Kittens help 😓

[KfBr]

Okay I’m feeling much better now guys and gals
Before I went to work yesterday, I put the baby in the spare room with his bed, food, water, litter and toys and left the eldest where he usually goes. Got home and reunited them and let them play and fight it out. All good the eldest was even in his bed and he has NEVER gone in before and always refused!!

Last night, they wanted to play when we were wanting to sleep so I left them downstairs with their beds etc.
I didn’t hear a peep for a while so I nipped down to check (silence is worrying ) andddddd they were both curled up together in one bed!!

I’m feeling much more optimistic now, thank you all for your advise

 

[Sp20191]

Both of mine have always slept at night even when we are out at work all day I assume they sleep then too but I’ve read kittens sleep a lot! We just make sure that we play with them for a few hours to help them sleep.
Defiantly get a kitten, I love them
I would of loved a dog but we just don’t have the time

My cat sleeps for about 20hours a day....oh to be a cat

 

[Oohthedrama]

Thank you both! One last question — wires!!!
I know kittens love chewing and if there are wires on the floor they’ll be all over them. I can move certain wires so they aren’t lying on the floor but there’s at least one I can think of which I can’t really move. Someone told me to spray lemon/citrus which is offputting to kittens/cats — is this true? I’m not so worried about the day when I can supervise it’s just at night if she manages to Houdini herself near any wires.

I’m very excited but very scared

can you call your kitten apple and then get a second one called pie.

thank you muchly

 

[thenomad]

Sorry to hijack this thread!
I’m looking to get a kitten too! I’m worried about her crying at night though, what can I do to soothe her? Also, I heard that cats are more active at night than in daytime so should I put the scratch post in her sleeping area? [she’s gonna sleep in the kitchen, I was gonna leave her toys in the living room]

Good luck with your new fur baby, I’m so jealous!

Aww congrats on deciding to get a kitty. I hope it will be a smooth transition for you. A few tips that I have found to work for me.

If you can get different types of scratch posts that would be helpful too. One vertical and horizontal. Also, keep it near where you mostly spend your time as cats like to be near their owners and it should discourage furniture scratching.

Also, toys likes laser pointers or string a on a wand type toy can really wear out a kitten if you’re worried she won’t sleep through the night. Get toys in which you can interact with the kitten and don’t get those self play toys. I find more often than not the cats I’ve fostered didn’t care for them. Also, no need to splurge on expensive toys. I find cats really dig cheap stuff like cardboard boxes or elastic hair ties. Kittens however are much more curious and active than a cat so try to set aside a bit of time about 30 mins of active play each day.

A cat’s diet for the most part should have high moisture content as cats don’t drink water often. If her diet is mostly kibble make sure to mix a good amount of high quality wet food as well. Also, touch her paws often so she gets comfortable with you and is de-sensitized to someone else touching her paws. That way you can do in-home nail trims if need be. If you have other questions, feel free to DM me.

Best of luck to you and your fur-ever buddy!

 

[KfBr]

Both of mine have always slept at night even when we are out at work all day I assume they sleep then too but I’ve read kittens sleep a lot! We just make sure that we play with them for a few hours to help them sleep.
Defiantly get a kitten, I love them
I would of loved a dog but we just don’t have the time

 

[Apple In My Pie]

Sorry to hijack this thread!
I’m looking to get a kitten too! I’m worried about her crying at night though, what can I do to soothe her? Also, I heard that cats are more active at night than in daytime so should I put the scratch post in her sleeping area? [she’s gonna sleep in the kitchen, I was gonna leave her toys in the living room]

Good luck with your new fur baby, I’m so jealous!

 

[PineappleQueen19]

Kittens, I’m so envious

I have read that cats are naturally nocturnal but have adapted to humans’ lifestyle to be more awake during the day. So I think some probably have stronger nocturnal instincts than others.

My cat is an old rescue who had a hard start to life, he often goes mad and does fast laps around the house at 3am and has figured out how to jump up and turn the door handles so... we just let him do this thing, bless him

A good YouTube channel to check out is Jackson Galaxy, he’s a cat whisperer and has loads of great videos on cat psychology. His advice was a godsend when we first took in our rescue.

 

[KfBr]

No the feliway has no smell at all

Oh lovely, thank you I will get one xx

 

[Sp20191]

I was reading about these last night!
I have the pet remedy but cannot stand the smell do the plug ins have a smell?

woken up feeling sick with worry about the seeing each other this morning

Honestly just let them get on with it.

We have an old cat, who hates all living creatures except us and we got a puppy, at first we kept them separated because the cat hated him, but we eventually just let them get on with it, I can’t say they like each other but they do tolerate each other, the dog knows the cat is boss and will swipe him if he over steps his mark. They will work it out and remember it’s only been a few days! Xxx

 

[motherofdonkeys]

Don't panic, they are most likely just sorting out the pecking order! We have 2 cats, one is 6 months older than the other and they came to us from the rescue place 6 months apart. Cats can get quite boisterous and they will play fight. Things to watch for, is their fur standing up and are they howling at each other? If not, am sure they'll be fine given time. Ours don't curl up to sleep together and they do rough and tumble a lot, but they will groom each other, they will roll on their back and show their tummies in each others company. Our first cat is number one in the house, and we make sure he knows he is by feeding him first. The older one is actually the smaller of our two and had some food issues, which is why we help him reaffirm his prime position. I think it took 2-4 weeks for our two to calm down with each other, give it time, they'll be ok.

 

[GiggleBee]

Thank you both! One last question — wires!!!
I know kittens love chewing and if there are wires on the floor they’ll be all over them. I can move certain wires so they aren’t lying on the floor but there’s at least one I can think of which I can’t really move. Someone told me to spray lemon/citrus which is offputting to kittens/cats — is this true? I’m not so worried about the day when I can supervise it’s just at night if she manages to Houdini herself near any wires.

I’m very excited but very scared

Weve had 5 cats and only one of them has chewed on wires. Thankfully she didnt manage to cause any damage and we ended up using a sprsy waterbottle when she went near them and she soon stopped

 

[KfBr]

Thank you
I’ve been trying to just let them fight it out then I get scared I’m going to have a massacre on my hands
That’s made me feel a little better, I just love my first baby so much I can’t bare to think he hates me now

Don't panic, they are most likely just sorting out the pecking order! We have 2 cats, one is 6 months older than the other and they came to us from the rescue place 6 months apart. Cats can get quite boisterous and they will play fight. Things to watch for, is their fur standing up and are they howling at each other? If not, am sure they'll be fine given time. Ours don't curl up to sleep together and they do rough and tumble a lot, but they will groom each other, they will roll on their back and show their tummies in each others company. Our first cat is number one in the house, and we make sure he knows he is by feeding him first. The older one is actually the smaller of our two and had some food issues, which is why we help him reaffirm his prime position. I think it took 2-4 weeks for our two to calm down with each other, give it time, they'll be ok.

Thank you!
neither have had their hairs stand up, the biggest just jumps straight on the baby
The worst that’s happened is the spitting and ears going back!
I will try feeding our eldest 1st just to make it known who is the boss

 

[GiggleBee]

Oh lovely, thank you I will get one xx

They arent cheap but they really do work. You have to keep it on 24/7. It will look like its smoking but that's just the ferimone comeing out. (we saw this when we first got it an panicked!)

 

[GiggleBee]

Aww congrats on deciding to get a kitty. I hope it will be a smooth transition for you. A few tips that I have found to work for me.

If you can get different types of scratch posts that would be helpful too. One vertical and horizontal. Also, keep it near where you mostly spend your time as cats like to be near their owners and it should discourage furniture scratching.

Also, toys likes laser pointers or string a on a wand type toy can really wear out a kitten if you’re worried she won’t sleep through the night. Get toys in which you can interact with the kitten and don’t get those self play toys. I find more often than not the cats I’ve fostered didn’t care for them. Also, no need to splurge on expensive toys. I find cats really dig cheap stuff like cardboard boxes or elastic hair ties. Kittens however are much more curious and active than a cat so try to set aside a bit of time about 30 mins of active play each day.

A cat’s diet for the most part should have high moisture content as cats don’t drink water often. If her diet is mostly kibble make sure to mix a good amount of high quality wet food as well. Also, touch her paws often so she gets comfortable with you and is de-sensitized to someone else touching her paws. That way you can do in-home nail trims if need be. If you have other questions, feel free to DM me.

Best of luck to you and your fur-ever buddy!

I agree about the toys, my boys favourite toys are straws and the little plastic tops you get off fruit shoots. He isnt bothered by much else. Although he and our girls all love the tunnel and cat tent we got.

 

[GiggleBee]

I was reading about these last night!
I have the pet remedy but cannot stand the smell do the plug ins have a smell?

woken up feeling sick with worry about the seeing each other this morning

No the feliway has no smell at all

 

[KfBr]

Neither of mine cry unless they are hungry! Saying that, they were just waiting for me to wake up this morning and never made a noise until they knew I was getting up

 

[GiggleBee]

Sorry to hijack this thread!
I’m looking to get a kitten too! I’m worried about her crying at night though, what can I do to soothe her? Also, I heard that cats are more active at night than in daytime so should I put the scratch post in her sleeping area? [she’s gonna sleep in the kitchen, I was gonna leave her toys in the living room]

Good luck with your new fur baby, I’m so jealous!

Feliway helps them settle as it has a ferimone which would smells like mum.

I would put some toys in the kitchen with them incase they do want to play.

 

[Apple In My Pie]

Ok one last question I forgot about. Crying at night - do kittens cry at night? We had a kitten years and years ago when her owner wasn’t able to immediately take her in (think like, a week!) and I can’t remember her ever crying... I just want to be prepared in case this one wants me up all hours!

 

[KfBr]

Have you tried Feliway? Its a plug in ferimone for cats.
We have two 5 year old girl cats and last year we brought home a male 8 week kitten. It took forever for them to accept him but they did. One now loves him and the other is okay if the feliway is on. We know when its run out as she hisses and attacks him more. Thankfully hes now 18 months and a kilo heavier than her so can stand his ground but we honestly wouldnt be without feliway.

I was reading about these last night!
I have the pet remedy but cannot stand the smell do the plug ins have a smell?

woken up feeling sick with worry about the seeing each other this morning

 

[KfBr]

Luckily and fingers crossed so far they have both been fine with wires
out eldest did keep trying to go behind the tv and get the wires and wee’d a few times but, I read they don’t like citrus smells and I heavily diluted some orange oil, sprayed it behind there and he hasn’t gone back since!