Update on the kitteh
As an update to yesterday's post...
The itteh bitteh bebeh kitteh caught the eye of a four year old boy and was thus already handed off. Apparently his name is now Bubbles and we did get to see him. He's about thisbig and just darling. Whether he'll survive the four year old boy is up for grabs, but that wasn't my decision to make ( Read more... )
The itteh bitteh bebeh kitteh caught the eye of a four year old boy and was thus already handed off. Apparently his name is now Bubbles and we did get to see him. He's about thisbig and just darling. Whether he'll survive the four year old boy is up for grabs, but that wasn't my decision to make ( Read more... )
* Give the cat a small safe place that is hers. One room is usually enough at first, it should have a door that can be closed, and her litter and water and food trays should both be in there, hopefully at opposite ends of the room. Try not to have anything precious lying about as there will inevitably be poo, wee, vomit and scratching accidents.
* NEVER discipline hissing or other aggressive behaviour -- all that yelling does to a cat is make them think they are under attack, so they hiss and scratch more.
* Instead, ALWAYS reward good behaviour. The reward can be a little bit of food, or a pat in the way the cat likes it, or playing with the cat for a little while in a game they enjoy.
* Play with the cat, so it thinks you are part of its family. String is a classic, hankies or paper tied to string is also a major winner, balls are loved by some cats, toy mice by others, feathers by most, the laser pointer by many. If the cat does not like one game or toy one day, try it again in a week or two as its tastes will have changed.
* Gradually expand the cat's world. You can introduce it to the other pets in the house before this by having each animal sleep on or eat on a towel, then swapping the towels around. This gives the animal a good chance to scent others in a non-threatening way (when you swap the towels, put them next to the other animal's food bowl, because food = good.) Make sure they are fully supervised when they meet face to face.
* Warn younger son that he will be a bit fanged, it's just what kittens do. I have some shallow scratches from a local cat who was desperate for a pat, then had a psychotic break halfway through. If he is very lucky, she will be like Cookie and Mon who are very sweet and almost never scratch -- only when they are falling off a lap!
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Younger Son has decided against the wild kitten at this time. This will be his first cat and he's afraid (hell, we both are) that he won't be able to tame it. I'm not exactly certain of the kitten's age, but from the looks of her I'd put it at about 8-10 weeks.
I've already spoken to the owners of the kitten and they understand perfectly, thank goodness. School will be resuming in just a couple of weeks and Younger Son won't have the time to give the kitten the attention it'll take to get it used to 1) living indoors and 2) accepting the other household inhabitants. LOL He says he wants a kitten he can cuddle right away.
RE: your mention of "bonkers" cats... Older Son's cat goes a bit bonkers nearly every day. He'll decide human feet are the "toy of the hour" and everyone gets paranoid. Or he'll suddenly get a craving for the taste of human skin. I don't know how many times the words, "He bit me!" are followed by my, "Then put him down and leave him alone." Of course, all these "bites" have yet to result in skin that's even broken or scratched. *eye roll* I keep telling the boys that Pete is just warning them that he wants to be left alone when he does this. We're all learning about cat ownership in this house, but the "bonkers" moments are definitely (in my opinion), the funniest!
And OMG! The ball!! I brought home a couple of rubber balls yesterday for Pete. It was nearly as entertaining as the laser pointer, especially in the livingroom where we have a hardwood floor and the ball can really roll around easily. Pete wore himself out on that ball.
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And yes! Feet are delicious! Monster occasionally needs to Give the Feet Love, which involves licking, face-rubbing and having gentle chews, all while purring madly. She also likes balls, having watched too much Lassie while at the pound. The hilarity is worth any disgusting foot slobber factor!
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