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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Original poster

Would you crate train a kitten?

67 replies

FoxRedBitch · 26/01/2020 18:13

I know there are mixed feelings about crate training dogs.

I am getting a new kitten he will be 9 weeks old. I have an 8 year old child and a Labrador. I was thinking that maybe it could be a quiet space for him to escape as well as being somewhere that he could be put for a short time when perhaps the front door is open etc.

I would cover the crate so that it was a nice dark space.
Has anyone tried this?

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 26/01/2020 18:16

Its not something I've heard of doing tbh

AFistfulofDolores1 · 26/01/2020 18:18

Your kitten/cat will find a quiet place to escape to if need be.

mistermagpie · 26/01/2020 18:18

Putting a kitten in a crate with cover in it so it's dark?

No. Of course you shouldn't do that.

gamerwidow · 26/01/2020 18:18

I can't imagine this would be something a cat would like. They like to find their own safe quiet spaces and I think this would cause a lot of stress and make them feel trapped.

MyNewBearTotoro · 26/01/2020 18:21

Personally no and it’s not something I’ve ever heard of being used for cats but google does have information about crate training kittens. However, just because information about it is out there doesn’t mean it’s a good or natural method. A kitten is not a puppy and so I wouldn’t utilise a crate unless you spend a significant time researching whether this is actually a good method to be used with cats, what the risks and benefits are, what kind of crate you need and the best ways to crate train cats. You can’t just follow the information for dogs or information about cats from dodgy websites - only crate train a kitten if you are sure you can do it in an informed way, safely and without cruelty.

SunsetBoulevard3 · 26/01/2020 18:21

No, that would be cruel.

mrssunshinexxx · 26/01/2020 18:21

No, to be honest I don't like it when people crate train dogs I think locking them in the kitchen or wherever overnight is one thing but in a metal cage seems prettt grim definitely wouldn't advise with a cat mine would go crazy getting locked in a confined space they are different creatures

Noshowlomo · 26/01/2020 18:22

No. Definitely not

SpoonBlender · 26/01/2020 18:22

Cat psychology requires an escape routeat all times. A 'den' arrangement with a crate just won't work. The cat will hide behind the sofa or upstairs or up a set of shelves whatever.

Perhaps a wall-mounted bed well out of range of the others? But definitely no crate.

Wimpeyspread · 26/01/2020 18:30

In my experience, kittens are pretty good at finding their own safe spaces if necessary, but would get very upset at being imprisoned

Fluffycloudland77 · 26/01/2020 19:00

No I wouldn’t.

NewCatMummy · 26/01/2020 19:03

Ours go under the sofas or under our bed when they want to escape, they’d hate to be in a crate. Shycat spent most of her first month in one or the other!

PigletJohn · 26/01/2020 19:04

Don't lock the kitten up.

But provide a large cardboard box, with an entrance/exit at each end, and a soft blanket inside.

If you can allow the kitten to retreat to a room that the dog does not enter, especially until it has learned to bully the dog, it will feel more secure.

titchy · 26/01/2020 19:10

Dear god no - how to terrify a kitten Hmm Crate the dog and 8 year old if you can't trust them.

Chemenger · 26/01/2020 19:15

No, cats and kittens do not like feeling trapped.

Hoohaahoo · 26/01/2020 19:17

No. I can’t imagine a cat liking that at all

Provide plenty of high up spaces, cat towers etc for it to hide in.

BentNeckLady · 26/01/2020 19:20

That isn’t how cats work, at all.

FernBritanica · 26/01/2020 19:22

Get him a really tall, sturdy cat tree that he can climb up to hide from the dog.

SimonJT · 26/01/2020 19:22

Cats prefer finding their own safe space. We sometimes have doggy visitors, my cat has a cat tree in the living room and some cat shelves and a bridge that she escapes to when the dog visits. She also has a cat flap in my bedroom door so no one else can get in.

Whynosnowyet · 26/01/2020 19:23

Maybe get a budgie instead op..

Original poster
FoxRedBitch · 26/01/2020 19:38

To be fair it was only a thought.

It's more about giving him a safe space. The cover was to make it more secure.

I have bought him an igloo type bed and he will be in the kitchen on his own overnight.

OP posts:
OverthinkingThis · 26/01/2020 19:44

Kitten will feel safest up high where it can see danger without feeling cornered, so make sure there are places it can climb to out of reach of dog and child.

LynetteScavo · 26/01/2020 20:39

You can leave an open crate for a kitten if you like, but if you close the door it will be very scared.

My kittens hid in a cupboard with me a door that wouldn't close properly. I put a blanket in there so they were comfy. A cardboard box would be as good as a crate.

violetbunny · 26/01/2020 22:17

Sorry but this sounds like a horrific idea.

By all means make sure it has some "safe" spots to retreat to. One of our kittens loves sleeping in a box under the bed in the spare room. They also like being able to get up high, so we have a cat tower for them also. But I wouldn't lock them into such a small space.

We kept our two shut in the bathroom overnight the first night we got them at 15 weeks old, just to make sure they didn't get into mischief, but ever since then they've had free reign of the house and they've been fine.

violetbunny · 26/01/2020 22:19

Also... I've found with our two that they feel safest when they are not alone. They would hate being shut into a room alone every night. They would much rather be near us.