New Kitten Guardians Should Ask These Questions

If you’re getting a kitten or two, it pays to ask questions about the kitten’s early life at the breeder, rescue, or shelter. That’s because an excellent start to life can make a big difference to their behavioral development and therefore to their life with you.

Kittens have what’s known as a sensitive period for socialization between the ages of about 2 and 7-9 weeks. This is a time when their brain is developing rapidly. Having a wide range of positive experiences can help them grow up into friendly, confident adult cats. But since kittens don’t go to their new home until they are at least 8 weeks old (and later seems to be better), it’s important to find out about your potential kitten’s early life experiences.

Play is important for kitten development

Source: Michelle-Maria/Pixabay

Whoever is raising the kittens in those early weeks should be taking care to give the kitten lots of experience with the people, animals, and things they might meet later in life. Interactions with new people at this early age are important for helping your kitten to learn to be sociable around people. So check that the kitten is meeting human visitors and also other animals. The effects are long-lasting. Kittens who are well socialized at this age spend more time close to people when they are a year old and will more easily learn to trust a new person (Casey and Bradshaw, 2008; Turner, 2021).

It’s not just about people. Ensure that the kittens are being raised in a household environment, rather than a shed in the garden, for example, so that they are being exposed to normal household sounds. Shelters and rescues often send kittens to foster homes, but even when they are having to raise kittens in a shelter environment, they should be taking steps to get the kittens used to things like the sound of a washing machine.

Meet the kittens’ mom and check that she is friendly to other people too. If it’s possible to meet the father, which is quite likely for pedigree kittens but not so much at a shelter/rescue, check that they are friendly and sociable as well. Health is also very important, and you want to ensure that the mom and kittens are in good health. Since stress can affect health (and behavioral health), you also want to make sure they are in a relaxed environment.

You might notice at the top that I said a kitten “or two”. That’s because having another kitten around can be very beneficial. Kitten play peaks in those early weeks when they are in their new home (up until about 14 weeks), and the kittens will spend a lot of time playing together. Play isn’t just fun; it’s also important from a developmental perspective. The kittens are practicing things like motor control, predatory behaviors, and social skills. Plus, if you want more than one cat, getting them as a bonded pair of kittens avoids the issues that might arise if you later add an unrelated cat to your household.

Once the kitten(s) come to you, you can build on their early experiences and help ensure they keep on having more positive experiences. Always give your kitten(s) a choice of whether or not to interact with people and objects. Kittens are so tiny and cute that people often subject them to handling whether or not they like it; but pay attention to their body language for signs that they might be uncomfortable and don’t force handling on them.

This is a good time to get them used to handling that they will experience later in life, such as brushing, toothbrushing, having their paws handled for nail trims, and so on. But always keep sessions short and break things down into sections that are not just manageable but actually fun for the kitten. For example, don’t just launch into brushing your kitten’s teeth, but take time to get them used to the toothbrush, pet toothpaste, and the handling separately before you start to put them together. Use treats, play, and petting to make it a positive experience. Never force your kitten to do things because that risks making them fearful. Bad experiences in early life can have a long-lasting effect, so work hard to make things relaxed, pleasant, and fun.

If there is a kitten kindergarten class near you, this is a good opportunity for you and the kitten to learn. While these classes are increasing in popularity, they can still be hard to find. Even if there isn’t such a class near you, take some time to learn more about kitten and cat behavior from a reliable source. Doing so will help you to understand your cat better, become able to provide for their needs, and help to ensure a happy relationship with your cat over the years.