Cats are in the house and they're not leaving!
In my first entry, I mentioned that I was not quite sure how to unlock cats in Nintendogs + Cats on the Nintendo 3DS. Well, I am still not 100 percent sure how I did it, but visiting the kennel in the game was the key to my success. After playing for a few weeks, I did not even think about heading to the kennel until recently. At the kennel, you can not only view and interact with all of the dogs that are for sale, but you can also play with the cats. Shortly after finding this out, I saved up some money to purchase a cat and a few days later, I returned to the kennel to choose a cat to take home.
In the game, there are three different kinds of cats: standard, oriental, and long hair. After you choose the type that you want, you are then asked to choose the color. Finally, you are brought to a holding area for the kind of cat you selected and are able to choose from three different cats. Once you pick your cat and hand over your money, you are the owner of a brand new kitten.
 |  |
The standard cat seemed to be the cutest in the game, so that is the one that I decided to purchase. One interesting thing to note as well is that the cats are significantly cheaper than the dogs in Nintendogs + Cats. The going rate for cats is usually around 88,000 yen and the price for dogs is somewhere around 148,000 yen. After getting my cat home, I was expecting to be able to name her right away. However, the game required that I get to know my cat a little bit better before doing so. After building up a few trainer points by petting and playing with my new kitten, I was able to name her.
 |  |
I ended up naming my cat Dinah. When I first brought Dinah home, she did not seem to get along well with my puppy, Hachi. She would constantly hiss and paw at her. Over time, Hachi seemed to get used to the new member of the family, and now even shares a drinking dish with her. They have even reached a point where they occasionally play together. To be perfectly honest, there does not seem like there is much to do with your cat in the game. I bought Dinah some toys and even a “cat tower,” but like a real cat, she seems to do her own thing, consistently ignoring me and my attempts to entertain her. Even when I try to initiate some kind of contact, she plays for a little while but then very quickly loses interest. At the moment, I am still exploring the different kinds of options that Nintendogs + Cats presents for the friendly felines. Hopefully, there is more to it than what I have came across so far.
 | |
