Cats And Young Children

If you have small children in the house and in particular those under the age of three then a cat might not be the best pet to have around.

This is taking into consideration both the child and the cat's well-being.
Cats love to snuggle into people for company and warmth and this can be particularly dangerous where cats have been known to get into bed with babies and smother them unintentionally.

Another problem can occur when young kittens like to play with children.
Kittens have particularly sharp teeth and claws and when they play they can get overly excited and do a lot of damage to the tender skin of children.
There is also the chance for the child to get scratched in the eye when playing with a kitten.

On the other hand, cats can get a hard life from children. Young children often tend to be a little bit heavy-handed when handling cats, and this can lead to anxiety for the cat.

If there are cats and children in the family, then it is a wise decision to teach the children how to handle a cat correctly
Children need to be told how to pick up the cat and handle it carefully and also to become aware of when the cat doesn't want to be handled any longer and would like to be left alone in peace.

Many cats also get quite stressed with loud noise and sudden action which is something that is quite common with young children.

It is good for children to learn to be considerate towards animals at a young age.
They will not only treat animals better but will also be more considerate towards other people, so having a pet in the family that the children can learn to respect can be excellent for developing better people.

A Cat Or Not? - Choosing A Pet

There is such a wide range of choices when choosing the cat that you will decide to share in your life, that taking the time to do some quality research is well worthwhile.

Not only do you have to decide what type of color you prefer, but whether you want a male or a female cat and the associated characteristics that come with them.

You also have to look at your personality and lifestyle and determine how that will work in with the personality that can be expected from any particular breed.

Fortunately there are many books that give comprehensive details on the personality types of the various different breeds and while they are a generalization they are also quite accurate in most cases and can help you make the right decision more often than not.

Some breeds require a lot more attention than others, and you also need to look at your stage of life and determine how much time you will have to devote to your cat.
Some breeds will always be more suitable than others when taking into account the term of their lifespan, which can be up to 20 years in some cases.

Your decision might also be based on how long you intend to look after a cat, and you might decide that getting an older cat from an animal shelter rather than a kitten might be a better decision.
There are certainly a lot to choose from as animal shelters are generally overflowing with unwanted pets, just waiting for a home.

When choosing your cat, see how it interacts with you right from the outset, as even in one litter there will always be a personality that stands out and shows that it wants you to be its owner.
More often than not the kitten will choose you, rather than the other way around.