Bloo
~ I learn something new ~ ~~~~ every day ~~~~
Hey, the more the merrierOohFeeshy said:Hey, I might as well jump in now while all seems quiet
join the crowd !The great kitten debate
- Thread starter lady_tanksalot
- Start date
join the crowd !
pica_nuttalli
don't be a twit
er, i think i'll jump in as well.... despite not being from the UK *looks around in terror because apparently that's a sin*
when i was a kid, both of my sets of grandparents had barns--feral cats were a given. since i am an absolute cat person, my parents allowed me to rescue what litters we could get ahold of and provide for at a given time. we easily "processed" a hundred kittens over the years. i've dealt with kittens in litters ranging from 1 to 10, having brought them home from 4 weeks to 12 weeks of age. some have been so feral as to require gloves to get them in the cage for transport whereas others were tamed in the barn itself. this is what i know about socializing kittens:
(1) any cat raised with insufficient influence of other cats will be a biter and a scratcher when full-grown. this is because kittens learn what is too rough by playing with each other. preventing "rough play" with other cats doesn't allow a kitten to learn the limits of acceptable behavior; thus it will be too rough when fully grown.
(2) people shouldn't play rough with young kittens. like the example of the Burmese who had been taught to play with feet, what's cute for a kitten is often terrible for an adult. thus wiggling fingers until the kitten tries gnawing on them -- BAD IDEA; allowing a kitten to violently attack feet/arms/long hair -- BAD IDEA; allowing a kitten to climb up one's legs -- BAD IDEA. in a similar vein, most of these undesirable habits are quickly apparent in an adult cat. it doesn't take long to figure out how an adult or semi-adult cat will behave towards people; a few hours of visiting should reveal that.
(3) very few cats of any age enjoy rambunctious children. allowing a child to manhandle or be excessively noisy around a kitten will only encourage skittishness as the cat ages. the more mature a cat is, the better equipped it is to feel secure around children and consequently, around adults. a mature cat will often realize that the "threat" is localized and will respond with warnings before fight/flight. adult cats will even ignore unwanted attention and respond as if to a kitten--with a brief hiss or a mild bite. a kitten will be more likely to generalize the threat, feel unable to defend itself, try to take advantage of surprise attacks and avoid subsequent interactions. a friendly kitten can very easily become a skittish adult. it takes a lot more to ruin a friendly adult cat.
(4) very few feral kittens cannot be tamed. however, PATIENCE is required for this. to tame a wild kitten you need to force it into situations where it can slowly realize that you are a food source, not a threat. this means restricting it to a small ROOM with HIDING PLACES and just spending time in there. i've always favored using a spare bathroom and reading a book. avoid sudden movements and excessive noise. don't make the kitten touch you, but let it approach you--which it eventually will if only to sniff you out. occasionally present your hand and see if it will let you touch it. by resticting the area available to the kitten, this also encourages litterbox training. taming feral kittens is easier with a larger group of very young kittens, but can be accomplished with an individual older kitten if given time. the secret is to be non-threatening; "furniture" in a sense.
in case you haven't gathered, there's an overall theme to this: the closer a cat is to maturity when acquired, the more likely it is to be a "good" cat in the long run. i personally think that people should take pains to avoid getting any kitten separated from its litter prior to 8 weeks old. i really think that most undesirable character traits in cats are produced by people getting a single 6 week old kitten and raising it without any other sorts of cats to learn from. a young kitten is a weak, ignorant creature. it needs to be around other cats and kittens to learn how to interact and to feel secure in its surroundings. but very few people are willing to take in 2 or more kittens at once. equally few people are willing to take in older kittens or even young cats--who are more likely to have been properly socialized, especially if in a shelter.
very few cats under a year old can't be bonded with or broken of bad habits. what bad habits a cat has become readily apparent if you spend time with it. very few cats under 3 years old aren't playful and affectionate. a cuddly kitten only lasts for a few months anyways; a well-socialized cat will last you years.
(of course, things like climbing on the table, sleeping on the bed and pawing at the fishtank are pretty-well just part and parcel with owning a cat)
when i was a kid, both of my sets of grandparents had barns--feral cats were a given. since i am an absolute cat person, my parents allowed me to rescue what litters we could get ahold of and provide for at a given time. we easily "processed" a hundred kittens over the years. i've dealt with kittens in litters ranging from 1 to 10, having brought them home from 4 weeks to 12 weeks of age. some have been so feral as to require gloves to get them in the cage for transport whereas others were tamed in the barn itself. this is what i know about socializing kittens:
(1) any cat raised with insufficient influence of other cats will be a biter and a scratcher when full-grown. this is because kittens learn what is too rough by playing with each other. preventing "rough play" with other cats doesn't allow a kitten to learn the limits of acceptable behavior; thus it will be too rough when fully grown.
(2) people shouldn't play rough with young kittens. like the example of the Burmese who had been taught to play with feet, what's cute for a kitten is often terrible for an adult. thus wiggling fingers until the kitten tries gnawing on them -- BAD IDEA; allowing a kitten to violently attack feet/arms/long hair -- BAD IDEA; allowing a kitten to climb up one's legs -- BAD IDEA. in a similar vein, most of these undesirable habits are quickly apparent in an adult cat. it doesn't take long to figure out how an adult or semi-adult cat will behave towards people; a few hours of visiting should reveal that.
(3) very few cats of any age enjoy rambunctious children. allowing a child to manhandle or be excessively noisy around a kitten will only encourage skittishness as the cat ages. the more mature a cat is, the better equipped it is to feel secure around children and consequently, around adults. a mature cat will often realize that the "threat" is localized and will respond with warnings before fight/flight. adult cats will even ignore unwanted attention and respond as if to a kitten--with a brief hiss or a mild bite. a kitten will be more likely to generalize the threat, feel unable to defend itself, try to take advantage of surprise attacks and avoid subsequent interactions. a friendly kitten can very easily become a skittish adult. it takes a lot more to ruin a friendly adult cat.
(4) very few feral kittens cannot be tamed. however, PATIENCE is required for this. to tame a wild kitten you need to force it into situations where it can slowly realize that you are a food source, not a threat. this means restricting it to a small ROOM with HIDING PLACES and just spending time in there. i've always favored using a spare bathroom and reading a book. avoid sudden movements and excessive noise. don't make the kitten touch you, but let it approach you--which it eventually will if only to sniff you out. occasionally present your hand and see if it will let you touch it. by resticting the area available to the kitten, this also encourages litterbox training. taming feral kittens is easier with a larger group of very young kittens, but can be accomplished with an individual older kitten if given time. the secret is to be non-threatening; "furniture" in a sense.
in case you haven't gathered, there's an overall theme to this: the closer a cat is to maturity when acquired, the more likely it is to be a "good" cat in the long run. i personally think that people should take pains to avoid getting any kitten separated from its litter prior to 8 weeks old. i really think that most undesirable character traits in cats are produced by people getting a single 6 week old kitten and raising it without any other sorts of cats to learn from. a young kitten is a weak, ignorant creature. it needs to be around other cats and kittens to learn how to interact and to feel secure in its surroundings. but very few people are willing to take in 2 or more kittens at once. equally few people are willing to take in older kittens or even young cats--who are more likely to have been properly socialized, especially if in a shelter.
very few cats under a year old can't be bonded with or broken of bad habits. what bad habits a cat has become readily apparent if you spend time with it. very few cats under 3 years old aren't playful and affectionate. a cuddly kitten only lasts for a few months anyways; a well-socialized cat will last you years.
(of course, things like climbing on the table, sleeping on the bed and pawing at the fishtank are pretty-well just part and parcel with owning a cat)
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