New kitten...help!

eviltwin

Nearly two weeks on from finding a stray kitten no one has come forward to claim him so we have decided to keep him. He's beautiful and we all love him but we are not cat people so we have been thrown in the deep end a bit.

I'm just looking for some advice now on how to manage our dogs with him. They have all been introduced and there have been no issues, dogs are okay and don't seem upset or threatened. However in the past few days the cat seems to have become a bit of a bully, he is going up to the dogs and swiping his paw at them, he's chasing them around the place and going for their tails.

I know a lot of this is age but I don't want my dogs feeling uncomfortable in their home, both are quite old now and deserve a quiet life.

He's also walking around the counters and sinks a lot which is freaking me out, how do I teach him these areas are off limits?

Also what kind of shots does a cat need and when is the best age to get him neutered?

Speedwell

LOL, kittens. My "new" kitten, adopted at eight weeks, is now nearly ten months and still very much a kitten. I feel your pain.

You will have to remove and isolate the kitten for a "time out" when he is bratty to the dogs. No need to raise your voice or punish; just remove the kitten and put him by himself. He'll eventually learn that if he wants attention, he will have to stop picking on the dogs. Also, he is seeking normal kitten play when he does that. You will need to be responsible for giving him enough interactive play time (those toys on a wand and string are excellent).

I'm told that tinfoil on the counters and sinks is unpleasant on cats' claws and they avoid it. You must teach him to avoid the hob at all costs, too. I would catch the kitten on the counter, say "no" in a theatrical, melodramatic manner, act all shocked, and put him out of the kitchen. I never leave food or anything else attractive to cats on the counter, or allow the faucet to drip.

If the kitten has never been examined, get him examined now. He could have mites or fleas that could transfer to the dogs. Also, he'll need to have his shots started right away because he will likely need to be up to date on those before they will accept him for neutering. A male kitten can be neutered as soon as he weighs 2kg. Mine was neutered at ten weeks. This prevents a lot of problems regarding fighting, spraying, smell, and wandering. If you have trouble finding a vet to do a "pediatric spay/neuter", ask a cat breeder, who will know a vet who will do the responsible thing and not wait until the kitten is getting to the horrible adolescent stage.

eviltwin

Speedwell wrote: »

LOL, kittens. My "new" kitten, adopted at eight weeks, is now nearly ten months and still very much a kitten. I feel your pain.

You will have to remove and isolate the kitten for a "time out" when he is bratty to the dogs. No need to raise your voice or punish; just remove the kitten and put him by himself. He'll eventually learn that if he wants attention, he will have to stop picking on the dogs. Also, he is seeking normal kitten play when he does that. You will need to be responsible for giving him enough interactive play time (those toys on a wand and string are excellent).

I'm told that tinfoil on the counters and sinks is unpleasant on cats' claws and they avoid it. You must teach him to avoid the hob at all costs, too. I would catch the kitten on the counter, say "no" in a theatrical, melodramatic manner, act all shocked, and put him out of the kitchen. I never leave food or anything else attractive to cats on the counter, or allow the faucet to drip.

If the kitten has never been examined, get him examined now. He could have mites or fleas that could transfer to the dogs. Also, he'll need to have his shots started right away because he will likely need to be up to date on those before they will accept him for neutering. A male kitten can be neutered as soon as he weighs 2kg. Mine was neutered at ten weeks. This prevents a lot of problems regarding fighting, spraying, smell, and wandering. If you have trouble finding a vet to do a "pediatric spay", ask a cat breeder, who will know a vet who will do the responsible thing and not wait until the kitten is getting to the horrible adolescent stage.

Thanks a mil Speedwell for all that.

Do you have any idea how much shots and neutering are with a cat?

Speedwell

eviltwin wrote: »

Thanks a mil Speedwell for all that.

Do you have any idea how much shots and neutering are with a cat?

Call a local shelter to see if any local vets are offering specials; they frequently do, especially with a referral from a shelter. If you are in Dublin, there might be publicly available programs through the humane societies. Prices differ a lot, especially between city vets and country vets, and between dedicated small animal practices and practices where the vet is talking about someone's cow over the phone while giving your kitten an exam.

Milly33

Sounds like the kitten is just quite comfy with the dogs and he is just showing them whos boss or who he thinks is boss.... Actually no cats are so much worse than dogs claiming their terrority..

My tuppence would be;

Make sure the dogs know ye still love them..It is so hard when a cat is small and will fit on your lap, and the dogs are so much bigger..
Try to make sure the dogs are still the main chaps... A cat will make itself at home whether they are getting the attention or not...

Stop the cat in his tracks while he is young with any bad habits..

Good idea with all saying bring him to the vets get him all checked out, things like worms are just not nice for ye or for the cat..
We got a rescue chap and I think I paid around €60 to get him neutered..

For males they can start to spray which isn't good for anyone, so the sooner the snip the better. Females then in the obvious one if you don't want kittens get them neutered.

Get them chipped too, even if they are to be kept indoors. It does not cost a lot and if anything happens where someone picks him up at least he is chipped...

Shots and things are up to ye really, if he is outdoor I would say defo go with them a lot safer.... If ye have to bring him to a cattery or anything he will need his shots done so best to keep them up to date... Think they cost abour €35 - €40 pending where you go...

With him climbing on the counters and where places where you don't want him to go, a household spray water gun works wonders...
Everytime you see him where he should not be spray him with some water... Soon enough when he does it all you will have to do is pick up the water spray and he will remove himself.

Another one is lemons, works well for stopping them peeing where they should not... Slice a lemon and place it around places you do not want them and they tend to stay away from it..

Nody

eviltwin wrote: »

Do you have any idea how much shots and neutering are with a cat?

Neutering around 75 to 100 but as male it's generally cheaper compared to female. Shots are most expensive the first time; I'd guess similar price for both rounds combined (been a while since we've done ours outside our rescue vet so we have discounted prices).

When to neuter; 2 kg or 6 months; which ever comes first is a good rule of thumb to use but once again discuss it with your vet in regards to shots as well.

Walking on counters is what they normally do to explore things; best bet is to make sure it's as boring as possible (i.e. never leave food or anything else of interest there) and lift them down every time.

As for him bullying your dogs; well that's unlikely to stop as long as he lives as you'll hear from most dog and cat owners :P Best bet however is to try to give the kitten and cat a lot of vertical space. Cats think vertically for priority so being up high = good thing in their mind and this is a way to give the dogs space to try to minimize this.

Speedwell

Oranges and lemons, good thought. I used to use essential oil of orange (cheap stuff) to stop outdoor cats peeing around my doorway when I lived in an apartment. It works because it smells to the cats like you have "sprayed your territory", lol.

intheclouds

eviltwin wrote: »

Do you have any idea how much shots and neutering are with a cat?

Male neutering will be much cheaper. Maybe 40 or 50 euro. Some places do specials on males, Ive seen it as cheap as 25 euro.

Shots - as far as I remember it was about 80 euro and there were an initial set followed 3 weeks later by another shot. Then once a year.

Dont forget a microchip - about 30 euro. The needle will look HUGE for a kitten but kitties are tough!

eviltwin

Thank you so much for the advice everyone. I really appreciate it. I have an appointment for the vets on Tuesday, shots, microchip and neutering all in for 150 euros which seems okay.

Milly, that's a great idea. I am definitely getting myself a spray bottle I can't believe how brazen he is, he's the size of a tub of Dairygold and has no fear of two fully grown massive beasts of dogs. What have I let myself in for at all?

intheclouds

eviltwin wrote: »

What have I let myself in for at all?

Cat slavery.

You are now......under the claw. Soft paw if you behave yourself

Milly33

Great stuff eviltwin! Well done for homing the little guy....

Oh cats are so funny, the pic above sums it up. no matter what cat blanket or pillow you get they will take the dogs bed nine times out of ten or a cardboard box....

The spray gun really does work and as mentioned soon you wont even have to spray it just shake the bottle and he will be gone...

Cats really are clever little buggers, they will manage to get away with everything and so so sneaky...

http://brostrick-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/05085901/cat-memes-10.png

DEFTLEFTHAND

I would also recommend a water spray gun to keep them off counters and work surfaces. I just used a kids toy water pistol with mine, like the above poster mentioned it got to the point where the mere sight of the pistol made them jump down. :P