[XXXNoahXXX]

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I'd like to go against the grain and recommend getting a grown cat rather than a kitten. It's really heartbreaking to be at an animal shelter and see all the little kids oohing and ahhing over the cute kittens while the grown-up ones are wasting away in their cages. I have found that kittens are much more high maintenance than a grown cat, and it's pretty easy to tell which adult ones are going to be affectionate and friendly. I adopted my cat last summer at the age of 3 and he is like, THE MOST friendly kitty, ever.

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Yeah, this was my initial thought going in, but when I went to two shelters and every grown cat I encountered was nuts. You need to find one that is there because his owner died or something, because some of the older cats have either been on their own for a long while or they were mistreated.

I ended up getting two kittens because of this and because I have never experienced kittens. I definitely recommend getting two. I have a relatively small studio apartment, and it doesn't seem too small or crowded at all. The apartment never smells at all as long as you get one of those igloo litter boxes with a flap door and you clean it out a lot. In addition, caring for two cats is the same as caring for one. It's just a matter of putting out two bowls of food instead of one, and the additional cost isn't great.

Some people worry that "if I get two kittens they'll play with each other and not me" but that is definitely not the case. They will play with each other which is awesome to watch, but they'll play with you too. Then they have someone to play with when you're not home and you don't have to feel bad about leaving them overnight or for a long day at work.