Blighmy that is good!
Sadly my cat is a rescue so she's got bad habits I doubt I'll ever shift - food stealing being her worst Still since I know she does it I can easily keep stuff out of her way and chuck her out the room if she gets too 'light fingered' with my dinner.

Hey guys, thanks for all the replies! I'll keep you updated as it what I do, but I can't do anything about actually getting a little companion for a few months yet, I'm not in the flat I'll have hopefully have the kitty in for another month and I want to get myself settled before I have to worry about getting it settled!
Now, this isn't a big deal at all.. but I was wondering if you've had any experiences with the differences in behaviour through the gender of a cat? I've heard that males tend to be more dependant - is that true? I've had both in my lifetime and like I say I'm not going to choose a cat based purely on it's gender, just curious! Also if I was to get two would it be better to get male/male, male/female, female/female?

Siblings or mother/child would be best though if you can get an unrelated pair that are already bonded they should be fine.
Sadly some cats never get on with others

My cats are outdoor cats and they know exactly what they are allowed and not allowed to do (when I'm around anyway ). I would say they're quite well behaved - however, I don't really want to 'train' them because I like cats to be cats and I quite like them to be a bit naughty at times. That's the fun in cat ownership.

Most of the research around suggests that indoor cats actually have more behavioural problems because of boredom and lack of stimulation. My cats are well exercised and have no excuses for boredom.

My late Tabitha was very much an outdoor cat and she was incredibly well behaved - after nearly 16 years together she knew and understood me so well and she knew exactly what she could get way with. I don't know why anyone would think that outdoor cats would be more aggressive and less social and affectionate than indoor cats as I've never experienced any problems but I have nothing to compare with because I've thankfully never had indoor only cats (nor know anyone with indoor only cats) - just as people making these sorts of sweeping statements have probably never had outdoor cats.

I've had outdoor cats as well -- so I am in a position to compare the two.

They were also well-behaved, but more prone to unpredictable behaviour at times.

Just wondering, what do you mean by spoil? Toys and treats etc do not cost that much.

I have indoor cats, they are 5 year old sisters.

I made sure they have plenty of toys, scratching posts and comfy beds and they are absolutely fine. Also you can get leads for cats and take them on walks if you want them to have some outside time

Have you thought about getting a FIV cat? they are rehomed as indoor cats for the obvious reason.

I chose not to have a single cat as I thought company would be nice for them if they are going to be indoors, and they are closely bonded

I made sure they have indoor cat cat food, one thing I would say is watch their weight - one of ours has a tendancy to 'pork out' a bit. And if you have indoor cats you need a lint roller - fur gets all over the place.

My pair are kittens that came from the same rescue foster home, they aren't siblings, but had been together since they were tiny with about 15 other kittens. My boy is 3 weeks older than my girl.

They rarely curl up together, but there are no problems with them fighting with eachother at all. If one is inside and the other comes in from outside, the inside one jumps down to see them, to check them over, they sometimes do this cute Eskimo type kissing thing as well, and rub noses.

Sometimes they wash eachother, but this usually (due to their age) ends up in whoever is being washed grabbing the other one round the neck, and them having a play fight

Don't bathe your kitties.

Cats are sweet and gentle creatures, they should never be forced to do something they don't enjoy.

There are times when i've had to bathe my cats...and they actually didnt mind it too much, my 9 month old ragdoll cross will jump in the shower with me if i dont lock him out so not all cats hate water!

Can you enlarge on this please.

BIB - that's very sensible and common sense. I got my last cat from a rescue centre in London and I was always a bit worried about him going out (lots of traffic, central London).
He kinda became an indoor cat himself, he was never that fussed and the cat flap became redundant over time.

They do need more attention though, an indoor cat will sit there when you come home along the lines of "Oh there you are then, now drop everything instantly and give me heaps of cuddles and play with me. NOW." A bit like a young child or a dog puppy, I guess.

As for toys - forget the expensive stuff. There is nothing a cat likes more than chasing a shoestring. Or even better, a feather attached to a shoestring. Hours of fun!

I have had very positive experiences of indoor cats. I have 3, 2 litter sisters who were 13 yesterday and my baby as I call her even though she is now 5!

When I had the two older cats, I lived in a block of flats and there was no way they could have gone out, although I had already made the decision they would be house cats due to bad experiences with other cats (poisoned and run over). I just made sure they were given plenty of things to play with (although they much prefer the brown paper bags from Primark to the expensive toys I buy them. I watch their diet, feeding them sparingly and normally buying cat food especially for indoor cats, make sure their litter trays are cleaned and redone every day and basically they have never been a problem at all, in fact the two older cats are like kittens at times, I call them my old age kittenzens!!

Grooming regularly and providing them with somewhere to claw is important unless you want your furniture to suffer!

Some people say that they should be allowed to go out, but TBH I would worry if they did go out with traffic, other cats and cruel people, they are safe and I have peace of mind,.

Hope this helps.

Well my elderly outdoor cat is now an indoor cat. After stressing about whether to start keeping him in as I felt it would be cruel as he was used to going out I bought him a litter tray.
The cat flap is still open for him but he hasn't gone out for weeks now.
The only thing is having to clean out the litter tray. As soon as I clean it he uses it, I've cleaned in 4 times already today.
On a positive note there is no smell at all from his litter tray although my whole house is covered in cat litter!
He hates other cats and would rather be on his own, he still hisses at our other cat.

Choice of breed is important. I've got an indoor Maine Coon, who's perfectly happy to hang out with the humans and not at all destructive, but I gather that cats like Burmese go nuts indoors, as they're very energetic.

clearly you have never met one if you think this

But my outdoor cat is well behaved and i hardly even have to tell her 'no'.

My part Burmese is becomes an indoor cat in the winter and outdoor in the summer. I have to leave lots of things for her to play with. She has been known to climb up curtains and bring down the shower curtain and she is not a kitten she sis 7 years old.