People are adopting animals in person from rescue centres in New York City at last

NEWS AND COMMENT - NEW YORK CITY: New Yorkers are pleased that they can, at last, visit an animal shelter in person, look at the animals, relate to the animals on a one-to-one basis and adopt when they fall in love with an individual. This, in a way, marks the beginning of the end of the coronavirus pandemic, we hope. It's a sign of getting back to normal. And they lined up for the pleasure. It is said that they turned up in droves on Saturday at Animal Care Centers of New York City. It was their first in-person adoption event for more than a year.

Cut cat in shelter waiting for an adopter. Photo in public domain.

In all 55 cats were adopted. It seems that the general consensus is that adopting online remotely is not anywhere near as good as being there in person. One customer, Vaneza Almodovar, 43, had tried to adopt online several times during the pandemic. She adopted a cat from the Animal Care Centers' East Harlem branch. She surprised her daughter when she brought the cat home. Her daughter said that she had never had a cat of her own while her mother said that "It's been worth waiting".

You had to get to the rescue centre early and lineup. Denise Cunningham and her granddaughter Ariah Williams got there 90 minutes early and were ninth in the queue of dozens that apparently extended down the block. They adopted a brown tabby called Raspberry. They chose him because he was shy. I like that because it is normally the confident cats who come forward and make themselves known and to get adopted. To go for a shy cat is a nice thing to do.

The shelter said that people were not surrendering their companion animals during the pandemic lockdown and neither were they adopting stray cats because they were not leaving their house. Pet adoptions had continued during the pandemic but some found the online application process a bit tricky. Almodovar said that they had put in an application and then told that their selected cat had "just got adopted out. We were so frustrated."

It's nice to read that things are getting back to normal in the world of cat adoptions and shelters.

Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian has 2 cats

The Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines, Huang Xilian, has 2 cats, Ding Ding and Yuan Yuan. They are both grey. One of them, who I believe is Ding Ding has partially folded ears which indicates to me that this cat carries the Scottish Fold gene or a variant of it. The ambassador adopted both cats in the Philippines during the pandemic. 

Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian has 2 cats.
This is one of them possibly Ding Ding.

He adopted them as kittens. He took them to a veterinarian to have them checked thoroughly. He says there now strong and healthy. They love each other but sometimes they fight and are a bit naughty. He likes their company during his work and he finds them comforting. He said the work hard during the pandemic.

Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian has 2 cats. This is 
possibly Yuan Yuan.

He wants cat lovers to guess which cat is called Ding Ding in which cat is called Yuan Yuan. I haven't got an idea about that! The Chinese word "Yuan" is the currency in China. I checked out what Ding means in Chinese. It's a family name humans and there are just two strokes to it when writing it in Chinese. Someone Facebook said it means (round) in English. I read that it means strong. I'm no nearer to figuring out which name fits which cat. I have guessed.

Huang Xilian should be screaming from the rooftops for the cat cruelty that takes place in China's cat meat markets to stop immediately. It is horrible behavior and it is time it stopped. How can he love cats and be silent about this damnable market where tens of thousands of cats and dogs are brutally killed annually for meat because they belive that the flesh has some medicinal qualities. It is pure bullshit.

Coronavirus pandemic has facilitated the sale of kittens online

Because of social distancing and an increased fear of contracting the Covid-19 virus, doors have been opened to unscrupulous kitten and cat sellers who exclusively ply their trade online. It is very dangerous to purchase a kitten online without visiting the breeder at their home and watching the interactions between kitten and mother and asking questions of the breeder. There is no shortcut to this and if you simply select online you really do not know what you are buying for sure.

This is a 5 week old kitten but not Lola mentioned below. Photo: Martin.

As the head of advocacy and government relations at Cats Protection, Jacqui Cuff said, "The Covid-19 pandemic has created the ideal conditions for unscrupulous sellers to thrive, as they appear to have a credible reason for not allowing buyers to view the kitten with their mother first".

It is very difficult for buyers of kittens online to be sure of the kitten's background and health. You simply cannot buy a kitten sight unseen and judging their health and welfare from a photograph online which is often of poor quality. I know people are very keen to adopt pets at the moment for companionship but it is easy to be scammed and the UK is full of scammers believe me. There has been a surge in puppy adoptions for instance and a lot of scammers are in the dog marketplace too.

It can lead to real problems both for the adopter and the kitten or cat. A story highlights this. It concerns a kitten sold online whose name is Lola. She was advertised in October for £200 and it was said that she was 10 weeks of age. She was purchased but the new owner who gave her up to Cats Protection. That early abandonment of itself is instructional. It's points to what I would call impulse buying of a sentient being. This is always very unwise because it's a lifelong commitment. We know that.

It was discovered by Cats Protection staff that Lola was five weeks old when she was sold which is far too young and which may result in behavioural problems due to early weaning. She's been rehomed at nine weeks old but it's just another example of an unscrupulous seller lying.

All the people in the know say that if you want to adopt a cat you must visit the person who is transferring the cat to you either free of charge or for sale. And you have to be sure what you're doing. You have to ask yourself whether you are adopting for the lifetime of the cat and if you can't answer that question in the affirmative then you should stop. Cats are quite expensive to keep. You must have some money in the bank and an income otherwise it is not going to work out very well if at all.

Young girl makes Powerpoint presentation on why she should have a cat

This is really cute and it has attracted the attention of social media users. We don't know her name or her age but she is in her teens I think. She's smart and persistent and has been asking her mom and dad, Christopher Doyle, for a long time for a domestic cat. She sets out her case persuasively using the usual arguments under the "Pros of getting a cat". She says that her siblings would love a cat as well and, as we know, cats lower stress levels and make their owners happier. And you don't have to take cats outside for walks she argues. 

Daughter sets out her case for a cat adoption asap please!!

That is not entirely true in my opinion but a lot of indoor cat owners would agree with her. Sometimes people take their cats out on a lead for a walk although it is pretty rare. And she promises to do the litter and all the other cat maintenance stuff as needed. She wants to take responsibility and she wants her parents to let her have a cat companion. Please...

Comment: but please don't buy a pet cat from a pet shop. This is not a good idea as you perpetuate informal and sometimes illegal breeding of cats for pet shops. Pet shops are fine provided all the cats are shelter cats. I am sure that Christopher would not buy a cat from a pet store unless the cats and dogs are all rescue animals looking for a new home. That is the law in some states in the US. It makes a lot of sense.

Our daughter made a PowerPoint. 🐱 😂 pic.twitter.com/yCOG7QHXmX

— Christopher Doyle (@chrisdoyle) August 25, 2020

Siamese Cats For Adoption

People searching for Siamese cats for adoption are looking for Siamese cats...obvious, I guess, sorry. I won't interfere in that process except to provide my thoughts and perhaps some pointers. They may help. They may not.

Potential adopters should be aware that there are different types of Siamese cat. Personally - and this is personal but based upon sound thinking, I hope - I would chose a traditional Siamese cat (Applehead Siamese). In my opinion they are the true Siamese cat and they are more healthy than the skinny over bred modern version. Please note too that the Balinese is a long haired Siamese cat and the Oriental Shorthair is the same cat but with colors and patterns that you can't get for the Siamese cats. Seal colored pointing is the original pointing and still the best.

As to finding a Siamese cat for adoption I would avoid the cat shelters unless you don't mind a Siamese mix or a Siamese without pedigree papers. A Siamese without evidence of pedigree cannot truly be called a purebred cat and all true Siamese cats are purebred.

That said if you want a cat that looks like a Siamese please go to a shelter. They need you, badly.

So, if I were looking to buy a purebred Siamese cat in the USA where would I begin. Well, I would do some research first. We need to because it will cost £10,000 over the lifetime of a cat to care for him or her. Possibly more for a purebred cat.

The first thing in fact is to look at ourselves. Do we have the right expectations if we are first time cat caretakers? A big question. Please read this (FDF file).

Provided we meet the requirements of a good human companion to a cat. I would contact a Siamese cat club and discuss things. In the USA you will almost invariably meet the modern Siamese cat but there are traditional Siamese cats too. The National Siamese Cat Club has a decent sized list of breeders. This page has contact details.

Please remember that the Siamese cat likes close contact with his or her human companion and is vocal. You really should be around a lot ideally. If you are not you might be better of with a breed that is more suited to being alone - see e.g. cat separation anxiety.

The Siamese Cat Club is for UK residents. This club has a kitten list page. The kittens on this site are modern looking Siamese but not extreme or the result of ultra breeding as far as I can tell.

If you want to research the Siamese cat this website and the pages on Siamese cats that are linked in the navigation bar should serve you well.

I think you might also check out the major cat associations for their breeder referrals. In the USA I would check:

• The CFA referral list - click the required box once you land on their site and go.
• TICA - a short list of breeders.
• American Cat Fanciers Association has seven breeders listed.

For the USA, this website's page has a nice list of contact material. In the UK the Siamese Cat Association has a good list of Siamese cat breeders.

I have found that pricing is the same or similar worldwide. The price will depend on quality and whether you are buying a breeding cat or a "pet". 

Breeders seem reluctant to put prices on their websites. The ones I have visited have no prices, anyway. As at the date of this post I would expect to pay the going rate for any purebred cat, namely  between about $500 to over $1000 (USD - for the USA). In the UK the same numbers can be used for sterling.

I discuss the issue of pricing in respect to Bengal cats. Hope this all helps a bit.