Found a kitten

eviltwin

Found a kitten this morning, looks well cared for. Neighbours say he's about ten weeks old. Posters going up in the area today but what do I do in the meantime? I am a dog person so cats are alien to me. Have bought him some food but what else does he need?

anothernight

Take him to the vet if at all possible, to make sure that everything is ok. At ten weeks it should be eating normal kitten food. If you opted to give it dry food, have fresh water out at all times. Cats are prone to kidney issues because drinking water doesn't seem to come naturally to them (they get their moisture from food, if its not the dry type). If you got wet food this isn't really an issue.

Don't give it milk or anything like that, and don't let it go out. Kittens are little balls of energy who will go from deep sleep to hyper playful mode with no transition in between, so make sure it can do that without being bothered by your dog, if you have one. If you don't want to get kitty toys, balls of tinfoil can be a good substitute. If you play with it with your hands, make sure they are well protected with thick gloves or similar. Those little teeth and claws are a lot sharper than they look!


Also, and this is of utmost importance, you absolutely must post a picture of the kitten in this thread... for its health and wellbeing of course....

eviltwin

Thanks Another Night. I did some shopping and got wet food, didn't get kitten food specifically so I hope that's okay. I gave it a drop of milk but will stick to water from now on. I have two dogs so there has been a bit of upheaval with them but I wouldn't trust them not to be too rough. How do you check if a cat has a microchip? Is there a lost pets Facebook or something? The husband says I should put a pic up online but does it make more sense to have potential owners describe him? I really could do without a cat but deep down I'd be delighted if no one claims him, he is adorable.

Cherry Blossom

I recognised my friends missing kitten from photos put up on Facebook by the finder, if it had just been a description I most likely would have scrolled on past, so definately put up photos. Your local rescues Facebook page will have a lot of people viewing and sharing posts so ask them if they would put up a post. More people will see it if they put it up as opposed to you posting on their page.

aonb

Eviltwin this was me 18 months ago!
Never had a cat in my life (in fact was a bit anti!!) and found a tiny/half dead kitten.
She is now the love of my life - has taken over the house completely, even the dogs love her

So prepare to become a cat slave !!

Are you in a rural or urban area?
I would put up a few posters in local shops/vets, and you can send a photo to your local rescues. There are various FB pages - eg Kildare Pet Detectives, Lost and found pets Dublin etc.

anothernight

If you take the kitten to the vet they will be able to scan for a microchip. Even if it doesn't have one, experienced vets can sometimes tell whether a cat has an owner, though at 10 weeks I'm not sure how reliable their opinion would be.

I would post pictures on Facebook and ask my friends to share it.


Good luck!


I'm a bit jealous.

reallyrose

Post a picture but ask for proof of ownership. The owner will have pictures of him. (If they don't, they don't deserve kittens! :pac:)

Failing pictures, everyone knows a marking on their animal that doesn't show up on a picture.

eviltwin

reallyrose wrote: »

Post a picture but ask for proof of ownership. The owner will have pictures of him. (If they don't, they don't deserve kittens! :pac:)

Failing pictures, everyone knows a marking on their animal that doesn't show up on a picture.

That's a great idea about the photo, I never would have thought of that.

So far no one has come forward, we live in an urban area near a busy road and I've asked the few houses on my side. I doubt he crossed over given the traffic but asking anyway and no takers. My husband reckons he was dumped. If no one comes I'm going to keep him, we've all fallen in love with him even my husband who has always claimed to hate cats and the dogs have taken to him well enough.

I have no idea what a cat needs or does but we will figure it out.

alwaysadub

eviltwin wrote: »

That's a great idea about the photo, I never would have thought of that.

So far no one has come forward, we live in an urban area near a busy road and I've asked the few houses on my side. I doubt he crossed over given the traffic but asking anyway and no takers. My husband reckons he was dumped. If no one comes I'm going to keep him, we've all fallen in love with him even my husband who has always claimed to hate cats and the dogs have taken to him well enough.

I have no idea what a cat needs or does but we will figure it out.

Cats need a slave, congratulations you're it

After the important things like food and water, the cat essentials are: A litter box, a scratching post or 20, some toys to keep it occupied. I was going to say I bed, but my 2 sleep anywhere but their beds so depends on the cat! If its a fluffy cat get a good comb and start brushing him now when he's small!

aonb

squillions of brownie points to you EVILTWIN!

GREAT that the dogs seem to be ok with the kitten - what breed are they?

A photo of the kitten, so we can all be green with envy, would be nice

When I got my kitten first, a cardboard box on its side (so it was deep/dark), with nice soft blankets in, was her favourite. Water, and food. Love and security. Thats it! You will need to bring her to the vet when she has settled and is comfortable with you. She'll need checking and jabs. You will need to think about neutering down the road too. Do you know if its a male or female :P Oh, and LOTS of handling from day 1 - picking up and cuddling and stroking!

reallyrose

Stuff to scratch and play with are key. Kittens want to play all the time which can be frustrating for other animals who just want to chill. Dogs might get confused by this non-dog acting Thing too.

They'll play with anything though. My kitten-cat's favorite is a wrapper tied in a knot. (Like a crisp wrapper folded up and knotted or something)
Bottle caps are nice - good for teething too.

My kitten was partly raised in a house with dogs and he's cool with dogs. The older cat goes nuts if he thinks there's a dog anywhere near outside. (Like, he'll go growl at the window) and the younger one just looks at him like "wut's wrong with him?"