мне стоило узнать их получше чем купить для них кошку

НЕ НАДО БЫЛО МНЕ покупать им кошку!
Ну зачем (только) я купил им кошку?

++++++++++++Tatiana!!!!! This expresses regret after the fact.

🙏😉

I didn't post my translation because I wasn't sure if "to have bought" is correct. It was the first time I saw the perfect infinitive in a sentence like that.

Татьяна 👍

https://books.google.me/books?id=9BpOAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA244&dq=%22I+should+have+known+better+than+to+have+bought%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjLjZKg1fDuAhUDCxoKHdshAmgQ6AEwAHoECAAQAg#v=onepage&q=%22I%20should%20have%20known%20better%20than%20to%20have%20bought%22&f=false

https://books.google.me/books?id=NeMaAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA97&dq=%22I+should+have+known+better+than+to+have%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX1sTW1fDuAhXryIUKHYCQDjsQ6AEwAHoECAQQAg#v=onepage&q=%22I%20should%20have%20known%20better%20than%20to%20have%22&f=false

https://books.google.me/books?id=CPEJAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA99&dq=%22I+should+have+known+better+than+to+have%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiX1sTW1fDuAhXryIUKHYCQDjsQ6AEwA3oECAUQAg#v=onepage&q=%22I%20should%20have%20known%20better%20than%20to%20have%22&f=false

Спасибо, Анна😉🙏

Спасибо за ссылки, Nick! 😉👍

Actually, stylistically, this sentence should be “I should’ve known better than to BUY them a cat” because two consecutive present perfects sound clumsy and the first one is enough. But to give you a good example of the perfect infinitive: It was stupid of me to have bought them a cat.

How very interesting! So, I wasn't so incorrect?

If it sounded repetitious to you, you were right!

But let me stress that it's NOT incorrect. Now how 'bout a translation 😉

Спасибо))

And this also means SHAME ON ME for buying them a cat - I knew it was a bad idea.