I would agree, but with a caveat, especially with a cat: be prepared for a long haul, and possibly not what you expected. I got a cat when I was 23 and single, and after a couple years (and marriage) she got a seizure disorder that required twice-daily medicine. She lived for 17 years. She was an extraordinary companion, but if you had told me that I would turn 40 before she passed, and would move her through five states, I would have never believed you. My wife passed, then one year to the day, that cat passed. So aside from the obvious, I wouldn’t trade the experience with her for anything.