Got a cat...and I'm feeling nervous

[Mirabeladawer]

My DD (almost 5) was desperate for a cat. We are all animal lovers, I grew up with cats and dogs and I loved them dearly. But I grew up in the countryside, with lots of land around the house and the pets were independent and easy to look after.

Different situation now, we live in a suburban house with a small garden. I got a kitten today (half heartedly) but I thought DD will love it and it will be worth it.

Of course, it's only our first day, but house already stinks of cat food and cat wee as I suspect she's done something behind the furniture where she spent all day. She's not eaten or drank anything until late in the eve, she's crying non-stop...and my DD wasn't even so fussed about the kitten. We put it down to her being in a bit of a shock that's she's finally got a cat.

Overall a bit overwhelming for everyone.

Please tell me it gets better.

We don't have a cat flap and the cat will be mostly indoors with controlled outdoor play. I dread the mess and the smell in the house, it gives me severe anxiety.

Please be gentle, I just need some advice on how to adjust and what to expect.

Well, firstly you've broken the rule, which is that we have to see a pic of your kitty in order to offer advice. It's a cat tax.

You will be fine, it will all work out. It's very normal to have a panic at first, it's a known thing, it even has a name - 'pet regret'. It gets better!

I love cats. I have always had a wobble/nerves/anxiety for the first few days of having a new cat. It's all a bit overwhelming, the responsibility and the 'should I have done this?!'

Let your new kitten settle in, remember to use a soft gentle voice with her, let her come to you when she's ready. You'll soon have her falling asleep on your lap for gorgeous kitten cuddles.

As for dealing with poo etc. you get used to it and it's worth it for the cuddles! At first keep the kitten on whatever food it's used to, but a bit further on if you want to you can feed dry food, which results in less smell for sure. If feeding wet food, get the best quality food you can afford. Their poo smells so much worse on the cheaper range, ie supermarket stuff such as whiskas, felix etc. Obviously you need to phase any new food in slowly.

It will get better!
Kitten is in unfamiliar surroundings and away from her family and is just a scared baby right now.
Don't try and pick her up, speak softly and gently and just spend time in the same room. Read a book, look at your phone. Let her get used to how you smell and sound.
Do you have any wand type toys? Try for a little playtime to build rapport.
Food really affects the smell of the poop and kittens do have quite delicate guts but they generally get less smelly and better at using the tray as they get older. Try changing the food (gradually) to a higher meat content one.

Poor little baby. (The kitten, not your DD) Your DDs reaction is irrelevant at this point; following the excellent advice on this thread to settle the kitten should be your priority.

Sorry that sounded harsh! I'm sure it'll be fine. Have a look on the litter tray thread for more help!

Try posting in the litter tray section instead of chat, you will probably get better responses. And we do need a picture

How old is the kitten? Was it littertray trained? Are you feeding it the same food as the breeder?

Its nonstop crying is it crying for its mother/siblings, trying to locate them, its scared. Most breeders/rescues recommend leaving it in one room to settle. It needs quiet, food, water, tray, toys. Once its settled you can let it out to explore the rest of the house but the first room must remain its safe space. Some take an hour, some take a week. Let your kitten guide you.

Enjoy.

Buy Simple Solution to get rid of the smell of cat wee.

So is she is a quiet contained room with her food and litter tray? Get proper wood chip litter scoop it after every pee and poo. She will be scared and lonely. You must’ve known there would be smells!

The poor little blighter is freaked out being in a new situation. Will probably go to ground for a few days until it knows it is safe. Cats are fastidious in their cleanliness so long term not much to worry about on that front. Just play with it when it emerges, the best fun you can have!

Thank you so much for the useful advice.
She came in the morning to our beds, purring. DD is in love 😊

She did have a wee on the kitchen floor last night instead of the litter tray, so we need to train her.

I'll get back with more info/questions. I'll post in the litter tray section as suggested.

Cat tax 😁

She needs multiple trays at that age and they need to be somewhere quiet that she has easy access to.

I wouldn't give such a young kitten free range of the house yet - keep her in one room with her food, water and trays so she's safe.

She is beautiful 🐈

All the best with her. She will definitely be worth any initial settling in niggles.

I think you're meant to keep them in one room at first. We kept our two kittens in the bathroom for the first few weeks where they had easy access to a litter tray and it was easy for us to mop up any spills and keep things clean.
You need to train them to go in the litter tray. I assume you know this.

She's beautiful!

Does she know where her litter tray is? Have you used the same litter she had before? Have you tried holding her and making digging motions in it?

Most kittens come litter trained so this sounds like the main thing you need to sort out for her and you and your home!

Oh she's gorgeous!! Don't worry too much, it's early days, cats are usually very clean she's just finding her paws! She needs two litter trays ideally in a quiet place away from food and water bowls

I'd keep them in a smaller space, if they aren't using the litter tray I'd put several down with different options of litter until you find one they like.

This stuff works wonders for getting rid of urine smells.

https://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pets/simple-solution-stain-and-odour-remover-750ml?utmsource=google&utmmmedium=cpc&utmcampaign=googleeshopping&cmmmc=GoogleeCPCPC--%20googleeshopping--googleeshopping&ita=1976&ito=googleshopping&istCompanyId=7255ccad-a1fc-4729-af31-478f79e5071c&istFeedId=385e6b9a-8b03-4076-a8bb-e4737df8549c&istItemId=itxmxpmap&istBid=t&cqqsrc=googleads&cqqcmp=8964966848&cqterm=&cqqplac=&cqnet=g&cqqplt=gp&gclid=Cj0KCQjwmouZBhDSARIsALYcouoroSfHdAVOu042Pzo7CPgqq5iWW1nMoa9LyRbhj76w39sAe7tHGoaArwyEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Op I'm in exactly the same boat.
It's been nothing but stink and poo since we got ours..
It smells whole house out.

But we can't imagine life without her.

Once they are using the litter tray if you can slowly swap them to this litter it's the best I've personally found for stopping smells. It's expensive but you just need to scoop the lumps so a bag lasts us a month no problem.

Worlds Best Cat Litter 28lb (12.7kg) Multiple Cat Unscented amzn.eu/gEYLDY1

Also make sure you use the urine destroyer spray wherever they have already urinated as they will go back to where they can smell it.

We kept her last night in the dining room with the door shut. There is no door between dining and the kitchen so she used both rooms. Everything was there, litter tray, food, water and an igloo bed which she surprisingly used.

Your kitten will settle in in the next few days and stop the crying, will learn to use litter tray properly (cats are very clean animals so it's in their nature to want to use a tray and cover their business). I'm sure you will fall in love with him/her soon and wonder why you ever worried. It's just early days!

DD is beside herself this morning.

Thank you so much for all the brilliant advice. I'm sure we will get there slowly.

l always find it alot easier to take kittens in pairs, it is a huge shock for them being seperated from their Mum and litter mates, they love to snuggle, and play together, stops them getting bored and relying on you. l currently have 3 kittens, the smell isnt a problem if you keep on top of the litter trays, as soon as they have finished eating l remove the bowls, l feed mine little and often. l have also bought them a huge cat tower/ tree off Amazon which they all love. Mine will be outdoor cats once older and fully vaccined and microchipped.

For poos that don't smell look into balanced raw feeding.

One of my girls eats this and her poop only smells when she gets into her sisters Royal Canin.

Yes, I agree with you. I'd have taken her brother too. But I think the family they belonged to weren't ready to give away more than one at a time, their DD was in total distress, she loved them.

Can I see a pic of the cat tower you got? DH doesn't agree with buying one, but I think it might be very useful.

You could still introduce a second kitten. If the family you got yours from still has more to re-home? The little girl might find some comfort in knowing they have each other for company.
Two kittens is easier than one as they play with each other..
We have always had kittens in pairs, our previous 2 were a month apart in coming home but because firm friends. Current 2 young adults are sisters and are besties 95% of the time and play horribly roughly the other 5%!