The experience we had with adopting this new kitten, which we didn’t plan, would be something I’d do again in the future or pass on to others.
The SPCA has some animals off-site in foster homes. Our kitten came from a litter that had been fostered by one of the “regular” family volunteers. What my DD didn’t get was a teenie-tiny little ball of a kitten, but a 3-4 month old one instead. BUT...the great part is that there was more time for the kittens to be socialized, handled by humans, be in a home, and more time for their personalities to start emerging and to be evaluated by the foster mom.
Our kitten still had plenty of that awkwardness/eagerness that makes people go “aaawww” over a kitten, but we had the chance of a better match for our family and she popped right into the household. Her personality traits are holding steady.
The other lady cat was 3 or 4 years old when we adopted her. I like the idea of doing this because they went through the trauma of being given up and/or not “picked” so many times. She is a total doll. The male cat of my previous and now passed away pair was also a cat with a past when I got him, and his companion was a kitten.
I'd second that advice about hamsters. Did that when I was a kid, because that's the only pet I could have. They escape and get into all sorts of scary places, and are not affectionate and bite and wriggle away from you. They don't live very long either.
Have fun and congrats to your DS on his accomplishments. My DD is still living in yoga pants and leggings, knit tunic tops and dresses...but girls can get away with that and still blend in. Maybe that's not the best thing in the long run but we're concentrating on other things now.
Have fun choosing you pet!
