5 month old kitten advice please

[tigi]

We have been asked if we will have a five month old kitten, as the owner is ill. I wonder if anyone can help me with some questions --- (I've not seen it yet, and don't know a lot about cats...)

The cat has never been outside yet, I'm sure I thought they could at this age? Do you think this would cause me a problem?
I would only want it if an affectionate cat, Will it be if she has been inside all this time do you think?
I'm not sure if I'd rather wait and have a young kitten, for the cuteness factor, or should I take advantage of this one, as possibly all trained?

We have another local one year old female cat who visit us, will that cause trouble too?
Any advice, thanks

do you actually want a cat ?

If the cat hasn't been outside for 5 months, perhaps it's an indoor only cat (like ours) so how do you feel about that ?

ref the cuteness factor - kittens really aren't cute for that long. They climb up curtains, rip sofas, claw the stair carpets - as do grown up cats. Also they aren't like dogs in that they are 'trained'

I would think hard about whether you could give this animal a good home or whether it may be better with someone else.

They make lovely fur coats!

One reason why the kitten might not have been out yet is because they can't be neutered until they are 6 months. We got 2 kittens from the Cats Protection League last September and weren't supposed to let them out until after they had been neutered at 6 months. I must admit I found it impossible to keep them in when I could see they wanted to go out so much, but I did used to keep an eye on them whilst they were out (to make sure they stayed away from any lady cats!)

Now one of them loves being out and the other one only likes to go out for short periods.

I shouldn't think the fact that this kitten hasn't been out yet would make any difference to how friendly they were.

Oh and FWIW, our kittens were 3 months old when we got them and had already out grown that cute fluffy kitten stage so even if you waited for a young kitten, you wouldn't have the cute stage for long.

We would like a cat for the children- they adore the visiting one! I've never heard of an indoors cat!
I was told that it was indoors because she was too young to go out, and 'have to be kept inside for so long'!
We live by countryside, so I couldn't imagine a cat who didn't go out! I had a cat when young, but cant remember a lot about caring for it to be honest!

go and visit it first and you should be able to see if it friendly or not, if its shy and runs away thats not a prob, itl get to know you.

ive got 3 cats and a 1year old jack russell, im always threatening to get rid of the dog, its such a pain in the arse! it whines, muddy footprints,cant leave it longer than 4 hours etc etc. love my cats, no prob, always there for a cuddle, dont pee and poo anywhere or scratch coz i told em off from a young age, bit like kids

I have two cats and I got them when they were approx 4 months old, they didn't go out for a month so they would have been about 5 months old when they went out for the first time and they were absolutely fine. As long as you supervise them to start with, they gradually learn to go further and further away and come back again. I would think about whether you do want a cat though.

If you are going to have an indoor only cat, how do you feel about having to have a cat litter tray? It will need cleaning out regularly as the smell can be unbearable. Also, if you have young children then this is something else you will need to keep them well away from. If you are going to let the cat out are you prepared to fit a cat flap so the cat can come and go as it pleases? If not then you will still need to have a litter tray for times when the cat can't get out. If you are going to have a cat flap then are you prepared for the countless amounts of dead things your cat might bring home? birds, mice etc, some of which might not be dead and which you might have to chase around the house to catch and set free back into the wild? Especially if you live near the country, then I'd imagine the wildlife there is abundent, a good hunting ground for cats.

Don't get me wrong I love my cats to bits, and now that they're older they're not so much of a pain as they were when they were younger, but I've decided that when they depart to the great cattery in the sky, then I won't be getting any more.

Also you shouldn't take kittens away from their mothers until they are 13/14 weeks old 12 absolute minimum. So if you get a kitten from someone responsible it will have outgrown the fluffy stage (unless you get a longhair .

Also ours were kept in until they were about 5 months and have adapted fine. Cats are very adaptable but please get a good book about keeping cats and read it several times to make sure you do actually want one.

i had a 1 year old cat who was a house cat . she got out (fell off the balcony ) and got herself up the duff lol . she had 5 kittens and we kept one. they were the loveliest little things ever!!. we have recently gave the one we kept away but house cats are lovely and enjoy humane contact. if you were to let it out im sure it would be fine. as mine prove. good luck !1

Hi, I got my kitten. She's very sweet, but also very timid and skinny. We got her two weeks ago. She follows me around now, and has a cuddle, but is not so keen on the children- I think it's their noise she finds difficult!
She doesnt eat much, so that is a bit of trial and error at the moment.
She uses her litter tray, and doesn't scratch, so she really is a bit of a darlin'!
I took her out today in the garden on a lead but she was just terrified, she was shivering, and then went all floppy in my arms! I'll try again next week.
I got a really good Dorling Kindersley book to read before we got her.
Thanks for all your advice
xx