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Post by reedina on Aug 14, 2015 2:11:46 GMT
Hello! This is the first thread I've ever started, wow! I did a search on the forums and found bunches of cat/kitten threads (some of which scared me...eeks!). We're getting a Ragamuffin kitten...he'll come home the end of Sept. This is our first pet and first cat, so we know we're in for a learning curve. We're excited, though. We're committed to be responsible pet owners and to take good care of this new furry family member. I'd love any first-time-kitten advice you can give. I've been googling and reading and getting good advice from the breeder, too. I'd love to hear your experiences, though. What was it like when you got your first kitteh? What do you wish someone had told you? And because I know the rules, here he is. His name is Agen Toulouse (Agen is pronounced like Ahhh-jhenne). My son picked the name. I tried to talk him into something else but he had his heart set on that, and Agen will be mostly his kitty.
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Post by PEArfect on Aug 14, 2015 2:15:22 GMT
Adorable! Advice? Non-toys make the best toys, so I wouldn't go crazy buying a bunch of cat toys. Aluminum foil balls and straws are our cats favorite toys. They come running when they hear us get out the foil.
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Why
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,168
Jun 26, 2014 4:03:09 GMT
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Post by Why on Aug 14, 2015 2:16:29 GMT
If you have drapes or curtains that hang low enough for the kitten to climb them I suggest you pin them up for a while. I have had some expensive drapes really messed up by cute little kitties. Those little claws can cause a lot of damage.
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Nicole in TX
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,951
Jun 26, 2014 2:00:21 GMT
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Post by Nicole in TX on Aug 14, 2015 2:20:50 GMT
My best advice is too keep the kitten contained in a single room with its litterbox until you are sure it has good litterbox habits. This might be for a few days or a week.
And kittens can chew, so watch the electrical cords, phone cords, etc.
That is an absolutely precious picture!
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 2:39:55 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2015 2:23:44 GMT
Best advice is to share lots of cute kitten pictures, as often as possible.
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Post by padresfan619 on Aug 14, 2015 2:23:33 GMT
If your kitten gets a hold of ribbon, make sure to take it away or monitor them the entire time they are playing so they don't ingest it.
Many houseplants are toxic to cats, so if you have any make sure they are out of reach.
Don't feed your cat first thing in the morning. Wake up and do parts of your routine before feeding kitty or else you will be woken up every morning by a demanding cat!
A small amount of coconut oil swiped on top of the front paw every few days can help with hairballs.
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Post by reedina on Aug 14, 2015 2:24:27 GMT
You guys are awesome with all these practical tips. Thank you!!! Keep 'em coming!
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Post by mlynn on Aug 14, 2015 2:30:10 GMT
Be sure to neuter/spay. Will the cat be allowed to go outside? If so...do NOT declaw. If you will be taking it on car rides, start early. A cat carrier will be your friend when going to the vet. Despite our thinking, milk is not their friend. Yours either, unless you enjoy dealing with diarrhea. If it is long haired, you may want to give it fur ball formula food. Scoopable litter can be a good thing. Cats love boxes.
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QueenoftheSloths
Drama Llama
Member Since January 2004, 2,698 forum posts PeaNut Number: 122614 PeaBoard Title: StuckOnPeas
Posts: 5,955
Jun 26, 2014 0:29:24 GMT
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Post by QueenoftheSloths on Aug 14, 2015 2:30:28 GMT
Get 2 kittens, they are good company for each other, keep each other entertained, and 2 aren't really any more trouble than 1. Says someone who got 3 at once.
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seaexplore
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,798
Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Aug 14, 2015 2:33:44 GMT
I second the getting two! In 2010 we got 2 adorable little boy siblings. They were the best of friends and hilarious to watch. In August 2013, one of them ran off. The left over one was soooo bored and depressed! He did nothing but sleep in the bathroom window all day long. in Summer 2014, we were given 2 sisters to add to our buddy man. He started coming out of the bathroom and playing again! Cats are very social animals contrary to what others say. The love the companionship of other cats.
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Post by Linda on Aug 14, 2015 2:53:58 GMT
I'll chime in on the side of getting two kittens - only kittens (and only cats) get bored...some bored cats sleep all day, some bored cats get into TROUBLE. Kittens and cats with friends entertain themselves.
Also be warned, kittens are like potato chips...it's hard to stop at one...
Linda (aka the crazy cat lady) - owned by Oreo, Toby, Tabby, Mini, Smokey, Midnight and Little Friend
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Post by reedina on Aug 14, 2015 3:00:30 GMT
So....question about getting 2. Did you guys get 2 from the same litter? Did you do 2 rescues and introduced them slowly?
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Post by gryroagain on Aug 14, 2015 3:01:28 GMT
Two is always better than one. Visit your local shelter- it's fall kitten season and there is no shortage of kittens! Socialized cats make better pets, especially if you want to add cats layer. Though boys are much more easy going than girls, so you have that going for you.
Boxes are the best toys.
Feed high quality food from the start, or you may end up with 17 year old cats who refuse anything but Meow Mix. Ask me how I know. Now, she is 17 so I guess the meow mix didn't hurt her, but I have only been able to feed cats good quality food as kittens, otherwise they balk, start out right and you will have an easier time.
Please neuter and if you declaw I will hunt you down and lock you in a room with sad Sarah McLaughlin songs set to abused animal videos. you have been warned. ;-)
You can easily trim His claws with nail clippers, do it early and he will be used to it. Cats claws are clear so you can see the vein and where not to clip. It helps with kitten exuberance!
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Post by gryroagain on Aug 14, 2015 3:05:23 GMT
As kittens you probably dont need to do a slow intro. They will be fine together.
O.der cats need to smell/see each other to get used to each other. Some cats are chill with other cats, especially cats who were living outdoors in a feral colony. Most housecoats who are only cats will have a much harder time. The rescue I work with does the following: buy or borrow a large dog cage. Put the new cat, with box, food and a bed or carrier it can hide in inside. Put the cage in the middle of the house. When all the growling and hissing (on both sides) stope, let the new cat out. It works well, it usually takes from 4-7 days, in some cases longer or shorter. It's a safe way to I trochee a new cat to the clan.
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Post by gryroagain on Aug 14, 2015 3:07:26 GMT
Wow, the typos- sorry!
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QueenoftheSloths
Drama Llama
Member Since January 2004, 2,698 forum posts PeaNut Number: 122614 PeaBoard Title: StuckOnPeas
Posts: 5,955
Jun 26, 2014 0:29:24 GMT
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Post by QueenoftheSloths on Aug 14, 2015 3:09:31 GMT
So....question about getting 2. Did you guys get 2 from the same litter? Did you do 2 rescues and introduced them slowly? When I bought my house, I got 3 kittens all from the same litter. When only one of them was left, we adopted 3 more kittens, all from the same litter. And now that our Grandpa cat has left us, we are looking to add 2 more kittens, probably from one litter, and officially become crazy cat people. But I would think at such a young age, a kitten would look at any similarly aged kitten as a playmate/surrogate sibling and they would accept each other easily.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 2:39:55 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2015 3:45:11 GMT
We've adopted both kittens and full grown cats. Our youngest is now two and she was a rescue from a friend who lives in the country and this tiny kitten showed up on her porch. We are more partial to boy kitties, but our Coco has been such a fun girl to have around.
Make sure he knows where the litter box is, make it easily accessible until your sure he has developed good litter box habits, then if you need to move it, do it in stages. Make sure he has lots of fresh water and a few things to play with. For discipline, we use a squirt bottle and it's always worked for us...ours got the hint quickly.
Since you don't have other cats to worry about, you won't need to sequester the new one from any others for a while.
Have fun with your new kitten!
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Post by Linda on Aug 14, 2015 3:50:15 GMT
our current batch include 3 from a litter (Toby, Tabby and Mini), a stray (found as a 3m old kitten) that's about 3 weeks younger (Smokey) - the four of them were 5 in May. Then their mum who is almost 6 and was a pregnant stray (Little Friend). Oreo came home as a kitten to a household that had two adult sibling cats (who have since passed) - he's 12 now. Midnight is another stray - no idea how old he is. He's Little Friend's outdoor buddy - the others are all indoors.
We've only had problems once- when Little Friend was pregnant and then nursing, she wasn't very friendly to the other cats. Once her kittens weaned, she was fine. Other than that - we do have our indoor cats separated now because the trio don't get along with Smokey and he was having some serious anxiety issues becausee of it. So the trio are in one part of the house and Smokey is in the other part and Oreo moves between both areas as he gets on with all of them.
I will suggest handling the new kitten(s) a LOT - we spend a ton of time holding and petting and talking to and playing with ours when they are small and they are the friendlist cats...
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 2:39:55 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2015 3:52:53 GMT
No ribbon, no yarn, no thread, no dental floss. (if I see loose thread on the floor, I pick it up, I throw dental floss in the toilet NOT the trash, ribbon and yarn are not toys) My cat ingested 3 ft of yarn (ripped off a doorknob from one of the kids' Christmas projects made at school. We spent several thousand dollars on her surgery.
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Post by crimsoncat05 on Aug 14, 2015 3:55:08 GMT
-- I second getting two at once; it's great fun for the kittens, and for you, having them to watch! Kittens are great when they run around and bounce off the walls... we call it 'getting a wild hair up their a*S' at our house...
-- Make sure you pay attention to what things really interests them (things you don't want them to have, I mean), and cat-proof accordingly. Our newest cat (our third) has a thing for pens, pencils, drinking straws, etc. and no matter where they are, she can find them. And shortly thereafter, we can't find them, lol, or we hear things falling on the floor in the middle of the night. (plus, we have dogs, too-- stuff that gets knocked on the floor usually gets eaten or chewed up.)
-- I take it back; when we lose things, we usually can find them under the refrigerator, the stove, or under the door of the pantry. haha!!
ETA: ooh, @gajenny, I'm glad your cat came thru the surgery okay!! that is one of my biggest fears.
-- You may want to think long and hard about not having a full-sized Christmas tree the first year, depending on how energetic your kitten is, or at least try and cat-proof as best you can-- no tinsel, put the non-breakable ornaments near the bottom, and be prepared to chase the kitten out from under the tree a LOT. (we use a spray bottle with water.) Our Christmas tree is a fake one, and it still gets chewed on sometimes, even though our youngest cat is two.
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Post by darkchami on Aug 14, 2015 6:00:15 GMT
I am so glad we got two kittens. My little boy would drive us absolutely insane if he were alone. He is high energy and needs lots of attention.
While they are little, make sure to touch and handle them everywhere. I would run a cloth over them every day. This got them used to being held. They don't have any sensitive spots where they don't like being touched. Make sure they get their paws held. It will be easier to cut their nails later.
Every kitten will have its own issues. My girl was shy and afraid. I would lock her in the bathroom with me. I sat on the floor reading a book. It only took a day or two for her to get curious and begin to climb up on me. I let her explore me without reaching out to touch her. After a couple of days I could pet her.
My boy was a friendly crazy thing. He climbed the curtains (2 years). He climbed the Christmas tree (4 years). He ran wildly around the house, jumping up on furniture, and surfing across it leaving scratches in his wake. I often congratulate myself for not strangling him those first couple of years. He has turned into a lap cat.
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Post by MichyM on Aug 14, 2015 6:49:57 GMT
I agree with getting two. Also, start clipping their claws right away so they'll get used to it. And do it regularly every ten days. Manhandle their paws a bit while they're young (gently pushing out their claws) when just hanging out too. Same goes for brushing, but try to do it every couple of days, even though as kittens they don't need it.
The other advice is to never use your hand as a toy. When they're young it can be "cute" but curbing the "attack the hand" behavior when they're older is tough!
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momto4kiddos
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,153
Jun 26, 2014 11:45:15 GMT
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Post by momto4kiddos on Aug 14, 2015 12:34:43 GMT
Cats are such an easy pet, they're cuddly when they want to be, but pretty independent! You've gotten great advice, watch the plants and string and plastic (mine chew plastic bags!) Also be careful of things like paper bags with handles - mine have freaked when one of the kids left one and they got their head through the handle and then couldn't get out (because they freaked!) We've always had multiple cats, but then had 1 for a long time. He was fine on his own, but dd really bugged me for a 2nd one and even after about 4 years as an only he took right to her. My kids always say they are best friends and maybe they are. If you find one, you usually find the other not far behind. So two isn't a bad idea, they are company for each other
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Post by JustCallMeMommy on Aug 14, 2015 14:53:00 GMT
Kittens are so fun. We have two right now, though they are growing sooo fast! We chose brothers from the same litter. They both think the dog is the cat's meow.
At first, we set up a room that had everything they needed and locked them in during the day. Now, they are free to roam. They are high energy and are all over the place - I'm really glad they have each other as playmates. The drawback to two is that they sometimes ignore the people because brother is much more fun.
Pay attention to their personalities. One of our cats really doesn't like the be held, but he is perfectly content if he can climb into your lap and be petted. I call the other "the cat I carry around."
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Post by peasapie on Aug 14, 2015 15:03:10 GMT
Start him right away with one or two good scratching posts, so he gets the idea early that is where to put those claws.
We used non-clay litter during the early months because the breeder said some kittens eat the litter. (we have a rag doll) Then gradually transitioned over to clay.
Stick with whatever food baby comes home with and only slow change that.
Expect they may not eat much for the first few days. That's normal.
No dairy. No onions.
Boxes are wonderful. Even when they outgrow them.
Enjoy your baby!
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Post by pjaye on Aug 14, 2015 15:19:20 GMT
I'll reiterate about NOT 'declawing' if you don't know much about it then read up on it...it's not about removing the claws, it's an amputation of their toes at the first knuckle. In humans it would be the equivalent to chopping off the top of every finger and toe at the first joint. It's inhumane and illegal in almost every country except the USA.
Buy your cat a decent (tall & sturdy) scratching pole, it's a natural behaviour to scratch, that's how they leave their scent to mark the house as "theirs" and also to help them shed the outer layer of their claws, you don't want them scratching anything else, so give them a good/approved place to do so.
If he's not already neutered when you get him, then have him done within the first 6 months, cats can be fertile from any time after about 3 months, the male hormones makes their urine smell and they will also make him want to roam in search of a female. Both of you will be happier when those hormones are out of the picture.
Keep him inside and/or in an enclosed cat run in the garden. Studies have shown that indoor/outdoor cats who are allowed to roan freely outside live about 5 years, cats kept inside only or in combination with an outside enclosures live 12+ years. If you want to have him for a long time, DON'T let him roam the neighbourhood freely, apart from pissing off your neighbours when he poops in their garden or kid's sandbox or fights with their cat, he's at risk of being run over, mauled by dogs or at the hands of human cat haters.
Someone else already mentioned hand play, and they are absolutely right, do not 'play' with him with your bare hands (encourage him bite fingers, etc) hands are NOT toys, at some point he'll get it wrong and the play you taught him will end up with a child getting bitten or scratched and the cat will end up being the bad guy who injured the child. Play with him with toys/objects only, never fingers.
Handle him a lot, once he's been with you a couple of weeks and his used to you, pick him up, turn him over, handle his feet, look in his mouth. The more he gets used to that stuff the easier he'll be to handle at the vet and if her ever needs pills etc.
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Post by AN on Aug 14, 2015 15:51:38 GMT
My vet's office offers a kitten socialization class for kittens 8 weeks old to 6 months (I think). I had never heard of such a thing for cats! It's completely free, and you bring in your kitten, lots of people handle them, they get their paws touched, they learn to wear a harness and walk on a leash (seriously!!!), and they get experience riding in the car.
I found my vet through the website CatVets.com - they are "Gold certified" with a separate entrance and waiting room for cats, no scruffing, etc. Maybe look for a vet there and see if any of the certified ones have kitten classes for you to go to.
My cat rides great in the car because I took him back and forth every weekend when he was young. That alone is huge, highly recommend lots of car rides. But mostly, whatever you do with them as a kitten (handle paws, trim nails, look at teeth, pet their belly, etc) will be what they will tolerate as adults. Not completely, but that is your one shot to try to manipulate their personality. So be purposeful!
Oh, and the Tidy Cats Breeze litterbox is amazing and has changed my life. Google it! No more litter tracking everywhere and so easy to keep clean.
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flopsykitty
Full Member
Posts: 180
Jun 26, 2014 18:08:12 GMT
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Post by flopsykitty on Aug 14, 2015 16:27:04 GMT
I would absolutely recommend getting more than one - for all the reasons mentioned. If you are going to have exclusively indoor cats, I would recommend NOT paying any attention to them as you enter the house. Walk inside, close the door, and go into a room a fair distance from the front door before interacting with them. We did this to deter them from running to the front door (and, possibly outside) when we came home from work, or shopping, etc. Now, when they hear the front door open, they run into the kitchen (onto their favorite "chicken rug"), and wait for us to come over and greet them with head bumps and rubs. No worries about them dashing outside when the door opens!
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scorpeao
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,521
Location: NorCal USA
Jun 25, 2014 21:04:54 GMT
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Post by scorpeao on Aug 14, 2015 16:38:28 GMT
buy some Rocco & Roxie stain and odor remover. I have had numerous cats over the years and every one of them ends up peeing outside the litter box. I'm done with cats...
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seaexplore
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,798
Apr 25, 2015 23:57:30 GMT
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Post by seaexplore on Aug 15, 2015 1:34:03 GMT
My old man kitty (he's only 5 but the oldest of my trio) LOVES the cheapie knit gloves from Target. My gloves kept disappearing and I found them in his "toy box" all snagged up. He walks around the house with one in his mouth. I find them on my pillow, in the shower, in the tub, in his water bowl, in the food bowl. It's fun seeing where he puts them all.
I would for sure get siblings or close in age kitties.
eta: as for the claws, push their toes apart and massage between them every chance you get. Hold them on their back (if they let you) like a baby as often as possible. I did this with my old guy and he is the best at letting me cut his nails. He lays nicely on his back in my lap while I use the clippers!
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