Halp! 11 Week Kitty

[Kael]

A lady was giving away kittens before she was turned them over to a shelter, so my mom who knows I have a weakness for kittens calls me up and tells me she picked one up after I told her a month ago that I was considering getting a cat.

I am just wondering if any cat lovers had any tips for raising a kitty. I've only had adult cats in the past so any advice would help.

I'll post pictures when I get the chance.

[Arnwulf]

8 weeks old should be pretty easy as long as it is weined off of the mother's milk. Just get some kitten food (preferably the Purina in the yellow bag) and a litter box with some decent litter. I've had the best results with the Arm & Hammer Multi Cat stuff, even for one cat it does the job rather well.

Just make sure to show that kitten several times where the litter box is, they know what to do. And by show, I mean literally picking them up and putting them in it several times over the next few days.

[Kajii]

You might have to soften it's food with some water or milk, but it should be fine with normal food soon.

[bigrougabagel]

I will have mounds of information soon, more than you will ever want. Let me find my wife.

Edit: Actually I lied about a ton of info. Take it to the vet. The cat needs a basic check up and vaccinations. The check up will loko for parasites and congenital problems that you might have to deal with. If tha nimal has any parasites, worms etc, they will need to be dewormed because that stuff can spread to humans. So, take it to a vet, not the humane society, an actual vet. They can get all that testing done and give you tips on how to manage your new family member.

[Kael]

Yeah, I am currently looking for a local vet that I can see soon as the kitten has not had any shots yet so I need to get him checked up and see about getting an appointment for his first round of shots.

[Takedown3]

kill it quickly

[Yuri-G]

hold him/pet him a lot. this is very important if you want a cat who is well-socialized and isn't afraid of people. I can't stress this enough, cats who hate people were either abandoned or otherwise mistreated, often by a well-meaning family.

he may bite/scratch when he wants to be left alone or if he wants to "play fight"; if he does, just yell "NO" really loud and leave him alone. if it's just a light nip, though, I'd recommend letting it go because that's more likely the cat showing affection. you draw the line on what you find acceptable and what you want to discourage.

now that I mention it, yelling "NO" and leaving him alone is the best disciplinary tool for a lot of situations. cats love attention, so ignoring them is an extremely effective way of teaching them not to do something again. think of them like a kid who does stupid shit to get your attention - the more you try and punish him the more he learns that whatever he did is a good way to get attention. never, under any circumstances, hit the cat to teach it a lesson. the only lesson he'll learn is that you are to be feared, and nobody wants a cat who's afraid of people.

cats also learn at a very young age how much physical contact is acceptable and how much is not. hence why I encourage you to simply leave him alone when he bites or scratches you, after a sharp yell to let him know you don't appreciate it. if you fight back, he'll just think you're playing and will learn that it's ok to scratch and bite.

for misbehaviour that can't really be dealt with by leaving him alone (jumping on the counters or whatever) use a spray bottle filled with water. this way, the punishment is disconnected from you. if you hit him, he sees you as something to be afraid of. if you spray him with water, he sees the water bottle as the mean/scary thing, not you.

keep in mind that this is the most formative period of his life. how you treat him now will determine his temperament and behaviour patterns for life.

trust me... I raised a kitten who is now the most affection and sweet little thing you've ever met, at four years old. I did a lot of research on how to raise my cat.

[Brill Weave]

Ok, seeing as I just got a feral kitten a few weeks ago and he was six weeks old I think I can be of some help. First off, make sure you pick up the aforementioned kitten chow. Sometimes kittens have a tendency to dehydrate themselves. An easy way to check is when they are eating, pull up the scruff of their neck. If it goes back down relatively quickly then he's getting enough water. If it kind of sticks up a little and maintains the same form then you'll probably need to put some water in his hard food. Another good thing is to get some canned food. Give him half a can mixed up with water if he seems dehydrated.

Designate a room in your place as the kitten's sleeping room for now. Trust me on this one. Put the litter box in there and some food and water. This is kind of creating a safe haven for him. Not to mention that this is going to give you some peace when you're trying to go to sleep. Otherwise the kitten will keep you awake all night. At night put him in there to sleep. Let him out when you're home to get him more acclimated to you.

Toys. Lots of toys. And toys could be anything. An empty box. A sock. Anything. Don't leave anything out that you'll miss if it's destroyed, maimed, crippled by your kitten. As for vaccinations and such, check inside your kitten's ears. If you see a lot of little black spots on the interior, he most likely has earmites. Nothing major. You will need medication for that. They will need to test him for feline leaukemia and quite a few other things along with the regular vaccinations. It may also need to be spayed or neutered.

So basically before you take him/her to the vet, make sure you've got some spare loot sitting there. You'll probably be looking at 250+ for all the shots and such. Invest in one of those squeaky toys that you can hang from the door frame too. It's amazing how much little Meatball(my evil kitty) goes after it.

[Kael]

Thank you very much for that Yuri.

[Mr. Flippy]

in the oven over 9000 degrees for about 3 minutes should do the trick. serve with a side of duck sauce

[Kael]

I've used canned food for my cats in the past, and just used dry food as treats. Is that also feesable for kittens or do they need the dry food for their teeth to develop?

[Olo401]

There are folks that consider declawing a cat unnatural and cruel, or think it leaves a cat defenseless if it's outside (like myself), but IF you have an absolute need to have it done (i.e. kitty gonna fuck up my leather sofa) you should have it done before 12 weeks.

[Olo401]

I've used canned food for my cats in the past, and just used dry food as treats. Is that also feesable for kittens or do they need the dry food for their teeth to develop?

Personally I've stuck with exclusively dry food because it works and it's usually far less expensive.

...except that time I adopted an older cat that was stubborn/picky about her food. She'd even pick out the dry stuff if I tried to mix it in.

[Kael]

Nah, I really don't like the idea of getting them de-clawed. Most of my furniture is wood except for my sofas (Fabric) and they don't concern me that greatly. I think I will need to get a post though, as the one I had in the past is old and grundgy from being in the basement so long.

[sephir]

I was at this BBQ a few weeks back and I was hitting on this girl who turned out to be a vet student at my university. She was talking to me about her dog and what not, and then asked if I had any pets and I said "I have a cat". Her response was "How does it feel to have no soul" and turned her back to me and started a conversation with some random girl.

But ya, give the cat 3 bowls. one for food, one for milk, and one for water. After about 4 months you can take the cat off the milk, and just leave it with the dry food and water.

[Kael]

Ok, seeing as I just got a feral kitten a few weeks ago and he was six weeks old I think I can be of some help. First off, make sure you pick up the aforementioned kitten chow. Sometimes kittens have a tendency to dehydrate themselves. An easy way to check is when they are eating, pull up the scruff of their neck. If it goes back down relatively quickly then he's getting enough water. If it kind of sticks up a little and maintains the same form then you'll probably need to put some water in his hard food. Another good thing is to get some canned food. Give him half a can mixed up with water if he seems dehydrated.

Designate a room in your place as the kitten's sleeping room for now. Trust me on this one. Put the litter box in there and some food and water. This is kind of creating a safe haven for him. Not to mention that this is going to give you some peace when you're trying to go to sleep. Otherwise the kitten will keep you awake all night. At night put him in there to sleep. Let him out when you're home to get him more acclimated to you.

Toys. Lots of toys. And toys could be anything. An empty box. A sock. Anything. Don't leave anything out that you'll miss if it's destroyed, maimed, crippled by your kitten. As for vaccinations and such, check inside your kitten's ears. If you see a lot of little black spots on the interior, he most likely has earmites. Nothing major. You will need medication for that. They will need to test him for feline leaukemia and quite a few other things along with the regular vaccinations. It may also need to be spayed or neutered.

So basically before you take him/her to the vet, make sure you've got some spare loot sitting there. You'll probably be looking at 250+ for all the shots and such. Invest in one of those squeaky toys that you can hang from the door frame too. It's amazing how much little Meatball(my evil kitty) goes after it.

Excellent insight Uncle Brill Weave~

I actually have a spare room next to mine that would be perfect for this.

[Brill Weave]

I stick with dry food exclusively. Use wet food periodically as a treat. Be careful with the wood furniture and door frames. If you see him clawing them you need to end it quickly. My wife didn't do that with her one cat. She's fully grown and has completely ripped a door frame to shit. Completely destroyed it. They also have scratching posts that you can hang from a nail etc. Those are pretty handy.

[zoobernut]

Brill is correct on the food thing. Wet food is very bad for cat and dog teeth and can cause them to rot out. Dentistry on a pet is extremely expensive. Wet food is a treat.

[Yuri-G]

Thank you very much for that Yuri.

no problem... just remember that it's easier said than done to ignore an adorable little kitten who's mewling and looking up at you

[Sanoske]

I stuck with dry food, and gave my cats wet food as a treat. Dry food keeps their teeth in better condition.