Some questions you might want to ask yourself are -
- a certain color?
- a particular breed?
- male or female?
- a certain age range?
- a certain personality type?
After answering these questions, I suggest starting your search at your local animal shelter. Most of the animals there have merely had some sort of bad luck and just want to have a happy, warm, and loving home to live in. Ask the shelter personnel questions about the animal's past and their recent behavior. Often the perfect match can be found and the search will be over.
If you are looking for a particular breed, I suggest that you find a reputable breeder in your area and deal directly with them. I recommend avoiding pet stores since often the animals sold there are taken from their mothers at too young an age, which can result in psychological and immunity problems.
Fortunately there are many books that give comprehensive details on the personality types of the various different breeds and while they are a generalization they are also quite accurate in most cases and can help you make the right decision more often than not. Here are some books that you might want to check out.
Some breeds require a lot more attention than others, and you also need to look at your stage of life and determine how much time you will have to devote to your cat.
When choosing your cat, see how it interacts with you right from the outset. When I held one of my current cats for the first time, he immediately and lovingly rubbed his head against my chin as if we had known each other for a long time. I was instantly sold and he has turned out to be one of the sweetest personalities I've ever known.
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