Are two kittens better than one?

[Meanoldlady]

We'd like to get a kitten. We already have a much loved cat and we were looking at rescuing an older cat but honestly I don't think he'd welcome them. He's tiny but can be a bit of a scrapper.

We think he might do better with a kitten, less threatening etc but kittens are naughty little buggers. We could accommodate a pair. Would they be happier together?

Yes! They will keep each other company.

Absolutely yes. You won’t regret it. HTH!

Yes - this was exactly what we did. Two brothers, when we had a 6 year old neutered male too (big soppy thing). The kittens did kitten stuff but the scrapping and play fighting was mostly with each other so that didn’t bother Big Cat so much. They accepted that he was top cat and they followed him around adoringly.
Now they’re 5, full grown and one is bigger than him but I swear they’ve kept him young - he runs around and gets the zoomies with them. They fight a little but not much and these days Big Cat grumps off and makes eyes at us before any fur flies. They all keep each other company, they go around together outside, it’s great.

Yes. They keep each other company and learn how to cat properly by playing with each other, also saving your soft furnishings.

They do tend to go off each other around the age of 2-3 so you can't guarantee they will remain bonded but just like with humans, the early years are really important and a human can't substitute for another cat.

Would they be less likely to cause our existing cat stress if they can just annoy each other?

Kittens are bloody adorable but I remember him being a little horror at times, he was SO naughty!

Kittens are always happier together, and you've already got a big boss to keep them in order. Sounds perfect to me!

I know this isn’t a cat but..... my friend has a dog and got a puppy. The puppy adored Dog, did everything to make him love them, but nothing, just growls and disdain. Friend was offered a second puppy (they live out in the wilds!) who instantly bonded with the first puppy. Dog suddenly decided to stop being an old grump and took to them and they are his adoring fans. They have definitely made him seem younger.

This could also well happen with your cat. And two kittens are so much fun!

Yes - we've always acquired kittens in pairs (except for the time we got 3 😁).
They keep each other (and us) amused brilliantly.

I wouldn't. I've namechanged for this. We believed the hype about cats accepting kittens. We went for it. Then we found ourselves with our beloved old cat fighting for their space against a kitten with no sense of danger or manners. This was a rescue kitten btw and they met our old cat and still pushed us towards this very lively solo kitten, The fosterer had thrown him in with their cats and encouraged us to do the same. The misery of seeing your loved cat stressed by your own foolishness cannot be stressed enough. Don't be us. I bitterly regret getting carried away with kittens in my eyes. Not only would I not bring a kitten in to the home I would think twice about using the rescue route. Had I used a reputable breeder I would have known more about personality and I would have a route for return. As it is I've got two poor desperate animals in isolation waiting for space because I am a huge fool. Don't be me.

If you’re busy people I would always get a pair as they’ll love each other and be great company, but they probably won’t be as close to you as a single cat.

I also introduced 2 rescue kittens to an old cat.

I won't lie, the old cat was not impressed.

But because there were 2 they spent more time with each other and mainly left her alone.

We did very slow introductions and always made it clear that old cat was the boss. And it worked. She even liked them by the end.