|
|
|
Junior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 7/8/2008 2:18:01 AM
Posts: 1,
Visits: 6
|
|
I am getting a kitten tommorow. 5/6 weeks of age. My boyfriends neighbor moved and left the kittens in the backyard to fend for themselves. My boyfriend has been feeding them "nutro kitten food" (which I will be changing & yes I know how to change food 75% to 50% to 25% yes I know). Before we get started, I just want to say I am fully prepared financially to take care of this kitten, I have my own house and not a minor. I have a tomcat that I don't want her around (he's 12weeks) untill I can get her vaccinated and him neutered which my vet does'nt have an neutering surgery open till late September. This is the crate I bought at PetSmart its for a medium size dog, but apparently I am using it as a little room for my new kitten tommorow.
I only put my kitten in there to show how big it is in real-life.
My tomcat dominates the rest of the room but for about 2 hours a day I will let her roam around while he's in the bathroom, or do you think its okay to let them out together? Will they catch diseases off each other? He has only had his first set of vaccinations. He next set is August 1st. Should I just wait till she is vaccinated. Or till they are both fully vaccinated?
My cats are indoor only. By the way, the purple room they are in is what I call the kitty room, which has a bunch of cat trees (scratchers) that go up to the wall and toys. It is not my room, its the only spare bedroom in the house they can use. They will only be aloud to roam my house when they are both neutered and spayed for fear of awful spraying/territory marking smells.
Also, any tips about this crate??
should I align things differently? since she is only 5/6 weeks should I feed her what I feed my tomcat.. "INNOVA EVO CAT AND KITTEN DRY FOOD" or should I buy her the wet canned version, or a Milk Replacer? Any other tips would be nice THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH
|
|
|
|
|
Supreme Being
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Today @ 4:39:54 PM
Posts: 890,
Visits: 1,502
|
|
I appreciate your passion, but I think you might be over-reacting.
Your kitten is large enough that even the dumbest tomcat will recognize it as a kitten, and not a big mouse. The tomcat, after a day or two, will accept the kitten, and even start to act protective of it.
Therefor, I doubt you'll need the crate for more than a few days. A week at the most.
The kitten does need places to explore, to hide, to climb about. While the crate is a safe place for the kitten while the tomcat is getting used to her being around, a closed off room is a better arrangement for the kittens' second week in your home - especially when you're away.
The next few weeks are critical, in that this is the time when the kitten learns to get along with both people and other cats. The kitten really needs a lot of people petting her, and lots of contact with the tomcat.
As for mating fears .... the kitten isn't old enough for the tomcat to be interested in that. You've still got a few weeks. In the meantime, look for another vet ... there really ought not be such a backlog. After the surgery, you might want to place the kitten in the crate for a day or two.
It helps to remember that, to them, you are the 'big cat.' They will follow your lead .... and become best buddies in no time at all.
Indeed, it's the tomcat who is at risk, if you don't get her fixed soon enough. If she goes into heat, he'll be fighting every cat in town, trying to protect her.
|
|
|
|
|
Senior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Yesterday @ 5:29:17 PM
Posts: 342,
Visits: 220
|
|
| I think the cage is fine (am assuming the the box in there now will be a litter pan. I don't like keeping the litter and food/water too close together, but its ok for a short time. However you MUST keep the cat/kitten separated until: 1. They have all their shots and are checked out by a vet and healthy/flea free. 2. They are both neutered and spayed. I would strongly recommend you get him neutered now before he starts spraying - also tom cats can still get a female pregnant for up to 2 months after being neutered. Why was he not neutered before you got another kitten (especially since the kitten is a female). By crating the kitten now, you will speed up the intros between them as they can see each other but not physically be with each other. Expect hissing and growling and some swatting even when the kitten is in the cage. I would be calling around for an earlier spay/neuter if your vet cannot do it till end of Sept - that's too long to be waiting and having to keep the two separated. Kittens can and do mate and get pregnant at 4-5 months old - why risk it or make them wait?
|
|
|
|
|
Supreme Being
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Today @ 3:19:47 PM
Posts: 1,551,
Visits: 3,673
|
|
| You've already heard from two of the most knowledgeable folks on our site. I agree with Reno, at this age you've still got a few weeks before you have to worry about either kitten not being "fixed" - but September might be too long, and another vet might be a good idea. Keep 'em separated until you've got the newbie in to the vet for a new-kitty checkup. Ocimom's right, too, the cage you have appears to be approximately the size that a lot of shelters around here use when they take their adopt-a-kitties to PetSmart. Not good for long-term use but OK for a few days adjustment period. As for food - 5/6 weeks old is too young for kitty to be separated from her mama. I realize that there are times that it can't be helped - one of mine was accidentally separated when he was two weeks old - and I'm not placing any blame on you at all - but you will need to be aware of your kitty's special needs because of the early separation. One of those needs is, as you mentioned, food - at her age, she's not fully weaned and may need Kitten Milk Replacement to supplement her food. I'm not familiar with the brand of food you mentioned other than knowing that it's a good brand, so I don't know if they have a baby formula or not, but if they do, you might want to put her on it. I feed mine Royal Canin, and they got Baby Canin until the two younger ones were 12 weeks, then I transitioned everybody to Kitten Canin. Again, here's where the new-kitty checkup will help you - your vet can advise what she should be eating. Another need she'll have is socialization, as Reno mentioned. It's good that you have a slightly older kitten - he'll help with that, and if you can have lots of people handle her, that will teach her not to be afraid of people. Kittens learn socialization skills from their mamas, but usually that happens a little later than 5-6 weeks. Pretty much kitties are learning how to be cats between the ages of 6-12 weeks. She'll be fine and may be a very sweet pet without the extra mama-time, but you need to be aware of what she's missed with her mama - you may find you need to be extra-patient with her. Lots of luck to you - keep us posted on your babies!
|
|
|
|
|
Supreme Being
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Today @ 4:19:29 PM
Posts: 534,
Visits: 882
|
|
| I don't see any pics of the crate, but if it's large enough to hold a litterbox, food and water, a bed, and a few toys, and still has room for the kitty to walk around, it's large enough. Your first kitty isn't old enough to be a tomcat yet....he's just a baby. He won't hurt her for tomcat reasons. He might play too rough, since he's older and larger, but no tomcatting will be happening yet. Males don't come of age until they're 7 or 8 months old. He won't be spraying before then, either, since that's a hormonal thing. He'll be about 6 months old when he's neutered? That's a good age for it, although I prefer to have it done at 3-4 months, just to have it done with, and not to wait too long, in case the vet has to reschedule or something. Females, however, can go into heat as early as 4 months, so you might want to ask the vet about having her spayed at the same time the male goes in for neutering. That would be an ideal time to have it done, and, if your vet is really that busy, you'd better schedule it now. If the new kitten is going to be kept in the same room as the first kitten, there's no point in keeping them separated----most cat diseases are transmittable through the air. I'd keep her in a totally separate room until she's been seen by a vet. She may be a bit too young to be vaccinated, but once the vet says she's healthy, you can put them together. Your first kitty will teach her a lot, so don't keep them separated longer than you have to.....kittens who are taken from mom and siblings too young end up seriously socially disadvantaged if they don't have another cat to teach them what they need to know.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------Educate, don't amputate! Don't de-claw your cat! http://www.declawing.com/ http://www.pawsneedclaws.com/
|
|
|
|
|
Senior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Yesterday @ 5:29:17 PM
Posts: 342,
Visits: 220
|
|
| Willow I disagree with you on males - both males and females can breed and get pregnant as young as 4-5 months old. A siamese breeder friend (this was in the 1980's) had a 5 month old male running with some of her queens. He never showed any signs of being mature, but one of her females became pregnant. The ONLY male around was the 5 month old and he became a daddy ast 7 months old. Do not think that a kitten younger then 7/8 months old doesn't know how to do things!
|
|
|
|
|
Supreme Being
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Today @ 12:35:18 PM
Posts: 819,
Visits: 603
|
|
| I learned the hard way when I was younger, I had a 4 1/2 mo. old "kitten" get pregnant. She had her first and ONLY litter at age 5mos. 6 kittens! I always spay and neuter my pets. Thankfully, we found great homes for all six kittens -- this was my calico Mitzi who lived to be 20! We got Xena at 4 weeks old, found her under a dumpster where I work. A regular cage didn't work -- she was so tiny she slipped through the bars of the cage! I ended up buying a rabbit cage as the bars were tiny squares that she couldn't squeeze through. A 4-5-6 week old kitten still needs its mother so you have to be the substitute. You've gotten a lot of good advice here as I've been reading in the other posts -- best of luck to you! 
SuperCat
|
|
|
|
|
Supreme Being
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: Today @ 4:19:29 PM
Posts: 534,
Visits: 882
|
|
| | |