Kitten - kill me now :P

[Ceinwen]

I got suckered/cajoled into getting this kitten, and now I have major remorse.

We don't even have it yet. Friends of ours found six abandoned kittens in the trunk of a junk-yard car (they watched for two days, and mama cat never came around - one kitten died) They took the six kittens in, and of course showed my dd on the web cam...

So yeah. We are the proud new owners of a six week old, grey, fluffy, indeterminate sex, kitten. Did I mention I have a schnauzer/terrier named Lulu who is probably going to eat her? My mother thinks I'm nuts and is shaking her head and 'tsk, tsk-ing' me - which I hate.

Someone please tell me good things about kittens? Cats? Help? lol

[greenmagick]

They can be crazy and hyper, but they are great pets! Also, this biggest piece of advice I can think of is never forget cats can be trained! Clicker training is great for cats and kittens and will help establish boundaries and manners as well as giving the cat something to do and look forward to!

6 weeks is awfully young so I would read up on what you can do to counter the social skills that will not be taught by mama.

[phatchristy]

Although I'm one of the greatest cat lovers here (because cats are really low maintenance cats they're the only pets I'll have), I can say that if you don't have the kitten yet it's still not a done deal. You can always change your mind and tell your friends that you were thinking about it more and changed your mind.

[Kirsten]

A young, possibly feral kitten - and you don't know if it is positive for possible diseases. And you do know that it wasn't with mama cat long enough to learn what it needed to to be socialized. I wouldn't bring that many unknowns into a house with two young kids and a dog.

I do love cats, and might agree - in your situation - to look on petfinder.com or in local no-kill animal shelters for a cat or pair of cats to add to your family. But a year old is SO much easier than tiny kittens. Especially with little kids in your house.

[Ceinwen]

So far it's going remarkably well. Kind of

I think if I had of read this first, I might not have kept her, but I'm just getting back online now!

The only issue we're having is my 22 month old dd - she absolutely, irrevocably, can not be allowed near the kitten. Even with constant, on hand supervision, she can not resist squeezing and handling the kitten extremely roughly.

Although I imagine as the cat grows, and my dd gets older, we can start to bring the two of them together more. My 6 year old is in love with her though!

[MaWhit]

I'm so glad it is going well. I'd recommend lots and lots of playtime, with interactive toys (the ones on "fishing" poles, for example), especially in the evenings. Follow playtime with a big meal of canned food, and kitten will hopefully let you rest a few hours before attacking your head. lol

I adore kittens.