(07-28-2010 11:48 AM)GeoVal Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks for the feedback. I thought she was a bit extreme on it...but I took her concern on, I suppose, because I still will not to leave him alone for long periods--i.e. beyond 3 1/2 hrs! He'll be getting a little raggie brother the end of September. Yay! That ought to help for those times when I do have to be out for a bit longer. Also, I will have to travel for work at some point. And having a companion for him will no doubt help alleviate my guilt!
Definitely! Congrats on getting a new baby kitten soon, ragdolls are addicting! It's funny because I still do feel guilty leaving my boys, even though I know they are just fine. Something we just have to get over I guess!
My Charlie will be 6 months old next month, I brought him home on a Saturday morning and (not through my own choice) had to go back to work that very Monday. Ever since he is at home alone 9-5 Monday - Friday. I hate leaving him, cos I feel so guilty, especially when he gives me a look with those big baby blues before I leave! However, he is fine. No stress/health issues and has never become destructive or damaged anything whilst he's home alone (fingers crossed! LOL!) He gets lots of fuss when I get home and he loves it, I think he sleeps most of the day when Im not there anyway!
I obv. does depend on the cat itself, but I do think 90% of them are more independent than we like to give them credit for!
This was one of the biggest concerns I had when when decided to get Sophie. I work full time and even though my husband works from home, this is not always a given and I knew there were going to be times when she would be on her own. I had read that Ragdolls need people around them ALOT and was worried I was making a mistake. Well she will be 4 months tomorrow and so far, so good. When she is by herself during the day, I have had no problems whatsoever. When I get home or my husband, we immediately give her many many hugs and devote as much attention to her as we can. She seems extremely happy to see us, but I don't detect any type of resentment due to the fact that we are not with her during the day.
So really think it depends on the cat. Eventually (someday) there might be a second, for now Sophie is an "only"
Carol C.
I agree that it seems to depend on the cat. My new kitten is very sweet most of the time, but definitely not needy at all. The amount of time I leave her alone varies because I'm a college student and my schedule changes very frequently. But usually its at least 4-5 hours in total most days. She doesn't seem to mind in the slightest. Usually she greets me at the door blinking sleepily and stretching so I know she gets lots of good napping time while I'm gone. Even on days when I'm home ALL day, she seems to like her own space and midday she usually sneaks off to a quiet corner (like my closet) to nap. A few times so much time has gone by without me seeing her (like 2 or more hours) that I've freaked out and started searching the house in a panic. But she's always just sleeping somewhere. Because of this, I get the impression that she's more than fine with a good bit of alone time since she opts for it even when she doesn't have to. Even though she is only 4 months old, my sense of her personality is that she doesn't need or want more company (human or feline) than she's getting.