I have been looking at old threads here and it's been really helpful, but still have a couple of questions. Firstly, am I meant to put newspaper down under the cat litter or just sprinkle the cat litter straight into the litter tray? Am not sure what newspaper will achieve, but have this odd feeling I should! 
The other thing I'm troubled about is that we are bringing the kitten back in the car with us and it will be a four-hour journey. I have borrowed a cat carrier and bought some Feliway to spray in it. Am just looking out old fleeces and towels to make it snuggly. What I'm worried about is what to do about food, water and the kitten's need to wee/poo. It is toilet trained already (it's 14 weeks' old), but will it just do that in the carrier if it needs to? Could I bring the litter tray and offer that or is that a mad idea? I do have an absorbant disposable mat to place under the towels in case of sickness or anything else.
And I don't know what to do about food because some advice says don't feed your cat before a journey in case it makes it travel sick. But surely it's cruel not to offer the kitten some food on the journey? I will obviously be offering water anyway.
Also, a friend told me to bring ear plugs for the journey because the cat might be noisy. It's a Balinese (like a Siamese). I have visions of a four-hour journey from hell, with yowling travel-sick kitten and two wailing, travel-sick children.
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The litter tray
Another novice cat owner here. Getting new kitten on Sunday. Advice please!
ToffeeWhirl · 19/04/2013 14:20
PS - if you haven't got a name yet, try and get one by tomorrow. If you haven't been to a vet before, you are, from now on, an adjunct to the cat and your appointment will be announced not as 'Mrs ToffeeWhirl' but as 'Kittysname ToffeeWhirl'.
PS - if it's any help, we've always found that the more elegant the cat, the more they're suited to house names that might have belonged to a head Victorian gardener - Albert, Herbert, Arthur and so on. 
and squeeeee!!Oooh, this is as good as showing off a new baby!
Very much looking forward to more adulation at the vet's. In fact, I will now be quite cross and disappointed if kitty doesn't receive his dues.
No idea about a name! He still answers to the name of Baby, which is what the breeder calls all her kittens. DH suggested Charlie (as in Charlie from Bali) or Sapphire (for his eyes) and DS1 thought of Bailey. None of them quite fit, although I do quite like Charlie from Bali, simply because it makes me smile. He seems a bit too elegant for a Charlie.
DH and I both like the Victorian Head Gardener idea
.
They never get called their names in my experience. Sparkling Cat is Alice but gets called 'Pud'.
Have had a family discussion about cat names. It got us nowhere as everyone wanted different names . DS1 wants Merlin; DS2 wants Snowy. We favour cozi's Victorian gardener name idea .
I have put lots of towels and cut-up fleeces into a cardboard box with a door cut into the front and kitty has curled up in there. Am hoping it will make a good bed for tonight. Will spray some Feliway and leave the radio on. Would a hot-water bottle be a step too far or a good and comforting thing for a young kitten?
I would be in two minds about a hottie. A hot one would be uncomfortable to start with and a warm one might get chilly later. On balance, though, I'd go for a medium hot one, wrapped well - if there's plenty room for it. An alternative is to drape a blanket over the top and three sides of the box so that a nice fug builds up.
Can't advise on the pet bed I'm afraid. It looks fine, warm and cuddly - it's just that all my Siamese have slept in real beds so I have no expertise. Why not see how the box pans out?
Kitty had a great night - and so did we . DH went down at 7am and kitty came out of his box, rubbed his face against him and squawked. He ate a good breakfast, then went back to his box and dozed some more.
He jumped on DS2's lap at breakfast time. DS2 has mostly ignored him so far, but he couldn't ignore this blatant demand for kitten love. I explained that if DS2 spoke to him, the kitten would answer. Saw a little smile on DS2's face - ah ha, he's weakening!
After the school run for DS2, I sat on the sofa and gave kitty loads of love and attention. He was so playful and so incredibly sweet. He clutches at me with his paws and nibbles on my hand, but none of it hurts.
He has been exploring the house this morning, providing a running commentary as he goes. He is now playing chase with an invisible creature in the hall . I thought it might be a spider, but there is nothing there!
Probably the end of his tail! 
Kittens can be utterly daft.
Good news about the peaceful night, kitty's use of his box, and DS2 getting over his fear of cats a little. (A kitten can be great for that being so small and appealing.) Just don't expect that last night's sleeping arrangement will necessarily last - especially if he forms a new bond with DS2. But at least it provides some respite for the time being.
Good luck with the vet later on.
Yes, it gave us all much-needed respite last night - in fact, DS1 hasn't surfaced yet. I'm letting him sleep as long as he wants this morning (though might draw the line if it gets near lunchtime 
).
I will bear in mind that the night arrangements may not always go so smoothly.
Must drag myself away from the kitten lovefest and get some jobs done now .
Vet trip was great fun. As you predicted, cozi, our new kitten had lots of attention. He was also VERY NOISY whilst we were waiting to be seen 
. It felt a bit like being out in public with a tantrumming toddler . Ahh, happy memories.
He has been given a clean bill of health and we will take him in for neutering when he is five or six months. Think we might get him microchipped, even if he does turn out to be an indoor cat - just in case he dashes out the door one day.
Every time we took kitty out in public, people stopped and cooed over him. It really was very like going out with a newborn baby and I enjoyed every minute.
We discussed all sorts of names today, but in the end we went with the simple choice that both our boys agreed on. It was actually DS2's suggestion, so we thought that would be a good thing as it would help him bond with the cat. The name is....Snowy. Not the most original name, but the boys are happy. And DH and I may call him Charlie from Bali in private 
.
Took kitty to visit my MIL, who lives round the corner from the vet's, afterwards. He was a very bold little thing and roamed all over her sitting room, exploring. Wondered if this is because he is secure with us now, so it wasn't quite as frightening being in a new place. I hope so anyway.
I can't find that other thread, marzipan. Can you point me in the right direction?
Well Snowy is a great name! And if it's right for the DSs that's especially just the thing.
Well done the Toffee family.
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Another good night! Didn't hear a peep out of Snowy until he heard me coming down the stairs at 7 and called out for his breakfast. What a star!
Poor thing managed to stand in his poo half an hour before visitors arrived to see him this morning, so DS1 and I spent a frantic few minutes showering his paws and tail, which he did not like at all 
. Because of his markings, it was hard to tell afterwards if the dark colouring on his paws was poo or him. And he was still smelly after the impromptu shower, so I found some orange-smelling dog shampoo and gave him another quick shower on his paws. Now he smells of poo and oranges . And also looks a bit bedraggled.
Amazingly, he forgave us both instantly and is already cuddled up on my lap again. The visitors are coming next week instead now, so we can hopefully restore him to his normal elegance by then.
He discovered the best toy in the world this morning: a lint ball from my tumbledryer. He spent ages chasing it all over the dining-room floor and pouncing on it.
And DS2's conversion is continuing apace. Last night, he said, "You love the kitten more than me, don't you?" which gave me the opportunity to stress that I could never love the kitten more (sorry kitty). This morning DS2 peeked into the box and saw Snowy sleeping. Then Snowy opened his big blue eyes and looked up at him and DS2 exclaimed, "Ohhhh, he's so sweet!"
Snowy really is the perfect pet for our family. We have been through such an awful time with DS1's OCD taking a turn for the worse recently and him requiring surgery. It was so depressing because we had thought everything was going so well for him since we took him out of school. Snowy has shifted the focus of the family away from that problem again and we all needed that.
We bought the kitten for DS1, but in fact he is a gift to us all.
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