As with dogs, individual temperament matters more than breed. Teach the child how to leave a cat alone and most of the problem disappears.
| Breed | Size | Lifespan | Kids | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Shorthair | Medium | 15-20 years | Good with kids | The 'all-American working cat' story implies a hardy, mixed-heritage constitution, but this is a closed pedigree… |
| Birman | Medium | 12-16 years | Good with kids | Birmans are marketed as a calm, especially healthy longhaired breed, but they carry a distinctly higher-than-ave… |
| British Shorthair | Medium | 12-20 years | Good with kids | The round 'teddy bear' face and dense plush coat of the show standard sit on a breed that Cornell's feline healt… |
| Burmese | Medium | 10-16 years | Good with kids | The extremely rounded, short-faced 'contemporary' Burmese head comes from a gene that is lethal in double dose —… |
| Cornish Rex | Small | 11-15 years | Good with kids | The Cornish Rex's signature ultra-thin, guard-hair-free coat isn't just low-maintenance styling — it leaves the … |
| Devon Rex | Small | 9-15 years | Good with kids | Devon Rex are talkative and constantly want to be involved in whatever you're doing, including waking you up, an… |
| Domestic Shorthair | Medium | 12-15 years, commonly more | Good with kids | The 'ordinary' shelter cat with no pedigree is, on average, the genetically healthiest cat you can get — a large… |
| Maine Coon | Large | 12-15 years | Good with kids | Maine Coons are marketed as a robust, 'naturally healthy' breed, but a lab analysis of thousands of samples foun… |
| Manx | Medium | 12-16 years | Good with kids | The same gene that gives Manx cats no tail also frequently disrupts how the spinal cord forms — one cited study … |
| Munchkin | Small | 12-15 years | Good with kids | Munchkin's short legs come from a dwarfism gene, breeding two Munchkins together kills roughly a quarter of the … |
| Norwegian Forest Cat | Large | 14-16 years | Good with kids | This breed is marketed as a hardy, naturally-evolved landrace with few health problems, which is true for most i… |
| Ocicat | Large | 12-15 years | Good with kids | Despite looking exactly like a wild ocelot, the Ocicat has zero wild-cat ancestry — it's a 100% domestic breed b… |
| Ragamuffin | Large | 12-16 years | Good with kids | Ragamuffin breeders lean hard on the phrase 'hybrid vigor' from outcrossing to domestic longhairs, but the breed… |
| Ragdoll | Large | 12-17 years | Good with kids | Ragdolls are sold almost entirely on their limp, placid 'floppy' temperament, but that same breed carries a spec… |
| Russian Blue | Medium | 15-20 years | Good with kids | Russian Blues are one of the few purebred cats without a well-documented breed-specific genetic disease, so the … |
| Scottish Fold | Medium | 13-15 years | Good with kids | Every Scottish Fold's folded ears are caused by osteochondrodysplasia, a cartilage and bone-growth disorder that… |
| Siamese | Medium | 11-15 years | Good with kids | The Siamese's famous 'talking' is not occasional chatter but a loud, persistent, opinionated yowl, and a bored o… |
| Siberian | Large | 12-15 years | Good with kids | Siberians are marketed as 'hypoallergenic,' but no cat breed is allergen-free — every cat produces the Fel d 1 p… |
| Sphynx | Medium | 6-14 years | Good with kids | Sphynx cats are sold as hypoallergenic because they lack fur, but the protein that actually triggers most cat al… |
| Tonkinese | Medium | 12-16 years | Good with kids | The Tonkinese is a Siamese-Burmese cross bred to be a 'best of both' companion, but that also means an extremely… |
Pick two and put them side by side, then read the full cat guide for costs and daily time.