DH has agreed to adopt a 4 month of kitten

[Sixgeese]

One of my friends sent me a text tonight to see if we wanted to adopt one of her 4 month old kittens (she had 5 cats and they were getting a bit much in the one house).

I have cat sat for them in the past so we were getting first refusal, I was just sending a text to say no, when DD1 saw the texts on my phone and she has managed to talk her Dad into one of the boys. (I think that he secretly wanted one)

What do I need to get, so far I was thinking Litter tray, bed, scratching post, bowls, food, toys, insurance and a carrier but is there anything that I have forgotten.

We were planning on going to our holiday home for some of the school holidays, would it be totally unrealistic to take it up there with us.

I haven't got very much cat experience, I did once cat sit for my sister for about 6 months, but that was 13 years ago and the only pets we have had since are the hamsters.

Well that's a good list - although I've never had a cat who would sleep in any bed I provided. (I also tend to make do with stuff around the house eg for food and water bowls I use fruit/cereal type bowls: many people have stuff in cupboards that can be used for cats rather than buying the expensive 'My Kiity' type of thing sold at great price in stores.)

\link{http://www.icatcare.org/advice/cat-care/preparing-your-new-cat-or-kitten\Here's} some guidance on new cats - with lots of links - as a starter read for you.

Can you delay getting the kitten until you get back from your holiday home? (I wasn't sure of the timing there but I suspect it's going to be quite early on and may be too much of a strain on the kitten who will still be adjusting to a huge change.)

I am not sure about being able to delay getting the kitten, but I will ask. I think the family we are adopting from are going away too, and the reason they need to get new homes for kittens is the Mum has started turning on them since she was neutered. They had been planning on keeping all four.

We can ask the family next door to pop in to feed and change the litter while we are away if taking it with us really want work. We will have only had it about three weeks and we will be away a week (we can't delay as we are doing a day trip to the Commonweath games that week)

We live near a forest and often have a fox in our garden so I was thinking it will probably have to be an indoor cat (which it currently is).

I am a little terrified, but I will read through the links. It is going to be a huge step for both us and the kitten.

Are you sure about having it as an indoor cat? That would mean not being able to open any of your windows and in this weather it will be stifling! Kittens are into everything and will investigate the slightest gap/chink in their bid to get out.

When it is settled and we are in the garden I would love to let it out (it and it's siblings and Mum are never let out currently), but we have a big fox who spend a lot of the day in our back garden. I have started to chase it off as I worry about my children out there too. We live in a cul de sac so I am not worried about traffic. I have spoken to DH about a cat flap, but we are not sure where it will go and it will take a bit of planning as we only have glass doors at the back and small high windows over the sink which I can't reach to open so they stay closed, so it might take a while to get the French windows replaced to something that would take a flap, and hopefully by then the fox will have got the idea he isn't wanted.

There is another way to the back which the children will have to use in the meantime (through the lean too which is filled with bikes gardening stuff etc, but there is a few doors between can be closed until we are ready to try going out) We have an old 1930's house with lots of rooms downstairs.

Until we got the text last night having a cat wasn't on the cards....reading the "getting a cat link", has already changed my mind about the first room it will live in. We have an open fireplace in the front room which while it has a fire guard I think the kitten would find the small gap at the top, DH doesn't want the litter tray in the dining room, so the back room it is. The children and I are currently working on making it kitten/ cat friendly, but it is also the room Dave the hamster lives in so he will have to have a change too.

I am a bit of a forward planner and like to do research and plan before making a decision, which is where the terror comes in, I don't like feeling unprepared.

While I have looked after my sisters adult cat, long term before, I think this will be a different ball game as he is a baby.

We had a very small cat once. His name was Harry, but in my mind he was 'mightymouse' because he was so brave (or foolhardy) and that blue/grey colour. I watched him see off a fox at the bottom of the garden once. As in he went down to confront and evict a fox that had come into his space. I think he had a Napoleon complex. He used to strut around the place like a man with a mission.