So I perused the local shelter. They have signs all over the place that recommend getting two kitties or else your cat will grow up to be an anti-social weirdo.
I know the shelter’s goal is to find homes for as many animals as possible, but how true is this? I don’t know if I could handle two cats, but I don’t want to provide a home for just one cat if that cat will end up being lonely and sad.
What say you?
I think they must be desperate to get them out the way Noah got them in on the ark. 
I went to several shelters that were very pushy about getting two cats, even though I made it clear I just wanted one. In the end I went to a shelter that wasn’t as aggressive. Some shelters are just nuts. One wanted to run a credit check and the application form was longer than a freakin vis application.
My one cat is very sociable and no weirder than any other cat.
Depends on the cat… Some are self-centric, others really do appreciate the company. For what it’s worth, if you are considering getting 2 rather than one, should consider getting a couple that’s already bonded to one another. Siblings or such.
I’m in the “Get two to begin with” camp myself.
Now, afetr the fourth one you should probably slow down…
My eldest is doing “service hours” at a shelter for his highschool. We have two cats already, a male named Angel and a female named Lucky, and I told him that under no circumstances may he take home a cat.
He informed me the other day that there is a cat there who really likes him; a female named Chastity. I explained to him that adult female cats often don’t get along & have litter box problems.
Besides…
…A cat named Lucky isn’t going to be thrilled about getting Chastity, and Chastity isn’t going to be thrilled about getting Lucky. And we don’t want either of them to meet an Angel if they don’t have to… 
I’ve had just one cat my whole life, except for one year when there was some overlap between just having gotten a brand new kitten and my old cat from early childhood getting old and dying.
Cats are JUST FINE LIVING ON THEIR OWN. And if later on down the road you get another cat, you’ll have about a month or two of hissing and maybe other territorial issues, and then they’ll get used to each other.
My boyfriend and I went to the local SPCA yesterday and they let us freely wander the cat rooms (no cages!). They had a couple bonded pairs, but also plenty of cats that they would only adopt out to single-pet homes. They let us take as many as we wanted, which was one. Her name used to be Fluffy (lame), but we renamed her to Freya. Nicknamed her Fry already, or I also enjoy calling her Fluffissimo. Anyway, she’s so beta, she’s omega. I don’t think she’d get along well with another cat, she’s too needy and passive. A headstrong kitten could make her its bitch! We’ve only had her for 30 hours, and she spends most of her time pawing for cuddles and licking our fingers. :3
What was my point again? Oh yeah, just remind the volunteer you talk to that it’s better for you to take one cat off their hands than zero. As long as you don’t insist on separating an older bonded pair, it shouldn’t matter whether you want 1 cat or 5. A good shelter will want what’s best for the animals in the long-term, not what moves the most pets the fastest on today’s balance sheet.
I was recently pushed into getting two cats, and I did – one is an adult male and the other is a male kitten, and it’s working out okay (they met and bonded at the shelter). The kitten is a little too rambunctious for the adult cat and the cat does not hesitate to put him in his place, but then they groom each other and eat from the same dish and all is forgiven.
Two really is not that much more work than one, you just go through food and litter more quickly.
It’s really an age issue with kittens. My shelter will allow cats over 6 months to be adopted alone, but under 6 months, they need to either go out as a pair or already have another cat in the house. Cats really do socialize better up to that age with other cats around. It’s more critical in the real development stages up to three months, but in our 42 years as a shelter the 6 month rule has stood for quite some time as it’s much more successful.
A cat that has been around other cats for their first six months is less likely to be hand aggressive with people, less ankle biting, chasing, and hand playing/biting. The cat is also more likely to be amenable to another cat addition in the future, if s/he had some early socialization with other cats. You never know when someone’s home will be integrated with another or a new cat simply ends up in the picture for any myriad of reasons.
If this shelter doesn’t want to adopt out a single adult cat, that is plenty over 6-8 months of age, then they’re being a bit unrealistic and prohibiting a lot of potential adoptions.
Cats only grow up to be anti-social if their owners don’t pay attention to them and give them love and socialization. Be your cat’s friend and companion and it will respond.
Yeah, that claim is similar to the common shelter refrain that you can’t judge a kitten’s temperament and therefore it is better to adopt an adult cat so you know what you are getting. Both lines of reasoning are prompted by a well-meaning desire to move cats - either in numbers ( the pair thing) or to get harder to adopt older cats moving. Both claims have a kernel of truth and I think the shelter folks honestly believe what they are saying, but IMHO both claims are substantial exaggerations.
Now I happen to believe that as a general proposition and assuming they get along, two is better than one in every way other than expenses and the litter box labor. They’ll usually entertain each other, which can often help cut down on extreme neediness or boredom-caused neuroses/behavioral issues. Also, y’know - they are often hilarious in pairs ;). On the other hand occasionally when you get a pair that don’t get along at all, that can cause neuroses/behavioral issues.
On balance I’d personally recommend getting a bonded pair, as two really isn’t much more work than one and in some respects less. But most lone cat pets seem to get by okay without a partner - they’re more facultatively social than obligately so.
Yeah, to be fair, the messaging was really around the kitten area and not as much the adult cats (although they still had “why not take home a buddy for your cat? 2-for-1!” notices in the adult cat section as well)
It’s my experience that cats become anti-social weirdos (or any other kind of weirdos) in utero.
I’ve had several single cats over the course of my life, and while some of them were a little odd, so were the cats I adopted in pairs or groups. If you’re only comfortable getting 1 cat, don’t let yourself be convinced to adopt more. You’ll just end up with 1 unhappy human and 2 unhappy felines, and nobody wants that.
Agree, kitty needs a friend.
I dunno about you guys, but my ankles thank the other cat.
It’s hard to keep up with a kitten. The only thing that can keep up with a kitten… is another kitten.
YMMV though, but honestly, it’s not hard to maintain 2 cats, certainly not any harder than maintaining 1.
My first two cats weren’t friends, but they were definitely company for each other while I was gone. They had their ways of keeping peaceful distance, but when one came home from the vet or something, there was always face sniffing and what seemed like an aloof, “Where were you? Stick around, OK?”
If I could do it over, I would get two cats at once. Our first one, Dottie, was very sociable at first. However, she was an only cat for years. We finally decided that she seemed too unhappy and lonely from being alone while we were at work. We got her a kitten, Roscoe, to keep her company.
Maybe if Dottie hadn’t gotten very sick shortly after Roscoe joined the family, they would have bonded better. Maybe she was an only cat for too long to accept another pet. I don’t know. Roscoe has always looooooooved her, but she only tolerates him. She spends as much time as she can outside, and now Roscoe (who is not allowed out) is the lonely one. We’re not going to get him a kitten, though.
I’ve owned multiple cats before and the most I could say is that they co-existed. They certainly weren’t kitty-friends or anything. They didn’t fight with one another but they didn’t show any affection for one another either.
Unless the cats were already living together and have a relationship, I don’t think cats NEED to have a companion. We got a second cat to help keep our first one company, and they hated each other. When the first one passed away we decided to be a one-cat household. It’s much more peaceful. The cat gets lonely when we go on vacation, but as long as you have someone who is willing to spend time playing with them while you’re gone, it’s fine.
