New kitten - should we have 1 or 2?

[Tamuchly]

For background, we have just said goodbye to our 12 year old cat. He was a bit of a curmudgeon, not keen on fuss, mainly did his own thing. He did keep getting beaten up by the local tom which led to him spending lots of time at home. Our other cat is female, feisty but friendly. Still very spritely at 11 years old, great relationships with the kids particularly my teenage son.

Yesterday we put a deposit on a female kitten, she will join us mid-May. When we visited, I fell in love with her brother but, being sensible, we can’t have him because of the tom.

Now I’m wondering, is the new kitten going to be a massive pain to our girl? Should we get the brother too so they can entertain each other? Would it be a massive risk to have the boy knowing what the tom is like?

I’m open to getting another girl kitten from elsewhere but that boy really stole my heart. Any advice very welcome!

Well, sorry for the delay - this is my beautiful boy who is very much a baby, his more adventurous sister is harder to photograph but I will keep trying! They are having their first injections tomorrow, can’t believe we’ve had them over a week as they’ve made themselves so at home. Resident cat not bothered about the female (will eat near her but have nothing else to do with her) but has done lots of hissing and really seems not to like the male. Hoping she will come around as it’s still early days, she’s currently camped out on my bed glaring at anyone that disturbs her.

…and our lovely little girl aka Nortie Tortie!

Oh they're beautiful.
We took 3 from same litter, 2 girls and 1 boy, and whilst they romped and slept together, one girl would NOT share a litter tray with her brother. She'd pee outside it, on the puppy pads we learned to keep down. The moment he was neutered, she was happy to share. Clearly, boy kittens STINK to some female cats. I suspect it may be that way with yours.

Awwwwwwww!!! So sweet!! 💞They're beautiful OP!

Yes your older cat will take awhile to come around!

Older girl will make you pay regardless 😼

The correct ratio for future reference is one per windowsill.

A couple more pics, just because…

Gorgeous

oh they are the sweetest!

I agree get 2 kittens at the same time. They will be companions for each other. I'd go for 2 females as Tom cats often attack other Tom cats even when neutered.

You may wish to read the full thread before posting. (And look at the kitten pictures 😺).