New kittens - where should they sleep?

[MissIndecisive2023]

Picked up 2 kittens today - 9 week brothers. They came from a rescue where they had only ever been together in 1 room - people would go in and feed/stroke them etc but not used to being cuddled on laps etc.

They suggested that when bringing them home I should keep them in 1 room to start with, which is fine, they have been in the lounge and happy enough scooting around, hiding behind the sofa and then coming up onto the sofa for cuddles and a nap.

Am I ok to shut them in here overnight too? They have a bed, litter tray, food, water etc so everything they need in here. Or should I bring them to my bedroom when I go to bed? Of course back in the rescue place they would have been in their little room, so I think I am overthinking this, but it's been a while since I've had kittens and feel like I've forgotten everything!

Photo coming when I am on my phone!

We used to leave our 2 kittens in the kitchen as it had a wipeable floor. It's an open plan kitchen/diner.

It depends on the kittens. If they cry about being shut in then I would suggest setting them up with you. They are babies.

We kept ours in the kitchen diner and we still shut them in there at night as otherwise they wake us up

Omg do not have them if your bedroom! We had to with our kitten to keep her apart from dcat and it was a nightmare - we got no sleep as she was tearing around all night and knocking things over! She also scratched Dh’s eye in bed and we had to go to an and e. No permanent damage but extremely painful.

1 room is ideal, cats tend to be slow to adapt to new places, so less overwhelming if only one room to get used to.

Current kitten lived in the living room for three weeks.
Two weeks shut in completely (we have an older cat)
One week shut in at night
We only gave him freedom of the house once he'd explored everywhere under supervision and was strong enough not to get stuck somewhere.

I'd keep them in the same room for a bit. You'll be tortured if you take them to your bedroom!

We've had multiple new cats/kittens over the years and the always get put in the bathroom overnight - obviously with the toilet lid closed

Kittens are messy - they get food everywhere and can have accidents so we always have them contained somewhere that's easy to clean, plus it means they're away from our resident cats.

With our latest kitten we kept him separately overnight (and while we were out) for about a fortnight and then he had free run of the downstairs with our older boys.

Definitely don't bring them into your bedroom as they will cause havoc- if necessary it'd make more sense for you to go to them. They may feel more secure being kept in one room initially.

Hard to advise without a photo of the kittens. I think you might have forgotten to post it.

When we got a kitten we were careful to shut him out of the bedroom so he got used to that.

Later we'd start letting him in at night, when we felt like it, and chucked him out when he was a pain.

Because he's used to being out in the rest of the house he's fine with it, if you start with them in with you, you'd be making problems for the future i think.

My kitten slept in my bedroom in a big crate for the first week or so. And then he slept in bed with me!

That’s what I was going to say!

it’s impossible to advise without photos.

You have two so they should be happiest left together in their normal environment. You need to pay the kitten photo tax though. It’s written into the mumsnet bylaws somewhere 🐱

Sorry phone was on charge so didn’t post the photo. Here are the little beauties 😍

Thanks for all the advice. The lounge has a wooden floor so easy clean - probably much better than having them in the bedroom which is carpet. As they are used to being in a room by themselves overnight I’m hoping they aren’t going to meow all night and keep us all awake - fingers crossed.

Really stupid question now - would you leave a light on for them? Will they be ok in the dark finding their way to the litter tray etc in a new place!?

Thanks for the tip about them only being in the rest of the house under supervision for now - that’s a good shout. I have already had to move a load of stuff out of the lounge as they can climb onto areas I didn’t think they would be able to and I hadn’t managed to make it as kitten proof as I thought I had!

They are so cute! I’d cuddle them all night. One in each pocket of my PJs.

They're adorable

They should be fine in the dark but we always left a low light on for new kittens just while they got their bearings.

Very cute, fine with light off.

They are very clearly saying they want to be in the big bed with mummy, so that's where I would bring them. Then again, I have 3 pets on my bed every night and no sleep so maybe don't listen to me!

They need to sleep on your pillow.

They're beautiful! 😍

Here's my two! 😁

I had my two (and our previous one) in the bedroom from the off as I deeply regretted leaving Ernie in the kitchen (under vets advice) and hearing his pitiful meows

They settled into a routine of sleeping at night quite well

Awe, they are absolutely beautiful op.

We got a kitten, very unexpectedly, on Christmas Eve. My older girl was two and had a very difficult time before she came to us. I was planning to take another similar aged cat but kitten needed a home and we had one to offer so she is here. Everything I know about kittens has been learned from Google in the last ten days! As well as dcat1 we have ddog, a Labrador, very loving but very big so for kittens safety I bought this This she has her litter tray, bed and food and water dishes inside and we shut her in overnight and during the day when we can’t supervise her. She is currently sound asleep in it with the front open so that she can come and go as she pleases. Dcat1 has a high cat tree and various climbing areas which kitten can access. I don’t think I could kitten proof the room enough to leave her loose overnight. Once she’s a bit bigger and the older pets are more used to her, I will leave her loose.

Good luck with your beautiful new babies. 🐈‍⬛🐈

Here is dkitten