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I found this tiny little kitten under a dumpster the other day. Took her to the vet and they estimate her to be 4 weeks of age. She still wobbles but is eating soft food. Getting her strength and health back.
My question is since I have a 7 year old male and a 2 year old male, when do you think I can introduce her to them and when would it be safe to leave her alone with them? Vet said she is clean and will get her shots in 3 weeks. One cat is 20 pounds and the other is 9 pounds, both fixed.
I am keeping her in a separate room for the next few weeks, but feel bad because I want her with me all the time. But my two guys are way too curious for their own good.
Any suggestions would be great. My two guys were much older when I adopted them from the pound. This little girl is a real baby and takes some adjusting. I want to dress her up in girl clothes....lol.....my world is surrounded by guys. She is a blessing!
I just want to start off by saying I'm not an expert of any kind I have 5 cats so I've had to introduce a few! As long as she has a clean bill of health and is disease free, you could start slowly introducing them. I would keep her in your lap or hands and let your boys approach you both on their terms and at their pace. Don't rush it. Rub her with a towel or shirt and let them sniff it. Then rub the towel on your boys and let her sniff. If you have the time, you could do this several times a day. Since she is so young and tiny I would not leave them alone unsupervised at all. My husband found a kitten at work and brought her home 3 years ago so it's still pretty fresh in my mind Our vet thought our little girl to be about 4 weeks also We kept her in a spare bedroom and I would bring her out several times a day so she could explore and interact with the others but always in my sight! We had 3 boys and 1 girl at the time, ranging from 12 pounds to 21 pounds.
Since your baby sounds small like ours was, I waited about 5 weeks before letting her stay out 24/7. It really depends on how they get along. I do think it is easier to introduce a kitten rather than an adult but that's just from my own experience. I'm sure someone elso will also give you some advice. There are lots of good people on here.
I know what you mean about getting a little girl I was out numbered at home with all the males, hubby included! Now my 2 girls rule the house and the boys
What a great thing you're doing for kitty! Good for you and enjoy your little girl
Your advice was very thoughtful. I am going to try that idea with the scent.
But even at the 4 weeks age under your supervision, your kitten would roam around the room with the other cats? But they seem so BIG compared to a 4 week old.
By the way, I forgot to ask the vet, how often should I feed her the soft food. I've been feeding her every 5 hours. Is that too much or can she go longer.
Sorry for the questions, I want to make sure I'm doing everything right. At the Vet I was so concerned about her health, HIV, etc...Which came back Negative!!!!!!
My kitten was a little older when I found her (8-9 weeks old), but here she is with my older cat a bit over two weeks after I found her. He accepted her (and another kitten that I got later) very well.
Please excuse all the stuff on my bed - you know how it is when cats decide to sleep on it before you've got it made up and still have stuff all over!
Yes she was very small and the other cats seemed like giants! Every cat is different but luckily for me she stayed in whatever room I was in. The first cat to give her attention was the 3 yr. old. He's a very sweet natured cat to begin with so it was easy with him. He wasn't nasty or mean with her, just very curious. They are best buds now! The other two males, who were 13 and eleven at the time were good with her, just not much interaction. Kind of an attitude of "been there, done that". The other female was 4 at the time and she hissed a lot! She's still quite a hisser today! She hisses at everyone, including me when I try to remove her from my side of the bed! She's a very snarky cat.
As for feeding instructions, I'm not sure. Mine all ate dry food, even the baby. I just left it out all day and she would eat when ever she wanted. I'm trying to transition them all to wet food now. It's better for them. There might be some nutrition and feeding instructions on the can. If Travler reads this she can give you a link to cat nutrition site. I don't know how to include a link! Or get my pictures on here.
When she was roaming around and the other cats came in I usually just stopped what I was doing and kept my eyes on them. If it looked like it might get nasty I would pick her up until the other cat left the room. It was a lot of work and took a lot of time but it was so worth it! She is such a doll baby and so loving.
I'm glad all of her tests came back negative. Good for her and you. I think that's the biggest battle right there! Have fun and don't stress too much.
I've shared several tales about such introductions from time to time on this forum. The last little one I took in was about 4 weeks old and had to be bottle fed for a few days, was in terrible shape physically with a horrible upper respiratory infection. I kept her in a separate room for a week until she could eat on her own and the antibiotics took effect but the rest of the family - a 15-20lb 10 year old Siamese, and two rescues aged 6 and 8 months respectively were all most curious.
I've forgotten how to post photos here but those I have are hilarious. The "baby" was too young to wash herself so I'd wash her off in the kitchen sink and put her out to dry and the two younger girls would take turns licking her off as she stumbled all over in the tropical sun. The older doyen wanted no part of anything at all.
The baby gained strength and quickly became a normal playful kitten and then all Hades broke loose. The baby got body-slammed and batted around by the two other youngsters and then the doyen got into the fray. This baby was being body-slammed left, right and center by the three girls and gave back as good as she got, going back for more when I was sure she was going to get crushed. I just left them to it. Been there done that so many times with both males and females over so many years and not once has any foundling rescue ever been hurt in the least.
The little one you have is healthy so just go ahead and let them work it out themselves. The two you have are going to go through a bit of initial hissing but they'll soon fall for the fact that the baby is a baby, she'll cow down to their superiority and win them over in no time because she's just not a challenge to them.
No "few weeks" in my opinion. It will all work out just fine. They really do work it out for themselves. Hope this helps. Cheers!
At 4 weeks of old, she should not be left with the older cats. Introductions should be taken slowly...and yes, scent is the key. Only allow her with the others when you can be present. She will need a "safe room", for those times when you can not be available. Not only are the larger cats a danger, but all those electrical wires, falls from couches, and other dangerous things that a quizzical kitten can get into. You can be sure there will be lots of hisses, some yowls and maybe even a swat or two on both parts...but for the most part, most cats will eventually accept a newcomer in to the group..especially a kitten. Good luck and keep us updated on the progress!
Did your vet mention anything about a milk supplement? It has been awhile since I've taken care of newborns but I do not remember them being weaned that early (not to mention that you don't know how much milk she received from mom.)
Ditto re: ShelbyGirl's post; I wouldn't leave them alone together just yet. Intros should be slow; if they accept her, then they can act as surrogates to some extent. But when you are not there, I would be cautious, even when everything seems fine between the kitten and older cats. Definitely have a separate room for her until she is big enough to manage herself with the older cats.
I found this tiny little kitten under a dumpster the other day. Took her to the vet and they estimate her to be 4 weeks of age. She still wobbles but is eating soft food. Getting her strength and health back.
My question is since I have a 7 year old male and a 2 year old male, when do you think I can introduce her to them and when would it be safe to leave her alone with them? Vet said she is clean and will get her shots in 3 weeks. One cat is 20 pounds and the other is 9 pounds, both fixed.
I am keeping her in a separate room for the next few weeks, but feel bad because I want her with me all the time. But my two guys are way too curious for their own good.
Any suggestions would be great. My two guys were much older when I adopted them from the pound. This little girl is a real baby and takes some adjusting. I want to dress her up in girl clothes....lol.....my world is surrounded by guys. She is a blessing!
God bless you for the love and the home you are giving this kitten!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I have 5 cats so I've had to introduce a few! As long as she has a clean bill of health and is disease free, you could start slowly introducing them. I would keep her in your lap or hands and let your boys approach you both on their terms and at their pace. Don't rush it. Rub her with a towel or shirt and let them sniff it. Then rub the towel on your boys and let her sniff. If you have the time, you could do this several times a day. Since she is so young and tiny I would not leave them alone unsupervised at all. My husband found a kitten at work and brought her home 3 years ago so it's still pretty fresh in my mind
Our vet thought our little girl to be about 4 weeks also
We kept her in a spare bedroom and I would bring her out several times a day so she could explore and interact with the others but always in my sight! We had 3 boys and 1 girl at the time, ranging from 12 pounds to 21 pounds.
