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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To put new cat in spare room

22 replies

intelligentPutty · 27/10/2017 07:00

We are getting new cat today. She is about 16 weeks old..
We have met her before and visited a few times.
Have never had a cat before (dh has) and the reading I do says that she should have a "Safe" room for the first few days.. Is that so? have put everything of hers (snuggle box, scratch post, toys, food and litter tray in spare bedroom) with plan to move her down to our space over the coming weeks.. Is that reasonable. DH is worried we will end up having to keep litter tray upstairs, maybe i'm better just to bring her into the living room and let her be with us for the evening, and then have her own space there.. thoughts. really not sure what to do
Hmm

OP posts:
AdalindSchade · 27/10/2017 07:01

Umm no that doesn't sound nice at all! Have all her stuff in the living room and shut her in there at night. She will want to be around you and playing!

MrsJamin · 27/10/2017 07:04

Yeah it needs to be downstairs really so they get used to the people and noise. I also don't think it will need to be in just one room for much more than 24 hours.

MrsPicklesonSmythe · 27/10/2017 07:05

Livingroom definitely. Kittens can get very lonely if they're used to company.
My (overly pampered) cat hates being alone and just wants to be in the room with us.

womaninatightspot · 27/10/2017 07:07

I wouldn't stick her in the spare room either. Cats will find a safe spot behind/ under something pretty quick and then venture out to explore. Might as well learn your new role as cat servants straightaway :)

Stormsurfer · 27/10/2017 07:08

At first they do feel comfortable in a smaller area, but I think it should include contact with the family. Mine still gets shut in the spare room at night, in fact she sleeps in her bed in the cupboard (with the door open!) as she likes to be in small spaces. But during the day, she roams the house. Do not worry about the litter tray, simply move it and “plonk” her down with all 4 paws in it when you first move it so she knows where it is. Litter tray is very moveable if you do this.

Incitatus · 27/10/2017 07:15

Cats generally hate being shut in rooms. They also find their own safe area. Just show her where the litter tray is when she first arrives then let her investigate the house and see how she wants to proceed.

TheZeppo · 27/10/2017 07:18

I'll be the first... can we have a picture please? I love a kitten pic 😊

LittleLionMansMummy · 27/10/2017 07:23

Cats will choose their own safe space and venture out to explore from it. With ours we've put the box somewhere quiet and dark where we've opened it and let the kitten come out in its own time. Our hallway landing was perfect for this. But we've let them have access to everywhere while we've been at home.

Original poster
intelligentPutty · 27/10/2017 07:29

Amazing!! Thank you all for your friendly advice. Love this forum for advice sometimes. ;)
Here’s a pic. We are very excited to have her and he’s looking forwards to being the cat slave!!!
Here’s a pic of her with mum.
Many more will be taken in coming weeks !!!

To put new cat in spare room
OP posts:
shhhfastasleep · 27/10/2017 07:36

We put our new girl in my dd’s room. We kitted out a big dog training cage with the door open (dd’s door closed) to see how she wanted to be. My cats from childhood were all scaredy cats who hid.This little lovely just had fun and snuggles from Day one. Dd read to her to get her used to the sound of her voice. Over the next day or two she was ready to explore further.
We originally gave her the food she’d had at the rescue place - whiskas- but she farted up a storm. We changed her to a fancier meat only kitten food and the farting stopped- or stopped stinking!Grin

roofio87 · 27/10/2017 07:54

The cat will let you know what they want. We adopted a grown up cat (he was 2) so it was probably a little different, but he loved being in his own room for the first week or so. He had access to get out but didnt want to. It took him a long time to warm up to us, but i guess Kittens are more amenable. Good luck and enjoy!

ethelfleda · 27/10/2017 08:21

Congratulations on your new master!
Just to add to other comments - cats can be much more sensitive than many people think... and can get anxious in new environments so definitely let him explore. They also like to have (as well as somewhere to hide) somewhere to climb and just be higher up - top of a book shelf for instance! Or you can buy cat tree thingys on eBay quite cheap. We bought a giant monstrosity for our cat for £20. Of course she had absolutely no interest in it... and we did later find out that she is losing her eyesight so that's probably why.
Also, an empty cardboard box is a good shout too.

Weedsnseeds1 · 27/10/2017 08:40

A kitten will probably adjust faster than an adult cat. The idea is to give here a space to hide if it all gets too much, but at the same time get her used to the normal activities of your household.
Something like a large cardboard box, on it's side, with a towel draped over to leave a little gap for access is ideal. Food, water and litter tray nearby.
Open the carrier next to it when you get her home and she'll probably dive straight in. But downstairs where she can hear you and spy on you!
A kitten may not hide for too long and will probably be exploring pretty quickly!

TheZeppo · 27/10/2017 17:21

What a cutie 😍What's her name?

Original poster
intelligentPutty · 27/10/2017 20:36

She’s called poppy
All home now and sleeping on my lap. Bit nervous of dh but I’m so pleased we didn’t put her in spare room. !!

To put new cat in spare room
OP posts:
Original poster
intelligentPutty · 27/10/2017 20:43

That was a bad pic!! This is better.

OP posts:
Original poster
intelligentPutty · 27/10/2017 20:43
Confused
To put new cat in spare room
To put new cat in spare room
OP posts:
Dontknowwherethelineis · 27/10/2017 20:48

Haha - I'm not laughs NG at you, just at my own naivety when we got our kitten of a similar age. We gave him the slate room too bit he had his own ideas about what he would do.....from the first night onwards his bed was snubbed and he slept on our bed. To be fair he littered wherever our litter tray was and ate where his food bowl was but it's not like he limited himself to those rooms.... He has the run of the house and no matter how hard I try to stop him going on eg: work surfaces/dining table he does as he pleases. I'm jealous of people who manage to keep their cars restricted to a particular place!

Dontknowwherethelineis · 27/10/2017 20:49

Jeez my spellcheck is overzealous. Hopefully my post is readable.

Original poster
intelligentPutty · 27/10/2017 21:21

Yeah. I could read that. Very similar to my spell check!! ;)
She’s not eaten or drunk today ... since picked her up at 4:30

OP posts:
SilverSpot · 27/10/2017 21:30

Glad it's going well!

Mind didn't want to stay in his 'safe room' (the kitchen) for long and was soon exploring the house with me.

Dontknowwherethelineis · 27/10/2017 22:00

I was a bit worried as he didn't seem to want to drink for ages but I suppose it's a big change for a tiny little thing. He sorted himself out soon enough! As long as it's easily available she won't let herself get dehydrated. I know it possibly sounds nobbish but I can't find it in me to worry too much about a cat who has a safe space, food, water and litter tray available to it. Surely that's totally winning for a cat? I'm not trying to be a dick just think you'll enjoy her more if you relax and don't worry too much about the details if you've provided the basics.... Unlike humans little cats can survive on the streets so what you're giving her is more than enough and She just needs a bit of time to get used to it. Or perhaps I'm a terrible cat mum!

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