Kittens

[CaptainMummy]

Paige has been been desperate for a pet for years, and really would love a cat. I am very almost convinced and thinking about getting her a kitten for her 6th birthday (It would be a family pet, but she would be so happy to get one on her birthday!)

I have never had a cat as a pet, and have no idea what to look for, what the 'essentials' are etc.

How old should a kitten be when it is able to leave its mother? Where would I find a kitten that I can be assured has been looked after well etc.

Her birthday is at the end of January, so have a bit of time yet, but I want to know what to expect and what i need to do!

Also, are female/male best? Any particular types to avoid? (She would be thrilled with any cat, so breed is not really issue)

So yeah, anything you can tell me please do!

 

[Aphy]

Aw I am such a cat lady so I am sure your daughter is going to love whichever kitten you end up getting. From my experience females are better companions than the males,the males tend to roam around when females get in season and are often in fights so hey come back scratched and can disappear for days on end. Kittens are generally weaned from their mother around 8 weeks I think (I might be wrong) but make sure to get a female cat neutered before she reaches maturity else you might find yourself with a home full of kittens! As for breeds or where to get them from,I have always gotten mine from shelters in order to save their lives but I don't know what you all have available in your area. Your daughter is still quite young so you will most likely have to help her with the litter box duty initially...but a kitten makes an awesome first pet for a little girl!

 

[Srrme]

I think a kitten would be a great addition to your family, and I'm sure your daughter will be over the moon!

The kitten should be AT LEAST 8 weeks old before leaving mama.

I would go with a male if I were you. Speaking from personal experience, they're more affectionate, and seem to enjoy being around their "people" more than females do. I have had both male and female cats, and it's always been this way. Female cats seem to prefer "space" more than males. As long as you neuter them at or before 12 months old, they won't spray or wander.

If you're looking for a "breed" I would go with a Ragdoll, or Ragdoll mix. They're AMAZING and so lovable. If you're going with a mix, I would just make sure the kitten enjoys human attention, and isn't too skittish before you decide to adopt him/her.

I'm not sure where to point you in terms of buying or adopting one, but wherever you go, make sure the kitten has been raised right, and has seen a Veterinarian before adopting it. I've bought a kitten from some random person before, and the poor thing passed away a week later. You want to make sure whatever kitten you choose is as healthy as can be.

 

[Rainbow82]

A cat is an excellent first family pet, I've never had a female cat so can't comment on whether they would be more loving in general but my neutered male cat can be a real lap cat when he wants and never wandered since he was neutered and he's so tolerant of my toddler more than I ever thought he'd be. We got our cat when he was abandoned by my brothers old lodger at ten months so don't know how to go about choosing where to get a kitten except to look at rescues, they often have litters of kittens coming in. They don't need much at first, warm bed that they will probably never use if like my cat. Few toys, litter tray and litter. Food and water bowls. Definitely get insurance though, we pay about £7 a month for lifetime cover and although we've only claimed once in four years it was for more than we've paid in total over that time.

 

[SophiasMummy]

Cats are great pets.

I have a girl cat but she was raised with Jack Russell dogs and then my dog as a companion so she acts like a dog and is super affectionate on her terms, runs to the door growling etc.

Kittens shouldn't leave mum until at least 8 weeks old. Proper breeders usually say between 10-12 weeks. A male would be better as they are usually way more affectionate though obviously there's always exceptions (make sure he is neutered as soon as possible else they will roam, spray etc).

If you want to look at specific breeds as someone else said ragdolls are great family cats and are very loving in general. Make sure any kitten comes from a home where they have been fleas and wormed regularly and have been vet checked and ask for proof too if in doubt. My girls breeder showed me the wormer and flea spray give to her by the vets at the kittens check up. Some pedigree breeders because they keep them for longer will also vaccinate for you.

Good luck. My daughter loves our cat (and dog) and we've had her since she was 3

 

[Scout]

Ah, love cats. I've always got mine from a shelter. The shelter I go to, you can go in and interact with the kittens before choosing one, so you can get an idea of how they are with humans. I'd get a male and have it neutered as soon as you can do that. The shelter I go to does the spaying and neutering, first shots, vet check all for around $50.

All you'd need then is a litter box. Kittens are really easy to train to the litter box too. Just stick it in there a couple times and that's it. (at least it's always been that easy with the kittens I've had) I'd also get a scratching post or some things it can scratch. I had one kitten really destroy a leather chair I had by scratching it. Cats are great pets

 

[Bex84]

Cats are great pets. I would look at rescue centres as our local one always has kittens. We have two boys who are the most cuddly cats ever. One is a total lap cat who sits on your lap as soon as you sit down. He adores the children and our other is a lap cat but not to same extent but waits for my daughter to get back after school and allows her to carry him around while he purrs. When dd was younger he used to get in her dolls pram and let her push him around. We had them neutered and both hate outside so don't think there's to much difference between male and females (I grew up with pet cats) boys will roam more if not neutered. Cats are nice and clean. Mine never needed litter training they learnt off their mum. Check which food they eat. My two are fussy and will only eat Felix or pro plan. One will sick it up if ever given whiskers and he had as a kitten so know it's purely dislikes it lol. My two also love water fountain drinking bowl as keeps water fresh but then they do believe they deserve finer things in life. I would get some toys and scratching post and spray with catnip to save furniture and any flea stuff get from vets as some of the stuff they sell in supermarket is bad for them.

 

[Logan's Mum]

Ive had my cat for nearly 6 months now, shes a female and is lovely. I would not consider a kitten due to the ages of your youngest children, I never considered one as I was worried Eric would get too enthusiastic with his cuddles etc. My cat was 18 months when we got her (via Cats Protection), which is perfect as she was already litter trained, and quick enough to get out of the way if she wanted alone time from the boys. She was already neutered, vaccinated and chipped, only paid £60 in total too. I know she has 18 months of "hidden past" but if you pick the right cat you are in to a winner

 

[BellaBoo0512]

I agree with everyone else. Cats make great family pets. We have a male cat who is 6 years old who steers clear of our son. When DS was 2 we got a female kitten and they are the best of friends. She is so affectionate and never leaves his side

 

[vaniilla]

Really consider getting one from a shelter, our local place lets you know when they have kittens and you go in and see them and they try to match a kitten and it's personality to your family and lifestyle. (Plus it'll have all of the relevant first vaccines done and be micro chipped).

I love cats too, they make wonderful pets. We've only had female cats but I'm sure male ones would be just as affectionate!

 

[Bittersweet]

We've just bought a kitten. We have a 5 year old rescue female and we recently lost of lovely female I had since 9 weeks.
We have a female only due to rescue being a female. We picked her as she is sinilar to our rescue and very pretty also 1/2 Persian!
When picking kittens out we watched her and her sibling her sibling was quieter and more attached to mum still whereas ours was playing nicely s enjoyed some cuddles so we felt confident she would be Playful. My oh wanted a cat that was gentle and cuddly and the kitten is absolutely in love with oh-other cat not so much lol!

She is 9 weeks tomorrow i would say maybe she is a little bit too small. She's still confined to spare bedroom in a large puppy pen for night and the living room with us and requires constant supervision as she climbs out the pen and hides n small spaces for sleeping. She was already litter trained although forgets that she needs to step over her mess not in it! That will rectify though especially when the older cat gets to play as she will show her.

In terms of food we have weaned off what the breeder fed her purely for her tummy. Food In jelly is better as I think it's more lighter on small tummies. We feed her a small amount but regularly as she won't eat a full amount in one sitting. We have playtime before bed and that's her sleeping most of the night.

We make sure we are picking her up a lot and cuddling in with her as the other cat being a rescue doesn't tolerate being lifted due to her past. Our previous cat loved being picked up as I did that from day 1 too.

In the U.K. Vets will spat from as early as 4 maths generally prefer kitten to weigh over 2kg. I got my precious cat done at 4 1/2mths and she took a while to get over the op so we will wait until 5/6 months this time.

With your little ones just make sure you are supervising as kittens have sharp claws and teeth. Get some proper toys and don't let the kids encourage the kitten to play with their hands or toes as kitten will bite and it will end in tears it's painful!

I too am a total cat lady so any questions feel free to ask

 

[Vickie]

We have three cats, 10 years, 9 years and 4.5 months (got that one for the kids ). They are all rescue cats so we got two from a shelter and one from a vet who took kittens in when the shelter was full. We have 2 males and 1 female cat. Personally we have now decided we prefer male cats. That could be because our female is a calico though and they are notoriously stubborn! (seriously stubborn haha!). Also the cost of spaying is so much higher than the cost of neutering which also weighed in on our decision to get a male kitten. I think that's really a personal preference thing though I love my female cat but she's a handful .

Because all three are rescues and they had all lost their mothers we got them quite young. 6-7 weeks. They had all had one set of vaccinations and two of the three are microchipped. Be warned there are a lot of vet visits for the first few months (booster shots plus the spay/neuter unless you get a kitten who is older than 6 months). And as someone else mentioned it is always good to get the kitten in to the vet after you pick it up just for a general health check. I do like having them before 6 months though as they really are a lot of fun (and a lot of work but they are cute and fun to!)

Good luck if you do decide to get one, I'm sure your daughter will love it