New Kitten Owner Needs Advice

[elanning]

Greetings, my best friends cat just had a single kitten, which im told is odd, but i am going to adopt it as she cannot keep it. I have never owned a cat before but it has always been something i wanted to do. Now, the kitten is still with its mother as it is only about 6 weeks old. I plan to take it home when it reaches 9 or 10 weeks. My main question is this, should i get a second kitten and if so when?

I live with two roomates in a modest 3 bedroom home. So there will be plenty of interaction with the kitten between us, but we all work. Two of us have 9-5 monday through friday type jobs, one has a more irregular scedaule. There will be days with large blocks of time, say 9am-4pm, where the kitten would have no one in the house. I have been reading online and most sites reccomend a second cat. Now the reasons for this make sense to me, and i am not at all opposed to having two cats. Yet as i said this will be my first major pet since i had a few gerbils when i was young (im currently 24). So im concerned that going from zero to two cats might be a big learning curve.

So as i see it there are a few ways to deal with this, and i would welcome any comments or advice:

1.) Set about getting a second kitten as close to the same age as possible as soon as i have taken the first kitten home.

2.) Get used to having a cat for the first time for a while(likely a couple months at least), then introduce a new juvinile cat.

My concern with option one is that it might be a tough learning curve dealing with two young cats when i have never owned one before. My concern with option two is that perhaps the kitten will already have the social damage done by the time i set about to get a second.

Thanks ahead of time for any replies.

-Ed

[Cleo]

Ideally kittens should stay with their mamas until 12 weeks of age, at least.

Yes, get a second kitten, preferrably around the same age and be sure to have both kitties thoroughly examed by your own vet. Because the kitten was born solo, it's social skills with other kittens will be limited so getting another at the same time you bring the one home is the best idea in my opinion.

Be sure to kitten proof your home, plenty of info here on the site regarding that as well as introductions. My only learning curve when I first own a cat 6 years ago was safety. Other than that, it'll come natural.

Congrats and good luck!

[Traci]

Just want to ask, having never owned a cat or kitten before, are you mentallly, physically, and financially prepared? Do you have a basic knowledge of feline health and behavior needs? You can start here, but would suggest you navigate throughout the site and read up on cat care and health.

Agree with Cleo, kittens should not be taken from their mother/siblings before 12 weeks of age. The reasoning for this is because they need to develop and learn skills socially and physically from their mother/siblings. Is your friend keeping the mother? Does she have a spay appointment set up for her? When was she last evaluated by the vet?

I also agree that having two or more cats as opposed to only one is better, both mentally and health-wise for the cats. When a cat has another feline companion, that companionship and bond affords better health and happiness.

However, before you bring either kitten home, I strongly advise you get them both completely examined by your vet before introducting them to each other. You need to ensure each are healthy and tested before allowing them exposure to each other. Get them dewormed by your vet, test them for FELV/FIV, talk about proper nutrition for them, and schedule their vaccination needs. (please review our kitten care pages for vaccination information and other health info).

Are your roommates knowledgeable about feline health and care as well? Are they going to be comitted to their needs? Are you prepared to know how to kitten-proof your home? Will there be time made available to make these adoptions a smooth transition for the kittens, and providing for their safety, security, and time spent with them? Kittens are energetic, require lots of attention and care, so it's imperative that you can afford the time to meet their needs.

[kay8jay]

Hi -

Is there a possibility of adopting BOTH the cat's mom and the kitten?

I love that you want to provide a good home for this kitten. :) It sounds, though, like your household might do better with an ADULT cat. I'm not trying to exaggerate here -- but adopting a kitten is akin to adopting a human baby! Kittens need a lot of attention, a lot of play time, and can be very demanding.

Kittens don't know yet what not to bite, what not to scratch, or necessarily how to groom themselves properly. They'll most likely try to climb the curtains and/or screen door. They have SO MUCH ENERGY and if it's not spent in play, they might be reduced to tearing up some of your stuff. And that's just a start!

I think that if you and the people you are living with are going to be gone all day, this is a good place for a kitten to grow up. If the kitten gets in the habit of sleeping while everyone is gone, it will be HYPER when you all come home tired, perhaps not in the mood to play with it. And then it will be zooming around at night...

I know your heart is in the right place, but you want the kitten in the right place, too, right? :)

I would only adopt this kitten if there are no other alternatives for it except to go to the shelter. Even if someone adopts it from there, the kitten will certainly develop Upper Respiratory Infection because of all the germs at the shelter. If there is no room for it to be quarantined, it might have to be put down.

So if you do decide to adopt it, I would get it a friend as well. But then you're taking on an even bigger thing...

But perhaps most important of all: MAKE SURE YOUR FRIENDS GET THE MOM CAT SPAYED!

Good luck, and bless your heart for being willing to open your home to this kitty...

Kate