Would you get a pet that looks similar to one you lost?

[4horses]

I was on Facebook the other day and came across a cat that is up for adoption soon and it looks very similar to a cat that I lost. Similar facial markings, similar eye color, similar coat length etc. Obviously I can’t say if it is similar behaviorally, as I haven’t met the cat.

Would you get a pet that is similar to one you lost? I have a friend who always gets one specific breed of dog and they always look the same to me. Unfortunately that particular breed is very prone to cancer and I’m not certain I could do that- as she has lost several over the years.

Part of me was tempted to go look at that cat and maybe see if I could foster it. Part of me says, no way, but then I wonder… Maybe it is a distant relative to my cat. When I found Isabel the cat in the same area that I had found Sarah in, I assumed they were probably related in some way.

My old Bobtail cat has several cousins/relatives living in the woods nearby. All bobtails like her even if they don’t match her coloring- which is my fault for rescuing a male orange tom cat who bolted out the car door and took up residence in the woods nearby. Oops. I did eventually get him neutered (and his son) but it was enough to add some orange kittens to the gene pool.

[Larksmom]

i did that. I already had 2 cats but I found a cat living with the ferals that looked a great deal like Lark. This one was not a feral but had been abandoned when her people died.I brought her home, and for 2and 1/2 years has been a misery. Our situations are quite different, but when I lose one, they are replaced asap. Sadly, there are always desperate cats that need homes.

[shiloh]

If it happened accidentally, fine. But to go do it deliberately - no. They aren’t the same animal and to expect them to be that way (which is what you are doing when you get an animal that is similar in appearance) is wrong. It means you have expectations that that poor thing can’t possibly live up to.

[Lusoluv]

I couldn’t do it, but that doesn’t matter. You should do what you want! I didn’t think I’d want another dog after my girl passed away in early 2020. Then I met my current dog through serendipity, and my heart melted. I didn’t regret bringing her home. I say follow your heart!

[Peggy]

I wasn’t necessarily looking for another tuxedo cat after Dice died. But then the cat who appealed to me on the shelter site was another tuxedo. So now I have a cat named Tom.

Dice

Tom

[Scribbler]

If you like a particular breed of dog, most individuals of any given breed are pretty similar at least to someone outside the breed world. With regular cats, there’s about half a dozen really common phenotypes, the tuxedo, the ginger, the grey tabby, solid black, etc and if you’ve had multiple cats over the years you might have had one of each and then start repeating!

[Willesdon]

I feel it is slightly unfair to the new pet, to make constant comparison to it’s predecessor rather than giving it respect as a new individual in the household.

[S1969]

@4horses

I have a friend who always gets one specific breed of dog and they always look the same to me.

I’m getting my 6th Brittany soon. While they all look very similar, and might look the same to people who don’t know the breed or see them regularly, believe me they are all very different. Their markings are only one thing that makes them look like them - their expression, the way they move, their tail set, etc. are all unique. And then of course, when you combine those with different personalities, they are very different.

I own father and son, and even though they are very similarly marked, and very similar in temperament, to me they are so different I could never mix them up, other than times when they are far away and coming directly at me. Then…maybe. But not really.

So - if you think you would otherwise like this cat (based on all the other things except how it looks - age, gender, temperament, etc.), I would not feel like it’s the same as your other cat. You will find that it is really a different animal. And if it is similar in some ways - why would that be a bad thing.

[trubandloki]

I would have no problem getting a new pet that looked similar to a pet I lost.

I don’t go out looking for all black cats, but we are on our third all black cat.

[chestnutmarebeware]

When I’ve lost a dog, I always start out trying to find another of the same breed. But then I go to the municipal animal shelter and fall in love with a totally different sort, usually of a breed/mix I’d said I’d never own. Right now there are two chihuahua mixes probably disemboweling dog beds at home right now.

[Alex_and_Bodie_s_Mom]

I don’t try to - but all of my indoor cats are currently brown tabbies, so … if the cat speaks to you, go for it!

[Sdel]

As someone who is on their 6th and 7th yellow Lab/Lab mix……I say go get the cat.

[beowulf]

I would like to say no but… every horse I have happens to be bay with a little star, like the OG model…

Then same for cats, although it’s “easy” to say all black cats look the same (imho, they don’t, but…).

I say, do what your heart wants. The rest falls into place.

[ThreeWishes]

Just keep in mind which I’m sure you’re aware of that each individual animal’s personality will be different. The cat love of my life was a tuxedo 6 toed cat named Gato. He was the smartest most affectionate dog like cat I’ve ever owned. He lived to the ripe old age of 18 and I was so distraught when cancer took him. The day I went to pick up his ashes at the vet there was a crate of kittens for adoption. Inside was the cutest little tuxedo kitten with six toes. I took Gato’s ashes AND that kitten home with me. Edgar looks so much like Gato. Buuuuuuut his personality is very different. I joke that Edgar is what would happen if you buried Gato in Stephen King’s pet cemetery. They look alike but what comes back just ain’t quite right! Lol Don’t get me wrong I adore Edgar but he’s a naughty little booger. In the end I guess the takeaway is that another animal loved is a good thing.

Edited to add a pic of Edgar. We call him the mittens of mayhem.

[trubandloki]

@beowulf

Then same for cats, although it’s “easy” to say all black cats look the same (imho, they don’t, but…).

Oh, all my black cats have been very different. Right now I have one that is long and skinny. Last one was short and round.

I have to assume that the OP was not talking about exactly the same.

[hoopoe]

I have always favored brown tabbies, I love their colors . NO two have ever been the same in character. I think If I get another cat I am going to go Orange.

I think folks like what they like, physical type or color coat type. I would not hesitate to consider the cat, @4horses as long as you do not expect him to be the “same” as your old friend

[2DogsFarm]

Not intentionally, but when I lost my little barncat - aka The Verminator - I got a kitten sight unseen from a local County shelter.
Told them I wanted barncats, they offered & I accepted 2.
1 was at a different shelter, but they previewed the one onsite & .
Coincidence he was a gray tuxedo like my little girl had been.
Indy, the original:

Her successor, Bounce:

Un(?)fortunately, Bounce & the other brother from a different shelter - Cheeto - have plainly told me barnlife is not for them.
So my barn depends on passerby cats for rodent control
And I have housecats:

[Mosey_2003]

I would have another Boxer or Cocker in a heartbeat if I were ready for another indoor dog, and they all look very similar to each other. Wouldn’t bother me a bit.

[candyappy]

We did get another dog in 2010 that was almost exactly the same color/ markings as the one we suddenly had to put down. It just turned out that way . We lost a male and the new was a female .

We loved them and it didn’t make it harder to get over the loss . They are such individuals personality wise it doesn’t matter who they resemble.

[shiloh]

You have a type? lol