Anxious about leaving my 3 month old kitten alone.

[Twentywisteria]

I got a kitten from a reliable breeder last Thursday. It's just me at home and I normally work Mon-Thurs 9-5, but have taken the week off to settle him in.

80% of the time I'm home, he follows me around. If he's asleep and I move, he's awake and following me.

I've left the home 1-2 hours per day and he doesn't seem distressed when I return. However he "lost" me in the flat briefly earlier and was crying plaintively, sounding really upset.

How do I go to work next week without feeling so guilty? 😕

Also - he's been fine today, weirdly. I've been in and out and he's a bit indifferent to me coming and going. Comes to the door to say "hi" and potters about with me, but he's begun sleeping in his cat tree when I'm at home and exploring without me. Think he's settled in his territory now.

I kind of miss the clingy stage now!

Beautiful kitty ❤️

Oh beautiful 😍 is he a maine coon?

Can you pop back at lunchtime? Poor kitty i think is going to be in for a rough few weeks without you!

Purebred Siberian :)

He's just asserting he's the boss....and letting you know you're his slave. He'll soon let his guard down and be a wee sook with his mummy.

When mine were small I used to leave them in one room with all their stuff. At least that way you'll know he will be safe and not getting into trouble if he is bored.

Absolutely stunning. He'll be so plush and cuddly. Super intelligent too.

Yeah he's clever. Has been eyeing up the tops of my doors and my kitchen cupboards since he got here - I guess that's the forest cat bit of him being even more into climbing than cats normally are. He's too small to reach but give him a month or so.. his dad is bloody enormous.

Was going to say his paws look massive! Have you looked on zooplus? They've a fab selection of xl cat trees, as he'll definitely be a climber. I'll attach a picture of what I've got.

That looks great! I met him at 8 weeks and he was still kitten sized, so I bought a small cat tree and it's not nearly enough for him. Guess he will need an upgrade.

Have a look on there, they've got ones that go floor to ceiling, it can be attached to the wall with brackets. Ancol fat boy is a great scratch post for big breeds as it's tall and fat so even if he takes a run at it, it won't topple over as its a good solid square base. Da bird tou on a wand and you'll see him fly through the air, supervised play only but a great interactive toy that he can catch.

Great tip - thanks.

I've got a flying bird toy with different kinds of attachments. I put it away in his toy box and only get it out during playtime. He loves leaping up for it. A bit too much. I have to use it in a carpeted room for safety!

Also got hundreds of fabric mice, different kinds of balls and stuff that I am fishing out from under the sofa every evening.

Welcome to being a cat mama 😂

Thanks. I used to be a cat fosterer and then a cat sitter at university, so I've waited a really long time to get my own and have always kept a mental list of things the other cats liked so I could get mine the right bits.

You know what you're doing. He's in good hands with you.....even if he does grow into a mini lion!

I predict he will grow up to be MASSIVE! He's lovely, OP. He'll soon adjust be being left. I worried about my first cat in the same way - so got another - I will never forget her outraged, betrayed-sounding yowl when the new cat first appeared! After several weeks of careful introduction they learned to tolerate each other but they were never really buddies.

Yep. As said before, my childhood cats were siblings and soon grew out of the "sleeping all cuddly together" phase and into the "boy beating up the timid girl" phase.

We also had a rescue cat living with the girl cat later on. Did all the correct introduction stuff. The rescue was totally traumatised and only calmed down when the other cat died. The boss cat was not impressed either.

I've also done cat sitting for quite a few dysfunctional multi-cat households, hence making this decision. It's lovely if they bond but very stressful if they don't.

I wouldn't worry about getting a companion kitten. Lions are the only truly sociable feline. Research generally shows that cats in multi-cat households are more stressed. You could get two that bond, but they might detest each other. I had a friend who thought his cat should have a companion, and it was always a total disaster, new cat had to be re-homed each time, and then well-meaning, slow learner that he was, he would try again with some other poor moggy! Your kitten will be fine. Leave it with some toys it can play with on its own.

He will be very bored and lonely. Older cats are fine on their own, but not at this young age. l have 3 kittens under 1 year, they are inseparable, and have always had more than one cat in 30 yrs of owning cats, never had any problems.
I feel very sorry for him.

I could equally say cats are naturally solitary and yours tolerate each other at best. And that having multiple cats is generally more for the benefit of the owner than the cats..

I feel sorry for yours.

There's no need to feel sorry for a cat who was clearly well-planned and is well-loved.

I've had solo kittens and paired ones and the solos have never ended up lonely or traumatised as a result

my Parents have a solo cat. She has never wanted to be near other cats. She has been tried with a super friendly relatives cat who came to stay when they went on holiday. Resident cat hid for the week!
I think litter mates are happy to be together we have a mother and kittens in our outbuildings (we feed them but can’t get close to them) and they are always snuggling up together.

What a load of rubbish, cats are not pack animals.

OP your boy is gorgeous and I'm sure you will give him a loving and happy home :)