumping variety to Feline pine (they are processed to remove the essential oil which is harmful to feline) and Japanese Soy-based litter, and cat's woes vanished. Not scientific, to be sure, but enough to convince me that clumping kitty litter may not agree with all cats. (but, some cats hate using Natural Cat Litter)

    Once the clay litter is inside the cat or kitten and expands, it not only could cause dehydration by absorbing all the body's moisture, it could also form a hard mass in the intestines over a period of time, which could be fatal.


  10. #10

    Join Date
    May 2006
    Posts
    340

    I want to thank you all for all the responses and the litter discussion.

    In terms of a kitten, I taken some extra time to think, and I have decided to adopt. I have not picked a cat yet, but I see one on SPCA website just recently that I really liked, so I will go today and see how she reacts when I lift her up. A lot can be concluded in that little moment...

    I was thinking of going to a breeder for a while. I quite wanted a ragdoll, because they seem to be very good indoor cats. But I do feel that those lucky ragdolls will most likely get a good home anyway, but the SPCA and Alleycats may not, so I feel I should take one home from them and give it a life in luxury.

    I'll keep you updated.


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