Acquired a Kitten.. some advice please

[Garrett]

I've never owned a cat before so apologies if this is a bit obvious..


I'm told it's 12 weeks old (the source of that info isn't reliable though) although it looks a little small to me.


It seems to be generally fine apart from it's point blank refusal to touch any kind of specific cat/kitten food (believe me I've tried) the only things I've found it will eat so far are chicken & tuna fish.. any other suggestions would be helpful.


I'm fighting a losing battle trying to keep it from under/behind units & desks etc, It wouldn't generally be a problem, but it seems to be teething at the moment and I have multiple wires/cables behind & under where it loves to hide and chew.


Is there a product I can use in order to dissuade it from visiting these areas or any other methods worth trying..?


Thanks.

 

[Trip]

Is there a product I can use in order to dissuade it from visiting these areas or any other methods worth trying..?

Baseball bat


Just kidding. Not too sure that you can do anything except block the area off or spray the cat with water every time it goes near that area (cats hate that).


Just wanted to say that there is nothing wrong with feeding cats tuna, as long as it's not every day. Make sure you rinse it with water first to get all the oil off etc..


Always have a bit of dry food down even if it doesn't seem to want to eat it. It will eat if it's hungry enough


EDIT: Don't forget clean water too.

 

[TrashyMG]

 

[Linux-SWAT]

Never play with your bare hands.


Always use something.

 

[TrashyMG]

Another important Cat guide.

 

[Prometheus]

Is there a product I can use in order to dissuade it from visiting these areas or any other methods worth trying..?

There is! It's a bitter liquid (probably not too dissimilar to the "Bitrex" stuff that they put into some products to dissuade kids from trying to imbibe them), which you should be able to find at a pet shop in spray form.


I would imagine it's best used in conjunction with Trip's advice - all of which is dead-on.


Also apparently they'll be put off of going somewhere if they have to walk over tin-foil to do so, if I'm remembering right, so that might be worth looking into as well...

 

[Wrath Of Khan]

there is special kitten food available.Whiskas has a meat variety for kittens.They are not too fond of the dried food but as trip says they will eat it when they get hungry.I wouldn't give them tuna or meat too often as they will plague you for it eventually.As an occasional treat maybe.You could buy some fake mice for it to play with and teeth on, in a pet store or supermarket.My family has always had cats and my parents have a 1 year old cat which i accquired for them.

 

[iprice]

I have three cats; aged 13, 10 and 6 and have had them all from kittens.


Firstly you can't watch a kitten 24/7 and it's not even worth trying. They WILL get everywhere. You can try to block things off, but generally it won't matter too much.


Kittens' teeth are sharp, but their jaw strength is limited - they won't be able to chew through cables or wires, so don't worry. They aren't rodents. They may play and chew on them but damage to kitten or wire is unlikely. They soon get bored too, especially if you offer to play with them with a toy on piece of string dangled in front of them and twitched erratically..


Secondly, feeding your kitten tuna and/or chicken is not a good idea -


i) They don't have all the vitamins, minerals and fibre that your kitten needs


ii) It'll get used to these foods and won't touch anything else in the future. Cats ARE incredibly fussy. Don't let it wrap you around it's paws. It will eat whatever you give it when it's hungry.


iii) Tuna, even when washed, contains too much salt for kittens and can kill them.


Are you sure it's 12 weeks old and weaned properly? Always give you kitten proper kitten food - pouches/sachets or dry food. Dry food helps to remove tartar from teeth and doesn't smell. Always make sure there is plenty of fresh clean water. A cat will never starve - it just may not want to eat what you dish it up straight away - don't worry; when it's hungry enough it will eat what you give it. Only give small portions too - kittens' tummies are tiny. Increase the amount of food as its' appetite increases.


Hold and play with your kitten regularly and get it used to being brushed with a soft brush. It'll be more content, happy to be cuddled (even when an adult) and accept grooming when necessary. Your cat will love you for it.

 

[TangentDelta]

I don't like cats, but the rest of my family does, so I put some moth balls in the places that I don't want them to get them. Cats hate moth balls.

 

[Fzero]

Yep, cats get fussy when you treat them, give it nice wet food and it will want it all the time and just look at you when you put down dry food... just leave the dry food and eventually he/she will eat it. Exactly same with my cat.


As for bitter liquid, that is applied to the thing you don't want them eating, so the actual cable in your case. I'd say block it off somehow if you can would be better, or get cable trunking so it can't get to them.


Do you have your kittens food bowl right next to it's water bowl?


if so move it, that may be why it doesn't want to eat.


You should ideally keep them apart, even in different rooms from each other.


Beware it getting under your feet as it follows you around, kittens are kool though

 

[myownlittlworld]

If you haven't yet, take it to the vet to get it checked out. And then yearly thereafter. Any vet worth its salt will happily answer your kitten questions and offer lots of advice. If it'll be an indoor and outdoor cat, make sure to treat the fleas. Get it a collar and tags and consider chipping it, if you have the extra money.


Cats are desert animals, they drink water, not milk. If you want to give it a treat, cut the milk with an equal part water. Cats weren't made for full-strength cow milk, it results in rather bad indigestion.


Dental treats ("Greenies") are excellent for cat teeth and dental health, generally. It might help keep your cat's teeth healthier, meaning that you won't have to start brushing their teeth every day, in a couple years.


Start trimming their claws every other week, or as needed. You can use official cat-nail clippers, but just make sure you do it quickly, regularly, and *never* ever cut into the pink part of the nail. You'll cut your cat: that's cat finger, not nail. Stay in the white part and you'll be fine.


Get to know your cat. Play with it, pay attention to it. Cats are quite bad at telling you when they're sick, they need you to notice when they need to go to the vet.


Finally, keep the litter box clean: clean it out at least once a day and change the litter (and clean out the box) at least once a month. Your kitty will appreciate you for it.

 

[Nintendo]

Needs more pet threads.

 

[kojack]

Never play with your bare hands.
Always use something.

Always play with your bare hands.


Never use something.





Ok, cat scratches can spread diseases that kill humans, and even the smallest cat can hurt like all hell, but that's all part of the fun of cat ownership. It's like a mobile cactus that occasionally tries to kill you when you least expect it.


Oh, and we need pics!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LY3Sn_9zsuA

 

[WizardStan]

The best advice I can give is to make sure the oven is pre-heated to 450, and don't overbake.

 

[jabz]

Pretty soon it'll be interested in everything that you do!..

 

[Orion4874]

If it's a male make sure that when you do get it to eat regular cat food that the food is low in magnesium and ash. Males can develop urinary problems and could even need to be castrated if it gets too bad. Buy the food at a pet store as the stuff they sell at the market is garbage, it's a little more expensive but it'll keep them healthier. I myself buy Pro Plan and give then dry food in the morning and wet food at night. Trim the front claws or get caps for them to save your rugs and furniture, please don't have it declawed if at all possible. Obviously get it fixed, especially if it's a female, because she'll start howling non stop when she starts going into heat and she'll go into heat about every 2 weeks. And Prometheus is right about the tin foil, put it anywhere you don't want the cat to go, counter tops, cribs etc.


Also, if you want to get adventurous and bathe or use a leach/harness start it now. Of course most people don't do these with cats but they will take to these things if you get 'em used to it while they're young. One of mine had ringworm when I rescued her so I had to bathe her to treat it and now she absolutely loves water!

 

[Prometheus]

Obviously get it fixed, especially if it's a female, because she'll start howling non stop when she starts going into heat and she'll go into heat about every 2 weeks.

Oh god, absolutely do this. We once had a cat that was sold to us as male... Then this occurred, and voila, "he" was pregnant. We also couldn't get all of the local, non-neutered males off of our property. (Rest assured, we had ours spayed after she'd finished nursing the kittens and gotten back to every day life once they'd been adopted.)

 

[erico]

12 weeks old...would be interesting to know if he/she has been with the family members through that time as if it is yes, you get a more friendly cat (no bites less scratching).


One thing you can do, is whenever he gets on a "no" place, pick him up, get him there and poke his nose a few times.


He will still get there when you are not around, but he will be extremely more careful.


Cats that have been off their brothers too early, tend to be the cable chewing ones too.


Just a bunch of hints from friends experiences. I would not know myself, never had a cat...


I am kind of the ´having a pet=slavery´ idiot.

 

[Prometheus]

12 weeks old...would be interesting to know if he/she has been with the family members through that time as if it is yes, you get a more friendly cat (no bites less scratching).

That's interesting. I wonder if it applies 100% of the time, though? The aforementioned cat of ours was with her family members throughout her infancy before we took her home, and she was still quite skittish throughout her lifetime. Though she never bit anyone, she was prone to completely random scratching at times.

 

[erico]

Oh, I meant scratch/bite people deeply. Cats will scratch everything else :rolleyes:


There is never a 100% proof on these guys.


I heard this from a friend that had plenty of cats through out his life, not sure if it applies at all, just common folk tales.


The human biting parts has proven it right more then a few times.