Sharing My Experience of Adopting a Cat in Irvine
This content was automatically generated by gpt-4o-mini (No human review). The original post is in Chinese.
Yesterday, we adopted a 2-year-old cat and I want to share our experience of adopting a cat, as well as my thoughts on three cat adoption organizations in Irvine.
Why Adopt a Cat
Actually, I used to be quite afraid of small animals. I was scared of other people’s cats and dogs, and I had no experience with petting cats; I wasn’t particularly obsessed with them. However, last month, I accidentally left the sliding screen door in the living room open, and a cat ran into our home. We carefully guided it back outside, but later realized it might be a lost cat from someone else’s home, so we asked our neighbors. Ultimately, while we were still figuring out what to do with the cat, it got scared and ran away due to a noise we accidentally made. This made me start considering the idea of getting a cat.
We debated for several weeks about whether to adopt a cat, and I had many concerns. The top three were:
- The cat might run around at night, making noise and affecting our sleep.
- The cat might chew on wires, damaging phone, computer charging cables, and the adjustable desk.
- The cat might knock things off the table or shelves.
On the other hand, the reasons for adopting a cat included:
- I wanted to find joy; although I’m not currently obsessed with petting cats (mainly due to lack of experience), many cat owners seem quite happy.
- I wanted to take on responsibility; having a pet requires time and money, and involves a lot of love and patience, which I feel I lack (and want to cultivate).
- We’ve been married for over three years and want to add a family member, but we don’t want to have children; we want to raise a cat together.
- Recently, I’ve had too much free time since I postponed starting my new job by two weeks, and I’ve been feeling a bit bored.
As for our current situation, we are fully capable of adopting a cat:
- Our financial situation allows us to afford the costs of having a cat; it’s a small expense for us.
- We currently live in a separate apartment and will not be sharing with anyone else, so we don’t need a roommate’s approval.
Ultimately, I think I just want to embrace a new challenge. Adopting a cat isn’t a necessity, but it is something we can do. Once I had this thought, I started looking for cats online.
Three Cat Adoption Organizations
First, I recommend a website for selecting pets called petfinder. The site has a lot of information about cats from different organizations, and you can filter by various criteria (such as the cat’s age, gender, breed, distance from the adoption location, and organization). Why adopt? Because there are many abandoned and lost stray cats, and if they are not adopted, they may be euthanized. Adopting is better than buying, and it may also be cheaper.
We visited three pet adoption organizations, each with a very different way of operating. Below, I will introduce them in the order we visited.
Irvine Animal Care Center
Website link: Irvine Animal Care Center
Weekend Walk-in
The first time we went to the Irvine Animal Care Center was on a Sunday afternoon, without an appointment, just a walk-in. The environment here is particularly nice, with many animals, including cats, dogs, rabbits, etc. Their living conditions are also quite good, especially the cat area, which has a large activity space and cat toys. Even without an appointment, you can walk around freely on a Sunday afternoon, and you can pet the cats and dogs through the iron bars. The bars are actually quite sparse, and for the dogs, you can even fit your whole hand through. They even provide cat wands for you to use freely. Since we didn’t have an appointment, we couldn’t adopt a cat on the spot, nor could we open the cages to play with the cats we were interested in, but in reality, they don’t limit the time you can interact with the cats outside the cages. As long as the doors are open, you can stay as long as you like.
Each cage has information about the animals hanging outside. For example, we really liked this cat, but it was already reserved, so even if you are interested, you can only wait in line for the previous person to decide whether to adopt it.
Appointment Visit
The second time, I called the Irvine Animal Care Center, saying I wanted to adopt a cat. After the call connected, they asked me to fill out an online application form (questionnaire), which would determine whether to proceed with the adoption process based on my answers. I made the call around noon at 12 PM, and after hanging up, I received an email and immediately filled out the application form. The application form mainly asked for my personal information and how I would treat the adopted cat to assess whether I would be a qualified cat owner. The questionnaire also asked which cats from the center I was interested in, and I listed the names of three cats.
Around 2 PM, I received a follow-up call from them, indicating that I could schedule a time to adopt a cat. Since I needed to book 24 hours in advance, I scheduled an appointment for 1 PM the next day. During the call, they also introduced me to the characteristics and health status of the three cats I was interested in. However, I could only see two cats the next day, so I had to choose. I shared some concerns about being a first-time cat owner, and they immediately ruled out two of the cats because they needed to be adopted by experienced families. The only remaining cat was named Topaz, a 4-month-old kitten. The staff informed me that it currently had health issues and asked if I wanted to know more. I said yes, and then I was transferred to another staff member. They explained that Topaz had been spayed two days ago and had a bit of diarrhea yesterday, but it wasn’t a major issue, and today it was no longer having diarrhea. After hearing this, I felt it wasn’t a big problem, and I still wanted to see the cat. The staff also introduced me to an easy-going adult cat named Leaf. So the next day, I could interact with these two cats for 15 minutes each.
From making the first call, submitting the application form, to scheduling the visit, it all took less than half a day, and the entire process was quite efficient.
The next day, we arrived at the Irvine Animal Care Center on time. After arriving, we called, and after a brief wait, a staff member came out to greet us and led us to see the kittens. The staff took us to a small room with a large cat tree and some blankets, then brought Topaz into the room to play with us, also giving us a cat toy. She asked if we had any questions, and she could answer them. We played with Topaz for about 15 minutes, and then she came in to ask for our thoughts. We said the cat was very cute but had a bit of aggression, not letting us touch it at all and even making biting motions, so we wanted to hear her professional advice. She confirmed that this cat did indeed have biting behavior, so she did not recommend adopting this cat for first-time owners, as she felt it didn’t match our situation and expectations.
After hearing her advice, we decided to give up on adopting this cat. We asked if there were any other cats available, and she said Leaf had already been adopted yesterday. Most of the cats at the center currently had some behavioral issues and needed to be adopted by experienced families. The only female cat that met the criteria had just been spayed, and we could take a look at her if we were interested. We looked at her but weren’t very interested, so we decided to pass. Before leaving, the staff also took us to see a 2-month-old kitten (which couldn’t be adopted yet, possibly because it hadn’t been spayed), saying she wanted us to see what a normal kitten looked like. She suggested we consider adopting a 2-month-old kitten, as they are less likely to have behavioral issues. We asked if a 2-month-old kitten would be too small and if it needed special care, and she said that 2 months is similar to 4 months. She encouraged us to keep an eye on the information on their website, as they frequently have new cats available for adoption, and we could come back later.
Overall, I have a very good impression of the Irvine Animal Care Center. The cats here are well taken care of, and the staff is knowledgeable about the cats’ situations. The appointment and interaction efficiency is high, and we could interact with the cats in a small room. The only downside is that there are too few cats; at the same time, there were almost only 2-3 kittens available for adoption, which limited our choices.
OC Animal Care
Website link: OC Animal Care
Before I went to OC Animal Care, I had already filled out pre-approval applications for adopting cats at two other organizations online, but three days passed with no news, which was a bit frustrating. Then I learned that a friend adopted a cat from OC Animal Care three weeks ago, and with just a phone call, they could directly schedule a visit to see the cats without needing pre-approval or answering various questions. So we called, and sure enough, they only asked for my name and when I wanted to come see the cats, even allowing us to schedule a visit for that same day. Besides the simple process and quick appointment, a major advantage of this organization is that there are a lot of cats; the website has dozens of kittens listed, so there are really many choices.
When we arrived, we filled out a simple form at the front desk, and after a while, a staff member led us inside to see the cats (without a guide, we would have just sat in the lobby and couldn’t see any cats; the picture above shows the lobby). The living conditions for the cats here are quite poor; the cages are small, basic, and dirty, with cat litter everywhere. The cats looked very anxious or timid; overall, their condition was not good, and many cats would reach out with their paws, trying to grab our fingers. The staff first took me into a room with many cat cages and told me to look at any cat I was interested in, but I couldn’t take the cat out of the cage unless I decided to adopt. I noticed there weren’t many cats in that room, so he took me to another room where there were more cats. I asked him if he could tell me about the personalities and behaviors of these cats, and he said he didn’t know, adding that all kittens are the same. Moreover, this organization provides no information about the cats, only some basic details (as shown in the picture below). Basically, we could only pick randomly.
I chose Diana, a 3-month-old cat, and he opened the metal door and placed the kitten in my arms. I could pet her, but the cat was very nervous and quickly slipped back into the cage. That was the only interaction we had, and there wasn’t a clean and hygienic room where we could sit down and play with the kitten. Seeing that we were still hesitating, he then said our time was up, stating that we only had 15 minutes to look at the cats through the metal bars (even though the appointment said we had 30 minutes), and then we were taken back to the lobby.
Overall, our impression of OC Animal Care was very poor; the situation of the cats was unknown, their living environment was dirty and chaotic, and there was almost no screening of potential adopters. Although the advantage is that they have many cats, you can easily adopt one from them, and recently, due to an event, the adoption fee of $175 can even be waived. As first-time cat owners, we really disliked this situation; we wanted more information from the staff and hoped to adopt a cat with a good temperament and no behavioral issues, but it seemed that no help could be provided here. So we left feeling disappointed.
OC-ARC
Website link: OC-ARC
OCARC is the Orange County Animal Rescue Coalition. I first saw this organization’s cats on Petfinder, and they left a deep impression on me. Each cat has a detailed introduction that describes its personality traits. To see the cats here, you need to visit a PetSmart pet store located at: PetSmart store in The District Shopping Center in Tustin (2237 Park Avenue). You can see the cats without an appointment on Saturdays from 1-3 pm; for other times, an appointment is required.
Walk-in
On our first visit, we didn’t make an appointment and went directly to the PetSmart store. We found that OC-ARC’s space was quite small, with fewer than 8 cats on display. Without an appointment, we could only look at the cats through glass/plastic panels and couldn’t reach in to pet them. Each cat’s information was written on a label outside. The cat area here is smaller than the Irvine Animal Care Center and not as well-equipped, but it is very clean and has no unpleasant odors. When I visited, I happened to see a volunteer come in to clean the litter boxes, feed the cats, and tidy up the space. I chatted with the volunteer for a while, and she said the people here are very nice, but I need an appointment to interact with the cats. The volunteer was very patient, communicating and interacting with each cat, and taking turns bringing them into a small room to play. The photos below were taken during my first visit; the second image shows the condition of the cages (the cat in the picture seems to be Fancy), and each cat’s activity area is about three times the size shown in the photo.
Online Form Filling
Adoption Application: link
I tried calling them to make an appointment, but the call went straight to voicemail, so I hung up. Then I filled out the online application form, which asked a lot of questions, including under what circumstances you would abandon a kitten (multiple choice), what you would do if your future partner is allergic to cats, who would take care of the cat while you travel, and what to do if your new home doesn’t allow cats, among other tough questions. If you’re interested, you can click here to view the application form. It’s clear that they have very strict criteria for applicants. After filling out the questionnaire, I didn’t receive a confirmation email, and after waiting 3-4 days with no news, we decided to walk in on Saturday afternoon.
Saturday Walk-in
We arrived at PetSmart at 1 PM on Saturday. In addition to the cats we saw in the glass display, there were a few more cages outside with 4-5 additional cats, and several staff/volunteers at the entrance. I explained our intention to adopt a cat and mentioned that I had already filled out the online application form. We expressed our desire to adopt a kitten but shared some concerns, and since it was our first time adopting a cat, the volunteers all advised us against getting a kitten. They recommended three adult cats aged 1-3 years:
- Fancy, a 2-year-old former mother cat (American Shorthair), tabby color
- Cindy, a 1-year and 7-month-old female cat without a tail (she is a Manx), black and white
- Mr. Patterson, a 2-year and 6-month-old slightly overweight male cat (American Shorthair), black and white
There were two volunteers present, who were the Foster Moms for Fancy and Cindy. They introduced us to the personalities of their respective cats and then let us go into a small room to interact with the cats (one at a time). All three cats had great temperaments and were friendly, even during our first meeting. Cindy was extremely quiet, had a lot of loose fur, and seemed to shed quite a bit. She had previously broken a leg, and although she had recovered, I was still worried about potential future issues. Also, I found it a bit strange that she didn’t have a tail. Mr. Patterson was overweight and needed to lose weight; I’m not a fan of larger cats, and he also had visible shedding issues. After playing for a while, we found ourselves liking Fancy the most. She was quite beautiful, even if not as cute and playful as a kitten. We reiterated our interest in adopting a kitten, but the volunteers were adamant about not introducing us to any kittens, stating that they could be too much for us and we might feel overwhelmed (since I had shared my concerns about cat ownership at the beginning).
Eileen (Fancy’s Foster Mom) found my online application and mentioned that one of my answers raised some concerns for them; I had answered “No Idea” to one of the questions. This was likely why no one had contacted me after so many days. They confirmed our sincerity in wanting to adopt a cat and mentioned that the kittens here had been abandoned at least once before, hoping that the adopters would be responsible and committed to caring for them for life. Cuihao and I nodded repeatedly; although we had never owned a cat and felt a lot of pressure regarding the responsibility, we considered ourselves to be responsible people. In the end, they said we could adopt and let us discuss it among ourselves without rushing us.
Having gone through these three organizations and seen many cats, we felt that this organization was the most responsible and provided the most help for beginners. Since they strongly recommended adopting an adult cat and said that Fancy was particularly well-behaved (Eileen mentioned that Fancy doesn’t chew on wires, doesn’t knock things off tables, loves to be petted, uses the litter box, and doesn’t have accidents), I concluded that Fancy was a good choice and decided to adopt her.
After deciding to adopt, Cuihao and I divided tasks. One volunteer helped Cuihao complete the adoption paperwork and explained some procedural details (including pet insurance, vaccination status, etc.), while another volunteer (Eileen) took me shopping in the pet store for essentials, especially the cat food, canned food, and treats that Fancy likes, as well as the recommended litter box and litter. She was incredibly helpful, and I couldn’t think of a better way to guide a beginner. While shopping with her, she shared all of Fancy’s preferences and habits, including how to feed her, etc. Before we took the cat home, she even helped trim the cat’s nails, so we wouldn’t have to worry about that for at least the first 10 days. By the way, I also added Eileen as a friend on Facebook, so I can message her through Messenger with any cat-related questions. This gave me a lot of confidence and peace of mind, like having an experienced person to answer any questions when you’re feeling overwhelmed with a new child; it was such a huge help!
We spent $175 on adopting Fancy (the adoption fee). Yes, adoption isn’t free, but Fancy had already received all her vaccinations and was spayed, so we wouldn’t need to take her for vaccinations within the first year. Then I spent about $165 on food and supplies for the cat, so bringing a cat home cost us $340 (we ended up spending more money later on Amazon and Chewy for various cat toys, cat trees, etc.). After checking out, we first put the cat food and supplies in the car, then brought in the simple cat carrier from the car. The volunteers even gave us a small blanket to line the bottom of the carrier (which was really thoughtful). Then Cuihao and I carefully brought the cat back to the car.
Regarding OC-ARC, I can strongly recommend adopting a cat from here; it exceeded my expectations! Although the adoption fee is $175, they have the most knowledge about the cats (since the foster moms are present) and provide the greatest help for beginners. The only downside is that the process can be a bit slow, such as no one answering the phone or no one contacting you after filling out the questionnaire. But if you go directly on Saturday afternoon, the efficiency is quite high.
The Situation of Adopting a Cat Home
I have never owned a cat before, so I mainly share my observations of bringing a cat home, rather than recommending that everyone do it like I did.
It was a 15-minute drive home from PetSmart, but the cat meowed the whole way, very eager to get out of the box. Once we got home, we took the cat to the study, and while unpacking the newly bought cat food, litter box, toys, etc., we let the cat out of the box. At first, the cat was quite timid; when we opened the wardrobe door, it immediately ran inside to hide. We had a hard time coaxing it out of the wardrobe and quickly closed the door. We initially set up the litter box, food bowl, and so on, then limited the cat’s activity area to the study and bathroom. Fancy adapted to the new environment quickly and wasn’t too afraid of us; soon, it became interested in the living room, and we let it into the living room/kitchen. At this point, the only room it hadn’t explored was the bedroom.
That night, when we went to sleep in the bedroom, Fancy was outside meowing. We couldn’t stand the sound of the cat meowing anymore, so after a while, we opened the door, and she came in to explore the bedroom. On the first night, she was very active, meowing at times, scratching the carpet, running around, eating, and using the litter box. In short, she kept us from getting much sleep. During the day, Fancy was more of an angelic cat, not noisy and willing to be affectionate, but at night she was too active. It might be because she didn’t have enough playtime, but we had already tried to play with her for about 30 minutes before bed. The second night was still noisy; although she wasn’t meowing, she was running around and even playing with my feet on the bed, biting and pawing, which was still a bit overwhelming.
At this point, all my concerns about raising a cat were left with just one unresolved issue: the cat making noise at night affecting our sleep. I hope this problem can be alleviated in the future.
About Raising Kittens or Adult Cats
In the past few weeks, there have been various opinions on whether to raise a kitten or an adult cat. Some say that if you raise a kitten from around 2 months old, and it hasn’t been abandoned by its owner before and has no personality or behavioral issues, it will be especially affectionate towards you. Others argue that kittens under 4 months are too small and it’s better to have an adult cat to guide them, as they can be difficult to care for. There are also those who believe that adult cats have already established their personalities and behaviors, and if there are behavioral issues, they can be hard to correct. Additionally, if the cat has been abandoned before, it may have some lingering effects, and you won’t know anything about its past experiences. In short, each perspective has its merits. In the end, we chose to adopt an adult cat mainly because we were concerned about the potential trouble of a kitten being too energetic, causing mischief, or being restless at night. So we adopted an adult cat with good reviews.
Final Surprise
Finally, as a cat slave, I naturally have to share some cat pictures! Here are 4 photos of Fancy. The first image was sent to me by Eileen, and it should be from the OC-ARC shelter. The second and third images show Fancy on her first day at home (the second image shows her curiosity, while the third image shows her being scared after a huge thunderstorm that night). The fourth image is of her sleeping on my desk the next day. By the way, Fancy’s Chinese name is 稀饭.
