How to Bring Home a New Kitten
By Sarah Borroum

Your furry friend is coming home soon: a new kitten that the entire family can love and enjoy. Here are some tips to make the adjustment period easier both for you and the new family member.

First, you should be absolutely certain that a kitten is welcome in your home. If someone is allergic to cats, there could be a serious problem. It's not fair to adopt an animal and give him or her a home, only to discover a few weeks later that he or she can't stick around.

If you have young children, talk to them before the new kitten comes home. Explain that kittens are delicate and need lots of rest. Introduce them when both kitten and child are ready, and keep an eye on them when they're playing together. Eventually you'll have a childhood bond that will create a lifetime of memories - not to mention laughs when the kitten does something adorable like steal the child's favorite snack right out of his hand.

Stock up on all the items your new kitten will need BEFORE you bring it home. This includes food and water, a place to sleep (cats often enjoy having their very own beds), and plenty of toys.

Find a place that the kitten can call its own for the next few days. It's likely that he or she will be afraid to come out and say hello to you for awhile, so give it a nice hiding place. It should be safe and fairly dark, with food and water available nearby. When you bring the kitten home in its carrier, set it down and open the cage's door. Let the kitten emerge as he or she feels comfortable about it, and be sure that the food and water are close by. Visiting him or her will be irresistible, but try to limit it to a few minutes at a time a couple of times a day, at least the first couple of days.

Allow the other animals to introduce themselves, but be ready to break things up if they decide to attack each other. Sometimes a little half-serious fighting is required to establish who's in charge (hint: it's not the new guy). Because the new guy in this instance is a kitten, keep an extra-close eye on things: you don't want the tomcat of the house beating the baby up. One way to prevent this is to make sure that the new kitten doesn't intrude upon the old cat's territory: make sure that sleeping spots, food dishes and other "territorial" items and places remain with the older cat.

When you talk to your new kitten, do it in a small, soft voice. Use soft strokes when petting it, and be sure to make lots of eye contact if possible. Your new friend will eventually trust you completely, and grow into a typical housecat. Before you know it, he or she will ignore you, demand all of your attention, make you laugh, make you cry, and steal your heart.

The above article is written by an independent author and may not represent the views of The Refined Feline