How to adopt another cat
How I did it: We adopted a cat from a shelter after visiting her for a few hours over the course of a week. We were looking for a cat with a similar temperament to our resident cat (which is what the shelter suggested). Our resident cat is very shy, mellow, and loving. So, we were looking for another female cat, also mellow and affectionate. The only cat that was the right age (1.5 to 4 years old) and temperament was an adorable, very skittish tortoise-shell cat. It turned out, though, that the skittishness was just one expression of some high strung energy. This energy also manifested as digging in the trash and chewing open bags to get at /any/ kind of food. But, she is also very affectionate and a sweet companion for our other cat, so we did fulfill that goal.
Lessons & tips: Considering what happened in my situation, I would advise others to find lots of choices and go with a cat that the shelter knows pretty well.
