Uncover a cats personality before taking it home

When you are considering adoption, there are ways to uncover a cat's personality, even in the first meeting.

Zippy

When you first greet a new cat, extend your finger so it's pointing right in front of the cat's nose, but not touching. Watch to see if the cat pushes her nose out to touch your finger. The nose-touch greeting is based on normal cat-greeting procedures. Much like humans shake hands when meeting, cats touch noses in the feline equivalent of a handshake. If the cat pushes her nose out to touch your finger, or rubs her cheek on your finger, it's a good indication she is well socialized and friendly. If the cat cowers, hisses, or runs away, she is displaying antisocial behaviors and may be an unfriendly cat.

Next, pick up the cat and watch her body language. If the cat's muscles are relaxed and her body is loose, you are probably holding a friendly cat. On the other hand, if the cat goes rigid in your arms or squirms to get away, the cat may not be as social.

Try playing with the cat. Playing with a kitten will not be a significant indicator of the cat's personality, because almost all kittens love to play. Yet, playfulness in an adult cat is significant in indicating a well-adjusted and socialized cat. Take a string or cat toy with you when cat shopping. The cat that swats at or tries to pounce on the toy may be more well adjusted that the cat that simply ignores or runs from the toy.

Mint Spice

Instead of a thermometer, gauge the cat's purr-ometer.The general rule of thumb is that the faster and longer a cat purrs, the better. Start petting the cat and observe how long it takes before he starts purring. If the cat purrs within two seconds, it is a great indicator. Next, pick up the cat and pay attnetion to how long he takes before he purrs. Also pay attention to how long the cat keeps purring while you hold or pet him. If the cat purrs for most of the duration of your time, you are probably with a very friendly cat. On the other hand, if the cat does not purr, or only minutely ledts out a purr, the cat may not be as friendly. Pet and hold other cats to observe their purring behaviour in order to compare it to your cat. Comparing the cat's purring can help give you a good scale by which to measure the cat's purr-ometer.

The final step is passing the cat to another person, whether it is a family member or a person working in the shelter or store. Watching how the cat responds to another person will help you decide how well adjusted the cat would be if it was brought into your home, and also helps to show whether or not the cat will be sociable with your family members or guests in your home.
 
You can adopt cats from many different places. It doesn't have to be from a breeder. You can adopt from shelters such as the RSPCA. There are also other organizations that help people rehome their pets with different owners for one reason or the other. Organizations like these are generally not-for-profit organizations like The Animal Rehoming Service Inc. (TARS) or Rescue-A-Cat Inc. (R.A.C.I). Organizations such as these act as a contact and liaison point between people who want to re-home their animals and people who wish to adopt them.
 
You can visit the following websites or even contact these organizations to gain more information on adopting or trying to re-home your animals.
The Animal Rehoming Service - http://www.tars.org.au/
Rescue a Cat - http://www.rescueacat.org.au/
RSPCA - http://www.rspca.org.au/





*This information was gathered from "The Ultimate Cat Lover" book by written by Marty Becker